What do you think are the requisite qualities for a reference librarian?
A deep and abiding respect and kindness for all people.
A joy in service.
An eagerness to quest for art and knowledge with and for another.
A fearless self awareness in order to follow the curiosity of another without assumptions or bias.
A thrill in the hunt!
If I sound as old fashioned as Green I apologize, but if you allow me, I'll try to explain what may seem to some as "over the top."
I have a friend who said, "I think people are born librarians," and I believe this is true. Now I don't want to be accused of mysticizing librarianship, but when I compare what I do everyday for high school students to phrases like, "using interpersonal communication to identify information needs" I feel like my garden grown potatoes have been changed into McDonald's french fries. Yes, talking about librarianship in this way releases an air of scientific accuracy and neutrality, but it also insidiously complicates and devalues what we do.
Justin said in his excellent post, "In my own job, people groan and roll their eyes when customer service is mentioned, but ultimately, that is what we are there for." I think we all understand why people roll their eyes when they hear the phrase "customer service;" it changes a civil or educational service into a function of the market. And while "customer service" for a shoddy librarian might be an improvement and probably for whom it is being invoked in the first place, I think for most librarians it sounds like a cheap ploy. Justin is right, ultimately and primarily we are there for the people of the library; but I do not want to exploit them as customers, I want to serve them as guests. Unfortunately for many the sacred trust of Host is simply unknown and the shadow that is left is "customer service."
Perhaps Green was right about his own time, but I think today that he does not go far enough. He says to, "Instruct this assistant to consult with every person who asks for help in selecting books. This should not be her whole work; for work of this kind is best done when it has the appearance of being performed incidentally. Let the assistant, then, have some regular work, but such employment as she can at once lay aside when her aid is asked for in picking out books to read." I don't want to wait for someone to ask for help. I believe we should seek out people in the library and ask them how we can be of service. I do this everyday with students and many do not need my help, but I don't want any student to leave the library without feeling like I wanted him or her to be there and I was ready to help him or her personally.
I was amazed to read Karen Crow's comment: "I wish that I were allowed to leave the desk, wander the floors, and accost (for lack of a better word) patrons with questions like: "Are you finding everything you need?" "Can I help you?" "What are you researching today?" "Topic X/ is certainly interesting. What specifically are you looking for within the topic? Have you tried looking under _Fill in the Blank_ for more information on the subject?" "Hey! That's a really cool book. If you enjoy this title, you might like _Fill in the Blank_."" I know that working in a one person library is different than working in a large public or academic library but I can't help but feel this is tragic.
The reference desk must not be a ball and chain, especially with the technology tools that we posess today. The reference librarian needs only a headset and mobile phone and the phone number posted prominently around the library. Instantly she would be free to walk among her guests and answer their questions even if it meant walking a library that has multiple floors.
As for Genz's question of professional vs. the paraprofessional I hope it is not too arogant or provoking to say that I find it tiresome and ultimately distracting from far more important topics. Don't get me wrong, I think it is a solid piece of scholarship and a handy review of the literature on reference librararianship (and it would be politic of me to say that this is not criticism of its selection), but to me it screams insecurity like that person who insists on being called Doctor so-and-so because they earned that PhD damn it!
What has changed over the past century and what are the constants?
To me what has changed is what is least important: the media that convey art and knowledge. Today I may laugh at a YouTube video that I watch on my iPhone while in days gone by a person would chuckle at the Jibes-n-Jokes section of their local news paper, but humanity and our desire for truth and beauty have not changed and will not change. I believe it is simply the job of the librarian to help others in this search. Again if this sounds "over the top" please forgive me.
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