Teaching Technology in Libraries

Libraries are charged with fostering new skills and capabilities, a challenging task in an era of rapid technological change. Developing new ways of teaching and learning—within budget and time constraints—is the key to keeping up-to-date.
Written by librarians, this collection of new essays describes an array of technology outreach and instruction programs—from the theoretical to the practical—for public, academic and school libraries, based on case studies and discussions of methodology.
Content includes out of the box lessons, outreach successes and technology instruction programs applicable to patrons and staff at public, academic and school libraries.

A Michigan resident, Carol Smallwood has practiced in school, public and special libraries. Her primary interest is practical librarianship, and she is the author of journal articles and editor of numerous books.
Lura Sanborn is the instruction & research librarian at St. Paul’s School in Concord, New Hampshire.

Carol Smallwood and Lura Sanborn
Format: softcover (7 x 10)
Pages: 228
Bibliographic Info: bibliographies, index
Copyright Date: 2017
pISBN: 978-1-4766-6474-3
eISBN: 978-1-4766-2718-2
Imprint: McFarland

Table of Contents


Foreword by James G. Neal 1

Preface 3

Part I: Case Studies and Instruction Methodology

Supporting Student Comprehension through Technology:

Scaffolding Techniques in a Virtual Environment

(Francisco J. Fajardo and Jorge E. Perez) 6

Guiding Growth: A Modified Constructivist Approach to

Instructional Technology and the Framework (Amy James) 12

Beyond Kicking the Ball and the Physics of Sports: Teaching Process and Product to 9th Grade Science, Technology, Engineering and

Math (STEM) Students (Courtney L. Lewis and Rachel Warriner Bartron) 20

Digital Literacy Development at a Public Regional University:

The Western Carolina University Experience (Mark A. Stoffan) 27

The Benefits of Multiple Instruction Styles in Public Libraries

(Amanda Toth) 34

The Accidental Trainer: Instructional Librarianship in

the ­Modern-Day Library (Monica M. Dombrowski, Melissa Bernasek and Shana Lopez) 40

Tech Training 101? Closing the Digital Divide One Device at a Time

(Jezmynne Dene) 48

Part II: Teaching Staff to Teach Patrons Building a Bridge Across the Digital Divide: Teaching Technology in the Public Library

(Samantha Duckworth and Hazel Koziol) 56

Show, Don’t Tell: Technology Instruction for ­Front-Line Staff,

Passed On to Patrons (Elizabeth Tarski McArthur) 65

Simulating Access Issues: Using Twine to Teach ­E-Resources Troubleshooting (Kate Lambaria, Heidi R. Johnson and Nicole Helregel) 74

On-Demand Tech Training for Students, Faculty and Staff (Ashley J. Cole, Heather Beirne and Brad Marcum) 82

Facing Change Together: Overcoming Differing Comfort Levels with

Technology in Librarian and Library Staff Training (Christine Elliott, Dongmei Cao and Christa E. Poparad) 89

Technology Instruction as a Cycle of Instructional Coaching (Sara Frey) 96

Part III: Hardware, Software and Code

Is That Code? Using Google in Undergraduate Math and

Computer Science Research (Aaron J. Blodgett and Jennifer L. Dean) 104

Rise or Fall of a Library Intranet: Best Practices, Tips and Hints

(Joshua K. Johnson) 110

Starting a Device Club (Deloris J. Foxworth) 118

How to Design a New Software Class (Julia J. Dahm) 125

How to Design a ­Non-Traditional Software Class: PowerPoint for

Conference Posters (Julia J. Dahm) 132

Ways to Use Digital Badges in the Library: They’re Not Just for

Students Anymore (Laura Bohuski) 139

Beyond the ­One-Shot: Online Video Tutorials for International Students (Michelle Emanuel) 146

Girls Who Code in the Library: ­Community-Led Programming at Its Best (Jennifer Bunton Forgit) 152

Mobile Computer Lab Services to Tent City Communities: A Case Study (Danielle M. Duvall and Lisa Fraser) 159

Part IV: Strategies, Planning and Partnerships

Marketing and Managing Technology Education in the Face of

Library Anxiety (Cara Marco) 168

Partnering to Teach Technology: Planning a ­Library-Based Workshop Series (Kathryn M. Houk and Jordan M. Nielsen) 175

Balancing Technology Education with Reference and Instruction

(Elizabeth Nelson) 183

Enhancing Pedagogy with Technology: ­Librarian-Guided ­Peer-to-Peer

Instruction for Faculty (Emy Nelson Decker) 190

Information Literacy and Metaliteracy Are the Ties That Bind Librarians and Athletic Coaches (Forrest C. Foster, Carl Leak and Terrence Jarrod Martin, Sr.) 197

Tech Training and Library Advocacy: Linking the Academic Library

with the School Library and Turning ­Pre-Service Teachers into

Lifelong Library Users (Heather Beirne and Cindy Judd) 205

About the Contributors 213

Index 217

“An impressively informed and informative collection of new essays by experienced librarians and library researchers…includes out of the box lessons, as well as outreach successes and technology instruction programs applicable to patrons and staff at public, academic and school libraries. Exceptionally well organized and presented…especially recommended for college and university Library Science collections”—Midwest Book Review; “This book provides valuable insights on library internal trainings and should be a must-have on the shelf of librarians who carry administrative responsibilities.”—Wei Fang, Assistant Dean for Information Technology and Head of Digital Services, Rutgers Law School; “Turn to this volume for varied perspectives, cogent strategies, and fresh ideas on technology training for both public and academic libraries.”—Shana Gass, Research & Instruction Librarian, Albert S. Cook Library, Towson University; “Helpful compilation with nuts and bolts tips and case studies, useful to anyone, with a broad range of applications pertinent to emerging technologies.”—Roland Barksdale-Hall, Library Director, Quinby Street Resource Center in Sharon, Pennsylvania; “The anthology is saturated with innovative practices shared by public, school, and academic librarians that will benefit beginning as well as experienced instructors.”—Vera Gubnitskaia, Reference Librarian, Valencia College, Florida; “The wide range of topics in this anthology addresses varied subject areas, library specialties, and I.T. skill sets, providing practical tips for technology instruction for users at varied skill levels.”—Jeannine Berroteran, Independent Researcher and Scholar; “Readers of this anthology will find examples of practical teaching and training strategies applicable to all types of libraries.”—Wayne Finley, Northern Illinois University Libraries.