Tonight I went in to observe a beginning Word class held at the library. It was the first time the class had been taught, and I'm not sure the librarian teaching it knew 1) what her audience was really expecting out of the class or 2) how to best teach them how to do what they wanted to learn to do. I learned a lot by observing and thinking about how I could avoid her problems in the future.
The first problem was that the librarian, D, didn't know at what level her students were approaching the class. All of them were very much beginners, mostly elderly ladies who had never used a computer. D came into the class with the assumption that most of them had already used computers and word-processors, and simply needed to know about the new functions in Word 2007. Instead of showing people how to save a document or how to copy and paste, she showed them where the button was to save a document, and 4 different ways to get to copy and paste functions. She threw out jargon, like 'file extensions,' instead of explaining why someone might want to save a document in compatibility format and what they could do once they did. She fell into many of the pitfalls I've seen in my time as an IA at the Wells Library - showing people where things are, but then not showing them what to do with those buttons once they click on them; telling people what can be done but not explaining how to do any of it because the assumption is they just need to have it pointed out; trying to cram absolutely everything into one session instead of making sure the essential skills are clearly explained and performed by the students.
I think if I were teaching the class, my approach would be different. First, I would want to talk to the students about what they want to get out of the class - maybe even before they come to class. The attendees have to register to take the class, and since it was the first time the class had been offered, I might even ask a few of them what they'd like before they got there.
Next, I would have some kind of standard document for all of the students to work on so they could see whether they were doing things correctly. It would be loaded on the computers so that they could begin the class by retrieving a saved document, and the teaching would begin there with that skill. I'd go through essential skills that everyone has to use - saving, printing, copying, pasting, and I would have the students perform these skills to make sure they understood them. I would go from computer to computer, making sure everyone understood what they were trying to do, and I would keep it basic enough that they could understand enough to ask questions. The biggest problem with this class was that D was going so quickly that most of the students didn't even know what to ask (a situation I know well from a computer class I'm taking this semester that's a little beyond me sometimes).
I talked to the librarian a little after and explained some of the things I'd seen - the fact that when D told them they could ask questions on ehow.com, one girl in the back had no idea how to open an Internet browser. D and I discussed some of the things she had planned to do (and then forgot about because she got nervous) and talked about ways the class could be improved in the future. It was certainly an educational experience for me, even though it wasn't the best example of instruction I've ever seen. I think D will work to make the class more helpful, and I was glad to see some potential pitfalls to avoid if I ever teach a similar class.
