Twenty-fifth International Conference on Learning

Abstract

Traditional information literacy workshops delivered by librarians working in higher education often focus on providing rote demonstrations of academic databases; these showcase how students might access content to aid their research assignment, but this teaching fails to move beyond one-dimensional engagement, leaving little room for students to critically analyze the production and dissemination of knowledge at the sociocultural level. These traditional lesson plans hinder students from understanding their role in the research lifecycle at large. This session will highlight the ways in which librarians can deliver information literacy workshops that embrace “critical pedagogy” practices while actively empowering students to see themselves reflected in the knowledge creation process. This workshop will open with a role playing activity that puts the participants in a student mindset. They will work in small groups to create a collaborative zine, using pop culture frameworks, that delve into knowledge construction, power, authority, privilege, and access to information sources. Participants will then end with a think-pair-share activity, allowing them to leave with instructional design best practices and a list of concrete ideas on how to partner with librarians at their institution to deliver or support similar workshops.