Something strange is happening in libraries and library schools. No, it's not a revolution, but rather a quiet shift. Slowly, quietly, and ever increasingly, libraries are beginning to value and invest in readers' advisory services. Apparently, library administrators are starting to realize that many avid pleasure readers use their libraries regularly and their votes can have a significant impact on the passage of library tax issues. Likewise, Readers' Advisory courses, workshops, and resources have been growing in popularity as public library directors comprehend the importance of training their staff to provide this service. Courses or workshops in RA services and related topics can give new library school graduates an advantage when seeking their first job, adding to the demand for training.
But you may have also noticed that many, if not most, of the instructors in readers' advisory service are practitioners rather than professors. Furthermore, a search of programs and agendas for RA workshops, conferences and classes turns up many of the same names over and over. Is this because there are not enough experts available to teach this subject? That is certainly part of the reason, which leads one to speculate on the alternative of online delivery. Since travel is expensive and time-consuming—especially for instructors who are working full time—online courses seem to pose a natural solution, and they will quite likely become more common as demand increases.
Common, yes, but can readers' advisory skills be taught effectively online? We posed this question to several talented RA instructors.
Sarah Statz Cords, who has taught "Reading Interests of Adults" at the School of Library and Information Studies, University of Wisconsin, Madison, quickly answered in the affirmative. "You can teach anything anywhere you have someone who desires to learn. So yes. Resoundingly yes," she enthused.
Most concur. Mary Wilkes Towner, adjunct lecturer at the Graduate School of Library and Information Science at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, also responded positively.
"Yes, I do believe the essential readers' advisory skills can be taught online because I've been doing it!" she asserted. "Distance education is getting more and more sophisticated, and can easily replicate experiences a student could obtain in a traditional classroom."
Others were more tentative. Catherine L. Ross, Professor and Dean of Information and Media Studies at the University of Western Ontario cautioned, "Yes it could be taught (but not as well, and it would require the instructor to design the online version with the need in mind for interactivity and participation.) If the distance student were also working in a library, the student could of course practice in the work setting the RA skills taught in the course."
Bringing up other important considerations, Mary K. Chelton, Professor at the Graduate School of Library and Information Studies, Queens College, City University of New York, agreed that RA skills can probably be taught online, "depending on the technology available. It also depends on how the person defines RA. If only face-to-face, it will be harder, I think, but not impossible."
Joyce Saricks, the well-known author of several books on readers' advisory service, a seasoned workshop presenter, and an adjunct faculty member at Dominican University's Graduate School of Library Science has similar reservations. She is quick to point out that she has never taught a class online, but says "I think there are factors that come up in a classroom situation that allow us to address related issues-customer service/interactions—and I think that might be harder online."
Cindy Mediavilla, Lecturer at the UCLA Graduate School of Education and Information Studies prefers to teach in person. She commented, "Since most readers' advisory happens face-to-face in the library—and often very serendipitously—it seems the best way to learn and practice these skills would be through in-person interaction. Visual role-playing is needed so students can see/hear potential patrons' body language, voice inflections, etc. This in-person learning is most helpful for a service that often relies on nuanced behavior. These nuances would definitely be lost in an online environment, even with liberal use of illustrations and emoticons. Students need to verbally practice (with each other and in the same room as the professor) what they would say during an RA interview."
Mediavilla's opinion reflects the opinion of teachers who believe that some skills-for example, those requiring a hands-on approach or activities-cannot be taught online. Other skills, such as those involving art, music and physical activity are very difficult to teach online. As one expert put it, "I can't conceive of it without mentoring at critical moments." (http://www.uh.edu/collegium/spr00/html/collegium/mcneil.html)
Neal Wyatt is someone who's been there. This collection management librarian at the Chesterfield County Public Library, VA, teaches the RA Web course for ALA's RUSA. Her conclusion? "It works well. Not as great as in person, but it does work."
And what about the students?
In general, online learners, when surveyed about the success of their courses, agreed that instructors should adjust their class to meet the needs of the online environment. New technology is making this increasingly possible, with live video instruction the fastest growing means of distance learning today. But if instructors (or students) are inept with technology, or do not adapt the course, the experience will not be a good one. (Koch).
More mature students are the most likely to find success with distance learning. The successful online student needs to have a number of characteristics such as tolerance for ambiguity, a need for autonomy, and an ability to be flexible (Threlkeld & Brzoska, 1994). Hardy and Boaz (1997) found that "compared to most face-to-face learning environments, distance learning requires students to be more focused, better time managers, and to be able to work independently and with group members" (p.43). Many distance learners are different from traditional undergraduates in that they are older and often already in professions.
But wait. Before you sign onto the online environment, distance learners have some common complaints that teachers need to take to heart. Here are just a few:
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Too many instructors just put their regular courses online without adjusting their thinking about evaluation, teaching, and other differences.
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Faculty can really make or break a class. (Although this is probably also true in face-to-face classes as well.)
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Discussion boards may not be enough to build a sense of community among distance learners, so students can feel very isolated.
- Students may feel little connection to the school, and they may be at a loss when it comes to getting help. It seems obvious for a library school to consider, but the advantages of assigning a distance learning librarian to students is often overlooked.
One student summarizes it this way, "If you had a really dedicated professor, who was always available, really made an effort to get students engaged in the subject and understood the differences between teaching online and teaching an in-person class, you'd have a great experience." (Farkas)
The RA Future?
It may be that when technology is better, these problems will disappear. Jun Watanabe, founder of the Online Education Net (http://www.ooen.net), says that "there are certain subjects that can't be taught online such as medicine (clinical skills), but that doesn't mean it will never be possible. It won't be possible in the next 5 - 10 years, but it might become possible in the next 15 - 20 years." (Watanabe)
But, as Mediavilla and Chelton point out-what about teaching students how to perform readers' advisory services in an online environment-using live chat, for instance? This kind of readers' advisory transaction requires consideration of additional issues, which brings up another interesting question (perhaps for a future article)-are the current online tools for readers' advisors adequate for effective online readers' advisory services, or do readers' advisors need to be in a real library with access to print tools and books?
It seems inevitable that distance learning will continue to grow in popularity. And as technology and resources improve, the quality of online classes will improve as well-if instructors take the time to understand the opportunities and pitfalls and adapt their teaching styles appropriately.
Sources
Farkas, Meredith, "Does Distance Learning Have to Be Like This," Information Wants to Be Free Blog, (http://meredith.wolfwater.com/wordpress/
index.php/2007/01/21/does-distance-learning-have-to-be-like-this/).
Hardy D. W. & Boaz, M. H. (1997). Learner development: Beyond the technology. New directions for teaching and learning, 71, 41-48. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Koch, James, "Does Distance Learning Work? A Large Sample, Control Group Study Of Student Success In Distance Learning,"
(http://www.usq.edu.au/electpub/e-jist/
docs/vol8_no1/fullpapers/distancelearning.htm)
Koen, Kathleen, "Sara McNeil: Top of the onLine," Collegium: the Magazine of the University of Houston, Spring, 2000 (http://www.uh.edu/collegium/spr00/
html/collegium/mcneil.html).
Threlkeld, R., & Brzoska, K. (1994). "Research in distance education." In Willis, B. (ed) Distance Education Strategies and Tools. Englewood Cliffs: Educational Technology Publications.
Valentine, Doug, "Distance Learning: Promises, Problems, and Possibilities," (http://www.westga.edu/~distance/
ojdla/fall53/valentine53.html).
Watanabe, Jun, "Interview with English-test.net," (http://www.english-test.net/esl-cafe/
2/index.html).
Cynthia Orr
is the Collection Manager at Cleveland Public Library in Ohio. She teaches Readers' Advisory Service classes and workshops for Kent State University's Graduate School of Library and Information Science, writes Read-Alike columns for NoveList, is a member of the PLA Readers' Advisory Committee, and of the Advisory Board for the Reader's Advisor Online, from Libraries Unlimited.