Subject area: Public library reference services

Format: Online reference education training – Module 1 & 2

Length: 2 hours

Audience: public library professionals

Organiser: Ohio Library Council

 

Reflection:

The main objective of undertaking reference education training was to deep dive into improving my skillset in an area that is core component of meeting information needs of public library communities. I wanted to more deeply understand the reference process and strategies of how to engage library patrons in becoming conscientious users of the library reference service in asking for what they really need.

Public libraries are a place that provides a wide range of information that is relevant for a community such as school and career questions, health, recreational, DIY and personal enrichment, understanding local, state, federal government regulations and services, information on consumer products, and readers advisory. I learned about how a public library’s reference policy should describe these types of information needs particular to a local government area and common websites, resources, formats that address these needs. Libraries should make their reference service as easy as possible to find online and in person. There are multiple barriers facing patrons in getting the information they really need, including not wanting to take up too much of the library’s time, lack of awareness of online resources or local materials such as pamphlets and maps, unwillingness to ask for support using virtual reference services or finding quality websites. It is important to engage in conscious strategies to overcome these barriers such as being open and approachable, patiently working through questions with a patron to discover their real information needs, attuning to any additional supports they need such as if they are ESL, experience disability, or lack skills to use services, and following to ensure their needs really have been met.

The steps in delivering a quality reference service involves a combination of promoting access through responding to a person’s individual access needs, using your knowledge base to address a wide range of questions, marketing the reference service and the extent of what if being offered to patrons, collaborating with both colleagues and patrons in meeting information needs, and carefully evaluating the users experience of the reference process, including the modes of service delivery and to what extent where they able to collaborate and engage in the process of getting what they really needed. The reference interview encompasses all these elements and is actioned through listening, paraphrasing, asking open-ended questions, clarifying, verifying, getting all the needed information, following up, and ending the interview.

This was very useful learning and a potent refresher in the strategies employed to determine the real information needs of users. I practiced reference interviews with my partner in a role-play exercise, using questions and techniques directly from the modules and found that I improved each time. The quizzes upon completion of each module allowed me to deeply reflect and consolidate my knowledge of the reference process. This is a core skillset for every public librarian and one which I believe I am continually refining and will enable me in future to learn about my community and provide deeper opportunities for building rapport and trust.