PREREQUISITES:
MAS students: Completion of the MAS Core courses, plus permission of the instructor.
MLIS and Dual students: Some electives can be taken in conjunction with the MLIS Core courses; consult with the MLIS Program Chair for recommendations.
GOAL:To build foundational knowledge and skills in the design and delivery of adult reference and information services to diverse community and patron groups in a range of library settings.
OBJECTIVES:
Upon completion of this course students will be able to:
- Explain the goals, scope and modes of delivery of information services in different types of libraries and organizational settings.
- Reflect on your own positionality and intersectionality in relation to the territory, history and community where your work is situated.
- Draw upon ethical principles and professional and personal values to guide and advocate for information service practices and decisions.
- Conduct reference interactions with sensitivity and respect, in face-to-face and virtual modalities, informed by evidence-based practices.
- Employ knowledge of information sources and collections to find, select and recommend materials to meet a range of information needs.
- Work effectively in a group to research, design and deliver an instructional session on a topic of interest within contemporary reference and information services.
- Create culturally and situationally appropriate information resources for a range of user groups with specialized needs.
CONTENT:
- Roles of libraries and library workers in diverse communities, contexts and types of organizations
- Indigenous reference and information services
- Ethical frameworks and values in information service work
- Professional codes of practice
- Access, intellectual freedom
- Cultural competency, accessibility, and anti-racism in information services
- Advocacy and relationality in information services
- Harm reduction and safety in information service settings
- Conducting reference and service interactions
- The information landscape
- Nature and purpose of information sources across domains
- Finding sources
- Selecting for quality and suitability in response to patron needs
- Information needs of individuals and communities
- Information service design principles and approaches
- Service models and delivery modes: face to face, virtual and asynchronous services
- Technological intermediation in information services
- Evaluation of information services
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