The Way I See It

Toccara D. Porter

Advocating for students through encouragement

Communication on a human level

Toccara D. Porter is digital reference and interlibrary services librarian at Tennessee State University’s Brown-Daniel Library, email: tporter23@yahoo.com

© 2019 Toccara D. Porter

Don’t give up.” “You’ve got this!” The manner in which we communicate with students is not always measurable when assessing a librarian’s performance. Nevertheless, honesty and encouragement factor into how I communicate with students during library instruction. This essay details an approach that I have used in eight years of teaching information literacy sessions to advocate for and talk with students on a human level.

Advocacy

Advocating for students is part of the evolving responsibility of librarians in the millennium. In the context of library instruction, advocacy is a natural effect of the interactions we have with students in showing them how to find credible sources. The dominant trend of assessment in libraries has influenced how librarians advocate, particularly with a focus on outcomes that clearly enumerate to stakeholders how students benefit from having access to librarians.1-4

Administering pre-and-post tests showing how students who received instruction performed and linking information literacy participation to graded course assignments are examples of quantifiable forms of student advocacy. Test results, the number of classes taught, and student attendance represent tangible data. Pairing that type of advocacy to assessment initiatives can make a strong case that librarians are needed despite budget concerns. But the interaction librarians have with students is not always about analytics. It becomes situational. Librarians must do what the moment calls for whether the action is measurable or not.

The way librarians talk to students

The early years of training as a diversity resident librarian taught me that the most practical way to advocate for students is to partner with the professor. When professors speak highly of the library, their words impact how their students use the library. Similarly, the way librarians talk to students can empower them to be assertive in the information-seeking process.

For example, when teaching, I emphasize to students that “My job is to show you where and how to find credible sources. But the final decision on which sources you choose to use is up to you.” As we continue searching and students are asked to give input on the relevance of articles found, their responses are in the affirmative: “Yes, that looks good” or “No, not that one.” Sometimes multiple students will chime in, even if the subject is not related to their own topics.

Students taking ownership of the source selection process and using the power of their voice is a great thing to witness. This point touches on the value of democratic learning setups, where the instructional design approach is balanced for students to actively participate without concern for reprisal. Students are urged to ask questions, make mistakes, work collaboratively, and form opinions independent of the instructor. Library instruction is a way to have such moments with students.

Encourage students

Librarians are in a unique position to uplift students. We understand and have experienced the range of emotions had by students during the information-seeking process: including uncertainty, anxiety, and doubt.5-7 But we also know strategies for successfully making it over to the other side of a journey that begins with selecting a topic, performing an array of searches, evaluating content clues, and finding credible information.

Beyond the instructional guidance we provide, it is okay to speak words of encouragement. That is, to incorporate soft skills approaches with hard skills training. Being a teaching librarian does not mean we must instruct a student to do something. Instead, what may be needed are words of encouragement, praise, or reassurance. For instance, when a student shows me a draft of their paper, I can sense when there is a need for an authority figure to provide affirmation. In these moments I typically say, “You’ve got this!”

There are also times when I see a student from a previous session and will follow-up about the progress of a paper. For example, one student wanted to write about fashion consciousness and body awareness. When early searches did not produce relevant sources, she talked of changing the topic.

My suggestion was that she take more time to perform an exhaustive literature search before making a final decision because of her enthusiasm in discussing the topic. I communicated that I supported her decision either way. The point is when a student displays excitement about a subject, find ways to root for the student to not give up.

Why encouragement is needed

Being a student represents a special journey that brings adversity from meeting course requirements to coming into one’s own independence. Librarians cannot be the balm for all the wrinkles that mark students’ lives, but we can let them know they are not alone in the academic community. In a way, the instructional guidance that librarians perform is similar to coaching.

Micki Holliday states, “A coach, by definition, helps workers grow and improve their job performance by providing suggestions and encouragement.”8 Librarians do this by working with student groups that include athletes and helping them apply the principles of library and research concepts to their assignments.

And, like a coach, my role is to share knowledge with students, outwardly express belief in students’ abilities, and hope from the sidelines that the instruction will be useful. Hence, when wrapping up a session, my comments to students are intentional. “Don’t give up.” “You can do it!” “If I don’t see you again, best wishes to you all for success the rest of the semester.” These comments serve to remind students of their potential for success in academia.

Conclusion

Encouragement can help students mentally stay persistent in completing the task that is ahead. This stance is appropriate within academia, where students are driven to maintain constant activity from completing the next assignment, enrolling in the next class, etc. In all these things, we must not forget the human element. With everything that students are asked to do, librarians must tell students that we believe in their ability to do the work, not waiting until they reach the mountaintop, but voicing the sentiments throughout their uphill climb.

Notes

1. Debra E. Kachel, “School Librarians as Equity Warriors: Advocating for All Students,” Teacher Librarian 46, no. 2 (December 2018): 44–46.
2. Judi Moreillon, “Building Collaborative Relationships with Students,” School Library Monthly 31, no. 5 (2015): 27–28.
3. Debra Kay Logan, “Putting Students First,” American Libraries 39, no. 4 (January/February 2008): 56–59.
4. Mark Ray, “Aiming Higher for Successful Advocacy,” Teacher Librarian 41, no. 5 (June 2014): 61–62.
5. Barbara Wildemuth, “Library Anxiety Impedes College Students’ Library Use, but May Be Alleviated Through Improved Bibliographic Instruction,” Evidence Based Library & Information Practice 12, no. 4 (2017): 275–80.
6. Erin L. McAfee, “Shame: The Emotional Basis of Library Anxiety,” College & Research Libraries 79, no. 2 (March 2018): 237–56.
7. Alison Cleveland, “Library Anxiety: A Decade of Empirical Research,” Library Review 53, no. 3 (2004): 177–85.
8. Micki Holliday, Coaching, Mentoring and Managing: Breakthrough Strategies to Solve Performance Problems and Build Winning Teams, 2nd. ed. (Franklin Lakes, New Jersey: Career Press, 2001), x.