Innovation instruction in the academic library: A new focus

Abstract

Innovation spaces are quickly being implemented into academic libraries. But while these spaces generate outward excitement from those who wish to use them, they, and the projects introduced within them, can also intimidate students that feel forced to use such spaces. Therefore, it is vital that we not only acknowledge these intimidation factors in developing instruction, but also that we lead students away from any uncertainties surrounding emerging technology use. The approaches described will provide librarian innovation instructors with methods for introducing intimidated, atypical users to nontraditional and emerging technologies and will outline concrete activities that librarians can use to move students toward manageable takeaways.

Keywords:

• Emerging technologies
• instruction
• academic libraries
• makerspaces
• innovation spaces

Notes

1 These activities are developed and implemented by Area 49 librarians and staff, in collaboration with the discipline-specific subject librarian, and the course instructor.

2 This is also an excellent time to have them criticize the project, determining what they would have done differently, had this been their own.

3 With graduate students, an additional component is to have students research the methodology of the project creators, and they determine how those methodologies are similar or different from their own. This can help them think about how to conceptualize their own work in new ways.