Library Partnerships: Working Together for Student Success

By Katherine McGivern

What began as a discussion between librarians at Bergen Community College about ways to better understand how high school students interact with their school libraries and how academic librarians might become involved, turned into a program where high school librarians visited Bergen to learn from one of the leading researchers in the field of school library engagement.

With a grant from the New Jersey Council of County Colleges, the Sidney Silverman Library at Bergen Community College hosted a half-day workshop for local high school librarians in December 2016.  Invited guest speaker Dr. Ross J. Todd, professor and chair of the Department of Library and Information Science at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, and Director of the Center for International Scholarship in School Libraries, engaged the group of about 25 librarians in a discussion about library practices that encourage student inquiry.

Todd, a renowned researcher into school libraries and student learning, spoke about the need for better assignments to help students engage in the world in a more thoughtful way. “The google generation” (2016), explained Todd, focuses on product construction rather than knowledge construction which gives them limited engagement with multiple perspectives, conflicting information, argument development and drawing conclusions; leading to higher order thinking and the creation of social and cultural agency. Todd and his colleague, Dr. Carol Kuhlthau, have researched and written extensively on the topic of guided inquiry and he explained the research and development of Kuhlthau’s “Design ecosystem for inquiry, innovation, creation, production: Focus on questions” (2012) where students become engaged and excited about a topic; develop background knowledge and explore the topic; choose a research question and focus; collect information, evaluate sources and take notes; use technology tools to create something that shows they have learned; communicate what they have learned; and finally, together with teachers and librarians, assess the learning outcomes and reflect on what needs to be done.

 Dr. Todd said students focus on “product construction rather than knowledge construction” in part because assignments specify sources or outcomes which limit student engagement with multiple perspectives, conflicting information and the development or arguments. He provided examples of assignments that require the “transportation of information” rather than the “transformation of information” and explained research into guided inquiry.

  • Write a 4 page paper and include a works cited page. Your works cited must include: 1 book, 2 research article, 1 .gov or .org website and a personal interview
  • Prepare a 10 minute presentation with a PowerPoint describing a historical event. Use your textbook as the first source and use the library databases for at least 3 other sources. No internet sources are allowed.   

 Attendees finished the session with information on resources and research to help them work within their own schools and school systems to encourage better use of information and inquiry. Todd recognized that many school librarians express frustration with a lack of resources, lack of interaction with classroom teachers and a shortage of time to actively engage in information literacy strategies but he encouraged them to not give up. Most importantly, he encouraged them to commit to keeping their schools reading. “Those that can’t read, can’t.” he repeated during the session.

A follow-up survey of attendees showed that most found the program and Todd engaging and relevant. Several respondents said they were implementing some of Todd’s recommendations right away and were interested in learning more about inquiry based learning. Several said they were eager to create self-help guides for students and in working from the ground up to build collaborative assignments with classroom teachers.

Bergen librarians created a LibGuide for the event which includes links to articles, Todd’s research and suggested resources. The guide can be found here- http://bergen.libguides.com/partnerships 

Kuhlthau, C. C., Maniotes, L. K., & Caspari, A. K. (2012). Guided Inquiry Design®: A Framework for Inquiry in Your School. New York: ABC-CLIO.

Todd, R. J. (2016). Students as authentic researchers: Resource-based inquiry, information literacy and evidence. Presented at Library partnerships: Working together for student success. Paramus, NJ.

Katherine McGivern is a Reference and Instruction Librarian at Bergen Community College.