Interview: Emily Wheeler – Learning Advisor, The University of Leeds

Emily, a Learning Advisor and a co-founder of LISDIS, has agreed to answer some of our questions about her library career and the skills she uses for her current role.

You started LISDIS with three of your peers (Jess Haigh, Michelle Bond and Rosie Higman) in 2015 and you’ve held two events (Huddersfield and London). What have you learnt from your experience of organising LISDIS?
I’ve learned exactly how much work goes into organising a conference, even a relatively small one! What has been great has been learning from our first event in Huddersfield and being able to use that experience to plan and run the second event in London and to make plans for our future. I’ve learned how to do things like

Emily Wheeler – Photo credit: Cami Walker

evaluating and selecting abstracts for presentations and posters, as well as brushing up on my communication skills to successfully advertise the events to potential presenters, attendees and sponsors. However, I think one of the great things about organising any sort of event or project is that you don’t always necessarily learn any new skills but you might learn more about yourself and your strengths, which can then open you up to trying new things elsewhere.
I have also found LISDIS really valuable as a way of meeting other people who are studying and/or working in library and information science, who have shared so much interesting knowledge and experience with us about a huge range of LIS topics. I’ve learned much more about what’s out there, what sort of research is happening in LIS departments, and what people are doing that has really made a difference in their workplace or community.

You are also the secretary of CILIP Yorkshire and Humberside. Has your experience with CILIP and LISDIS provided you with skills that you have transferred to your current role as Library Learning Advisor?
Yes! The work I’ve done on both committees has helped me become more confident in communicating with other people and organising events. I am just beginning a long-term project at work which contributes to the Library’s strategy, and my experience of planning and running meetings, projects and events with CILIP Y&H and LISDIS will definitely help with this. Part of my role as a Learning Advisor is to support students to work collaboratively with each other on group projects, and working with the committees has really helped me become more confident when I talk to students about successful group work and online collaboration, as well as project management. Although at times it has been difficult to juggle so many commitments, I have definitely become better at prioritising and managing my time, which is really important at work.

You are currently a Learning Advisor for The University of Leeds, can you describe a typical day in your role?
I’m part of the Skills@Library team, and we support taught students (undergraduate and postgraduate) to develop their academic skills. This includes information literacy, as well as other skills including essay writing, time management, revision and exams, and presentation skills. We support students in a variety of ways, which I will try and list here!
Most days for me will involve one or two appointments with students who’ve requested a half-hour consultation. This could be about any academic skills topic, for example, how to plan and structure an essay, how to interpret and use the feedback on an assignment, or how to search a database for journal articles. We’ve just started offering online one-to-one appointments using our webinar software, which is great for students on distance or part-time courses and anyone who isn’t able to visit our office. We also receive enquiries from students via email, on the phone and in person, and I spend a few afternoons a week monitoring and answering these.
During term time I do a lot of teaching as well. Skills@Library offers several workshops and webinars covering a wide range of academic skills topics, and each Learning Advisor delivers some of the sessions on the programme. This year I’ll be doing workshops on critical thinking, report writing, referencing, and dissertations, as well as webinars on EndNote, critical thinking (again) and time management. I’m also the Learning Advisor for two Faculties and will be teaching academic skills sessions on several modules throughout the year to support students within the curriculum.

I attend Faculty meetings about student support and education about four times a year, which is a good way to stay in touch with academic staff and update them on our support for their students.
The rest of my day will be spent preparing my teaching materials (including meeting with academics to discuss embedded teaching), developing new content for the VLE or our website, and working on any projects I have on the go. I do a lot of project work in small groups with other Learning Advisors, focusing on an aspect of our service. I’m currently on groups working on digital literacy, referencing, EndNote, and our embedded teaching provision, and each group will meet regularly to discuss progress in these areas and plan our next tasks.

Teaching is no longer limited to face to face contact, your current role also includes online teaching including webinars and video resources. If you were advising a new professional who wanted to apply for an academic skills or information literacy role, what advice would you give and are there are skills or resources that you think they should familiarise with?
If the job you want is teaching-focused, then you’ll need to demonstrate knowledge of teaching techniques and best practice. Online learning and blended learning are commonplace in Higher Education nowadays, so I think it’s important to be familiar with all the different ways you can teach and support students – using webinars, videos, VLE areas, and online tutorials as well as face-to-face teaching. There are some good resources out there, including several MOOCs on platforms like FutureLearn that cover learning and teaching in HE, digital/blended learning, and inclusive teaching practice. The Information Literacy group also have good information about pedagogical theory and teaching techniques on their website. Sheila Webber’s blog often highlights interesting webinars about IL and teaching, which are a good way of learning more about teaching as well as becoming familiar with webinars.

What would you like to see from NLPN in the future?
I’m excited about your job shadowing scheme and hope that people find it valuable and useful. (P.s. if you’re reading this and want to come and shadow me, or ask me more about my role, please do!) Aside from that I think you should keep doing what you’re doing – you do such a great job of helping students and new professionals meet others in the profession and learn more about all the different aspects of LIS through your visits, events and online presence. I’m really grateful for the opportunities to network, learn and share that you’ve given me over the years and I hope you continue to do this for others for a long time to come!