Emergency Remote Library Instruction and Tech Tools

Abstract

During spring 2020, emergency remote teaching became the norm for hundreds of higher education institutions in the United States due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Librarians were suddenly tasked with moving in-person services and resources online. For librarians with instruction responsibilities, this online mandate meant deciding between synchronous and asynchronous sessions, learning new technologies and tools for active learning, and vetting these same tools for security issues and ADA compliance. In an effort to understand our shared and unique experiences with emergency remote teaching, the authors surveyed 202 academic instruction librarians in order to answer the following questions: (1) What technology tools are academic librarians using to deliver content and engage student participation in emergency remote library sessions during COVID-19? (2) What do instruction librarians perceive as the strengths and weaknesses of these tools? (3) What digital literacy gaps are instruction librarians identifying right now that may prevent access to equitable information literacy instruction online? This study will deliver and discuss findings from the survey as well as make recommendations toward best practices for utilizing technology tools and assessing them for equity and student engagement.

Information-seeking behaviour of students at a Caribbean University during the COVID-19 pandemic

“…Many academic libraries were forced to quickly adapt to changes during the COVID-19 pandemic to minimize risk and provide information resources in a restricted online environment. As a result, several studies have been conducted to determine how libraries fared during the COVID-19 pandemic (Condic, 2021; Ibacache et al. , 2021; Kehnemuyi, 2021).…”

“…In general, the pandemic has ushered in a revolution in online library instruction and the virtual delivery of library services. Ibacache (2021) surveyed 202 academic instruction librarians to better understand their individual experiences with emergency remote teaching. They discovered that during COVID-19, librarians used various other technology tools to create and deliver emergency remote library sessions.…”

Tech Tools in Pandemic-Transformed Information Literacy Instruction

“…31 At the beginning of the pandemic, teachers, librarians, and students had a matter of days to pivot to remote work, and as Ibacache, Rybin Koob, and Vance found in a 2021 study, "availability" was a consideration for librarians in selecting tech tools for engagement and content delivery. 32 This "just in time" consideration is even more important in the aftermath of COVID-19, which prompted emergency remote learning. Yet, teaching librarians also ought to go beyond what is easily available and move towards what is digitally accessible.…”

“…These tech tools were identified in a 2021 paper inquiring which tech tools librarians used in emergency remote IL instruction during the COVID-19 pandemic along with their perceptions of the weaknesses and strengths of these tech tools. 1 Although there are guidelines aiding librarians in assessing ADA accessibility around library spaces, there are no disability-related recommendations for specific tech tools used in IL instruction or studies examining tech tools' digital accessibility features. 2 There is also a lack of documentation regarding librarians' outreach to ADA-related academic offices and tech companies regarding tech tools.…”

Breaking Out While Staying In

“…Moreover, it seems only fitting that during the COVID-19 pandemic, when most of us were eager to escape the confinement of our own homes and social distancing restrictions, virtual escape rooms emerged as a sought-after distraction. Libraries of all kinds stepped in with creative approaches to this trend, spanning across a multitude of fandoms and information literacy topics, and built engaging tools that will hopefully be utilized long after the pandemic is over (Atkinson, 2021;Ibacache et al, 2021;Onwuemezi, 2021).…”