In this study, I examine the ways in which undergraduate students acquire the discourses of their chosen major. In particular, I focus on the complementary contributions of faculty members and academic librarians in students' acquisition of disciplinary discourses. Grounded in genre theory and Gee's (1996) notion of primary and secondary discourses, the study highlights the complex processes that students undergo to acquire and internalize the discourse of an academic discipline. Using a qualitative case-study approach, I consider the interrelated experiences of five undergraduate students, three faculty members, and two librarians at a small liberal arts college in the Midwest. Data sources include students' written assignments gathered from their major coursework throughout their college careers; interviews with student participants, faculty members, and librarians; observational notes and transcripts of lectures in courses taught by professors from four courses; and course artifacts, including course syllabi and assignment sheets from the four courses. Data from this study highlight the complex matrix of influences undergraduate students experience as they acquire the specialized language of an academic discipline. My data provide insight into the ways in which some students are positioned to take up disciplinary discourses with ease while other students struggle to develop the same level of acquisition and academic fluency. I bring to light the instructional and institutional practices that facilitate student learning and document those instances where instructional opportunities were missed and where unwarranted assumptions compromised student learning. I conclude this study with series of recommendations, most notably, a greater participation by academic librarians in order to enhance the acquisition of disciplinary discourses for undergraduate students. Further, my data suggest that collaborative opportunities between and among faculty members and academic librarians are likely to enhance the effective teaching of disciplinary discourses. Because of librarians' role as simultaneous insiders and outsiders to the academic disciplines, they are uniquely well-positioned to assist students in acquiring the disciplinary discourses. This dissertation suggests that by making visible the cultural expectations and practices of academia, faculty members and librarians can collaborate to assist undergraduate students gain entry into the academic discourse community.

Subject and learning support librarianship first began in African university libraries in the 1960s, but became more prevalent in the 1980s. Subject librarians, who were known by different titles in various universities, were responsible for one or more subjects, departments, schools or faculties, in terms of providing a subject-based information service, and performing subject-based collection development, user education, and liaison functions. They were organised according to specific models or structures which determined whether or not they performed only subject duties in the library. They formed a core part of the university library, and with each major technological advance, they had to reassess their roles, titles, functions, duties, educational qualifications and skills, so as to adapt to the new information environment. Unfortunately, the inception, development, re-assessment and adaptation of subject librarianship on the African continent did not follow a standard path, and no standards guidelines were compiled that could be utilised by new subject services. The purpose of this study was to investigate the roles, responsibilities and skills of subject librarians in the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) region. The target population consisted of subject librarians in this region and a census method was used to determine participants. The quantitative research approach employing a survey design was used by the study. Data was collected using questionnaires, and results were clarified by interviews with a selection of library managers. Data was analysed using SPSS, MS-Excel and content analysis. The research found that the main models of subject librarianship in place were the dual and hybrid models. It determined the main titles that subject librarians were known by, and that their role, involved providing teaching, learning and research support to faculty members, staff, students and researchers. It also determined the main functions and related duties performed, and the main educational qualifications and skills held by, or required by subject librarians. Since the study found that no guidelines, specifically targeted at subject librarians in the region, were available, as one of its outcomes it provided guidelines, in the form of an appendix, for new subject services to adapt or adopt if they desired. / Information Science / D. Litt. et Phil. (Information Science)

Subject and learning support librarianship first began in African university libraries in the 1960s, but became more prevalent in the 1980s. Subject librarians, who were known by different titles in various universities, were responsible for one or more subjects, departments, schools or faculties, in terms of providing a subject-based information service, and performing subject-based collection development, user education, and liaison functions. They were organised according to specific models or structures which determined whether or not they performed only subject duties in the library. They formed a core part of the university library, and with each major technological advance, they had to reassess their roles, titles, functions, duties, educational qualifications and skills, so as to adapt to the new information environment. Unfortunately, the inception, development, re-assessment and adaptation of subject librarianship on the African continent did not follow a standard path, and no standards guidelines were compiled that could be utilised by new subject services. The purpose of this study was to investigate the roles, responsibilities and skills of subject librarians in the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) region. The target population consisted of subject librarians in this region and a census method was used to determine participants. The quantitative research approach employing a survey design was used by the study. Data was collected using questionnaires, and results were clarified by interviews with a selection of library managers. Data was analysed using SPSS, MS-Excel and content analysis. The research found that the main models of subject librarianship in place were the dual and hybrid models. It determined the main titles that subject librarians were known by, and that their role, involved providing teaching, learning and research support to faculty members, staff, students and researchers. It also determined the main functions and related duties performed, and the main educational qualifications and skills held by, or required by subject librarians. Since the study found that no guidelines, specifically targeted at subject librarians in the region, were available, as one of its outcomes it provided guidelines, in the form of an appendix, for new subject services to adapt or adopt if they desired. / Information Science / D. Litt. et Phil. (Information Science)