Inclusion & Education Librarian Middle Tennessee State University
Through a simple Google Search, one might infer that Readers’ Advisory is only a public library service, but two academic librarians want to challenge that dialogue. Given the societal landscape of polarizing rhetoric, students must see a library’s collective resources of history, literature, and social change to develop their understanding of today’s times.
As instructional academic librarians, we preach that our role is to teach information literacy. But what does it truly mean to be an information literacy educator? It starts with teaching students how to think, not what to think. And through relational teaching and care, we want to value the WHOLE person. But given limited classroom time, how do we connect with students? Well, start with, where are the students…in the Library!
Through informative pop-up exhibits highlighting books, media, and other free information related to current events, two academic librarians engage with their populations to inspire critical thinking. These exhibits are set up to challenge students not to believe and regurgitate someone else’s rhetoric but to review the wealth of information available and develop their own opinion.
This poster will highlight ways in which readers’ advisory exhibits can impact the people of academic libraries: librarians, staff, and students. These exhibits draw awareness to current issues. They demonstrate representation by showcasing marginalized topics. They offer coping assistance when times seem rough. The presenters hope this poster will be a conversation starter for academic librarians and allow us to draw insight from our public librarian peers.