So, this is my first blog entry for my new instruction internship with Gorgas Information Services! Is there a word that encompasses both a sense of overwhelming terror AND mounting excitement? Hysterical, I think would be the word, but in a totally good way. I’ve met with my internship coordinator, Sara Whitver, and I’ve mapped out my semester so as to keep myself on track with all my “duties” as a newly minted instruction intern. Lesson plans, tutorials and instruction sessions, OH MY! And while I’m a little bit overwhelmed (make that “quite”) I have found that the assigned readings given to us by Sara have been extraordinarily comforting in their own way. For example, our reading this week, “How Do They Conduct Class?” made sure to note that good teachers/lecturers/instructors are not made by their ability to speak publicly (something I struggle with) but by their shared concern for the learner. “Their focus is on the nature and processes of learning rather than on the performance of the instructor” (134). So, while I may be nervous as can be, I know that if I make the focus of my internship the potential “learner” and treat my planning processes with care, then I should be prepared enough to pass on a rewarding instruction experience. (Or so I tell myself.)
Lizzie
I can relate to this, having had many of the same feelings at the beginning of the internship. You have so much fun ahead of you!
Lizzie, you are exactly on track with that goal. It’s really not about performing, it’s about focusing on the learning that is happening in the classroom. In a way, you can even imagine your classroom as a room full of individual learners rather than a group! And your teaching style might very well tend focus on smaller groups and individual feedback rather than large group instruction 🙂 We’re going to have a great semester.