Running Head: Information

Literacy Instruction Reflection

Teaching Information Literacy: A Reflection

Sarah Fetzer

University of North Carolina at Greensboro

Running Head: Information
Literacy Instruction Reflection
Running Head: Information
Literacy Instruction Reflection

Teaching Information Literacy: A Reflection

When I picture information literacy instruction or perform information literacy

instruction, I think of it in a very particular way. I think of the instruction as necessary. I think of
the instruction as an important component of life-long learning. I think of the instruction as a
public good. I have never before thought of information literacy instruction as being particularly
motivating or encouraging for the students who are receiving said instruction. Apparently, I have
been missing some of the most important aspects and benefits of information literacy instruction.
Mortimer and Wall’s “Motivating African-American Students Through Information
Literacy Instruction: Exploring the Link Between Encouragement and Academic Self-Concept”
(2009) argues primarily two things. The first is that the greatest predictor of the success of
African-American students is not their school environment. Nor is it their grades. It is actually
their academic self-concept or the way that they view themselves and their “abilities as an
individual and in comparison to other students.” (Mortimer and Wall, 2009, p.33). This academic
self-concept is highly influenced by the encouragement of faculty. This means that librarians
have a wonderful opportunity here to not only rework how they think about information literacy
instruction but also to rework how they present information literacy instruction to students.
Mortimer and Wall (2009) go on to suggest several changes to be made in order to take
advantage of this opportunity.
According to Mortimer and Wall, it is vital that librarians look to Carol Kuhlthau’s work
on the Information Search Process and its emphasis on the role of affect in the search process.
(2009, p.37) By accepting that the affect of the searcher plays a major role in the search process,
we as librarians can become more mindful of the need to validate the doubts and uncertainty
inherent to the process of research. By acknowledging how research makes the searcher feel and
the pitfalls contained within concepts such as searching, source validation, and topic refinement,
we act as an encouraging force to our students. We need to present what Mortimer and Wall call
“a unified voice of authority and encouragement.” (2009, p.38) This will mean two things to the
everyday instruction librarian. It means that librarians need to be viewed as observed by
Mortimer and Wall as equal to faculty members in the eyes of the students; this is something that
will only be achieved through collaboration with faculty members and close involvement with
areas of curriculum development either for students or for staff training. It also means that the
instruction librarians in any given institution must be committed to presenting a uniformly
encouraging front to their students. We must not be the gatekeeping librarians so popular in the
past but rather the stewards of information who are willing to guide students through all
available resources in their searches.
The other long-held view of mine that was challenged this week was the perceived
neutrality of libraries. I had always been slightly idealistic in my view of the neutrality of
libraries. I think I had always hoped that we leaned neutral-socially liberal more than anything
else. When I worked for the public library, I remember being disappointed that the library would
not embrace the #BlackLivesMatter movement. I remember being upset that our library never
Running Head: Information
Literacy Instruction Reflection

had a place marching in our city’s large and joyous LGBT+ Pride Parade. I remember being
angry that our library could or would not publicly come out against the discriminatory HB2 or at
least institute gender neutral restrooms. However, I also remember rationalizing these things by
telling myself that “the library cannot do these things because we have to remain neutral.”
Pashia has shown me in her 2017 article “Examining Structural Oppression as a
Component of Information Literacy: A Call for Librarians to Support #BlackLivesMatter
Through Our Teaching” that there are indeed ways that librarians can ensure that libraries do not
simply remain “neutral.” Pashia speaks specifically to the oppressive structures in society that
libraries help to perpetuate and gives librarians concrete examples of how to address those
structures (2017). I especially appreciated the breakdown given of “White Institutional Presence”
and exactly what that structure means for people of color. (Pashia, 2017, p. 88) I have absolutely
no sociological background whatsoever and often get bogged down and confused reading articles
about oppressive societal structures because I have trouble visualizing real-world examples due
to my ignorance of the either overly vague (society) or seemingly complex (structural inequity)
vocabulary. I certainly felt that here this was not a problem; thus, this article was far more
accessible to me and made me far more motivated to seek out additional readings, perspectives,
and information about the subject.
In terms of teaching information literacy, Pashia explains very thoroughly her process of
teaching a semester-long, 2 hour course about information literacy while continuously
incorporating elements that allow students to question authority, look at structural inequity, and
consider alternate forms of media. (2017, pp. 92-98). I was able to take note of practical
examples for adapting these long and involved lessons for stand-alone workshops that I could
very plausibly hold at my current institutions. One lesson in particular that stood out to me was
Pashia’s lesson about considering alternative media when seeking other perspectives than the
dominant scholarly narrative. (2017, p. 96) Pashia uses example of students turning initially to
news reporters covering a major event (riot, mob, shooting, etc.) and then encouraging the
students to also turn to the social media posts made during the event by those who were
experiencing said event. (2017, p. 96) I think this would be a great lesson to teach students about
what today’s primary sources look like as handwritten letters and journal continue to fall further
and further from favor. I also think this lesson presents the opportunity to have students fully
question the authority of their source but also the motivation of their source. Additionally, this is
a way to help students learn to evaluate the veracity of unusual sources.
Running Head: Information
Literacy Instruction Reflection

Works Cited
Mortimer, J.M. & Wall, A. (2009). Motivating african american students through information
literacy instruction: Exploring the link between encouragement and academic self-concept.
Reference Librarian, 50(1). Retrieved from: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1RDIhoWUIJJ-
MDKQPoEp3JnJ8AYrlIezg/view
Pashia, A. (2017). Examining structural oppression as a component of information literacy: A
call for librarians to support #BlackLivesMatter through our teaching. Journal of Information
Literacy, 11 (2). Retrieved from: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1zBuY--
skxPVRiKBRCIFhwDEuRIi_WqOX/view