This post is a general reflection on instruction. I’ll follow up with a post on each of the following: co-teaching, Day 1, and Day 2.
I came in to this assistantship not knowing what to expect. I come from a family of teachers and have led plenty of training sessions for youth and adults. I’ve also taught summer school sessions in a community center on journalism and art. Therefore, the basic principles of leading students through a curriculum is not foreign to me. However, the goals for research instruction can be overwhelming. I know how important research skills can be, and I have helped high-school students with research in the past and been shocked by their lack of ability to complete even simple tasks such as finding an image and copying and pasting it. Therefore, it’s hard not to feel pressure to catch these students up while not boring the others. Lucky for me, Gorgas’s reference librarians are all experienced instructors. Seeing them teach, gave me a framework for lessons plans and a confidence level with the material. Furthermore, the reality is, we only have the time to give the students the tools. It is then on them to seek out additional help and give themselves time to become better skilled researchers.