I have always viewed teaching and learning as inexorably linked. Therefore, I start with the learning experience that most shaped me in a positive way: an Introduction to Geology course I took as an undergraduate English major. The course was intended as a pure science course, focusing on the chemistry and mechanics of rock formation. However, when the science professor learned he had a class of humanities majors a few weeks into the course, he threw out the syllabus and took a completely different approach. Rather than focus primarily on the science of geology, the class became refocused on geology in the context of art – examining sculptures from different cultures, their use of geologic materials, and understanding how the materials influenced the art of those cultures. That course taught me three main lessons about teaching that I carry to this day.

The first lesson I learned was to meet your students where they are and understand what they need to effectively learn the material. I believe students come to the classroom with the desire to learn and that all people learn best when they connect new learning to existing knowledge. The overall learning process is informed by connections individuals make with that information, their experiences, and through discourse with one other.

In my classrooms, I like to engage learners through a combination of different instructional methods. A typical class may include a short lecture introducing a core concept, theory, or methodology, followed by a combination of individual and group activities to offer the opportunity to apply the learning. I typically use formative feedback, including reflective journaling, between classes to build my knowledge of my students and their needs while tracking their understanding of the content.

The second lesson I learned was to have a plan, but to be fearless in making changes if something else is needed. While I often approach teaching by focusing on introducing and then applying the concepts, I have experimented with flipped classroom models where the entire class time is application, have jettisoned a lesson plan for open question and answer sessions on more than one occasion, and have brought in guest speakers when needed to increase the level of engagement in the classroom environment.

The third lesson I learned was that, when making changes, the teacher becomes a learner – and the best teachers are those who are perpetually learning. I became a librarian because I possessed an unbounded curiosity about the world, but I became a teacher because I wanted to channel that impulse in a way that would both help others and allow continuous, lifelong learning. To date, I have taught over 40,000 students and I am still continuously refining my approach to learning about my students, engaging them, and supporting their learning to the best of my ability. Over the course of my career, I have also transitioned from English major to librarian to a teaching librarian to a librarian with a doctorate in Education who teaches other librarians how to teach. Working with and mentoring librarians who are new to teaching constantly gives me new perspective on the myriad ways students learn and teachers can be effective in the classroom. This, in turn, informs my approach and my understanding of what can be done.

Beyond the library space, I have worked to author and design open online courses for engineering students on information evaluation and incorporating different types of knowledge into engineering design work. I have also collaborated with a large interdisciplinary team to author and design an open course on academic integrity and academic ethics concepts for STEM students. These online courses supplement my curriculum development and delivery experiences in areas like sociological research methods, censorship, and critical thinking and reasoning.

At the end of this process, I believe that the most important part of education is the positive impact it has on the lives of students, as well as those who they impact in turn. Librarianship as a career path and a discipline of study has an important role in shaping our world. It relies on using the innate curiosity of the individual to drive continued exploration and has the potential to shape social spaces and experiences through continued access to, use of, evaluation of, organization of, and communication of information. Whether the subject is geology or information literacy, my hope and approach as a teacher is meant to provide lessons that help students shape their work, their lives, and their world for the better.