Monday, 27 February 2012
Seeing a Teacher Librarian in action
Last week I had the pleasure of seeing a Teacher Librarian (TL) in action. I was the casual in a Year 3 class for the day and the Library lesson had been overlooked. Since no-one had set up another class for me to teach, I took this as my opportunity to sit in (and help where I could) on a library lesson. It was fabulous, though I must say, the time flew by. The TL began the Library lesson by reviewing the rules of the Library. She then took the students on a tour of the Library because, as graduates from Infants, they were now able to borrow from other sections in the Library. She then introduced them to the school OPAC and had them search for books that they might be interested in reading. After this they were allowed to select books and borrow. I walked around with a few students who weren't really sure about what they wanted to borrow. It was great to have the chance to talk to them about their interests and to find books that they were excited to take home and read. All too soon the bell rang and I was off to my recess duty.... It really was a great opportunity for me to see a TL in action.
Thursday, 5 January 2012
Budgeting - yet another role of the Teacher Librarian
Another aspect of Teacher Librarianship that I gave little thought to was budgeting. Again, I am forced to look at the ever increasing roles of the Teacher Librarian and wonder how do they fit it all this stuff in???!!! How will I fit all this in? After many deep breaths, I started reading...
The Debowski (2001) chapter was long but extremely informative and helped me sort out the different facets of budgeting that a TL has to deal with in my own mind. Through the article many goals arose:
* build a funding base so financial support is easily achieved
* ensure that your collection reflects the needs of the users
* be visibly accountable by publishing outcomes
* hand in a budget submission every year
* maintain a record of the costs associated with providing
electronic services
* evaluate your collection using collection mapping to
identify needs and areas that are lacking.
Lamb and Johnson (2007) identified 3 roles of the TL as a good budget manager:
1) Collaborator - collaborate with members of the school community to secure and allocate money for the budget.
2) Steward - a leader who seeks input from others; bases choices on needs of the community; can account for all spending; implement and assess results and communicate these results to the community.
3) Thinker - search for ways to gain additional funding but also make the most of what you have.
The thing I related to most though was in the Marge Cox (2008) article when she stated, "Put on your own oxygen mask first". In her article she says this as a reminder that the TL should include items in the budget that will keep you up-to-date with what is going on in your profession. I read this and saw myself, hyperventilating on my first day as a TL ..... so many roles for one person.
The Debowski (2001) chapter was long but extremely informative and helped me sort out the different facets of budgeting that a TL has to deal with in my own mind. Through the article many goals arose:
* build a funding base so financial support is easily achieved
* ensure that your collection reflects the needs of the users
* be visibly accountable by publishing outcomes
* hand in a budget submission every year
* maintain a record of the costs associated with providing
electronic services
* evaluate your collection using collection mapping to
identify needs and areas that are lacking.
Lamb and Johnson (2007) identified 3 roles of the TL as a good budget manager:
1) Collaborator - collaborate with members of the school community to secure and allocate money for the budget.
2) Steward - a leader who seeks input from others; bases choices on needs of the community; can account for all spending; implement and assess results and communicate these results to the community.
3) Thinker - search for ways to gain additional funding but also make the most of what you have.
The thing I related to most though was in the Marge Cox (2008) article when she stated, "Put on your own oxygen mask first". In her article she says this as a reminder that the TL should include items in the budget that will keep you up-to-date with what is going on in your profession. I read this and saw myself, hyperventilating on my first day as a TL ..... so many roles for one person.
Tuesday, 3 January 2012
Copyright
Very interesting reading of the copyright laws for schools and TAFE's. If you want to read more see: www.smartcopying.edu.au
Some of the more interesting things I found were:
* In Australia there is automatic protection of copyright.
* Schools can use DVD's and videos for non-educational purposes; eg. rainy days and on bus trips (if the school provides the movie) ONLY if schools have a Co-curricular licence. If the school does not have this license, permission must be gained from the movie's distributor to play the movie.
* Schools should not borrow DVD's from students or parents as they could be pirated. There are serious penalties for playing pirated movies in schools.
* The Teacher Librarian should not have to police copyrighting issues at the school - each teacher should be aware of the rules and the penalties involved if copyright is breached. (This involves website and internet copyright as well as print materials, electronic materials, dvd's etc.)
Creative commons:
Schools are able to use creative commons resources free of charge. This includes music, film clips and photos. A list of creative commons symbols can be found on the smartcopying website. This will help teachers identify resources that are protected under the creative commons licence.
Some of the more interesting things I found were:
* In Australia there is automatic protection of copyright.
* Schools can use DVD's and videos for non-educational purposes; eg. rainy days and on bus trips (if the school provides the movie) ONLY if schools have a Co-curricular licence. If the school does not have this license, permission must be gained from the movie's distributor to play the movie.
* Schools should not borrow DVD's from students or parents as they could be pirated. There are serious penalties for playing pirated movies in schools.
* The Teacher Librarian should not have to police copyrighting issues at the school - each teacher should be aware of the rules and the penalties involved if copyright is breached. (This involves website and internet copyright as well as print materials, electronic materials, dvd's etc.)
Creative commons:
Schools are able to use creative commons resources free of charge. This includes music, film clips and photos. A list of creative commons symbols can be found on the smartcopying website. This will help teachers identify resources that are protected under the creative commons licence.
Saturday, 24 December 2011
Assignment 1 reflection - ETL 503
It was with much hesitation that I sent my first assignment for ETL503 through EASTS on Monday evening. This is the first time that I was not happy with what I was submitting. From the beginning of this subject I have felt like I'm lagging behind, unable to catch up. I have felt at a disadvantage not being in a library already and not knowing what some of the people in the forum have been discussing in the way of resources. Needless to say, I am hoping for a pass. Fingers crossed.
Wednesday, 30 November 2011
Kennedy text
For ETL 503, I am currently reading through the Kennedy text, "Collection Management: A concise Introduction". It is an informative and interesting book, however, I am finding many references to books and articles published in the '90's. Although I am sure that these have lots of pertinent information to collection management, I am sure that there are more recent resources that could be referenced.
As an example, I have just come across a reference to a magazine called Australia Bookseller and Publisher which gives up-to-date information on what is happening in the book world. By doing an internet search I came across the online version of this at http://www.booksellerandpublisher.com.au/
Not only does it list the Bestselling books for the week but also has interesting articles from around the world including one on why Japanese people are unlikely to ever read an e-book.
As an example, I have just come across a reference to a magazine called Australia Bookseller and Publisher which gives up-to-date information on what is happening in the book world. By doing an internet search I came across the online version of this at http://www.booksellerandpublisher.com.au/
Not only does it list the Bestselling books for the week but also has interesting articles from around the world including one on why Japanese people are unlikely to ever read an e-book.
Thursday, 17 November 2011
Indecision ....
After much indecision, I am going to go ahead with ETL503 over the Christmas holiday break. I must say that I was totally overwhelmed by the brief and the assignments and have been second guessing myself for awhile. Now I have committed myself though, there is no turning back! That being said, I am still very unsure of it all. I was at a school on Wednesday and took a copy of my assignments to discuss some ideas with the Teacher Librarian. As soon as I mentioned the school's Collection Policy, there was a shift in the conversation. They don't have one and she doubts whether any Catholic school on the Coast would have one either because they are "old hat". Hmmm... not a good start. So am off next week to visit a Public school and a Public Library to see if I can find someone who has a collection policy and is willing to talk to me about it. Fingers crossed...
Sunday, 2 October 2011
Critical synthesis on how my view of the Teacher Librarian has changed.
When I first started this course, I was very naïve about the role of the Teacher Librarian (TL) (Field 2011a) and saw my role mainly as chief educator of all things wonderful about books and information. At that stage, the roles of Media Specialist and collaborative negotiator were two that I had not yet considered as being a part of the TL’s job mainly due to my past relationships with TL’s. Many more readings later I came to see that I actually had no idea of the magnitude of the roles that a TL has in a school: those of teacher, leader, information specialist, instructional partner and program administrator (Church (2011), Purcell (2010) and AASL (2009)) and what these roles entailed. After reading the articles by Herring (2007) and Purcell (2010), I began to see how overwhelming the job of the TL could be. So, I could relate to Clark (2011) when she wrote about the need for effective management of the roles of the TL.
With all of these expectations, it could be easy to lose track of our number one priority – our clients. Parkin (2011) addressed this in his forum post and helped me put things into perspective as he spoke of our duty to staff and students as our main objective with all other roles seen as being supportive of that objective. Lamb (2011) reiterated this idea writing about how being a successful TL involves building relationships, sharing the vision of the library program and the mission of the school and collaborating with others, all with the benefit of our students in mind. Lamb (n.d) also reminds us that as the TL, we are not alone because by successfully using our role as leader, we can recruit others and though collaborations with staff and students we can achieve more than we ever could alone.
So, why didn’t I know anything about the roles of the TL? As Farley (2011) stated, it is up to the TL to promote themself so that the staff know exactly what it is the TL does. I touched on this briefly (Field, 2011b) when discussing the importance of letting everyone know how important the role of the TL is for the school community. ASLA (n.d) also discusses the need for advocating the TL profession and making others aware of the misconceptions of the TL role in schools. After reading Joyce Valenza’s (2010) manifesto, Field (2011c) I was truly inspired. It brought me to the realisation that if, as TL’s we are going to be able to successfully collaborate with teachers and work towards the school mission, first we need to make others aware of exactly how much of a difference we can make.
With regards to Information Literacy (IL), I must admit that sadly, I was unaware that there was such a term and knew nothing about it. With so much to read about the subject, I felt that I needed a definition if I was going to wade though it all Field (2011d). As I began to delve deeper, I found that many authors were able to discuss the characteristics of an information literate student but unable to agree on a definition. I came to realise that no matter the definition or the model you use, whether it be Kuhlthau’s ISP model or Herring’s PLUS model, the message is the same: the IL process should lead students toward becoming self-sufficient in finding, using and evaluating information. It is my job then, as TL, to make sure that I rise to the challenge and meet the needs of the 21st Century learner by teaching them the skills they need for lifelong learning. To do this I believe that I myself must become a lifelong learner. I feel that the role of TL will be an ever-changing one and I will need to keep abreast of the changes and be flexible.
The biggest problem during this course for me was that once I started reading about something, I then wanted to find out more. I scoured reference sections of articles to see what else was related to that topic, searched for it and read that too. Initially I saw this as a downfall, now I think that it may be one of my strengths. I have had many moments of doubt during this course and have felt overwhelmed at times so it is fitting that I end with a quote that is becoming my mantra:
References:
ASLA, (NSW) Inc. (n.d) What is advocacy? Retrieved September 28, 2011, from http://aslansw.org.au/advocacy/how-to-advocate.htm
Church, A.P. (2011). School librarians as teacher leaders. The Delta Kappa Gamma Bulletin. 77(3), 10-12.
Clark, L.(2011, July 27). Managing Roles [Forum Comment]. Retrieved from http://forums.csu.edu.au/perl/forums.pl?forum_id=ETL401_201160_W_D_Sub2_forum
Farley, A. (2011, July 24). Role. [Forum Comment]. Retrieved from
http://forums.csu.edu.au/perl/forums.pl?forum_id=ETL401_201160_W_D_Sub2_forum
Field, A. (2011a, July 27). Webinar 1 and my thoughts on the role of a Teacher Librarian. [Blog]. Retrieved from http://anexcitingjourney.blogspot.com/2011/07/webinar-1-and-my-thoughts-on-role-of.html
Field, A. (2011b, July 30). Collaboration and a dying breed. [Blog]. Retrieved from
http://anexcitingjourney.blogspot.com/2011/07/topic-2-role-of-teacher-librarian.html
Field, A. (2011c, September 2). Joyce Valenza – a great role model for Librarians everywhere! [Blog]. Retrieved from http://anexcitingjourney.blogspot.com/2011/09/joyce-valenza-great-role-model-for.html
Field, A. (2011d, August 23). Re: Definition. [Forum Comment]. Retrieved from
http://forums.csu.edu.au/perl/forums.pl?forum_id=ETL401_201160_W_D_Sub4_forum
Herring, J. (2007). Teacher librarians and the school library. In S. Ferguson (Ed.) Libraries in the twenty-first century: charting new directions in information. (pp 27-42). Wagga Wagga: Charles Sturt University.
Kuhlthau, C.C. (2004). Seeking meaning: A process approach to library and information services. (2nd ed.) Westport: Libraries Unlimited.
Lamb, A. (n.d) Overview: the school library media specialist. The School Library Media Specialist. Retrieved September 28, 2011 from http://eduscapes.com/sms/overview/specialist.html
Lamb, A. (2011). Bursting with potential: Mixing a media specialist’s palette. TechTrends: Linking Research and Practice to Improve Learning. 55(4), 27-36.
Parkin, D. (2011, July 25) Role of the TL. [Forum Comment]. Retrieved from
http://forums.csu.edu.au/perl/forums.pl?forum_id=ETL401_201160_W_D_Sub2_forum
Purcell, M. (2010). All Librarians do is check out books, right? A look at the roles of a school library media specialist. Library Media Connection. 29(3), 30-33.
Valenza, J. (2010) Manifesto for 21st Century school librarians. October, VOYA Magazine: Kurdyla Publishing. http://www.voya.com/2010/09/15/tag-team-tech-october-2010.
With all of these expectations, it could be easy to lose track of our number one priority – our clients. Parkin (2011) addressed this in his forum post and helped me put things into perspective as he spoke of our duty to staff and students as our main objective with all other roles seen as being supportive of that objective. Lamb (2011) reiterated this idea writing about how being a successful TL involves building relationships, sharing the vision of the library program and the mission of the school and collaborating with others, all with the benefit of our students in mind. Lamb (n.d) also reminds us that as the TL, we are not alone because by successfully using our role as leader, we can recruit others and though collaborations with staff and students we can achieve more than we ever could alone.
So, why didn’t I know anything about the roles of the TL? As Farley (2011) stated, it is up to the TL to promote themself so that the staff know exactly what it is the TL does. I touched on this briefly (Field, 2011b) when discussing the importance of letting everyone know how important the role of the TL is for the school community. ASLA (n.d) also discusses the need for advocating the TL profession and making others aware of the misconceptions of the TL role in schools. After reading Joyce Valenza’s (2010) manifesto, Field (2011c) I was truly inspired. It brought me to the realisation that if, as TL’s we are going to be able to successfully collaborate with teachers and work towards the school mission, first we need to make others aware of exactly how much of a difference we can make.
With regards to Information Literacy (IL), I must admit that sadly, I was unaware that there was such a term and knew nothing about it. With so much to read about the subject, I felt that I needed a definition if I was going to wade though it all Field (2011d). As I began to delve deeper, I found that many authors were able to discuss the characteristics of an information literate student but unable to agree on a definition. I came to realise that no matter the definition or the model you use, whether it be Kuhlthau’s ISP model or Herring’s PLUS model, the message is the same: the IL process should lead students toward becoming self-sufficient in finding, using and evaluating information. It is my job then, as TL, to make sure that I rise to the challenge and meet the needs of the 21st Century learner by teaching them the skills they need for lifelong learning. To do this I believe that I myself must become a lifelong learner. I feel that the role of TL will be an ever-changing one and I will need to keep abreast of the changes and be flexible.
The biggest problem during this course for me was that once I started reading about something, I then wanted to find out more. I scoured reference sections of articles to see what else was related to that topic, searched for it and read that too. Initially I saw this as a downfall, now I think that it may be one of my strengths. I have had many moments of doubt during this course and have felt overwhelmed at times so it is fitting that I end with a quote that is becoming my mantra:
Learning begins with uncertainty and is driven by the desire to seek meaning.(Kuhlthau, 2004, p89)
References:
ASLA, (NSW) Inc. (n.d) What is advocacy? Retrieved September 28, 2011, from http://aslansw.org.au/advocacy/how-to-advocate.htm
Church, A.P. (2011). School librarians as teacher leaders. The Delta Kappa Gamma Bulletin. 77(3), 10-12.
Clark, L.(2011, July 27). Managing Roles [Forum Comment]. Retrieved from http://forums.csu.edu.au/perl/forums.pl?forum_id=ETL401_201160_W_D_Sub2_forum
Farley, A. (2011, July 24). Role. [Forum Comment]. Retrieved from
http://forums.csu.edu.au/perl/forums.pl?forum_id=ETL401_201160_W_D_Sub2_forum
Field, A. (2011a, July 27). Webinar 1 and my thoughts on the role of a Teacher Librarian. [Blog]. Retrieved from http://anexcitingjourney.blogspot.com/2011/07/webinar-1-and-my-thoughts-on-role-of.html
Field, A. (2011b, July 30). Collaboration and a dying breed. [Blog]. Retrieved from
http://anexcitingjourney.blogspot.com/2011/07/topic-2-role-of-teacher-librarian.html
Field, A. (2011c, September 2). Joyce Valenza – a great role model for Librarians everywhere! [Blog]. Retrieved from http://anexcitingjourney.blogspot.com/2011/09/joyce-valenza-great-role-model-for.html
Field, A. (2011d, August 23). Re: Definition. [Forum Comment]. Retrieved from
http://forums.csu.edu.au/perl/forums.pl?forum_id=ETL401_201160_W_D_Sub4_forum
Herring, J. (2007). Teacher librarians and the school library. In S. Ferguson (Ed.) Libraries in the twenty-first century: charting new directions in information. (pp 27-42). Wagga Wagga: Charles Sturt University.
Kuhlthau, C.C. (2004). Seeking meaning: A process approach to library and information services. (2nd ed.) Westport: Libraries Unlimited.
Lamb, A. (n.d) Overview: the school library media specialist. The School Library Media Specialist. Retrieved September 28, 2011 from http://eduscapes.com/sms/overview/specialist.html
Lamb, A. (2011). Bursting with potential: Mixing a media specialist’s palette. TechTrends: Linking Research and Practice to Improve Learning. 55(4), 27-36.
Parkin, D. (2011, July 25) Role of the TL. [Forum Comment]. Retrieved from
http://forums.csu.edu.au/perl/forums.pl?forum_id=ETL401_201160_W_D_Sub2_forum
Purcell, M. (2010). All Librarians do is check out books, right? A look at the roles of a school library media specialist. Library Media Connection. 29(3), 30-33.
Valenza, J. (2010) Manifesto for 21st Century school librarians. October, VOYA Magazine: Kurdyla Publishing. http://www.voya.com/2010/09/15/tag-team-tech-october-2010.
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