The journey begins!

I officially started working on my college coursework. I'm so excited about the prospect of having my master's degree in 2 years. It's already been affirmed that I've chosen the right path with library science because I'm seeing so many parallels between teaching and the world of a librarian.


I just began reading Reference and Information Services in the 21st Century (I know..sounds like a real page turner huh?) and there was a whole section about patrons of the library possible asking you what they call a "ready reference question". These can be things like "Who won the 1992 World Series?" or "Who was the first to sign the Declaration of Independence?". As a person your first instinct may be to just tell them, but librarians need to take this as a "teachable moment" and show them how to find the information. Basically the idea of "If you give a man a fish, he eats for a day. If you show a man how to fish, he eats for a lifetime". This is a concept that as a teacher, I need to keep in mind everyday. For example, students often ask me how to spell a certain word. It's taken practice, but I've finally gotten in the habit of having them use a dictionary instead of simply telling them how to spell a particular word.


I'm so happy that this connection between these two worlds has already been formed. It's going to make my coursework at IUPUI that much more meaningful. Bring on the edu-ma-cation!