Librarians as lecturers: reading lists, performative, and the discursive construction of the “lecturer” – “librarian” binary, hear from the University of Worcester

Introduction 

Increasingly, the term “librarian” comprises roles that were previously the domain of academic teaching staff. Reading lists are part of a wider trend in Higher Education that is shifting responsibility for student resources, literature, and source material, referencing guidance, and support summative assessments to staff working in library services.

Reflecting this expansion of the roles expected of a “librarian,” library services staff are often at least as (or more) qualified as their academic colleagues, possessing postgraduate, doctoral and pedagogical qualifications, the latter only possible with the expansion of teaching and support offered to students in formal session time

In this webinar, Dr Luke Devine, Course Leader for Politics, and Dr Sarah Pittaway, Head of Library Academic Engagement, explain where, at the University of Worcester, reading lists have partly driven a shift in perception, acting as a catalyst for liaison librarians to engage more fully in the pedagogic life of the university, moving away from administrative tasks (sourcing materials, populating and reviewing lists) to spending more time in the classroom and working alongside lecturers.

Webinar recording