Blog Task Two.

Demonstrate your understanding of the role of the teacher librarian with regards to the convergence of literacies in the 21st century.

There is consensus among experts that the role of a teacher librarian or library media specialist (Harvey, 2009) is multi-faceted.  According to Purcell (2010) and Cooper and Bray (2011) the four key roles of the school library media specialist are defined in Information Power (1998) as teacher, instructional partner, information specialist and program administrator.  According to Lamb (2011) the role is more diverse than this and also incorporates the roles of promoting school volunteerism, curriculum director and government and grant officer.

The clearest depiction of the role of a school librarian is seen in the circle diagram of Herring (2007).  Relying heavily on the Australian School Library Association (ASLA), the Australian Library and Information Association’s (ALIA) Standards of Professional Excellence (2011) and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) School Library Manifesto Herring incorporates “budget manager” and “staff manager” into the role of teacher librarian.  He also adds “website developer” to the role which goes above and beyond the position of website administrator or contributor offered by other authors.

In all of these role descriptors the teacher librarian is expected to “have the state-of-the-art technical and pedagogical expertise to engage 21st century learners” (Gaver, n.d., p.3) while also providing students with the ability to “develop critical thinking skills”, “evaluate and analyze (sic) the information at hand” and perform the mental process required to “change knowledge from information to concept” (Bomar, 2010, p 72).

When looking at the word “Transliteracy”  we understand it to mean that teacher librarians are responsible for the relationship between people, technology and the social meaning of literacy in past, present and future modalities (Ipri, 2010).  They are also responsible for bringing together the old and the new in an establishment where they and their colleagues never experienced the sort of school library program the profession advocates today (Lance, 2010).

The school library media centre has drastically changed over the last decade and so has the school library media program. Concurrently, the role of the school library media specialist has evolved in significant ways (Farmer, 2005). The twenty-first century teacher-librarian now has electronic and digital resources, Internet and web-based resources, as well as a considerable number of technologies that serve as purposeful tools, not just entertaining add-ons. LCD projectors, document cameras, video- conferencing units, interactive whiteboards, assistive technology devices, and scanners give “more credibility and seriousness to the library’s technology-enhanced program”. Not only are today’s teacher-librarians information generalists, but also information media specialists (Murray, 2000)

In short, I understand my role as a teacher librarian to be varied and diverse. ) As a Teacher Librarian I will be responsible for crafting challenging learning opportunities for my students while helping them to use the virtual world, as well as traditional information sources so that the students of today are prepared for living, working and learning in the world of tomorrow. (Gaver, n.d).

References:

Bomar, S. (2010). A school-wide instructional framework for evaluating sources. Knowledge Quest, 38(3), 72-75.

de Groot, J.; & Branch, J. L (2011). Looking toward the future: competences for 21st-century teacher librarians. Alberta Journal of Educational Research, 57(3), 288-297.

Farmer, L. (2005). Technology-infused instruction for the educational community: A guide for school library specialists. Lanham, MD: Scarecrow Press, Inc

Gaver, M. (n.d.) School libraries, now more than ever: A position paper of the center for international scholarship in school libraries. Retrieved from www.nmm.net/TheImportanceofSchoolLibraries.pdf

Harvey, C. (2009). Hands on handout: What should an administrator expect a school library media specialist to be? Library Media Connection, October, 45.

Ipri T. (2010) Introducing transliteracy. College & Research Libraries News, 71(10), 532–567.

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, NSW : Centre for Information Studies, Charles Sturt University.

Lamb, A (2011). Bursting with potential: Mixing media specialist’s palette. TechTrends, 55(4), 27 – 35.

Lance, K.C. (2010). The Mind of a Researcher. Teacher Librarian, 37(4), 81-82.

Mackey, T.P., & Jacobson, T.E. (2011). Reframing information literacy as a metaliteracy. College & Research Libraries, 72(1), 62–78.

Murray, J. (2000). Librarians evolving into cybrarians. MultiMedia Schools, 7(2), 26-30.

O’Connell, J. (2012) Learning without frontiers: School libraries and meta-literacy in actionAccess, 26(1), 4-7.

Purcell, M. (2010) All librarians do is check out books, right? A look at the role of a school library media specialist. Library Media Connection, November/December, 30 – 33

Week Five

Inquiry and Project based learning, I agree with both styles of learning. Inquiry is a style I have used whilst being on my practical experience and found that the students were very involved throughout. To think that TL's should be excluded from curriculum development sounds ridiculous to me as they are the people that gain the most information from new technology, new resources and information as they are surrounded by it everyday. The TL can locate this new information, present it to the school and the staff and together they can create interesting and engaging UOW for the students to learn and gain from. As TLs they use Inquiry and Project based learning in their own study into new information. Its part of everyday life for them.

Till next time...

Week Four

Oberg's topic involving TL's and the thought of invisability really hit home to me, so I went to my local TL at my old primary school (and my mothers current work) to have a chat to her and see if she disagreed/agreed with any of my findings after being involved with the forums and readings. 

She told me that in her time as a TL, views upon her job have improved with teachers of my generation being much more understanding and aware of the role in which she has and the impact upon the children. That she is a essential part of literacy development for the children and that if students are struggling, she can be a asset to help them along. It is noted within schools that roles such as the TL or the SLOS (Student Learning Support Officer) can be brushed under the rug and see as not important. I think it would be interesting to see how the school would run without these people, maybe they would get a bit more respect!

Till next week!

Week Three.

This week has gotten me thinking about the role in which TL's are placed within the school community, and if they are properly respected as teaching professionals (as they should be)

On the forum discussions have risen regarding the fact that at some schools the interest of other staff members in the library is pretty much zero, then at other school the staff and principal have a high amount of respect and regard for the library and librarian.

At most schools I have undertaken my practical experience at the staff and principal have had a large amount of interest in the library and enjoy making sure the students use the space to its full potential.

After reading the various readings regarding this topic online the guidelines of what essentially is a TL shows how much work they actually do and not what some other teaching professionals see as a "easy" job!

Till next time...

Blog Task One: Guided Inquiry Approach.

This blog entry will look at John Dewey’s pedagogical practice of ask, investigate, create, discuss and reflect.  Using the term “guided inquiry” (GI) it will explore the role of the teacher librarian and how we as teachers can implement this method into the library setting.

Guided Inquiry (GI), involves teacher librarians guiding, instructing and coaching students in how to learn to think for themselves, make good decisions and create and find meaning from multiple information sources. (Kuhlthau, 2010). Guided Inquiry has been very popular in many classroom and library settings.

The progressive education movement began in the late nineteeth century and persisted in various forms to the present day educational system. Originally publicised by the works of John Dewey and Jerome Bruner the philosophical school of pragmatism was responsible for shaping the progressive education movement (Inquiry Learning, 2011). 

In an ideal school situation the teacher librarian would work with other staff to design authentic learning experiences for students which were relevant, motivational and challenging (Scheffers, 2008). Once taught, the teachers involved would then meet to reflect on how well the GI engaged students and whether what was produced met their expectations (Shore, Chichekian; Syer; Aulls, & Frederiksen, 2012).

For students, being given an opportunity to follow a self determined, real world, line of inquiry to answer an open-ended question is an empowering experience (Boss and Krauss, 2007). By working in pairs and small groups students are also aided in their intellectual and personal development (Levy & Petrulis, 2012).  In particular, when supported by technology, GI can develop significantly improved higher order thinking skills.  (Littleton, Scanlon & Sharples, 2011).

The link between GI and information literacy is well reported based on their mutual use of question formulation, evaluating information and building new knowledge.  Web based resources are particularly suited to GI as they allow students to find multiple sources of information which they can sort, organize and analyse (Boss and Krauss, 2007).

According to the ALIA and ASLA’s Statement of Standards of Professional Excellence for Teacher Librarians the teacher librarian is also expected to assist individual learners to develop independence in their learning.  GI is a perfect way to achieve this because it is a collaborative process in which teachers and students work together to negotiate various aspects of the curriculum (Sebas, 2012).

For all teachers, and not just teacher librarians, GI is a very valuable learning tool.  It is a form of learning in which students are assessed on how well they develop experimental and analytical skills rather than how much knowledge they can memorise and regurgitate (Takaya, 2008).  GI allows students to take control of their own educational wheel and learn in a supportive and beneficial way.

References

Boss, S., & Krauss, J. (2007). Power of the mashup: Combining essential learning with new technology tools. Learning & Leading with Technology, 35(1), 12-17.

Boss, S.,& Krauss, J. (2007). Reinventing project-based learning. Your field guide to real-world projects in the digital age. International Society for Technology in Education.

Fitzgerald, L. (2011). The twin purposes of guided inquiry: Guiding student inquiry and evidence based practice. Scan, 30(1), 26-41.

Inquiry Learning (2011). Retrieved from www.sebas.vic.edu.au/cb…/Inquiry%20Learning%20Information.pdf

Inquiry Page. (2012). Who was John Dewey? Retrieved from http://www.cii.illinois.edu/InquiryPage/inquiry/johndewey.html

Kuhlthau, C. K. (2010). Building guided inquiry teams for 21st-century learners. School Library Monthly, 26(5), 18.

Levy, P., & Petrulis, R. (2012). How do first-year university students experience inquiry and research, and what are the Implications for the practice of inquiry-based learning? Studies in Higher Education, 37(1), 85-101.

Littleton, K., Scanlon, E., & Sharples, M. (2011) Orchestrating Inquiry Learning Routledge: Taylor & Francis Group.

Scheffers, J. (2008). Guided inquiry: A learning journey. Scan, 27(4), 34-42.

Shore, B., Chichekian, T., Syer, C., Aulls, M., & Frederiksen, C. (2012). Planning, enactment, and reflection in inquiry-based learning: Validating the McGill strategic demands of inquiry questionnaire. International Journal of Science and Mathematics Education, 10(2), 315-337.

Takaya, K. (2008). Jerome Bruner’s theory of education: From early Bruner to later Bruner. Interchange: A Quarterly Review of Education, 39(1), 1-19.

The Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA) and the Australian School Library Association (ASLA) statement of standards of professional excellence for teacher librarians. Retrieved from http://www.alia.org.au/policies/teacher-librarian.standards.html.

Week Two: Working with my Blog

For this week I have been looking at the many ways people can share information via the medium that is "Blogging". After being someone that uses tumblr on a regular bases it has been interesting using Blogger.com as it is more centred around writing more than images. I find the whole thing very interesting and a learning experience. 

This week my fellow students and I have been discussing the usefulness and the productivity behind the many search engines available to TL's. For me, it is something that needs to be easy to use as you don't want to spend your time figuring out how to use the system instead of working towards something beneficial. I find the Primo Search easy as that is something I have been using for quite a while. The others, were slighty harder as I had not used them before. 

I am planning on posting my Blog Task 1 very soon as my work is quite demanding at the moment so trying to get a load of work done. 

Till next time....

Week One: 12th of November

After reading Topic 1 and Topic 6 my eyes were opened to the contents of each topic. I did not realise there was so many options with library searches! One part of Topic 1 that I enjoyed was that the Primo search engine allows the users to set up personal folders to access research information at a later date. This would have been very useful to me in many of my previous assessments. 

Setting up my blog was something that was quite easy and second nature for me to do. I have had a tumblr account for quite a while for my personal blogging but decided to use the "Blogger" account to try something new.

After looking through the various readings I was quite impressed with a small few of them. The CSU learning skills handout was a very useful document as it was set out in a easy to read way. I like how they used the diagram to illustrate the bits and pieces that make up a essay and also the elements of essay writing that people often forget about. 

Dan Kurland's "What is Critical Thinking?" was also another article I thought to be very interesting and in depth. In his article the section on the three steps or modes of analysis really made sense to me. He talks about the different way of analysis that we have when looking at a text. These include: 

What a text says: restatement.

What a text does: description

and What a text means: Interpretation

Overall Topic 1 was very engaging and a learning experience for me.

When looking over Topic 6 I agreed with many of the articles especially when discussing the use of time management. As teachers, students, librarians we all will need to juggle our busy school and home lifes everyday! Managing the library environment, working on literacy skills and working the library software will all be something that I would need a lot of practice with!