[Libs-Or] does Oregon need reference librarians?

Wed Oct 3 13:09:35 PDT 2012

I think reference is still alive and well.  Granted it is changing and
evolving right along with libraries.  I'm not answering the same kinds 
of questions as I was 10 years ago but I am still answering a lot of 
them.  Also I think as budgets shrink, the luxury of a reference 
librarian (as only function) is going away.  Much more cross training 
now and more and more being packed into a job description.  But I do 
think it would be a shame to not expect librarians to perform reference 
work and know about sources.  It is a skill that can transfer to so many 
different things.  And we are still in the info business regardless of 
format so information literacy and passing that on is still very 
important.  My 2 cents.

On 10/03/2012 12:01 pm, Alan Cordle wrote:
> Hi,
>
> Back in the day (I attended library school part-time between 1993 and
> 1996), we not only had the required reference class, but for my 
> track,
> in academic reference, I had a humanities reference course and one in
> the social sciences as well. I could have taken one in the sciences,
> but didn't. I can't remember what others were offered. The classes
> were invaluable. Database-wise, we were limited to Dialog and maybe
> Lexis-Nexis if I remember correctly. 
>
> But what I loved, especially in my humanities class, was writing
> evaluations of print reference sources. I believe that library school
> faculty could create similar assignments for specialized databases
> that would serve students well. 
>
> Like Max, I believe that reference is best learned through
> experience. I really valued the time I learned from mentors at the
> reference desks where I've worked. I've also noticed that some newer
> librarians (is it generational?) think they know it all because they
> can type a keyword into a database. Good reference is about listening
> to patrons and observing colleagues.
>
> Thanks,
> Alan
>
> On Wed, Oct 3, 2012 at 11:38 AM, Max Macias  wrote:
>
>> Hi everyone, 
>>
>> I had a reference class, and it was alright.
>>
>> However, I really learned reference while working.
>>
>> It would have been grand to have a reference internship--I think
>> that would be the way to go for library schools.
>>
>> Max
>>
>> On Wed, Oct 3, 2012 at 11:36 AM, Katie Anderson wrote:
>>
>>> Reference is alive and well in youth services! Children and teens
>>> might not remember the details of an assignment, be embarrassed
>>> about the topic they want to learn more about, or know how to
>>> describe what they need in a way that makes sense to others. On
>>> top of that, they have wildly different reading and comprehension
>>> levels. Knowing reference interview techniques is critical to
>>> learning what kids and teens really need and identifying their
>>> reading/listening level all while respecting their ability level
>>> and privacy.
>>>
>>> Katie Anderson, Library Development Services
>>> * Youth Services Consultant * Oregon Center for the Book
>>> Coordinator *
>>> Oregon State Library, 250 Winter St. NE, Salem, OR 97301
>>> katie.anderson at state.or.us [9], 503-378-2528 [10]
>>>
>>> -------------------------
>>>
>>> FROM: libs-or-bounces at listsmart.osl.state.or.us [11]
>>> [libs-or-bounces at listsmart.osl.state.or.us [12]] on behalf of
>>> Emily Ford [fordemily at gmail.com [13]]
>>> SENT: Wednesday, October 03, 2012 10:28 AM
>>> TO: libs-or at listsmart.osl.state.or.us [14]
>>>
>>> SUBJECT: [Libs-Or] does Oregon need reference librarians?
>>>
>>> Caleb,
>>> I'm so glad that you posted to Libs-Or about this. I wanted to
>>> but was hesitant.
>>>
>>> I took a stand alone reference course in library school. Some of
>>> it seemed like busy work. But I go back to the I gained knowledge
>>> each time I get a tough reference question.
>>>
>>> But what was the greatest learning experience I had with
>>> reference as a student was spending 6 months serving as a
>>> reference intern and then as an employee in the trenches of adult
>>> services at Monroe County Public Library in Bloomington, IN. Had
>> I
>>> not had a course that covered the reference interview, reference
>>> transactions, etc, my first few months at the public library
>> would
>>> have been awful. The course I took prepared with the theory,
>> armed
>>> me with resources and techniques. Translating them into practice
>>> was fulfilling. How many students these days do reference
>>> internships? If they don't, how can a small portion of a class
>>> prepare them for a future job without course and/or reference "in
>>> the trenches" experiences?
>>>
>>> My take: we do need reference librarians and reference is not
>>> dead. It looks completely different, but it still happens. Sure,
>>> lots of L-Net questions I answer are about library accounts,
>>> fines, etc and lots of questions I answer at the PSU Library desk
>>> deal with printing in our computer lab. But would I have been
>> able
>>> to answer students questions about finding tests and measures or
>>> survey instruments without being a trained (in the classroom and
>>> in the trenches) reference librarian? Probably not.
>>>
>>> Maybe the problem is not that reference is dead, but that the
>>> traditional reference course curriculum is. How could a full on
>>> reference course capture the breadth of "traditional" reference
>>> practices and also what's happening with new technologies, new
>>> questions, and new literacies? There must be a way.
>>>
>>> Emily
>>>
>>> On Wed, Oct 3, 2012 at 10:01 AM, wrote:
>>>
>>>> Date: Tue, 2 Oct 2012 13:30:10 -0700
>>>> From: Caleb Tucker-Raymond
>>>> To: "libs-or at listsmart.osl.state.or.us [2]"
>>>>        
>>>> Subject: [Libs-Or] does Oregon need reference librarians?
>>>> Message-ID:
>>>>        
>>>> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
>>>>
>>>> Hi, everybody,
>>>>
>>>> As seen on the Hack Library School blog,
>>>>
>>>>
>>> http://hacklibschool.wordpress.com/2012/10/02/whither-reference/
>>>> [5], some
>>>> library schools are no longer offering a standalone course in
>>>> reference,
>>>> but instead making reference a smaller component of a larger
>>>> course. The
>>>> rationale is that "reference is dead".
>>>>
>>>> My first reaction was, "oh no! not again!"
>>>>
>>>> But I'm interested to start a discussion here because what
>>>> isn't mentioned
>>>> in this post is that the author is discussing Emporia State
>>>> University,
>>>> which, through the Oregon cohorts of the School of Library and
>>>> Information
>>>> Management, is our local library school.
>>>>
>>>> I attended Emporia's most recent local graduation this past
>>>> August, and I
>>>> got to hear some great speakers contemplate the future of
>>>> libraries. In
>>>> addition, I recall that both our state librarian, MaryKay
>>>> Dahlgreen, and
>>>> the then-president of the Oregon Library Association, Abigail
>>>> Elder, also
>>>> talked about how grateful we all are here in Oregon to have a
>>>> library
>>>> school bringing new professionals into our community. I'm
>>>> grateful also.
>>>>
>>>> Do we expect new professionals to begin their careers with
>>>> knowledge of
>>>> reference services and sources?
>>>>
>>>> To fuel my own curiosity, I looked at the past three months of
>>>> OLA Jobline
>>>> announcements shared with this list. Of 55 descriptions for
>>>> positions in
>>>> Oregon, 11 mentioned reference service specifically - 20%. I
>>>> didn't get
>>>> into which of those required an MLS, but from looking at the
>>>> titles, only
>>>> one is for "reference librarian":
>>>>
>>>> Archivist for Collections Management, Eugene, OR
>>>> Information Resources and Instructional Librarian, Coos Bay,
>>>> OR
>>>> Library Assistant/Branch Lead Worker, Beaverton, OR
>>>> Manager, Architecture and Allied Arts Library, Eugene, OR
>>>> Part-Time Librarian, Happy Valley, OR
>>>> Reference Assistant, Albany, OR
>>>> Reference Assistant, Tigard, OR
>>>> Reference Librarian, Grand Ronde, OR
>>>> Research/Catalog Librarian, Portland, OR
>>>> Special Collections Assoc., Portland, OR
>>>> Youth Services Associate, Prineville, OR
>>>>
>>>> I'm interested in hearing your perspective!
>>>>
>>>> Caleb Tucker-Raymond
>>>>
>>>> Statewide Reference Service Coordinator
>>>> Multnomah County Library
>>>> (503) 988-5438 [6]
>>>> calebt at multco.us [7]
>>>> www.oregonlibraries.net [8]
>>>
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>>
>> --
>> Max Macias
>> TSS Training Team
>> 971-722-8151 [20]
>>
>>
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> Links:
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> [1] mailto:calebt at multcolib.org
> [2] mailto:libs-or at listsmart.osl.state.or.us
> [3] mailto:Libs-Or at listsmart.osl.state.or.us
> [4] mailto:k4LiWFT%2BXh6ojW8Kx_i_048cX3A at mail.gmail.com
> [5] http://hacklibschool.wordpress.com/2012/10/02/whither-reference/
> [6] http://mail.cclsd.org/tel:%28503%29%20988-5438
> [7] mailto:calebt at multco.us
> [8] http://www.oregonlibraries.net
> [9] mailto:katie.anderson at state.or.us
> [10] http://mail.cclsd.org/tel:503-378-2528
> [11] mailto:libs-or-bounces at listsmart.osl.state.or.us
> [12] mailto:libs-or-bounces at listsmart.osl.state.or.us
> [13] mailto:fordemily at gmail.com
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> [19] mailto:katie.anderson at state.or.us
> [20] http://mail.cclsd.org/tel:971-722-8151
> [21] https://twitter.com/#%21/TSSTrainer
> [22] http://blogs.pcc.edu/tss-training/
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> [26] mailto:mmacias at pcc.edu