Guest editorial: Taking action on inclusivity in libraries: models, theories and practices to support all library users

Citation

Watstein, S.B. and Johns, E.M. (2024), "Guest editorial: Taking action on inclusivity in libraries: models, theories and practices to support all library users", Reference Services Review, Vol. 52 No. 1, pp. 1-2. https://doi.org/10.1108/RSR-02-2024-119

Special issues of Reference Services Review (RSR) are collections of articles that concentrate on a topical research area within the aims and scope of the journal. Curated by guest editors with experience, expertise or interest in the topic, RSR special issues are targeted, timely and insightful collections, meaning that the articles therein are often heavily downloaded close to the issue’s publication date and consistently heavily downloaded over time.

Journal Co-Editors Johns and Watstein and the entire RSR Editorial Team [1] are especially pleased to bring our readers the current special issue – Inclusive Pedagogies and Services (52.4, 2024). RSR has a history of developing special issues and publishing manuscripts focused on inclusive practices in libraries, as demonstrated through recent special issues on peer-led research services (51.2, 2023), anti-racist action in libraries (50.1, 2022) and the costs of higher education (48.3, 2020). We are proud to present a new special issue focused on inclusive pedagogies and services, offering our readers new strategies, models and theories to more fully realize a library’s potential to support all library users.

Guest Editors Dr Kawanna Bright [2] and Dr Mónica Colón-Aguirre [3] have carefully defined the subject matter and role of every article in the issue, guiding authors toward the curation of a robust, diverse and interesting collection of innovative research and scholarship on inclusivity in libraries. Inclusive pedagogies and services are those that promote equitable and socially just learning environments and services while also working to enable all students and users to have an equal opportunity to succeed [4]. The authors in this issue investigate societal, communal, campus and internal library systems that have historically and continue to pose barriers and challenges to library users.

We invite readers to browse the journal articles in this issue to explore inclusive pedagogies alongside the authors. We are confident that readers will come away with a more fulsome understanding of inclusive pedagogies and the elements of an inclusive pedagogical approach in libraries. We suggest that inclusive pedagogy is critically important in post-COVID-19 higher education and academic libraries.

We invite our readers to join us in extending a warm thank you to our guest editors for their vision and dedication and for playing a vital role in curating high-quality contributions on a complex topic. We wish them and the authors in this special issue every success in continuing to innovate and promote inclusive pedagogies and services in our libraries.

Notes

1. RSR Peer Review Coordinator: Regina Beard, Interim Director, Research, Scholarship, & Instruction, Florida Gulf Coast University; RSR Marketing Coordinator: Sabine Dantus, Reference Librarian, Florida International University; RSR Special Issues Editor: Michael Flierl, Associate Professor and Student Learning Librarian, Ohio State University Libraries.

2. Assistant Professor, East Carolina University College of Education, Department of Interdisciplinary Professions, Library Science.

3. Assistant Professor, School of Information Science, College of Information and Communications, University of South Carolina.

4. Page, C., Hardwick, J., Takacs, S. (2021). Inclusive Pedagogies. https://kpu.pressbooks.pub/inclusivepedagogies/chapter/what-are-inclusive-pedagogies/