WebJunction

At our library we have always had librarians and only librarians teach our computer classes. We figured that it was our "hook" to tell people that our classes on searching and research were taught by information professionals and that this differentiated us from other places that offered classes.

The majority of our classes focused on search engines, databases, doing research on special topics, etc.

We are now expanding what we teach to include applications. Some on staff still feel that librarians should do the instruction and others feel that we should expand it to include other staff memebers and even volunteers if they are qualified.

What do you do at your library? Who teaches your classes to the public?

We try very hard not to compete with others in terms of all our programming, not just computer classes. Somtimes, however, it can't be helped... I think there is a big demand for application classes and people are more comfortable in a public library setting than something they feel as being more formal.

Hi,

Here are some thoughts based on being a technology trainer while employed as a reference librarian and then while working at/hiring at the Gates Foundation's US Library program.

I cannot say enough good things about the power of team teaching. I know it is not always possible, but when it is, I highly recommend it. If you can find two people with complementary skills (one is more "techie"; one is more "soft"), those classes can be beautiful. You learn so much when you see how different people approach the same topics.

I think there's a tendency for people to think that the trainer needs to be totally technically oriented, but many of the best trainers are more in the middle -- they understand and like the technology, but can also empathize with where the novice is coming from. Knowing how to use a tool and knowing how to teach it are such different things.

I think reference librarians often make good trainers, because they have watched so many people interact with the tools and they are aware of the questions and confusions that frequently come up.

No matter who teaches the classes, I think an interactive format makes all the difference. One of my favorite books for people doing technology training is "The Complete Computer Trainer" by Paul Clothier. It's an oldie but a goodie.

Wow! This post is long -- sorry to have rambled, but I like this topic

Brenda

We started out by having only degreed librarians teach classes. Then we decided to let our professional interns lend a hand, especially those who were experienced with areas such as e-Bay and selling on the Internet. As we added classes, we've also brought in volunteers who are retired teachers from community colleges or business schools to help with our MS Word class. This frees us to develop additional classes, plus it gives our interns some valuable experience. (We always sit in on their first few classes.)