Affiliations: School of Information and Communication Studies, University College Dublin, Belfield, Dublin, Ireland
Correspondence:
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Corresponding author: Claire McGuinness, School of Information and Communication Studies, University College Dublin, Belfield, Dublin 4, Ireland. Tel.: +353 1 7168398; E-mail: [email protected].
Abstract: Reflective practice is increasingly viewed in the LIS professions as a valuable means of improving workplace performance and encouraging creative problem-solving, while also empowering individual practitioners with a greater sense of professional identity, confidence and self-efficacy. However, the question of how to inculcate critical engagement with professional issues and support professional identity development and socialization among LIS students during their professional training has proved challenging. This paper reports on a unique capstone module in an MLIS programme that incorporates multiple opportunities for students to critically analyse and reflect on professional and personal issues that contribute to their desired career pathway and professional identity development.
Keywords: Professional development, reflective practice, librarians, library education, capstone
