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The Course-Integrated Unconference: A Pedagogy of Courage and Mutual Trust

Many Library and Information Science (LIS) educators focus on real-world applications of complex theories and philosophies. LIS students are simultaneously being prepared for positions in the field as well as for active participation in professional discourse so they can be involved in identifying issues and offering solutions to new and old problems in the profession. Within a course, students engage with problems that the instructor has identified and included in the syllabus; often there is little time to discuss current social and political events that impact libraries and library services. This article describes how incorporating an Unconference into a graduate-level LIS course encourages the students to identify issues in the profession that matter to them as individuals and future practitioners. An Unconference is a meeting model in which the participants determine and take responsibility for the content. A course-integrated Unconference builds flexibility into the course’s structure and schedule. It creates intentional space for meaningful conversations about issues that interest the students, elevating their voices and experiences while inverting typical classroom power dynamics. Participating in planning and conducting the Unconference gives graduate students valuable professional experience and empowers them to take control over their education. The Unconference described in this article is part of an online course and, as such, the model presented will also be useful to professional organizations as they consider other ways to move meetings, conferences, and idea-sharing into online environments.