Gluten Free: An Info Lit Presentation

Information Literacy was a challenging class for me. It took about six weeks before the readings, lectures, and concepts began to solidify. The group assignment for Info Lit was a great way to bring all the threads together at the end of the semester. I worked with Uti and Alisa to deliver an "educational event" (supposedly for young adults, at a public library) that would help the attendees learn the basics of gluten-free cooking.

We chose our topic because we had noticed an increasing number of people are coeliac, yet the ins and outs of cooking for someone with a gluten intolerance are not well-known. Presenting the basics of gluten-free cooking - selecting ingredients, choosing a recipe, and following a recipe - fit nicely into several aspects of information literacy.

From the report:

"Active learning strategies were guided by the theoretical framework made up of selected frames of information literacy (C. Bruce, 2008) and the GeST windows (M. Lupton, 2008), as well as faces of informed learning appropriate to the context and the content delivered. Faces of informed learning that were identified as relevant to the educational event included the sourcing of information (second face); processing of information (third face), and the wisdom, or seventh face."




As part of our "team effort" presentation, Alisa, Uti and I taught the class through a brief lecture, an activity, and a cooking demonstration. I had some help from Andrew (orange shirt) and Andre (green shirt) as I put together a gluten-free dish, Almond Asparagus Quinoa.

Following our presentation, several people told me they felt confident they could make the dish themselves, even those who hadn't eaten quinoa before that night. To me, this indicates that our information literacy session was a success. Additional feedback was very positive, and our audience was impressed by how much we were able to fit into our 30-minute teaching session.

The educational event was held on May 25, 2012.

Observation: Special Collections

As part of my practicum in November/December 2011, I shadowed the music librarian at the State Library of Western Australia. I have always been interested in becoming a subject specialist or a librarian who works with a special collection, and wanted to observe what skills and knowledge are required in that type of role.

I first viewed theThe WA State Library's music collection on a tour, as part of the 5th New Librarians Symposium. The collection is one of the largest in the country, with over 70,000 scores available for loan, and not all of it is on the shelves. In addition, there are books and recordings on vinyl and CD.

The music subject specialist, Allison Fyfe, was very patient as she showed me how to search the catalogue, locate items in the stacks, and check that all the parts of a score had been returned. It is not as simple as checking things off on a list. A background in music and the Romance languages is desirable,  as the scores are often titled and catalogued in other languages, with parts of music labeled klavier, not piano.

When a patron needed a score that wasn't on the shelves, Alison would put in a request for someone to pull it from the stacks. I was surprised that this process only took place twice an hour, and even more surprised that most people were content to wait. My customer service training balked at keeping someone waiting, but I'm sure it is more efficient for staff to perform retrievals at set times of the day.

Allison has come by her considerable knowledge through studying music throughout her life. I observed her responding to a patron's request by humming the answer. I can certainly appreciate the specialist knowledge and research skills needed to fill this position - you never know what a patron may ask.


Allison Fyfe has since retired.