Intentional Reference: A Mindful Approach to Making Good Even Better Dale Vidmar Information Literacy and Instruction Coordinator/ Education, Communication, Health, Phys. Ed. & Leadership Librarian Southern Oregon University Library Oregon Virtual Reference Summit Portland, Oregon May 7, 2010

Why Are We Here? Intentions: Improve L-Net and Virtual Reference Promote the Service Become more mindful about our practice

Virtual Reference can provide both teachable moments as well as opportunities for librarians to perfect their craft. Consider your approach to reference with the same diligence you would consider classroom teaching. Librarians Teach!!!

The Intentional Librarian A primary characteristic of an outstanding teacher/librarian is intentionality– Having a purpose with which to cultivate informed reflection.

When you think about your virtual reference, what do you think about most often? Be specific! Reflection

Intentionality: What Do You Mean? Purposeful Directed Pointed towards or attending to a target or objective Mindful Present Prime characteristic of being outstanding at what we do

Intentional Reference: Making Good Better Good Virtual Reference is not an accident! Think about what you intend to do before you do a shift. Be mindful or intent about what you do when you act. Reflect upon what happened afterwards.

The Cycle of Reflection What am I doing? Why am I doing what I do? Is what I am doing effective? How are individuals responding to what I do? How can I improve what I am doing?

Intentional/Reflective Cycle Plan Act Reflect Revise

Collegial Conversations Think about your next virtual reference session. What do you intend to do to make the session more productive and meaningful? Think – Pair – Share

Critical Incidents Critical incidents (Brookfield) – a vividly remembered event that is unplanned and unanticipated Opportunities to examine and better understand what we do and how we do it in order to initiate change and improvement

Why Reflection? “Experience itself is actually the ‘greatest teacher,”...

What Does Our Experience Say?

Why Reflection? “Experience itself is actually the ‘greatest teacher,”... not “we do not learn as much from experience as we learn from reflecting on that experience.” - Thomas S.C. Farrell from Reflective Practice in Action: 80 Reflection Breaks for Busy Teachers

References and Resources Brookfield, S. D. (1995). Becoming a critically reflective teacher. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Costa, A. & Garmston, R. (1994). Cognitive coaching: a foundation for renaissance schools. Norwood, MA: Christopher Gordon. Farrell, T. S. (2004). Reflective practice in action: 80 reflection breaks for busy teachers. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press. Slavin, R. E. (2006). Educational psychology: Theory and practice. Boston: Pearson/Allyn and Bacon. Vidmar, D. J. (2006). “Reflective peer coaching: Crafting collaborative self-assessment in teaching.” Research Strategies. 20 (3), Reflective peer coaching: Crafting collaborative self-assessment in teaching Vidmar, D. J. (2010). “Collaborative Peer Conversations: Sample Questioning Strategies.”Collaborative Peer Conversations: Sample Questioning Strategies

Intentional Reference: A Mindful Approach to Making Good Even Better Dale Vidmar Information Literacy and Instruction Coordinator/ Education, Communication, Health, Phys. Ed. & Leadership Librarian Southern Oregon University Library Oregon Virtual Reference Summit Portland, Oregon May 7, 2010