Being an academic librarian comes with many challenges. Very few of us are privileged enough to come into the profession with a background in education and knowledge in assessment practices. For those of us running instruction programs it is our duty to prepare librarians to not only teach but also assess their own work.

Over the last year, Georgia College has implemented a new training and assessment program for the library staff. This program is grounded in reflection practices and encourages self-improvement. The reflection program includes but is not limited to departmental/personal teaching philosophies, peer-review of instruction, reflection journals and student/faculty feedback.

The key to the programs success is allowing librarians the freedom to focus on self-improvement by implementing a level of structure to assessment that had previously been missing. Librarians work with the library instruction coordinator as a peer-coach for instruction rather than being evaluated by a supervisor. This allows for more genuine reflections and authentic conversations among librarians. Although the program does not replace yearly evaluations it does serve as an additional method of assessment and training that librarians can use to further their efforts in the classroom. The program also helps library faculty prepare and organize documentation for tenure and promotion.

The development, implementation, failures and successes of the program will be covered.