LOEX-of-the-West 2010: Crossing Borders to Calgary

Citation

Bowler, M. and MacMillan, M. (2010), "LOEX-of-the-West 2010: Crossing Borders to Calgary", Reference Services Review, Vol. 38 No. 4. https://doi.org/10.1108/rsr.2010.24038daa.002

LOEX-of-the-West 2010: Crossing Borders to Calgary

Article Type: Guest editorial From: Reference Services Review, Volume 38, Issue 4

Librarians and others interested in information literacy instruction gathered in Calgary, Alberta from June 10-12, for LOEX-of-the-West 2010. Mount Royal University (MRU) was delighted to be the first Canadian host of the conference in its 16-year history. Participants took the theme of Crossing Borders, Expanding Frontiers to heart, many of them crossing international or provincial boundaries to join the dynamic, ongoing conversation that is LOEX-of-the-West. The spirit of the West was evident in the generous sharing of research results, teaching resources, and ideas by presenters and participants. Presenters extended this sharing beyond the conference through a donation made in their name to Room to Read1, in lieu of speaker gifts.

LOEX-of-the-West (LOTW) takes place every two years and was initiated to provide a Western complement to LOEX, but is not officially affiliated with the LOEX Clearinghouse for Library Instruction at the Eastern Michigan University Library2. From paper selection through registration to clean up, LOTW 2010 benefited from a strong contingent of volunteers both local and distant. All major academic libraries in the province, as well as several library associations, vendors, and publishers also provided much-appreciated support to the conference. The participants and speakers created a positive collaborative atmosphere that remained throughout the conference, from the chill mountain air of our first morning through to a glorious sunny Saturday afternoon.

The LOTW 2010 Planning Committee3, chaired by Meagan Bowler and Margy MacMillan, worked from the premise that conversations among professionals – whether in print, online, or face-to-face – are key to expanding the frontiers of information literacy instruction. To that end, the pre-conference workshop Getting Your Words Out, presented by Reference Services Review co-editors, Eleanor Mitchell and Sarah Barbara Watstein, was designed to help librarians take part in the formal conversations of our discipline. The workshop provided participants with an opportunity to consider their motivation(s) to publish and then navigate the process from idea through publication. Participants were also guided in the use of an environmental scan to identify what they might publish. Other interactive exercises facilitated understanding of the manuscript development process, including idea refinement, first draft development, manuscript revision, and cultivation of strong working relations with editors. The scholarly publishing process was described in detail, and participants were also advised on how to develop their own profiles within the profession through leveraging scholarly and creative activity. Feedback on the session indicated that participants found the workshop inspiring, illuminating, and intensely practical, and there were suggestions to include the material at future conferences and in MLIS curricula. The success of the workshop can also be seen in the number of papers submitted for publication.

Coffee breaks and social events throughout the conference were designed to encourage networking, and many presentations were based on and modeled effective collaborations. New to LOTW this year, the GIFTS (Great Ideas For Teaching Students) sessions prompted lively discussions. This format, a kind of academic speed dating, was borrowed from teaching conferences, where it is commonly used to enable numerous brief presentations on teaching tips and research notes. Each speaker presents an idea to a small group for ten minutes before the group moves on to the next speaker’s table to hear another idea.

With the theme of Crossing Borders, Expanding Frontiers, the conference drew papers that highlighted intriguing crossings and partnerships within and between institutions. Several presentations were given by librarians and their collaborators in other disciplines from journalism to history and physical education. Papers described work that bridged the K-12 to higher education gap, drew vendors into the collaborative process and crossed into student work outside of the education system. These collaborations modeled effective work across institutional and disciplinary boundaries, highlighting the common cause of information literacy as critical to success in today’s society, within and beyond academe.

The borders of information literacy itself were extended in sessions addressing different kinds of information and different kinds of literacies. Visual literacy, and the inclusion of materials such as DNA data and patents in library instruction sessions are part of the ongoing expansion of the territory librarians encompass in their work. The range of recipients of information literacy instruction is also widening; sessions on work that reach beyond typical first-year students to other populations, including ESL students, senior students and students with developmental delays were thought provoking and challenged librarians to reach beyond the typical first-year classes that receive the majority of library workshops.

The tools and techniques librarians have at their disposal is also evolving. From Second Life and Cephalonian methods4 to multimedia instruction modules, tools for synchronous communication that allow us to “teach in our pjs” and gaming platforms, librarians are using tools students are familiar with to engage them in information literacy. The tool set and information content are expanding while budget and time resources are shrinking, a theme evident in a number of sessions that touched on maximizing learning to make the most of face-to-face time with students, and seeking efficiency in the delivery of instruction through technology. Particularly noteworthy was the increasing use of LibGuides, both as teaching materials and as platforms for conference presentations.

New tools such as iPods, Facebook and other Web 2.0 technologies also formed the basis of presentations highlighting current research projects. These extended the conversation begun in the keynote speech by Dr Lisa Given of the School of Library and Information Studies at the University of Alberta. Her work exemplifies border crossing in many directions, and she described many paths to rewarding collaborative research projects. The examples Dr Given provided illustrated how information expertise can contribute to research across a variety of fields. The frontiers of research are also expanding into the scholarship of teaching and learning, which was the subject of a conference presentation exploring the intersections of this emerging discipline with information literacy instruction.

Other research brought the user perspective – whether student or faculty – into the conversation. This type of research helps librarians ground their work in what users really need, check assumptions, and develop the kind of productive, deep collaborations that led to sessions on embedded librarians, librarians involved in the curriculum planning process, and librarians co-presenting with partners in other disciplines.

The closing plenary, given by Carol Shepstone, MRU’s University Librarian, provided a perspective from beyond the borders of instruction, of someone relatively new to the information literacy conversation, drawing together the themes of collaboration, connection and conversation. At the end, participants were sent on their way with homework – to follow up on a connection made at the conference and to try at least one new idea sparked by something they had heard or done at LOTW 2010.

The complete program with links to most of the presentations is available on the conference web site at http://blogs.mtroyal.ca/lotw (accessed 5 August 2010). The site also has a collection of metaphors supplied by participants as resources for explaining various aspects of information literacy,

The local flavor, always a strong point of LOTW conferences was evident in the warm Western welcome, and a Stampede-style pancake breakfast complete with bandanas for everyone on Saturday morning. This local tradition, usually held daily during the ten days of the Calgary Stampede invokes the old west with a chuck wagon-style breakfast of pancakes and sausages rounded out by country music, and western décor. The conference banquet was held in the heritage building of the Calgary Chamber of Commerce. Conference participants enjoyed the delights of downtown Calgary before and after the meal, and some rounded off their conference with a day or two in the Canadian Rockies. Mount Royal University facilities provided a functional, beautiful setting for the conference, augmented at times by local fauna; the Arctic hares were particular favorites of those who stayed in residence. Hosting the conference in Calgary, across the border from all previous LOTW meetings, provided the basis for the theme of crossing boundaries. However participants found more similarities than differences across disciplinary, institutional, or national borderlines. Many participants crossed a number of boundaries to come to LOTW 2010. In additional to a sizeable Calgary and Alberta contingent, librarians came from six other provinces, 30 states, Scotland, Wales and Qatar. Among the 180 participants there were a balance of LOTW old-timers and first-timers, ensuring the conversations will continue.

A post-conference survey underscored the many positive comments heard throughout the sessions and social events. Participants were excited to try new things based on what they heard, to expand their own frontiers with new tools and techniques and to carry on the conversations about teaching and learning both formally in the literature and through the many ways we have of staying in touch. Many cannot wait to get together again in Burbank, California at the next LOEX-of-the-West, June 2012. For more information, contact: Nedra Peterson – Nedra.Peterson@woodbury.edu

The call for papers from the conference for possible publication in Reference Services Review generated a tremendous response. In fact with so many papers, publication will be spread over two issues of RSR. In this issue you will find articles that highlight collaborative work, and research on the student perspective. There is also an article by Bergart, outlining a method for encouraging creativity in the work of librarians presented at the conference by D’Elia and Oldham. The next issue of RSR will include more papers on collaborations and solo projects that illuminate new technology, new content, and new audiences for information literacy instruction.

The papers on collaboration describe a range of partnerships. Miller’s article provides information on a program where librarians work with faculty to align and achieve information literacy goals. Henrich describes partnering with athletic and media production departments to develop engaging orientation and instruction materials. Another case study is provided by Perusso Brown and Wilson whose classroom work evolved into a department-wide formal assessment of information literacy. Stanfield and Palmer provide information on a collaboration of a different kind, using student assistants to improve service delivery in an information commons. Hicks and Graber’s work discusses collaboration with faculty as one aspect of effectively integrating Web 2.0 technologies into instruction, providing an excellent link between current literature and possibilities for practice.

Also in this issue, three papers describe efforts to better understand student needs, research processes and attributes with a view to improving services and instruction. Knight, Hight and Polfer’s work introduces data from three campuses on the place of the library in the lives of international students, and describes how the libraries have used this information to improve services. Mizrachi provides preliminary results of a deep investigation of students’ information behaviors, from their evaluation of websites to their use of laptops. Klentzin explores student motivations and attitudes to research, providing suggestions for improving the efficacy of instruction by attending to affective factors.

Notes

1. 1.

   Room to Read, available at: www.roomtoread.org (accessed 9 August 2010).

2. 2.

   The Library Orientation Exchange (LOEX) was established in 1971 as a clearinghouse of information on library instruction and information literacy. More information is available at: www.emich.edu/public/loex/loex.html (accessed 9 August 2010).

3. 3.

   The Planning Committee comprised: Co-Chairs: Meagan Bowler and Margy MacMillan – Mount Royal University (MRU); Program Chair: Nancy Goebel- Augustana Campus, University of Alberta; Hospitality Honcho, Michelle Sinotte – MRU; Accommodations Arranger and Attractions Guru: Katharine Barrette – MRU; Registration Ropers: Pearl Herscovitch and Janet Monteith – MRU; Technology Titan: Geoff Owens – MRU; Volunteers Wrangler and Program Artiste: Cari Merkley – MRU; Sponsorships and Donations Rainmaker: Arden Matheson – University of Calgary Emerita.

4. 4.

   The Cephalonian method was first introduced to the LOEX-of-the-West Conference in 2008 by Nigel Morgan. For more information please see the article he wrote with Linda Davies for the Summer/Autumn 2004 SCONUL Newsletter, “Innovative library induction – introducing the ‘Cephalonian Method’”, available at: www.sconul.ac.uk/publications/newsletter/32/2.rtf (accessed 9 August, 2010).

Meagan Bowler, Margy MacMillanMount Royal University, Calgary, Alberta, Canada

Corresponding author

Margy MacMillan can be contacted at: margymace@gmail.com