#critlib 9/23/2014 - Stereotypes & Instruction

  1. Discussion questions are posted for tomorrow's #critlib chat! We're talking about librarian stereotypes & instruction  http://tinyurl.com/critlibx 
  2. Join #critlib in 10 mins! Follow @pumpedlibrarian for tonight's Q's abt stereotype, status, gender/intersectionality.  http://tinyurl.com/critlibx 
  3. Let the #critlib begin -- let's start with introductions and then we'll get into the questions!
  4. Hi #critlib, I'm yr mod 2night & am research+learning librarian at U of AZ. My co-author (of the article for tonight) is here too @eldefrain
  5. [introductions redacted]
  6. Keep doing intros, but let's get rolling w Q1: Have you experienced negative effects from librarian stereotypes in your teaching? #critlib
  7. #critlib A1: Frequently in one-shots, I have run into many of the stereotypes that you write about in the article - most of them, in fact.
  8. #critlib A1 (cont.): from both faculty and students - but often stereotypes are fostered by the faculty member in question...
  9. A1: When told students I wouldn't be teaching English classes next year bc choosing to be lib*, many seemed uncomfortable/laughed #critlib
  10. A1 …particularly the more macho guys. Seemed clearly tinged with gendered/competence expectations. #critlib
  11. Wow, a spambot just stole my #critlib intro? How should I feel about that?
  12. I'd like to point out, per A1, that the avatar doesn't "look like a librarian." #critlib
  13. @ibeilin good point, PIL and/or ERIAL showed how faculty really help form students' impressions of librarians #critlib
  14. @kellymce maybe that spambot is trying to change librarian stereotypes #critlib
  15. @foureyedsoul Similar experiences for me when I tell my history classes that my main gig/identity is a librarian: disbelief? #critlib
  16. @pumpedlibrarian But just as often at my school, faculty treat me with respect as equal educator/teacher - many really get it. #critlib
  17. Going to throw Q2 out: What are implications for us being viewed as “helpers?” How can we be change impression to “collaborators?” #critlib
  18. @pumpedlibrarian As they say, a teachable moment. And to be fair, some of them (even some decidedly "dudes") also seemed excited! #critlib
  19. a2 In union environment, being "helper" often means working off contract. Hard but critical to say no once workload met. #critlib
  20. #critlib A2- not sure how many other fac on my campus get asked to proctor exams, sub for classes. "I'm sure the library can held w/ that."
  21. A2 This is tough. As librarians, we tend to define ourselves as helpers, not necessarily as collaborators or equals. #critlib
  22. A2 I'm just now answering ref q's and I have a hard time drawing the line between helping and actually doing the research... #critlib
  23. Also never know if it's gender or librarian that gets me on take-the-minutes duty so often. #critlib
  24. A2 I guess its because I'm new but I don't see myself as a collaborator but more of a fetcher of things #critlib
  25. A2 Asserting expertise and saying no are important. Just say no to that one shot - but back up with solid pedagogical reasons. #critlib
  26. .@catladylib so true, sometimes the problem is us! how we define and market ourselves #critlib
  27. #critlib A2- As for collaborating, I've gotten out of the habit of saying "I'd be happy to speak w/ your students." They're all our students
  28. @ginaschless: it's limiting when faculty request to just show databases, that's it. let us teach #critlib
  29. A2: also, there's the whole imposter syndrome thing -- feeling inadequate as educators, compensating by being johnny-on-the-spot #critlib
  30. @pumpedlibrarian and until we can critically examine ourselves and our approach, I don't know if our "helper" image will change. #critlib
  31. @edrabinski I just got appointed recorder for my campus curriculum committee! #critlib
  32. @kevinseeber recently found out that librarians had been written into someone's syllabus as the go-to people for proctoring 80+ #critlib
  33. Also think there are limits to collaboration in neolib/commercialized university. Who has the time? #critlib
  34. A2: Also, getting crap jobs at a department level -- send the lucrative gigs to IT, send the boring minutiae to the library #critlib
  35. That thing where you're so tired at the end of a 10 hr work day that you save your IL prep/grading for tmr and tune in to #critlib instead.
  36. @edrabinski At least I know it’s because I’m usually the only one who shows up w/ a laptop at meetings outside the lib! #critlib
  37. A2 I think we disavow our own labor/expertise too readily, long prof. discourse of letting patrons just see ease of access/order #critlib
  38. A2 #critlib "helper" and "collaborator" have implications. Librarian not elf "helper" nor co-author "collaborator." At best: pathfinder?
  39. a2: collaboration is intimate & difficult. hard to collaborate w/o establishing prior relationships or on a short time scale. #critlib
  40. When librarians are faculty, it's double-edged sword: we get automatic respect as profs., but are questioned about why we are. #critlib
  41. @ginaschless Explain why that is not effective, and propose more pedagogically sound lesson plan! #critlib
  42. @wpwvcacrl I think the co-author collaborator is more common than we recognize. #critlib
  43. A2 Instead of being Mother Mary/intercessors, I'd prefer lib*s seen like zookeepers…integral to collections' livelihood & use #critlib
  44. @wpwvcacrl @pumpedlibrarian yeah. Do you think the ref desk model creates that service expectation though? #critlib
  45. @ibeilin :D Like a moose wandering down the street, information out of context can be destructive #critlib
  46. A3 I feel like I have to fight so much in terms of stereotype, espec. as a POC. I just try to be my authentic self. #critlib
  47. A3: I always talk about what my job actually entails: teaching, talking to a lot of people, building relationships. #critlib
  48. This made me #lolz RT @ibeilin: @foureyedsoul Zookeepers? But information just wants to be free! #critlib
  49. @donnarosemary @foureyedsoul We could certainly keep going with the metaphor, but I'll restrain myself. #critlib
  50. @foureyedsoul yeah def & there might even be study out there, I haven't searched beyond reading the Radfords' discussion of it #critlib
  51. @catladylib @wpwvcacrl @pumpedlibrarian My hunch at MPOW is that yes, it does, but it's a HUGE cultural shift to do away w/ desk #critlib
  52. @catladylib @kevinseeber @pumpedlibrarian #critlib Annie, I'm not sure if it's confusing or students just don't care. Anyone to help them.
  53. @Fobettarh good point about school librarians, those stereotypes are even more difficult than academic librarians it seems #critlib
  54. .@kellymce Agreed, role definition=opportunity. How exactly can students meet us for the 1st time already understanding all we do? #critlib
  55. @kevinseeber @LibrarianPete Do you swear in faculty meetings, though? We have many different voices/personas... #critlib
  56. A3: I choose examples and activities carefully, to reflect my interests/identities and the richness of our collections. #critlib
  57. A3: Students who think I will not list 15 synonyms for weed are: wrong. #critlib
  58. Q4: (part I) Just an anecdote - when I worked at CC library a few years ago, student asked a colleague when told I'm a librarian: #critlib
  59. Next Q: Q4 Is there uneven expectation for women & intersectional librs to engage in “emotional labor?” If yes, how is this harmful?#critlib
  60. Q4: (part II): I was the only male librarian there - I did not meet expectations. Not sure how this played out day-to-day. #critlib
  61. @kevinseeber @kellymce Yeah, me too. My mom would be ashamed. But that's why I got a job, so I didn't have to live with my mom. #critlib
  62. A3 Basic, but I often switch "expected" genders if discussing any profession: mechanic->"her" nurse->"him" etc. #critlib
  63. THIS. #love MT @LibrarianAngie: Shouldn’t we be changing that? We relabeled ref to "librarian office hours". #critlib
  64. A3 I do my best to punish heteronormativity and other isms in classroom. It can be a throwaway comment but it'll be in the lesson #critlib
  65. Q4 #critlib There is no denying that librarians are mostly women. Field is a science, but we are still seen as caretakers. Weird.
  66. @LibrarianPete @kevinseeber I just don't want to be that old white lady who is trying to be cool. We all know THAT doesn't work. #critlib
  67. A3 Unfortunately I can't get too direct with teaching them to question the hegemony. Critical thinking=bad with that in schools #critlib
  68. #critlib Observation to offer: Expectations ≠ commands. Teaching requests ≠ commands. We ≠ vending machines. Interactions are opportunities.
  69. A4: I'm male. Def. not the default in the field. Tho often feel more put out by coworkers than ppl I help. #critlib
  70. 1 advantage to stereotype / not being taken seriously is libs often seen as neutral. Avoids some nasty politics, to look on bright #critlib
  71. Adding Q5: How can we negate “warm” and “cold/competent” as mutually exclusive? Esp. for s-types of women-dominated profession #critlib
  72. When doing actual customer service in record store, I OFTEN had to reframe customer expectations. Why not in lib* also? #critlib @sarahpolk
  73. .@kellymce For sure, complexities and complications. But first step IMO is don't give your power away. Remember your own worth. #critlib
  74. @christinacz Mention gender spectrum, refuse to tolerate giggling about lgbt, discuss how ads promote certain ideals, etc #critlib
  75. #critlib A5- figuring out that question, and it's answer, is the whole ball of wax.
  76. A5 Actually caught up on #critlib feed to answer Q5! -- I do my best to embody both and all I do in my work.
  77. Q5: Our whole gender regime must be overcome for us to defeat the stereotypes. It's the bigger battle. #critlib
  78. A5 I try to be deliberate w/ this, where I juxtapose both aspects of my professionalism (empathy+competence) within a single task #critlib
  79. Also, setting the bar high doesn't equate to cold/unkind. Starting on the "smiling" upper hand sets tone for relevance/expectations #critlib
  80. @susanarcham oy, that actually really bums me out! where do you see this as a positive? #critlib
  81. A4 I'm naturally soft-spoken but feel added pressure to be at work. One of 3 POC on staff in building. #critlib
  82. @ibeilin Need to overcome stereotypes of librarianship, as well as "feminine" being seen as "less than". #critlib
  83. A5 I love acting/being ways that challenge what a person(s) expect from/of me. I try to be both in all contexts, model for others #critlib
  84. A5 #critlib Hmm. I don't think abt it, just be myself. Sometimes colder. sometimes warmer. Depends on interaction.
  85. @ginaschless coworkers comment on my atypical maleness far more than ppl I help. assume I'm less game to perform certain tasks. #critlib
  86. The emotional burden substantial. Act right, talk right, even eat right while still trying to be true to self. #critlib
  87. Q5: Like @Fobettarh does, fighting the stereotypes, and the gender regime, in the classroom, is one of the best ways to do it. #critlib
  88. Somebody needs to get this 3yo to sleep so I can catch up on #critlib! aaarggh
  89. Thinking tonight's #critlib is the jelly to last week's peanut butter microaggressions chat moderated by @catladylib
  90. A5 Like @donnarosemary I deliberately try to do both. Showing guys can be empathetic & competent. >> #critlib
  91. A4 As many POC already know, those on the margins have to work twice as hard for half the credit/acknowledgment #critlib
  92. @pumpedlibrarian they seriously go hand-in-hand. Microaggressions and stereotypes in the workplace feed into each other. #critlib
  93. @ibeilin yes! many gender traits are ingrained during early socialization, the hedging and body language not exuding authority #critlib
  94. @pumpedlibrarian they seriously go hand-in-hand. Microaggressions and stereotypes in the workplace feed into each other. #critlib
  95. @ibeilin yes! many gender traits are ingrained during early socialization, the hedging and body language not exuding authority #critlib
  96. @pumpedlibrarian @catladylib And there's a bridge to the next #critlib, too: stereotypes affect our work conditions and labor relations.
  97. @pumpedlibrarian @catladylib And there's a bridge to the next #critlib, too: stereotypes affect our work conditions and labor relations.
  98. A5 Students' affective needs can be also info needs: "Yes, 1st gen student, you belong enough for an authority figure to listen." #critlib
  99. Oh wow! That hour flew by, keep chatting as long as you'd like, but #critlib is "officially" over, time for critlib-pitch
  100. A5 This sounds hopelessly naive, but finding ways to show that, yep, I am a person, can help a lot with this. #critlib
  101. A5: If we don't answer someone's emotional need, it probably won't matter how well we answer their information need #critlib
  102. A5 But that has to be reciprocal, not seeing "students" as a monolith, and all the stereotypes we have about them, either. #critlib
  103. @foureyedsoul This plays into how we teach/define "authority." Really need to question how we handle that in class. #doingitwrong #critlib
  104. Thank you @pumpedlibrarian for a great #critlib discussion. Many thought provoking Q's!
  105. Tune in next time for #critlib moderated by yours truly. Look for reading and questions on the cheat sheet soon!
  106. 2nd part of my pitch is hey! we have a special added #critlib next week with some UIUC LIS students talking about Salaita, @oksveta will mod
  107. @kellymce Ooooh I have never heard of this--this wiki entry will be my bedtime reading tonight! #critlib
  108. My #critlib pitch is off-topic but MPOW made this declaration on non-disclosure in licenses. Thought you might enjoy.  http://www.library.ualberta.ca/aboutus/collection/disclosure/ 
  109. Oh, the topic will be Labor solidarity within and across the library and related issues #critlib
  110. @IU_LibLion @ibeilin We have done so historically, but really need to stop. Plenty of other "supporters" retain their agency. #critlib
  111. Not pitch exactly, more suggestion: maybe use TWARC to collect #critlib tweets (as #teamharpy is doing) to help Storifiers?
  112. My #critlib pitch is for volunteers for @GLBTRT bib and awards committees:  http://www.glbtrt.ala.org/news/archives/1202  Like to read queer books? This is for you!
  113. And once again, #critlib reminds me how excellent this profession is. This unconference is going to be awesome.
  114. Missed #critlib tonight, in both senses of the word. Loving the things I'm reading that speak to recognizing our personal and prof. worth.
  115. Going back through the #critlib side discussions I missed. (Spoiler: They're ALL the best timeline!) Thanks @pumpedlibrarian & @eldefrain !
  116. @kellymce I think it stems from fac not seeing info lit as a discipline, which means we're not biased towards any 1 disciplne #critlib