Reference Class Learning Reflections

Introduction

In the last class session of the semester, my discussion group responded to the question, “A GSLIS student is thinking about taking this course and wants to know what to expect. What are the three most notable things they will learn or should expect from the class?” My classmates agreed with these suggested answers: 1. How to conduct the reference interview; 2. How to use excellent reference sources in print and online; and 3. Search strategies for best results. That summary encapsulates my own learning experience this semester.

Conducting the Reference Interview

The reference interview process follows many principles I had previously learned, that were refreshed by this course. I freely admit my bias but, in my mind, librarianship begins at the reference desk. This is why I signed up for this course early in my curriculum plan.

Our text is truly “a how-to-do-it manual for librarians”, as the publisher’s trademark states at the top of the cover. I plan to use this manual throughout my library career and refer back to it frequently. It is chock-full of examples, detailed instruction and step-by-step approaches on how to respond to patrons in reference transactions. I have already been putting that learning to use, but obviously more practice is needed to get it right.

The Readers’ Advisory situations are especially difficult for me. Upon hearing my first RA question in the library, I froze. I didn’t know the author, the genre or anything else, I was totally lost, and forgot to ask questions to get the patron to tell me those things. Instead, I thought maybe I should access a reference source (Novelist) and try to respond. By the time I got the application open and entered the author’s name, the patron lost interest in waiting for the “rookie librarian” to figure it out, and had moved on. Failure, in my first opportunity! Following the suggestions of Joyce Saricks, quoted in our text, I have reminded myself since this experience to be a better listener and get a conversation going with the patron that reveals interests. Saricks calls it having a fun conversation about books. What could be better than that? My next RA opportunities yielded better results.
Reference Sources

The source assignments were exceptionally well crafted to force me to use some sources I had never used before. While I retain a healthy admiration for Google and Wikipedia, I have learned that they are rarely the “perfect” sources for serious information-seeking. Learning about MedlinePlus, the Statistical Abstract for the United States, Books in Print, the Gale Learning Center resources has been a significant milestone for me. These are sources I had never used, certainly not online anyway, and this was a major revelation that so much detailed information is at our fingertips, on authoritative databases.

The assignments also took me to the physical collection in a way I had never experienced. I discovered new encyclopedias, such as the Gale medical encyclopedias, which were completely unknown to me previously. Also, I learned for the first time how to use certain Quotations and Dictionary sources, like the McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific and Technical terms. The diversity of encyclopedias was also a new experience. I had used large sets, like Britannica and Americana. Through the assignments, however, I was introduced to single or fewer volume encyclopedias that provided excellent articles on specific topics, such as The New Century Cyclopedia of Names, The Concise Encyclopedia of Psychology, The Columbia Encyclopedia and several others including the print editions of some of the online sources mentioned in the previous paragraph.

The geographic sources were used in a more in-depth manner than I had ever experienced. In particular, I found the CIA Factbook and The Columbia Gazetteer very useful.

Search Strategies

A third key lesson for me this semester was learning how to combine terms to make a database search effective and efficient. Through the Campbell and Fyfe article, I also learned that teaching others how to use the available information tools goes hand-in-hand with reference desk work. Knowing how to search is good, but knowing how to teach others how to search is even better.

This class has helped me to understand the importance of teaching during sort interactions, like using the OPAC or a database to find information. This is the very point of taking this class. For me, it is all about helping others become “information literate”. The information is available, but only if one knows how to retrieve it.

Further, I have learned to keep searching until the question is completely answered. An additional source may provide information not found in the first source. “Special topic” sources may give insights not available elsewhere, but still not contain the broad view of a more general source. At times, both are needed. It is also important to keep searching and verify the information in multiple sources in order to avoid biased or dated information.

Conclusion

Articles and statements from several contributing authors of the many works assigned for reading this semester, such as Catherine Ross and Marie Radford, have encouraged me that the future remains bright for reference librarians. They have eloquently articulated the point that information seekers will continue to need assistance and that the librarians who learn the basic techniques and skills and who are open to adopting new technology and methods, will be preeminently positioned to offer that assistance. It is exciting to hear experienced veterans express such enthusiasm for the profession and instills in me a deeper desire to be a part of it. I feel that my decision to take this reference class at the start of my study of Library and Information Sciences has been validated as an excellent choice, and I would encourage others with similar goals to do the same. In the spirit of Billie Walker at Penn State University (Radford article), I expect to enjoy being a “library dude” on campus someday!


Cited Works:

Ross, Catherine Sheldrick, Kristi Nilsen and Dewdney. Conducting the Reference Interview: A How-To-Do-It Manual for Librarians. New York: Neal-Schuman, 2009.

Campbell, Susan and Debbie Fyfe. “Teaching at the Computer: Best practices for One-on-One Instructions in Reference.” Feliciter 1 (2002): 26-8

Radford, Marie L. “A Personal Choice: Reference Service Excellence.” Reference & User Services Quarterly 48:2 (Winter 2008): 108-15.

Final Project

Group Assignment: Your information organization has received a grant to develop a small collection. All of the items in the collection will be of a single genre (Rare Books in our case). You will post the URL containing your report that explores the important issues and approaches to dealing with this collection.

And, here it is: The Corporis Humani Digital Collection

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