Given the increased usage of data-driven systems, being data literate calls for a combined understanding of computational foundations and the critical considerations associated with the contextual implications of deploying such systems. Drawing inspiration from Freirean principles aligned with situational awareness theory, this article highlights how case studies can be developed and used as pedagogical tools for the multidimensional competencies (intertwining critical and computational thinking) needed for the future data worker to responsibly engage with the different facets of data analysis and usage, including data acquisition, data exploration, computational modeling and data storytelling. Essential facets of case studies involving narrative formation, mechanisms for arousing critical thought and student engagement strategies are discussed in conjunction with the combined theoretical frame. The article concludes with considerations to boost educator preparedness and instructional design by envisioning resources and enabling the creation of communities of practice around using case studies in data literacy.

Notable advancements in information literacy (IL) research and practice notwithstanding, fundamental concerns persist, including conceptual ambiguity, under-theorization, ill-defined boundaries, and a persistent theory-practice gap. This dissertation addresses these issues through three interrelated studies aimed at ‘realizing’ IL. Study 1, a critical review, provides a ‘reality check’ by examining key philosophical, theoretical, and practical conundrums through an ‘aporetic’ approach. The review reveals six enduring aporias in IL: truth; knowledge and data; information behavior; genericism versus contextuality; ideology and political economy; and illiteracy. Building on these findings, Study 2—comprising three sub-studies—develops a ‘realist’ IL framework by synthesizing three approaches: (1) the capability approach (CA) in political economy frames IL as ‘combined capabilities for informed beings and doings,’ highlighting informational well-being and agency beyond both skills and practices view; (2) social realism (SR) in the sociology of eduction foregrounds the primacy and internal logics of disciplinary structured knowledge domains and theoretical knowledge, locating IL in relation to these domains rather than as individual knowledge construction or knowing itself; and (3) critical realism (CR) in the philosophy of social science provides a stratified ontology and an account of causal mechanisms and emergence, clarifying how IL can be realized within information ecosystems and across knowledge domains. Study 3 applies this realist framework in higher education, outlining curriculum-design principles that help ‘realize’ IL’s aims in practice. Collectively, this dissertation argues that a realist approach can strengthen the IL field and offers a practical guide for researchers and practitioners.

The emergence of scholarship focused on decolonizing information literacy (IL) indicates its importance and significance to the IL community. The recognition of information literacy (IL) as a maturing discipline has implications for the teaching and researching of IL, and for library and information science (LIS) education. While often associated with colonized university structures, scholars have argued that disciplines can be re-imagined to approach teaching and research in ways that are not, or not only, grounded in the colonizing epistemologies of the Western world. This paper identifies some ideas of the decolonization of IL presented in the scholarly literature and relates them to the sensibilities Warren and colleagues identify as necessary for the decolonizing of a discipline: dialogicality, multiplicity, and horizontality.

This dissertation investigates the instruction and use of high-level computer programming languages in online American Library Association (ALA) accredited Master of Library and Information Science (MLIS) programs. While prior studies have shown that high-level programming skills are in demand for MLIS graduates, this study addresses the gap between the skills taught in MLIS programs and those needed in the workforce. A mixed-methods approach was employed, with qualitative data gathered from one-on-one interviews with MLIS program administrators and faculty, as well as focus group interviews with MLIS program students. A follow-up quantitative online Qualtrics survey was then completed by each audience to build on what was learned. Three theoretical frameworks guided the research: the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), Technology, Pedagogy, and Content Knowledge (TPACK), and the Theory of Self-Efficacy. Themes from the research include the challenges of integrating high-level programming skills into the curriculum, student and faculty satisfaction with program offerings, and the perceived importance of learning high-level programming. While results varied, the study found that most online ALA-accredited MLIS programs teach high-level programming skills, at least in elective courses. All audiences recognize the importance of learning high-level programming skills but must balance this with the barriers they face. This study offers recommendations for ensuring the MLIS curriculum more adequately meets the demand for high-level programming skills in the field.

The early 2020s have been years of great change across the USA – amid a global pandemic, George Floyd’s murder focused worldwide attention on anti-Black violence, and the subsequent spate of protests marked a shift in institutional acceptability of Black Lives Matter as a strategic priority rather than a “fringe” view. That movement has had direct impacts on the archival field, generating a wealth of talks and other disseminations that aim to shed light on the history of archives as institutions that uphold white supremacy and discuss the opportunities and challenges of conducting justice work. Despite the steady increase of published work on the relationship between justice and archives in the last 15 years, and a more recent explosion of social, reparative, and restorative justice work within archives and by archivists, there have not been in-depth systematic studies of challenges to implementing and engaging in social justice as an archival imperative. This poster shares findings from the author’s dissertation, which examines the role of social, reparative, and restorative justice in academic archives, investigating the gap between published literature and practice through an interview study of archival practitioners at academic institutions that are engaging in justice work, supported by and triangulated with qualitative content analysis of a document corpus sourced from academic archives’ websites related to archival justice. This in-depth study of how these relatively new priorities have been carried out (or not carried out) on the ground provides insights into the myriad of ways archivists are engaging in justice work.

This study investigates the psychological outcomes of digital detox among graduate students, focusing on factors influencing future detox engagement and perceived lasting benefits. It examines how post-detox psychological changes in mood, anxiety, sleep, relationships, and productivity predict willingness to engage in future detox activities and perceptions of lasting benefits. It also considers how demographic factors and prior social media experiences shape these perceptions. Mood Management Theory was employed as a theoretical framework for understanding the willingness to engage in future digital detox and its lasting benefits. Data were collected through an online survey from 114 graduate students at an American public university, recruiting social media users who had voluntarily undergone a social media detox. The findings offer implications for developing programs and interventions aimed at enhancing mood, productivity, and promoting mindful social media use. These insights can help educators and academic librarians support students during digital detox and promote well-being.

One in five U.S. college students is a student parent, of which roughly 2.7 million are student mothers. Student mothers’ success in academic pursuits was at a higher risk of attrition than almost any other group of U.S. students. This situation raises the need for discretionary educational policies among traditional and nontraditional students. Mothers pursuing doctoral degrees, in particular, face challenges in their dual roles as academic scholars and primary caretakers. Researching doctoral student mothers’ mobile device use is important, considering this group is likely to be in their peak childbearing years and in response to the increasing use of mobile devices in studying and parenting. This study aims to explore LIS doctoral student mothers’ perceptions, experiences, and mobile device use for studying and parenting by applying the concurrent triangulation approach in mixed methods research. Twelve transcripts from online interviews with twelve doctoral student mothers were analyzed using NVivo15, resulting in six themes: motivation and persistence, support systems, perception of use, academic use, use in parenting, key challenges and benefits. Furthermore, 49 pings were signalled on each student mother’s mobile device, resulting in 316 completed surveys (53,74% response rate). After removing PII, the survey results were analyzed using the Airtable platform to create a dashboard to present four common attributes found in an ESM study, including context, social, activity and experience (as they occur). The study contributes to promoting research involving human-computer interaction on an everyday basis to bring further application of the experience sampling method into the LIS discipline.

Scholarly research has demonstrated that sizeism (also called fatphobia or weight stigma) negatively impacts fat people across a range of major life activities. Even young children exhibit sizeist beliefs, and fat children are negatively impacted in school and personal relationships. LIS scholars have recently begun to address sizeism, but serious gaps persist in the literature, particularly in the realm of children and information. However, both research and theory demonstrate the positive impact that diverse literature can have in regards to addressing other types of bias among children. Thus, this study employs a convergent mixed methods design to examine weight diversity in recent award-winning/recommended and popular children’s picture books in the United States. The findings suggest that diverse, positive weight representation is currently limited in both librarian-recommended/award-winning and popular picture books. The study includes recommendations for librarians, educators, and researchers interested in supporting diverse, inclusive information environments for children.

This artwork centers one main theme: These stories will (not) shatter inside of me. That is the sentence that comes to mind a I think of myself, the narrators who have helped me build my dissertation, the BIPOC queer communities that speak up despite growing danger, the immigrant communities in my beloved city of Chicago who are under constant threat from ICE, and everyone who refuses to ignore genocide. I thought about the Black diaspora and how we share our histories—how this extends past us and into other minoritized cultures, whether defined by race, ability, class, queerness, or the intersection of all these things. We talk. What happens when archivists are trained to look at oral histories as a bonus material rather than as a method on par with paper? If we do not change our archival pedagogy to become more aware and inclusive of the myriad ways that different cultures express their histories, these histories will continue to disappear with the lives that hold them. Stepping outside of academia: if you know, you know. The overlooked have resisted this loss for lifetimes. The backing: The backing cloth of the piece is Tunisian crochet, which I have done out of bulky wool yarn. The backing is two toned, split in half with a sky-gray bottom and black top. I have integrated the two colors in an alternating fashion as they meet, rather than having it be one block sitting on top the other. The stitching is black yarn. The tree:The bottom displays the black silhouette of a leafless tree, stark against the gray sky, its branches expanding upwards, becoming distorted as it reaches the top half. The tree itself is dark colored, a combination of stitching and fabric to emulate the look of a tree against a winter sky. The cloth is from my stash--old t-shirts, scraps, and other things I have kept. The figure: The branches of the tree distort in the center of the piece, reaching up towards the figure of a person with their arms raised. The person is composed of stitching, silhouetting them against the black background. The branches of the tree reach into the person, turning into lightning that ricochets within them, unable to leave their form. The lightning is composed of silver yarn sewn on top of the figure. The person stretches their arms upward, the lightning in the act of releasing through their arms. The Defiance: Surrounding the person on printable fabric are cut out pages reading: THESE STORIES WILL (not) SHATTER INSIDE OF ME printed onto printable cloth. The font is the Black Trans Lives Matter font, an opensource font provided by GenderFail Press. The sentence is repeated over and over in different sizes, the fabric cut to frame the figure within.