Throughout this course I have really enjoyed opening my thoughts to understand the impact literacy learning can have within the classroom. Being able to apply my knowledge that I had gained into practical assignments was a rewarding challenge. I am a lover of books but flipping my thinking to explore literature in a new way allowed me to enjoy this course as it progressed. As teachers and librarians the way that we grow is by learning from each other. Collaborative learning happens all the time within workplaces and it allows for diversity of perspectives. When this happens it allows us as a learner to grow (Loes, Culver & Trolian, 2018, p.936). Throughout the topic it was rewarding to read everyone’s different views on the blog reflection posts and module discussions. We all come from such wide backgrounds it was valuable to see how differently we approached the topics. I learnt about a new website called Google Lit Trips that uses Google Earth to create immersive 3D literary field trips.

The most challenging part of this course for me was that even though I did work within a school library for 7 years, it was as a library technician. It has been interesting to learn and develop skills in critically thinking about how and why texts are chosen to assist in curriculum learning. It was more difficult than I imagined but I really enjoyed thinking about how each book I selected could be used in a practical way to assist in literacy learning. I think at any age developing your critical thinking and expanding your thoughts enable you to grow. Learning from others and taking into consideration that there is more than one way to view a particular problem or situation helps you establish these new thoughts (Kallet & Patterson, 2014, p.9).

Reading back over my posts I had written it is clear that I believe that libraries are spaces that should not shy away from providing access. Everyone can learn or grow from a book that might deal with a new situation they haven’t experienced before. I think that when school libraries also provide this access to high quality resources this can have an impact on learning. I like the idea that collections need to be windows, so people can see other views of the world and mirrors to reflect themselves back. Children need to be exposed to both as this can help shape them grow and learn. It is important not to shy away from topics because they might be taboo or not widely accepted, but within the library space there is always an avenue in which it can be added (McNair, 2016, p.375).

I have thoroughly enjoyed taking this subject and being able to examine literature from a different perspective. It really furthered me to push my thinking and I really enjoyed learning from both Jennie and my classmates. 

References

Kallet, M. & Patterson, D. (2014). Think smarter: critical thinking to improve problem-solving

and decision-making skill. John Wiley & Sons, Incorporated.

McNair, J. (2016). #WeNeedMirrorsAndWindows: Diverse Classroom Libraries for K-6

Students. Reading Teacher, 70(3), 375-281. https://doi.org/10.1002/trtr.1516 

Loes, T. L., Culver, K. C. & Trolian, T. L. (2018). How Collaborative Learning Enhances

Students’ Openness to Diversity. Journal of Higher Education, 89(6), 935-960. https://doi.org/10.1080/00221546.2018.1442638