Joy Weese Moll

7381 Practicum in Information Agencies

Supervisor: Barbara Rehkop, Government Publications Librarian

 

On Becoming a Librarian

Barbara Rehkop and other staff at Washington University’s Olin Library welcomed me into the world of libraries by hosting my practicum. This practicum focused on bibliographic instruction and government depository library operations, but allowed for a variety of other experiences, some planned and some spontaneous. My comfort level with the inner workings of a library grew with each experience so that, now, at the end, I am convinced that I belong in a library.

Bibliographic Instruction

Through a variety of opportunities to observe, assist, and teach bibliographic instruction sessions, I developed my teaching skills and style for both classroom instruction and one-on-one reference interactions.

I observed many bibliographic sessions taught by a variety of librarians, learning from them how to organize the material in a coherent way and how to choose and prepare example searches that model good techniques for students.  When it was my turn to teach, I relied on their outlines and created similar examples based on the student topics in my sessions. I kept myself organized and on-track with a mind-map, a one-page visual outline with all the examples. I conquered nervousness by tapping into my enthusiasm.

Most of the bibliographic sessions that I attended included at least twenty minutes of one-on-one interactions with the students. These seemed very helpful to the students and allowed me to hone my reference skills. I experienced a number of “firsts”—first time I successfully assisted a student in finding the initial relevant material on her topic, first time I helped a student who was not sure he wanted to be helped, first time I found resources for a student who had a topic I knew absolutely nothing about before I talked to him.

On a higher level of abstraction, I also learned from my practicum about the issues surrounding bibliographic instruction. I witnessed some of the planning and design work by attending a meeting and took part in a number of conversations about what worked, what did not, what had been tried before, and what future improvements could be made.

Depository Library Operations

A Federal Depository Library has responsibilities for the material deposited and to the patrons who use the material. These include processing documents promptly as they arrive, keeping track of the documents (which remain government property), and providing public service comparable to service given to the users of other collections at the library.

Working with Barbara Hofmann in the serials department of Olin, I learned how to process government documents from the box to the shelf—including marking them as specified in the Instructions to Depository Libraries and checking that the catalog records are correct for each item. I did a pilot project to improve the shelving of pamphlets (in binders instead of in boxes), learning the special processes for weeding government documents when I found superseded pamphlets and learning to change catalog records to reflect the new location.

During my practicum, Olin Library provided public service related to government documents in the form of discipline-specific bibliographic instruction classes and reference. I was able to attend programs about legislative histories for Masters of Social Work students, sessions about world government materials for Comparative Politics students, and a session about government documents that apply to African-American studies. I also assisted with sessions for students that were working on papers about presidential rhetoric. Barbara Rehkop often told me about specific reference questions she was working on which will be helpful when I am fielding similar questions on my own.

Beyond the day-to-day operations of a Federal Depository Library, I was also able to learn about the breadth and depth of the collection as the library plans a celebratory exhibit for its 100^th anniversary as a depository. This was all tied into the long-range planning by Olin Library’s government documents staff as they move into an increasingly electronic information environment but continue to want to preserve the legacy print collection of government documents.

Other Experiences

During my practicum, I was welcomed into meetings, large and small, where I learned about the behind-the-scenes operation of a library. I took tours of everything from the law library to the approval room, where I learned about the activities from the librarians involved. All of these experiences with librarians and students contributed to taking me to a new level in my development. At the end of the practicum, I find that I am no longer thinking of myself as just a student, but now identify myself as a librarian.