Hi everyone – it’s Diana again. You may remember me from the post directly below this one, where I encouraged Arts students to attend HSSL’s MyArts Research library skills workshops.

I am a graduate student at McGill’s School of Information Studies, and I’m currently completing a practicum at the Humanities and Social Sciences Library. The practicum is an opportunity to gain professional experience using the theoretical knowledge I’ve gained in my courses, and this practicum has allowed me to develop my teaching skills through information literacy instruction.

Information Literacy at HSSL

If you’re not a librarian, “information literacy” might not be a concept you’re familiar with. The Association of College and Research Libraries, part of the American Library Association, defines information literacy as the ability to “recognize when information is needed and have the ability to locate, evaluate, and use effectively the needed information.”[1]

I’m sure anyone reading this would agree that there is an enormous amount of information out there – any basic Google search, returning millions of results in seconds, demonstrates that. Being information literate allows you to wade through it all. It’s how to know when you need a piece of information, how to find it, and how to critically evaluate and make use of what you’ve found. And a big part of every librarian’s job is helping you do that, either in one-on-one interactions or in workshops like MyArts Research.

For my practicum, I’m putting together a literature review, taking a look at how other universities teach library resources and research skills, writing these blog posts, and – best of all – teaching workshops.

In February, I attended the first set of MyArts Research workshops. At each session, I was able to observe how the librarians presented the workshop content and to offer help to students as they followed along. Then, in March, I had the opportunity to teach two 90-minute sessions of “Module 1: How to Search.”

I showed students how to navigate the library catalogue, how to narrow and shape a research topic, and how to use the Library’s core databases of academic literature. We also looked at ways to use Google effectively, explored some of the reference tools available on the McGill Library website, compared peer-reviewed and popular articles, and reviewed advanced search strategies. These are all skills an information literate student can use when doing research.

Teaching those two workshops was the highlight of my practicum experience. I had a fantastic rehearsal for the kind of work I’ll do as a librarian. I received helpful feedback, from both the students I taught and the librarians who observed my teaching. I even conquered my biggest teaching-related fear, the question I don’t know how to answer. (It happened, I got through it, turns out I did know the answer.)

The best part, though? The moment I saw the light bulb go on above a bunch of heads. That was the moment I realized students had learned something useful for their research process, from me. And that was fantastic.

Join us at our March workshops for Arts undergraduates!

It’s March, and paper season has officially arrived, so here’s a piece of advice for Arts students. Don’t be that guy.

You know the one I mean: the one awake at 3:00 AM the night before the paper’s due, stuck on page 4 and out of ideas, taking frequent breaks to scroll through a Facebook feed that never refreshes because everyone else has already gone to bed.

Poor guy. He probably could have avoided the late night if he’d just been more on top of his research. If he’d chosen a manageable topic and developed a smart search strategy. If he’d used the library website to identify relevant, current scholarly sources in his subject area. If he’d learned about the citation management software for creating a bibliography.

Luckily, McGill’s Humanities and Social Sciences Library can help you avoid becoming that guy. The two-module MyArts Research: Library Skills for Success workshops, being offered March 11 and 12, will help you develop your research skills and show you the many library resources and tools you can use to do your research more effectively.

In Module 1: How to Search, you’ll learn how to choose and shape a research topic, how to develop a search strategy and find the best sources in a variety of formats, and learn some of the features of the Library website and catalogue. In Module 2: How to Manage it All, you’ll explore subject-specific databases and get a crash course in using EndNote citation management software.

Yes, it’s a McGill Library bracelet. But it’s also a USB key! 

Plus, an added bonus: students who attend both workshop modules will receive the world’s greatest fashion accessory, a 2GB McGill Library USB key that also happens to be a bracelet.

Register now for one or both modules – and never be that guy again!

If you’ve walked by the McLennan Library Building on McTavish Street over the past few weeks, then you’ve likely been overcome by a distinctly foul odour. The first time you smelled it, maybe you figured some guy vomited in front of Service Point on the way back from Peel Pub the previous night. But as the days passed with no relief, you began wondering how such a truly fetid smell could linger in the open air for weeks on end.

So what’s the source? It’s actually Ginkgo biloba.

The row of trees lining the western side of the building are ginkgos. These fascinating trees have been called “living fossils,” as they are by far the longest surviving species of tree on earth. Native to China, they have thrived for over 200 million years. Ginkgos are particularly resilient. In fact, a group of them survived the atomic bomb that exploded on Hiroshima, and are still alive today.

The odour, however, comes from the grape-sized ginkgo seeds. As they fall to the ground each autumn, crack open and get stomped on, nasty stink juice is released. Ginkgo trees come in male and female varieties, the latter of which produce the noxious seeds.

You smelling what I’m stepping in?

Unfortunately, McLennan’s larger ginkgos are all females and produce an abundance of seeds each year. Because of the smell, many municipalities will only plant male ginkgos on public land, and even chop down female trees (sexist much?).

But don’t worry, our smelly ginkgos are here to stay. Then again, judging by the looks of these branches, we’re in for plenty more stink bombs in the coming days.

Bombs away!