What the Teachers Are Teaching : How MLIS Programs Are Preparing Academic Librarians for Instructional Roles

Abstract

Given the nearly ubiquitous responsibility for instruction that accompanies academic reference positions, are future reference librarians exposed to the concept of information literacy (IL) in their required, core reference courses? How widespread are courses specific to IL instruction in master's of and information science (MLIS) programs and do the desired outcomes for MLIS information literacy instruction courses align with professional standards? Reference syllabi were analyzed to determine whether IL instruction was included as part of the course. Information literacy syllabi were analyzed against the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) Standards and Proficiencies for Instruction Librarians and Coordinators. Results show that two-thirds of students are exposed to the topic of information literacy instruction in reference classes. Based on the outcomes stated in the syllabi, those enrolled in a formal information literacy instruction course are exposed to a limited numbers of proficiencies; consequently, effort needs to be made to incorporate more of the proficiencies for instruction librarians to produce well-rounded advocates for information literacy. Introduction Libraries make significant investments in electronic information resources and associated technologies to provide users access to an ever expanding array of sources and services. Users must be able to successfully access, navigate and evaluate this plethora of information in order to make solid, informed choices about information needs; consequently, information literacy has risen to the forefront of many academic institutions' mission and goals in the past 35 years. Administrators, faculty, and librarians alike realize that successful graduates of higher education must also be savvy information users. Librarians have historically led this movement, pushing first for bibliographic or user instruction and then later for increased information literacy instruction across the college curriculum. The literature suggests many librarians have been woefully unprepared for their roles as teachers. Various authors have concurred with what Kilcullen stated in 1998: Teaching has become a fundamental responsibility for librarians. However, few librarians have had any formal coursework in teaching.1 Patterson and Howell noted that there are many people entering the and information science profession who have both education course work and experience as teachers, but many more have neither.2 The literature contends that master's of and information science (MLIS) programs should logically fill this gap. Even as recently as 2002, Dalrymple suggested that library schools need to bolster their efforts to ensure that students recognize the importance of teaching to librarians.3 Concurrent with this perceived lack of training, academic jobs requiring experience teaching information literacy (IL) rose. Anyone entering into public service librarianship can expect to have instruction as part of his or her job duties.4 MLIS programs seem the obvious place for instructional training. However, these programs have only recently embraced information literacy instruction as a standard part of their curriculum. A 2002 study found that a mere 19% of librarians received training in school while 84% of librarians actually learned to teach on the job.5 Encouragingly, in 2005, Pappert found 70.4% of MLIS programs offered some course in instruction,6 but few studies exist to determine what these courses cover, and if they correspond with current professional standards. This article examines the following questions: * Since reference is the traditional home of information literacy instruction, are students exposed to the concept of information literacy in required core reference courses? * Do the stated goals and outcomes for current information literacy instruction classes conform to recent Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) standards and proficiencies? …