Why I am passionate about teaching
Education is freedom. Getting a good education is the only sustainable way out of poverty. The better educated person makes a better citizen, is more informed in health and financial literacy and their children are more likely to succeed. As a librarian, I am not the distributor of this knowledge. Rather, I am the tour guide--showing students how to find information and educate themselves on any topic. With these skills in information literacy, students are prepared to be independent learners, which is a skill that will serve them for a lifetime.
Part of something bigger than myself. As a librarian, I am part of a team, working in concert to benefit the student. No one has to ‘go it alone.’ There are experts in every school, or in the more global community of educators, to rely on for advice, tools and help. In the international venue, this feeling is even more prominent, as the closest expert is often right in our school.
Both immediate & long-term results. It is satisfying to observe students use the search strategies I taught them to complete assignments. Their effectiveness is immediately obvious, and students appreciate the time and labor saved. I also enjoy receiving feedback from past students on how helpful the information literacy skills I taught them have been in their academic careers years after my instruction.
Part of something bigger than myself. As a librarian, I am part of a team, working in concert to benefit the student. No one has to ‘go it alone.’ There are experts in every school, or in the more global community of educators, to rely on for advice, tools and help. In the international venue, this feeling is even more prominent, as the closest expert is often right in our school.
Both immediate & long-term results. It is satisfying to observe students use the search strategies I taught them to complete assignments. Their effectiveness is immediately obvious, and students appreciate the time and labor saved. I also enjoy receiving feedback from past students on how helpful the information literacy skills I taught them have been in their academic careers years after my instruction.
What do my supervisors say?"Ms. Rector has transformed a small library, formerly housed in an old building, to a large state-of-the-art facility along with a media center in our new building. She has strategically designed the space and increased collections to serve the needs of our diverse school population, increasing circulation by 168% as of the 2017/18 school year. Natalie actively promotes reading and library usage through events such as annual book swaps, stuffed animal sleepovers, a summer reading program and semi-annual book fairs." -Carmen Peters, Elementary School Principal, Kaohsiung American School
"Due to the wide range of students who utilize the library resources to gain access to reading material and to actively research, Natalie has to be adept at working with both younger and older students. I directly observed Natalie teaching a class of kindergarteners and also a class of eleventh grade students. Lessons ranged from a read aloud to understanding the research procedures for the IB Extended Essay. In addition to direct instruction, Natalie has created a variety of videos, presentation, and other online resources to facilitate independent learning and professional development leveraging technology." -Daryl Imanishi, Middle School Principal, Kaohsiung American School 
"Her enthusiasm for library instruction is refreshing. She has taught library sessions in the Social Sciences and Humanities for a total of 153 participants.. Her work as the library’s Wikipedia Ambassador has lead to over 50 hours of collaboration with two of our faculty members..." -Caroline Reed, Director of Research, Instruction & Outreach, Jane Bancroft-Cook Library, New College of Florida
"By every standard, Mrs. Rector is a remarkable woman whose intellect, motivation and passion have allowed her to excel among her peers. Mrs. Rector has been instrumental in furthering the enhancement of the library media center at The First Academy." -Steve Whitaker, Headmaster, The First Academy. "Her motivation and commitment were evident. Natalie built good relationships in the community in which she worked and was valued by her peers and colleagues alike." -Sherry Russell, Program Manager, Peace Corps Nepal |
What do my students say?
According to our annual student survey, 95.7% of student respondents said they "loved or liked" coming to the library! "I like to use online resources when researching, it gives a lot of information and gives me a good grade!" -Secondary Student Survey comment, Kaohsiung American School "I like that there is a wide range of books, how the library is organised, and how helpful some of the lessons were!" -Elementary Student Survey comment, Kaohsiung American School "Natalie Rector helped me construct, and effectively research my ISP [independent study project]. This entailed gathering up enough resources and then properly summarizing them in a comprehensive yet concise manner. She is very knowledgeable of her craft but more importantly she is a good communicator and is helpful and approachable to students like me." -Raymond, Freshman student, New College of Florida. "Before Miss Teske came to our school, I hated coming to class and I was always late. Since she's been here, I've never missed a homework assignment and I love English now!" -Poonam, 9 year old student in 4th class. Shree Janaki Girls' School, Nepal. What do my colleagues say?"When Natalie offered [the LEARN Resource kits] service to us, I knew it was something I needed. I often think I should go to the library and see what it has to offer on a particular topic, but I get overwhelmed with the day-to-day challenges a teacher faces. Now, I have the research expert on my campus enhancing my teaching, and ultimately, my students' learning." -Jill Anderson, Journalism teacher. The First Academy "She brought a fresh approach to teaching and was more than willing to incorporate new techniques into an existing paradigm. She is able to work well with others and lead them into using new technologies for the benefit of students and teachers alike." -Elizabeth Egesdahl, 5th Grade Teacher. Eagles Nest Elementary |
Lifelong learner
Active learner in IB Courses, MOOCs through Coursera, through continuing education at Florida State University, and in my personal hobbies--including ukuele lessons and painting.
- AI/Chat GPT-4
- Google Certification, Level 2, since 2019
- Microsoft Innovative Educator, 2019
- Apple Teacher, 2017
- Inquiry & the Librarian Across the Program, Category 3: IBO
- MYP Projects (Personal Projects and Community Project, Category 3: IBO
- Gamification. Wharton School of Business, University of Pennsylvania
- Creativity, Innovation and Change, Penn State
- Videogames and Learning, University of Wisconsin
- Big Data in Education, Columbia University
- Emerging Trends & Technologies in the Virtual K-12 Classroom, University of California, Irvine
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