Key Insights into Factors that Shape the Ideal EDI Learning Experiences of Canadian Academic Librarians

Abstract

A Review of: 

Fitzgibbons, M., & Lei, C. (2024). What is ideal EDI learning for academic librarians? Discovering EDI learning stories through appreciative inquiry. The Journal of Academic Librarianship, 50(5). Article 102908. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.acalib.2024.102908  

Objective – To gain insights into academic librarians’ learning about equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) to identify ideal learning practices, and to inform the development of EDI learning in academic libraries. 

Design – Appreciative inquiry-based semi-structured interviews. 

Setting – Canadian higher education libraries across six provinces. 

Subjects – 21 academic librarians across a range of professional roles. 

Methods – Researchers conducted online Zoom interviews, firstly through pilots at two institutions before broadening to any Canadian higher education library, which were then transcribed. The 4-D cycle of appreciative inquiry, a strengths-based approach to change, was used to guide the development of the generative interview questions. The data analysis of the transcripts was underpinned by hermeneutic phenomenology, with interpretations using meaning assigned by participants themselves, and utilized thematic analysis with open coding and constant comparison. 

Main Results –The authors identified eleven factors under three main categorizations of learning-specific factors, structural factors, and internal factors, which participants attributed to conditions that shape ideal learning experiences. The researchers identified four key insights as a result of their research that added to previous literature on this topic; the importance of personal identity and positionality in shaping learning experiences, the importance of seeing learning in the context of accumulated learning journeys rather than single activities, the dynamics of different types of learning including informal learning and those beyond professional contexts, and lastly that academic institutions themselves shape individuals learning experiences. 

Conclusion – The authors identified key factors that shape the EDI learning experiences of Canadian academic librarians and shared their learning experiences, which can motivate other groups of librarians to reflect on their own EDI learning journeys and motivations.