|
Teaching |
Carolyn L. Bowman UW MLIS Portfolio |
|
Teaching links:
|
Home Teaching Service Technological Tools Intellectual Growth Leadership |
|
Teaching In the library classroom In 2003, Seattle Public Library embarked on an endeavor unique to public libraries: we began training staff in intellectual freedom philosophy, policy and procedures. Although the principles of intellectual freedom provide a foundation for public libraries in the United States, the training at Seattle Public Library is unusual in its aim to educate all employees in the organization. Under the leadership and vision of librarian Mary Ross, who developed the training, the trainers continually refine the materials through discussion and feedback from participants. As a trainer from the beginning, I was and continue to be involved in this process. We completed training of all permanent staff in December 2005. I will continue as a trainer in 2006, conducting workshops for student assistants. In February 2004, Mary Ross, Kate Laughlin and I presented Seattle Public Library’s Intellectual Freedom Training, "Ensuring Access: Training All Library Staff on Intellectual Freedom," to approximately 200 people at the PLA conference in Seattle. Together, Mary, Kate and I prepared a handout for workshop attendees. Mary and Kate described how the training was developed and delivered and I demonstrated one of the training activities. Our presentation was very well received, with several participants commenting that it was the best program they attended at the conference. Librarians from all over North America requested training materials from Mary Ross. The training is taught by a team of two people who present information, lead discussions, and guide trainees through a series of activities and scenarios taken from actual situations. We make an effort to include the perspectives of all participants. One set of recent evaluations particularly pleases me, as I am concentrating as a professional on listening to the perspectives of all people touched by information and its related tools. One participant wrote, "Trainers were great—engaged, knowledgeable, [and] good at drawing out comments from everybody." As a member of the Facilities Department of the Seattle Public Library, I exemplify the unique approach to intellectual freedom training supported by the Library. The organization strives to educate all members of the staff, believing that each individual has a role to play in fulfilling the mission of the library, and that understanding the mission is critical for success. I trained my supervisor and several of my colleagues in the Facilities Department, as well as my Directed Fieldwork supervisor. These teaching experiences provided opportunities to implement my commitment to understanding the perspectives of all of the people in information organizations. In particular, I began to open my mind to the leadership of others. In the library garden Also in February 2004, at the same time I was pursuing the new teaching experience above, I co-presented a program on pesticide-free gardening practices in Portland, Oregon. I collected a substantial amount of data over a two-year period, documenting the use of my time in 30-minute increments. For the first time, public sector gardeners in Washington and Oregon have access to information concerning specific time commitments necessary to adopt a pesticide-free approach to gardening, long assumed to be prohibitively labor intensive. In addition to presenting gardening techniques and overall philosophy, I trained people in a unique approach to record keeping. An article on the presentation was published in the Northwest Coalition for Alternatives to Pesticides journal in the Spring 2004 issue. Barb Decaro and I presented our programs for a second time in Seattle in September 2004 at the International Northwest Parks and Recreation Association conference. Conclusions Although I am a former teacher, these experiences were unique because they included close collaboration with other professionals. Initially, my opinions about curriculum and approach were quite rigid with respect to both teaching experiences described above. My rather narrow views were softened and modified during the experiences. For example, I believed that intellectual freedom training should include a substantial historical component; during the process of teaching people with diverse backgrounds, I came to recognize the value in an approach that emphasizes interactive learning components instead. I recognized while working with Barb Decaro on our presentation about pesticide-free gardening that an approach as extreme as my own is not possible in every situation. Some landscapes are too large; some people cannot adopt the work schedules and habits that facilitate my approach. I was able to take lessons learned during the above experiences into many MLIS group projects, which in turn furthered my education with respect to working with other professionals. Most significantly, I improved my listening skills and my willingness to allow others to contribute to a project from a perspective different than my own, curtailing my tendency to convince others that my approach is preferable. I did not recognize this habit of mind immediately; it became evident when I worked on the construction of a thesaurus with three other students (LIS 537). During this project my ideas were considered merely some among many. So I sat back and let two strong leaders in the group take control. This required significant restraint on my part. During the process, I learned how to express my point of view without alienating the others. Ultimately, both teaching experiences during the past two years helped me develop into a more mature student. <<back to Introduction<< >>go on to Service>>
|