Are The Contestants Ready?

Have you ever watched a hot dog eating contest? I have seen a couple on TV. Competitors line up with plates piled high with hot dogs and buns. There is no mustard or relish on these dogs. They are not meant for enjoyment. The competitors have just a few minutes, or seconds, to eat as many as they can. Most can barely hold them down, and occasionally, one sees one of the eaters grab a bucket.

For many librarians, it is hard work to gain access to one of our classes. Instructors are busy trying to fit in their required plans. They may not see the need to make room in their syllabus for quality library instruction. It often takes a good deal of time to build the relationships with the instructors which allows us to demonstrate how we can help them. As a result, we often feel that we have to cram everything that we want them to know into thirty or so minutes. The result is an information hot dog-eating contest. We stuff them with fact after fact as fast as we can. In the end, few can swallow or hold down all that we have fed them.

In a couple of days, I will be teaching a 30 minute segment on APA style. I know that I cannot cover everything in that short of a time. There is a reason that the APA style manual is so large. What I can do is teach them how to look at citation references and introduce them to a few. I can show them the basic building blocks of a citation which will better help them understand the style manual.

It is important to be realistic with ourselves, our students and our faculty partners. We need to have a clear vision for what we can do and what is beyond the scope of our allotted time or environment. This means working from clear learning objectives. Sometimes we need not ask “What is everything that they will need to finish the race?” It is often better to ask, “What will they need to get to the next leg of the race.” We can always end our session by introducing them to other things that we can teach them. If we are lucky, instead of leaving them feeling overstuffed, we can wet their appetites for further feasts.