Symposium

Wednesday, May 19th from 11:00am to 12:00pm

Imagine you are going to teach a first-year seminar, semester-long class that looks critically at the information systems students will encounter in their research. What content would you like to cover in the syllabus? Problematic subject headings? Academia’s discouragement of non-traditional publishing? In this workshop, attendees will brainstorm what a syllabus could look like that discusses the creation, dissemination, and production of information in our socio-political environment as well as the power relations and structures at play that can limit access and exposure to a diversity of voices. Attendees will be encouraged to contribute examples, resources, and topics that they think would be of interest especially to college students. Attendees will walk away with critical examples and topics they can include in their instruction even if it’s only one a limited, one shot basis.

Presenters: Breanne Crumpton & Dusty Ross

Breanne Crumpton is the Information Literacy Librarian for the Humanities at Appalachian State University with liaison duties primarily to English and History. Her research interests include how to help students better navigate research through critical pedagogy and practice as well as incorporating inclusive teaching within the library instruction classroom.

During this short presentation, I will share my experience guiding teaching faculty through a 6 week discussion series designed to help introduce, illustrate, and apply the concepts of critical information literacy to their pedagogy. Some of the specific topics I will cover include: how the discussion series was designed and how participation was sought, the themes of each week and how materials were chosen, and the challenges to the overall program. I want to focus most on the ethos of our weekly conversations (from engaging with critical theory to designing assignments), feedback received, and make the case that teaching faculty should engage with the work of library workers and benefit from having the opportunity to learn together. This session will give participants ideas for how to host their own discussion series and provide access to a syllabus to adapt for their own workshops.

Presenter: Symphony Bruce

Symphony Bruce (she/her) is the Interim Business Librarian at American University. Influenced by her time teaching high school English, Symphony believes in the power of relationships and care in the ability to create powerful learning experiences. Her research interests include critical information literacy, care ethics in librarianship, and privacy literacy.