Sarah Park
University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
Teaching Philosophy
I think the fundamental goal of lifelong learning is embodied in the famous quote: "Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today. Teach a man to fish; and you have fed him for a lifetime" (author unknown). My mentor has a similar philosophy: "I teach you how to do it, and you watch. I do it, and you repeat. You do it, and I watch. I leave, and you do it. Then you go and teach someone else to do it."
While I was in the Asian American Studies masters program at UCLA, I had the opportunity to be a teaching assistant for an Asian American Studies introduction course, where many of the students were taking an ethnic studies class for the first time. These courses tend to be more meaningful for students because the subject matter is by definition our shared history of oppression and perseverance. Rather than simply teaching history and theory, the other teaching assistants and I tried to ensure that the students took what they learned in the classroom and practiced it in their lives. The other teaching assistants and I set examples by sharing our own personal experiences as community activists and student leaders. We encouraged the students to write about and share their own personal experiences to tie them into the larger historical context presented through the readings and lectures. We provided opportunities for them to participate in community organizations and encouraged them to support issues such as implementing a diversity requirement at UCLA. They learned how to be critical about their education, campus and larger communities.
I believe that students are most affected and empowered when they are inspired and the material is meaningful to them. When students are taught to look critically at their education and the materials and methods presented to them in class, their educational process will be infinitely more meaningful and make more lasting impressions. If you teach a student a list of facts, you have filled his or her brain with head knowledge. Teach him or her how to think critically, and you have equipped that student to truly engage in their education and be an active agent for social change.
Research Interests
Many children's books have been published within the past thirty years that attempt to chronicle the experiences, hardships and uniqueness of Korean Americans, but whether they have told the truth is still open for analysis. My background in Asian American Studies and my identity as a Korean American provide me with a privileged lens through which to analyze and critique the literature that deals with our experiences. Because of my own experiences in growing up without culturally sensitive literature and services, I feel a personal responsibility to ensure that children today do not have to struggle through similar experiences. I will devote my energies to becoming an advocate for multicultural children's services so all children can see themselves in the books they read.
Another research interest of mine is the way children interact with and react to ethnic literature. This is very important, especially when considering how children respond to the way librarians introduce the literature. I want to explore public library services to children in culturally diverse communities, and the connection between multicultural children's literature and its influence on children in both diverse and monocultural communities. My research will provide evidence of the benefits of building and using diverse collections, and consequently, will hopefully encourage public libraries to actively incorporate more ethnic literature into their collections.
It is the responsibility of scholars today to provide relevant literature for the education of children's librarians of tomorrow. As communities change and libraries face an ever increasing diversity of users, there needs to exist a continuum of research to help them best serve all of their patrons. Diversity issues need to be prioritized in library schools and literature so they can influence the way a librarian manages her collection or serves her community. Provision of and access to studies conducted specifically about diverse user populations will continue to be a necessity and demand for library school students.