Instruction Sessions FAQs
Who will lead my session?
We ask that Tackling a Wicked Problem (TWP) instructors please stick with your assigned librarian partner as this helps us keep the workload evenly distributed.
For all others, many of the sessions can be run by any librarian. In these cases you may work with either the librarian who is the liaison for your discipline as we have usually done in the past, or mix it up and work with someone new. Please know that in an effort to maintain an equitable distribution of work, we may sometimes suggest a different librarian from the one you originally reached out to.
Some specialized sessions are not offered by all librarians. In these cases please look at the names associated with the session and reach out to one of those folks.
How do I set up a session?
Email the librarian of your choosing. Either in person or via email you will discuss the goals of the session, any related assignments, and the scheduling of the session. We suggest timing the session for after the students already have the assignment that relates to the session topic. We find that students are more invested in the sessions if they can apply what they learn immediately to work that is required for the course.
Where will the session take place?
We are happy to host your class of 30 or fewer students in Lamson 102 or to visit your class of any size in their regular room. Lamson 102 is a very pleasant space with two projection screens, whiteboards, and movable furniture to facilitate group work.
Our busiest instruction months are September, October, February and March (roughly in that order) so it’s best to book your sessions for these months well in advance. In any case, librarians appreciate having at least a week of lead time to prepare sessions and tailor any content to the specific topic of your class.
Can you cover several of these topics in a single session?
We can and we have. BUT when we cover many topics superficially, the sessions are less impactful. Adequate time for approaching a topic from several angles using a combination of lecture, discussion and hands on practice increases the likelihood students will retain the information and have a meaningful learning experience.
Some topics do pair well together and it may be possible to create a hybrid of two of these sessions.
If you would like your students to be exposed to several of the above topics but don’t have space in your course schedule for multiple sessions, consider setting up a meeting to discuss how you might use our Instructor Resources to incorporate these topics into your course.