Embedded librarians are librarians who work closely with teaching faculty in their courses, providing a library resource to students throughout the course of the entire semester. Librarians work with instructors to collaborate and create viable library assignments that utilize library resources and answer student questions regarding library materials. This program looks to create an integrated and sustained collaboration with teaching faculty instead of a parallel interaction through traditional library instruction.
Any class that has a Blackboard component can take advantage of working with an embedded librarian. We work with any discipline or subject areas and are happy to discuss any concerns regarding whether your class would be a good fit for our embedded librarian program. If you have an online course, we welcome you to contact us about what resources the library can provide your class.
Embedded librarians facilitate student research and use of library resources during the entire course or just when needed. We can work with you a little or a lot, whatever way best meets your needs, but here are some possibilities. The librarian can:
Librarians would need access to your Blackboard course. Depending on the level of permissions that you allow, librarians can add library-related links and information to your course. The most important thing that we need from instructors is promotion of the library and its resources. Announcing that a librarian will be a part of the class and be available for questions is a great first step. If you see students struggling with research, remind them that a librarian is available to help. The more importance that is placed on library resources, the more students are likely to use them!
If you are interested, we would love to hear from you. Right now we are only doing a pilot with 12-15 recruited teaching faculty. If you would like to add your name to a list of interested participants, please contact Amy Kammerman.
