Lessons Learned
Midterms are just as busy for librarians as they are for students. This week, I completed 11 instructional sessions for a variety of classes and I think that it served as “my right of passage” into academic librarianship. Overall, graduate school prepared me well and I approached the task with a variety of resources available, including assistance and support from other librarians on staff. While I have been busy teaching library instruction sessions, the students have been teaching me a thing or two as well. First, no matter how well you plan a class, it will have to change at some point. Each class has its own dynamic and what works in one class might not translate well into another. Backup plans are great. Second, some students think that they know more about information resources than they really do. Even though I am relatively new librarian, I find the best method is to gently point them in the right direction. I tell them learning is an ongoing process and new resources at the college level are just the next step. Third, students think librarians are cool! We can find resources on almost any topic, know all of the databases and their uses, we can edit citations, and we can even fix the printers! It has been satisfying to have students come back over and over again with new questions. It has been nice to have them knock at my office door to let me know they got an “A” on that paper. It demonstrates that they trust us, still need us, and are ready to take their information skill set to the next level.
Posted by Lauren Jensen on October 13th, 2006 under Professional Development.
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