Whole Brain Teen Reference Service

1. Whole Brain Teen Reference Service Dr. Lesley Farmer California State University, Long Beach lfarmer@csulb.edu

2. Agenda • Who are our teens? Brains + • The state of literacy • Reference as conversation

3. Module 1: The Teen Brain

8. The Developing Brain • Age 12: prune grey matter by use/disuse >> promotes long chains of nerve cells • New white matter: back to front • Last feature: frontal lobe super-ego >> circuit overload under stress • Sex note: in stress, girls flee / boys fight • Another sex note: girls cross hemispheres

9. http://uwf.edu/jgould/Cortex.jpg

10. Impact of Teen Brain o impulsive o aggressive o emotionally volatile o likely to take risks o reactive to stress o vulnerable to peer pressure o prone to focus on and overestimate short-term payoffs and underplay longer term consequences of what they do o likely to overlook alternative courses of action (Winters, 2008)

11. Millennials • Gadget savvy but info clueless • Value convenience and mobility • Like working together and independently • Disconnect between school info literacy and personal info literacy

12. Class of 2015 · There have nearly always been at least two women on the Supreme Court, and women have always commanded U.S. Navy ships. · They “swipe” cards, not merchandise. · “Don’t touch that dial!”….what dial? · Amazon has never been just a river in South America. · They’ve always gone to school with Mohammed and Jesus. · The Communist Party has never been the official political party in Russia. · Chicken soup has always been soul food. · The Rocky Horror Picture Show has always been available on TV. · Arnold Palmer has always been a drink. · Music has always been available via free downloads. · They won’t go near a retailer that lacks a website.

13. Cross-Generation Issues Youth • 1980s, 1990s, 2000s • Net Generation • Socialize online • Chat, SMS, games, simulations • At ease in immersive worlds • Librarians • 1940s, 1950s, 1960s • Print generation • Socialise in restaurants • News, current affairs, reading, holidays, Parkinson • Aliens in an online world

14. Module 2: Teens’ Information Realities

15. What’s the Biggest Learning Gapfor College Freshmen? Finding information! • Finding books: LC (and use of OPAC) • Going beyond Google and Wikipedia • Determining the best kinds of sources • Knowing different types of sources: scholarly/peer-reviewed journals, primary sources, article vs. journal • How to choose a database (and what IS a database?) • Use of key words • How to cite correctly • …. And some are just scared about libraries

16. New Literacies • Technology Literacy • Information Literacy • Media Creativity • Global Literacy • Literacy with Responsibility

18. Teens’ Information-Seeking Behavior • Ask someone • Go to the Net (unaware of online databases) • Build on past experiences/success • Unsophisticated use of search strategies (key words evade them; forget Boolean) • Look at end/not at means or context • Not deeply critical • Not persistent; easily confused • Different sense of time… • NOTE: Girls are more engaged

19. Information Poor • Don’t think they can help themselves • Behave secretly/ deceptively to protect what info they have • Don’t take social risks • Don’t think people outside their class would share info with them • May be successful within their own culture • Technology can empower them and help them link with other groups

20. YA Internet Truisms • Wikipedia is king • Google is awesome • Want news? Go online • Social networking is good for homework • IM> email / Email is so yesterday – it’s for old people and teachers • If it’s not on the front page, it probably isn’t worthwhile anyway • “Good enough” is good enough • Free is good • Downloading is OK as long as you’re not selling it • I get scared sometimes, but I can take care of myself

22. What is Reference Service to a Teen? • A last resort • A safety net • Linked to schoolwork • Resource based • Fact based • Unfriendly • Their perceptions may be faulty

23. What Teens Want • Friendly atmosphere, be it face-to-face or online • Close collaboration between classroom teacher and librarian • Guidance • Selected web sites • Make it easy and content: “Just the facts…)

24. Module 3:Teen-Relevant Reference/ Information Services Competencies Opportunities Teen participation

25. YALSA Competencies Leadership and professionalism Knowledge of client group Communication, marketing & outreach Administration Knowledge of materials Access to information Services

26. RUSA Competencies Approachability Comfort Interest Listening Inquiring Searching Informing Follow-up

27. Co-constructing with Teen Brains • Make them aware of their brains and how they work • Have teens research brains (http://brownbrain.wikispaces.com) • Channel risk-taking behaviors into intellectual efforts • Encourage thinking breaks when stressed

28. Using the Whole New Mind • Check out teens’ reading, including online, for content AND FORM • Check out online cartoons & anime/manga • Play games, including with teens • Translate gaming into into lit terms • Cross the lines • Incorporate the affective domain

29. Start When Teens Are • Go for convenience • Keep it simple • Emphasize “Work better, not harder” • Provide Internet “cheat sheets” • BE their cheat sheet • Incorporate interactivity into library info websites • Really do teach web evaluation skills (the good, the bad, and the ugly) • Get teen input about good websites • Encourage students to revise their search strategies

30. Tech Tools to Incorporate • Go to where the students are: other social settings – as well as their teachers… • Provide online tutorials – or links to them • Think about online reference using IM (e.g., Weebo) – or link to other libraries with IMing reference service • Think web/library 2.0 • Try blogs, wikis, “e-readers” • Sound out: use podcasts/vidcasts

31. 24/7 Reference Service: Why? • Expand physical access to information • Meet needs of previously underserved populations • Provide value-added service • Involve school and larger community • PR • HELP STUDENTS SUCCEED

32. Typical Online Reference Service Users: Reflects the Teenager • Want convenience • Work outside 9 to 5 timeframe • Independent • Prefer anonymity • Technologically comfortable • May have “traditional” language or physical barriers • Tend to be a different population than the face-to-face library reference requester

33. Info Work with Teens • Get to know them and their world • Show you care – and can be trusted • Be respectful • Be responsive • Be sensitive • Avoid making assumptions • Use language they understand; avoid jargon • Know the curriculum and/or assignments • Don’t do their work • Act as a coach or partner rather than a sage • Take advantage of learning moments • Interact and chat rather than interview • Join brains and hearts

34. Supporting Studies • Bilal, D. Children's Use of the "Yahooligans!" Web Search Engine: II. Cognitive and Physical Behaviors on Research Tasks. Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology; v52 n2 p118-36 Jan 15, 2001. • Branch, J. Information-Seeking Processes of Junior High School Students. School Libraries Worldwide; v7 n1 p11-27 Jan 2001. • D’Angelo, B., & Maid, B. (2000). Virtual Classroom, Virtual Library. Reference & User Services Quarterly, 39(3),278-283. • Farmer, L. (Ed.). (2008). The Human Side of Reference and Information Services in Academic Libraries. London: Chandos. • Gross, M. Imposed Queries in the School Library Media Center. Library & Information Science Research; v21 n4 p501-21 1999. • Harley, B. (2001). Freshmen, Information Literacy, Critical Thinking and Values. Reference Services Review, 29(4), 301-305. • Julien, H. Barriers to Adolescents' Information Seeking for Career Decision Making. Journal of the American Society for Information Science; v50 n1 p38-48 Jan 1999. • Kwon, N. (2008). A Mixed-methods Investigation of the Relationship Between Critical Thinking and Library Anxiety Among Undergraduate Students in Their Information Search Process. College & Research Libraries, (March), 117-131. • Latrobe, K.; Havener, W. The Information-Seeking Behavior of High School Honors Students. Journal of Youth Services in Libraries; v10 n2 p188-200 Win 1997. • Lien, C. Approaches to Internet Searching: An Analysis of Student in Grades 2 to 12. Journal of Instruction Delivery Systems; v14 n3 p6-13 Sum 2000. • Lubans, J. When Students Hit the Surf: What Kids Really Do on the Internet. And What They Want from Librarians. School Library Journal; v45 n9 p144-47 Sep 1999. • Straw, J. (2000, Summer). A virtual understanding. Reference & User Services Quarterly, 39, 376-378. • Vansickle, S. Tenth Graders' Search Knowledge and Use of the Web. Knowledge Quest; v30 n4 p33-37 Mar-Apr 2002. • Winters, K. (2008). Adolescent Brain Development and Drug Abuse. Philadelphia: Treatment Research Institute.