As one might imagine, Madeline Gottlieb, teaching assistant and doctoral candidate, knows her way around a library.
“As an undergraduate student, I studied English, rhetoric and literature at the University, and now I’m back for my PhD in the same subject!” Gottlieb said. “Since I was a child, I had a very clear idea of my interests. I always wanted to teach and I’ve always loved to read. The idea of merging these two interests together, therefore, seemed ideal.
“During the school year, my office, carrel and classroom are all located in the Bartle Library, so I’m always in or near the library in one way or another. I love having the ability to search through thousands of book titles to find the one source or citation I need for a project — something I’ve done more than once to complete the final stages of a paper. Without question, however, the Libraries’ online tools have been the most important throughout my research pursuits. During the COVID-19 pandemic, especially, it was a relief to know that I’d be able to access countless resources even when I was far from Binghamton.
Recently, in a conversation with Dean Curtis Kendrick, Gottlieb mentioned how often she uses the Libraries as a part of her teaching process. Not only does she use them for her own research, but she is determined to encourage undergraduate students to use them as well.
“Every semester, no matter the course, I take a substantial amount of class time to show my students how to navigate the Libraries’ online resources,” Gottlieb said. “Going over how to properly begin the academic research process, I teach my students to find articles, review articles and refine their article searches.”
For many years, Gottlieb taught WRIT 111, the introductory composition course unique to Binghamton University that focuses on articulating, researching, supporting and asserting an original argument.
“It’s imperative that students are able to find and collect useful information and research,” she said. “The Libraries’ website provides all of that, and more, which is why it has become a fan-favorite resource for exploring scholarship. As I told the dean, I’ve seen a pronounced difference in the work produced by students who use the Libraries’ website, versus those who rely on less-advanced search engines for scholarship. I am doubly grateful for the Libraries’ resources both as a student and instructor!”