Presented at LILAC 2019 - LILAC Closing Panel

1. This could get messy:
Critical library pedagogy in practice

2. Integrating critical
information literacy into
continuing professional
development for healthcare
workers
YiWen Hon

3. Good news/Bad news.
Good news: it’s Christmas morning.
Bad news: I have to work on labour ward.
Worse news: my phone goes off. It’s my registrar. I didn’t set my
alarm and now they’re wondering where the hell I am.
Even worse news: I’m asleep in my car. It takes me a while to
establish where I am or why.
Good news: it seems I fell asleep after my shift last night and I’m
already at work, in the hospital car park.
- Adam Kay, This is going to hurt (2017)

4. Healthcare professionals’ opportunities to
engage with information literacy are hampered
by lack of time and an emphasis on efficiency
(Cook et al, 2013).
Is there space for critical approaches to
information literacy in this restrictive context?

5. Incorporating criticality into the teaching of
literature searching for
systematic reviews

6. “The focus is on critical thinking skills and how
they can be deployed across any library platform,
no matter what the interface.” (Accardi, 2013)
Demonstrations are done on multiple databases to
show the transferability of key concepts.
In literature searching
workshops, I spend more
time focusing on the why
instead of the how.

7. Open-ended questions to
encourage critique and reflection
can also be inserted at various
points in the teaching
session.

8. Systematic review guidelines usually stipulate
that at least 2 or more databases should be
searched. It can cost several thousand pounds
for an organisation to purchase just one.
What is the impact of this on the research
landscape?

9. Promoting thinking on social justice issues in the
critical appraisal
of healthcare research

10. Participants are shown a newspaper
report on the journal article they have
critically appraised, and asked to reflect
on the portrayal of the research findings

11. References and resources
Accardi, M. T. (2013) Feminist pedagogy for library instruction. Sacramento, CA: Library Juice Press
Cook, D. A., Sorensen, K. J., Wilkinson, J. M., & Berger, R. A. (2013). Barriers and decisions when answering clinical questions at the
point of care: a grounded theory study. JAMA internal medicine, 173(21), 1962-1969.
Cavanagh, A., Vanstone, M., & Ritz, S. (2019). Problems of problem-based learning: Towards transformative critical pedagogy in
medical education. Perspectives on medical education, 8(1), 38-42 https://doi.org/10.1007/s40037-018-0489-7
Fritch, M. E. (2018). Teaching as a Political Act: Critical Pedagogy in Library Instruction. Educational Considerations, 44(1), 3.
Kay, A. (2017) This is going to hurt: Secret diaries of a junior doctor. London: Picador
Images:
Opened Glass Window by Alessio Cesario on Pexels https://www.pexels.com/photo/opened-glass-window-1906795/
Perspective by Anika Huizinga on Unsplash
https://unsplash.com/photos/RmzR87vTiYw?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText

12. Autocrat to Conductor;
Embracing student autonomy in
the classroom.
Darren Flynn
Academic Liaison Librarian (Allied Health)
Coventry University Library.

13. Context
1. Embedded librarianship
Control over content
2. Time to teach
3. Student-Teacher Relationship
Which leads to Banking Model
of Education (Freire 1970)

14. Developing Learner Autonomy in 11 simple(ish) ways

15. Lesson Planning
1. Write learning outcomes with potential for growth
Instead of “students will be able to…” try “this lesson should help you to....”
2. Be realistic in class outcomes
How do you expect students to feel after the class?
3. Be explicit on next steps
What do students need to do next?

16. Teacher Behaviour
4. Be an authority without being authoritarian
Try “this is how I do it” instead of “this is how to do it”
5. Embrace complexity and signpost it
6. Be a TV chef instead of a magician
Give context to what you’re doing and why

17. Transparency in the Classroom
7. Be honest about lesson content
What’s being taught, what isn’t, why?
8. Offer student-driven follow up in their prefered format
9. Be honest about your teaching choices
Why you’re teaching the way you’re teaching

18. Classroom Behaviour
10. Give autonomy in activities
Group, paired, individual
11. “Bake in” choice in lesson planning
Topic level (what shall we cover), activity level (how shall we do it),
running order (which order shall we do it)
Student prioritisation (should, could, would)

19. References
Freire, P., 1996. Pedagogy of the oppressed 2nd ed., London: Penguin.
Image Credits
Lego Dictator - ot1mo - Flickr (https://www.flickr.com/photos/ott1mo/4149118421/)
Lego Maestro - Bence Kádas - Flickr (https://www.flickr.com/photos/mylegocreations/7099662513/)
Lego Man Tied Up - Scott Collins - Pinterest (https://www.pinterest.com/pin/184295809727761688/)
Lego Link - Brick 101 - Flickr (https://www.flickr.com/photos/fallentomato/12126320463)
Lego Unicorn - d97jro - Pixabay (https://pixabay.com/photos/lego-unicorn-toy-671593/)
Lego Streaker - thom - Flikr (https://www.flickr.com/photos/minifig/2787744382)
Lego Punk - Brickset - Flickr (https://www.flickr.com/photos/brickset/46485135134)

20. Critical pedagogy at York St John University

21. Controversial Topics in Education
● The course
● My goals
● What I did
● Why?

24. Teaching critical
information literacy
in a library session
COM 442: Communication and
Social Change

25. COM 442: Communication and Social Change
• Learning goals:
– How authority is created and who is left out of that process
– The power and impact of information, given the above
– How bias manifests in search results and how we can
control/counteract this

26. COM 442: Communication and Social Change
Activities
• Discussion
• In-class activity: current event Google search, finding
alternative perspectives
– Source evaluation discussion: authority is constructed and
contextual
• Post-class assignment: choosing resources for a
library display

27. COM 442: Communication and Social Change

28. COM 442: Communication and Social Change
• Example searches demonstrating algorithm bias

29. COM 442: Communication and Social Change
• Common arguments in discussion
– Argument: The algorithm is just math, there’s only so much that
Google can control.
– Question: Are there examples of Google demonstrating control of
search results?

30. COM 442: Communication and Social Change
• Common arguments in discussion
– Argument: Google is just a company trying to make money in our
capitalist society.
– Question: Are there examples of other companies or industries that
we regulate? Why do we regulate them? Why can’t we do the same
with Google/the tech industry?

31. COM 442: Communication and Social Change
• Common arguments in discussion
– Argument: Who cares? Why should we care? Why is this important?
– Question: Do we agree with Noble that representation on Google is
important in terms of reflecting and therefore deepening social
values and helping people form opinions? If so, how could this be
harmful for some folks?

32. References
• Baer, Andrea. “It’s all relative? Post-truth rhetoric, relativism, and
teaching on ‘Authority as Constructed and Contextual.’” C&RL
News, vol. 79, no. 2, Feb. 2018, pp. 72-75.
• Noble, Safiya. Algorithms of oppression: How search engines
reinforce racism. New York University Press, 2018.
• Noble, Safiya. “Google Search: Hyper-visibility as a Means of
Rendering Black Women and Girls Invisible.” InVisible Culture,
no. 19, Oct. 2013, ivc.lib.rochester.edu/google-search-hyper-
visibility-as-a-means-of-rendering-black-women-and-girls-
invisible/
• Noble, Safiya. “How biased are our algorithms?” YouTube,
uploaded by TEDxTalks, 18 April 2014,
www.youtube.com/watch?v=UXuJ8yQf6dI

33. Please ask us questions!

34. Contact details
YiWen Hon
Knowledge Resources Manager
Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust
yiwen.hon@rmh.nhs.uk
@yiwen_h
Darren Flynn
Academic Liaison Librarian
Coventry University
ac6753@coventry.ac.uk
Clare McCluskey Dean
Academic Liaison Librarian
York St John University
c.mccluskey-dean@yorksj.ac.uk
@claremcdean
Sajni Lacey
Learning & Curriculum Support Librarian
University of British Columbia Oknaagan
sajni.lacey@ubc.ca
@LaceySajni
Elizabeth Brookbank
Associate Professor / Instruction Librarian
Western Oregon University
brookbanke@wou.edu
@elizabethbrookb