• Hi. I'm a doctoral student in the School of Information Studies at Charles Sturt University in Australia. My supervisors are Professor Lisa Given and Dr. Kim Thompson.

     

    My research focuses on embodiment in everyday-life information practices. In that vein, I'm studying how people feed themselves and their families, and the nature of information within these activities.

     

    I also work as a librarian at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Canada, where I support members of the departments of Art & Design, Drama, and Psychology, focusing on services such as teaching and consultations.

     

    News:

    • October 2016: I'll be presenting "Embodied information in workplace contexts," a poster, at the SIG-USE/SIG-SI joint workshop at ASIS&T 2016 in Copenhagen (with Thane Chambers)
    • May 2016: Thane Chambers and I received funding for "How people use their own bodies as a source of information: a scoping review" (University of Alberta Libraries Research Support Fund)
    • April 2016: I spoke about "What I do to #critlib my one-shot teaching," at MacEwan University's IL Palooza

    Contact me: sarah.polkinghorne@ualberta.ca

    ORCID: 0000-0002-8204-6891

     

  • Research

     

      In addition to my doctoral work, I have also investigated librarians' experiences of the teaching role and with new technology.

       

      Recent publications and presentations include:

      • Polkinghorne, S., & Chambers, T. (2016, October). Embodied information in workplace contexts. Poster presented at the SIG-USE workshop at the Association for Information Science and Technology Annual Meeting, Copenhagen (refereed)

      • Polkinghorne, S. (2016, forthcoming). Critical consciousness and search: an introductory visualization. In N. Pagowsky & K. McElroy (Eds.), Critical library pedagogy handbook. Chicago: American Library Association.

      • Polkinghorne, S. (2015, September). Unpacking and Overcoming 'Edutainment' in Library Instruction, In the Library with the Lead Pipe (refereed)
      • Desrochers, N., Elmborg, J., Polkinghorne, S. (2014, May). Engaged scholarship: Collaborative research between librarians and LIS faculty. Moderated by Heidi L.M. Jacobs and Selinda A. Berg. Canadian Association for Information Science, St. Catherine’s, ON.

    • Practice

       

        The core of my professional practice is supporting students and faculty members in the Departments of Art & Design, Drama, and Psychology at the University of Alberta.

         

        Recent work includes:

        • Coordinating the Rutherford Library exhibition program
        • Bringing the University's first Images of Research competition to life
        • Tweeting for five years as @uofalibraries tweetwright-in-chief
        • Contributing as a member of the Libraries' Teaching and Learning Team, Web Architecture Team, and Public Services Council

      • Service

         

          Recent contributions include:

          • Chair, Program Committee, WILU 2017 (Workshop on Instruction in Library Use)
          • Webmaster and Executive Board Member, Canadian Association for Information Science (2015-present)
          • Guest lectures at the University of Alberta and SUNY Buffalo
          • Elected Member, Library Evaluation Committee, University of Alberta Libraries (2013-2016)
          • Peer Mentor, Canadian Association of Research Libraries (CARL/ABRC) Librarians' Research Institute, Simon Fraser University (2015)
          • Reviewer for the Association for Information Science & Technology (ASIS&T), Evidence Based Library and Information Practice, and others

        • Awards

           

            My awards have included:

            • Faculty of Education Resource Funding, Charles Sturt University (2016)
            • Research Support Fund Grant, University of Alberta Libraries (2016, 2012)
            • Librarian Recognition Award, University of Alberta (2014)
            • Best Paper by a Practitioner, Canadian Association for Information Science (2013, 2012)
            • Sponsored Place Award at i3 (information: interactions and impact), Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen, Scotland (2013)
            • Augustana Campus Teaching & Learning Enhancement Fund Grant (2009)
            • Queen Elizabeth II Graduate Scholarship (2006)
            • SSHRC Canada Graduate Scholarship (2003)

            • Curriculum Vitae

              The complete chronicle is available to view or download.

            This work is licensed under a

            Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.

             

             

            Banner image by Kelly Tindall.