Esther Grassian

Information Literacy Outreach Coordinator

UCLA College Library

and

Adjunct Lecturer in Information Studies Department of the

UCLA Graduate School of Education & Information Studies

About Esther

• Librarian in the UCLA College Library, 1969-present
• Current title: Information Literacy Outreach Coordinator
• Adjunct Lecturer in Information Studies Department of the UCLA Graduate School of Education & Information Studies
  • Proposed (in 1989) & teach (every other year since 1990) graduate course, “Information Literacy Instruction: Theory & Practice”
  • Taught undergrad information researching course 7 times during the 1980s & supervised 7 TAs (library school students)
• Adjunct Lecturer, UCLA Writing Programs, Winter 2003-2005
  • Proposed & taught 1st 1-unit IL undergraduate course
• Proposed & teach 1st 1-unit FIAT LUX course, 2003-present (“How to Stop Just Googling… and Find the Really Good Stuff!”)
• Publications include:
  • Books:
    • Information Literacy Instruction: Theory & Practice, Neal-Schuman, 2001
    • Learning to Lead and Manage Information Literacy Instruction, Neal-Schuman, 2005
  • Various articles, book chapters & conference papers
• Have been active in various local, regional and national organizations over the years
• Currently: Co-Chair, ACRL 2007 Conference, Panel Sessions Sub-Committee
• Former Chair, ACRL Instruction Section, as well as former President of Librarians Association of UC (LAUC) statewide, and former Chair of LAUC-LA; former Chair, California Clearinghouse on Library Instruction, South (now called SCIL, an ACRL California (CARL) Interest Group)
• Presentations to local, regional & national groups
• Current interests:
  • LILi LILi (Lifelong Information Literacy): informal group of librarians from various types of California libraries investigating information literacy definitions, standards and instruction for all levels in California.
  • “Second Life”: using my avatar, Alexandria Knight, to investigate various means of infusing IL into this virtual multi-player world. (So far have been bumbling around, falling into ditches and moats as I learn how to fly and teleport…)

Presentation Abstract

Stumbling, bumbling, teleporting and flying…a librarian avatar in ‘Second Life’

Second Life (SL) is a multi-user virtual world, a popular social networking site with rapidly increasing membership (over 660,000 as of September 11, 2006). It offers great opportunities to reach out to those interested in and active in this sort of technology, many of whom may not be regular library users. It also offers opportunities to work with faculty designing and developing curriculum for courses that make use of SL, and for courses offered through SL sites. In addition, you can work with other librarians, dispersed geographically, as well as other technologists in a new and developing arena, where you can utilize and go far beyond what we now offer in the way of digital reference. It brings together various technologies many are now trying out for reference, including Instant Messaging (IM), and chat. It offers a new means for us to highlight our skills and knowledge of information tools, in order to help people learn of their existence and learn how to think critically about them. It takes us to users where they are congregating excitedly, rather than waiting for them to come to us.

I’ve been a member of the New Media Consortium’s (NMC) SL Campus since it was opened in April 2006. It was the reason I got a free Basic SL Account and an avatar, Alexandria Knight. Since then, I’ve been bumbling around, falling into ditches, getting stuck in bushes, and also messing up my avatar’s appearance, as I learn about SL.

Recently I learned that other librarians have been quite active in developing library services for SL, especially on Info Island, including a general library and a medical library. The general library provides access to educational tools that can be used in virtual environments. It also has a government documents section. They give tours and plan to offer reference service. The Alliance Library System, a consortium of 253 libraries of all types in Illinois, is spearheading this effort, and is working with other groups, including Tech Soup. Tech Soup is a group of technologists who aim to help non-profits in SL. The SL Library plans a grand opening in mid-October, and hopes to attract librarians, as well as serve as an information resource for all of those working and playing within SL, including students, faculty, other librarians, and consortia.

Links

Second Life (SL)

LILi

(NMC)

Esther's Seminar Presentation

Esther's Bibliography