December 19

Professional Reflective Portfolio

My Personal Philosophy

An effective teacher librarian (TL) is intrinsically motivated to provide an information-rich environment that supports lifelong learning, community and diversity. They have an enthusiasm for learning and are committed to fostering and maintaining professional relationships with students and colleagues. A TL embraces change, understands that education needs to be flexible and ensures that the library they oversee reflects this. An effective TL leads from the middle, fostering and facilitating information processing skills, professional development and information literacy in all its forms. They are professional in all their dealings, are avid supporters of their school and are committed to assisting others.

Introduction

My love of reading inspired me to apply for a casual position in a school library while also undertaking casual relief teaching. My first project was to oversee the move to generfying the fiction collection at both campuses. I thoroughly enjoyed this process, collaborating with staff and students to ensure a system that worked for all. This project awoke my interest in pursuing a career as a teacher-librarian (TL).

Consequently, I was offered a position as a teacher-librarian in the same school—a year after which I began my studies with Charles Sturt University. Last week I signed a 12-month contract heading up the library.

The evolving role of the Teacher Librarian

I am fortunate to be in a position to say that my drive and determination are the only limits to my role as a TL. The school where I am employed in values libraries and teacher librarians. From the beginnings of my journey in ETL401 when I saw the role as one of caretaker to today, where I believe the TL is essential to the smooth operation of a school (Taylor, 2019a, para. 1). My understanding of a TLs role has evolved significantly and what can be achieved in that role to benefit students fills me with excitement.

ETL401 highlighted for me the impact a TL can have on the overall literacy and wellbeing of the students (Taylor, 2019a, para. 2). According to a study, NAPLAN results are higher at schools that employ a TL (Hughes, Bozorgian, Allan, & Dicinoski, 2013). TLs can provide the skills students need to be digital literate, teach them information literacy, inform a love of reading and offer a safe and enriching environment. I have been working on the roll-out of a junior school reading program. Ability is measured, texts chosen at ability level, comprehension quizzes are taken, and data is evaluated and aligned to the curriculum outcomes. Intervention and extension programs can then be put in place. It is hoped that by targeting reading, literacy outcomes will increase school-wide.

Student diagnostic report

(School-based affirmation from the year 7 English teachers in response to my help with the reading program)

ETL504 then supported and expanded my viewpoint considerably. When a TL can work collaboratively across the faculties, they can assist in providing a school environment that supports students’ needs by supporting teachers. The first step I learned was the establishing of good relationships with colleagues and framing their perception of the role of a TL (Taylor, 2019g, para. 1). I consider it good practice to informally touch base with at least one teacher a day to discuss what they are currently working on in class and share with them the services the library could provide to assist them.  As Bishop (2011) suggests, showing an intrinsic interest in what teachers are teaching is beneficial to building effective teams throughout the school.

Email from Humanities

(Email chain from a Humanities teachers in response to assistance given in planning a collaborative lesson.)

Recently a science teacher who was looking to teach her students correct APA referencing asked if I was a ‘teacher, teacher’. She was trying to determine if I could teach a class without supervision. I was a little surprised by the question but realised quickly that I had further work to do in building relationships with my colleagues. As Bishop (2011) highlights, a school librarian needs to assume a leadership role in informing others about their role. It is an ongoing job.

As I enter a new stage, that of Head of Library, I am contemplating how ETL504 shaped my perceptions of the role of a TL as a leader within the school. To quote John C. Maxwell from my blog reflection of the time, “A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way”, (Taylor, 2019e, para. 2). While I still currently agree with this quote, it has developed significantly. Today I find that I lean more towards quiet leadership or leading from the middle (Gottlieb, 2012). A TL, even without a leadership position, can identify areas that need attention, such as professional development and information literacy (Taylor, 2019f, para. 2). Leading from the middle allows me to be a quiet force of change, to see myself and others rise to their potential (Gottlieb, 2012). In my new role, I will oversee three staff members. I have no desire to ‘lead’ them in the traditional sense; instead, I want to guide them to be the best they can be for themselves and their role in the school community.

As the role of a TL evolves in my mind, I realise I will wear many hats for many different occasions. There is no simple role description for a TL. This I know all too well as I am currently trying to undertake this task – a role description for both a TL and the Head of Library position at my school. The Australian School Library Association [ASLA] includes a useful description to start with (ASLA, 2019). The TL is a curriculum leader, working with senior staff to create a shared vision for information literacy for the school; an information specialist, providing access and assistance to information resources; and a service manager; ensuring the day to day procedures of running a library are running efficiently. To add to this, a TL is a collaborator with colleagues, a collegial member of the TL community, and a wellbeing facilitator.

Policies

Throughout my studies, one area that stood out quite significantly for me was the benefits of a good collection development policy. Though contentiously my head of library and another TL, I worked with disagreed (Taylor, 2019d, para. 4). They had previously had a collection development policy that had only ever gathered dust. They no longer saw the value in the document. I was told that it was unnecessary as we all know what we need to do with the collection already, no need to write it down. This was in opposition to what I was learning about a policies usefulness in my studies.

It was ETL503 that brought collection development policies to my attention, to begin with. After reading the Reading Fundamentals of Collection Development and Management by Johnson and Selecting Resources for Learning by Hughes-Hassell and Mancall, I was surprised that a document like this wasn’t utilised in our library (2018; 2005). I question in my blog how could I possibly make a well-considered, relevant purchase that would be a good investment for the users of my library without such a document to guide me (Taylor, 2019d, para. 2)? I do acknowledge that the current library staff do know what to do with the collection, but this fact is changing. The recent retirement of the head of library illustrates this change along with the collective age of library technicians. It was apparent to me that a document should be put together utilising our current staff’s knowledge so that future staff can use these same practices.

Reflecting on ETL503 in my blog, I stated my plan to complete a policy to draft form and share it with the head of library to garner her thoughts (Taylor, 2019d, para. 5). This I have now completed. The draft collection development policy has been seen and edited by both the other TL and the outgoing head of library. Moving forward in my new role will see me share this document with library staff and see its use in our day to day dealings to test its usability and guide the drafting process until it is a reliable working document.

Two further documents complimenting the collection development policy uncovered while studying ETL503 was a procedures guide and selection criteria policy. Both of which our school library does not have. A situation I am longing to change. I realise there is a lot of areas I don’t have full knowledge of moving into my new role. Purchasing is one of those areas. While we currently employ an acquisitions officer and the outgoing head of library has in the past trusted his judgement when it came to purchasing, I would like to have an overview of how he makes his selections to guide my own (Taylor, 2019c).

According to Hughes-Hassell and Mancall (2005), a library should be following a selection criteria to ensure whoever is making the suggestions, has a clear picture of the curriculum and the units being covered in the academic year. As one of my goals for my new position is to work more closely with teachers to align our collection with the curriculum, I will be looking to make many new additions. Therefore I will need a solid selection criteria policy to guide me. I realise how far I have come in the past two years looking back on my blog post Fiction vs non-fiction where I reflect that I am happy and feel fortunate to be able to make purchasing suggestions (Taylor, 2019b). I no longer want to make suggestions; I want to make smart, well throughout, considered purchases that will benefit the students academically and otherwise.

Moving forward, I plan to alter the general selection criteria table I adapted and used for my first assessment piece for ETL503, from the Hughes-Hassell and Mancall model (2005). It was straight forward to follow and makes sense to me to continue to employ that model though adapted for our school library situation. To properly support the selection criteria and collection development policy, I need to compile a procedures document. New staff coming into the library should not be left wondering how to do their job, as I was when I started (Taylor, 2019c, para. 1). As stated by Johnson (2018, p.50) new librarians, even those with experience would benefit from a policies and procedures manual.

Various procedures in our library have been documented in the past though in a rather haphazard manner. The individual files were all stored in different locations depending on what area of the library the procedure belonged. I aimed to gather and update all the existing procedures and have the library technician’s document, photograph and video the missing procedures with the result being a single electronic working document that would be easy to navigate and utilise when required.

Remote learning gave me this opportunity. The head of library went on long service leave, and I was designated in her place. Without the day to day work with the students, the library staff had more time to compile and document their procedures, uploading them for me to edit and refine. While this task is ongoing and may take some time to complete to a satisfactory standard, I believe it’s a task worth completing.

Digital literacy

Surprisingly, given my choice of career, I love to read, and I will read across the genres and on multiple platforms; print and digital, sometimes simultaneously (Taylor, 2020a, para. 1). While our library has not yet included digital fiction in our collection, we utilise interactive digital textbooks. So I was very excited to undertake the elective INF533 Literature in digital environments as part of my studies and expand my knowledge of digital literature in all its forms, not just eBooks. I began the unit concerned about the quality of digital resources I had previously been exposed too, and that I needed to learn to locate and curate quality resources for my students. Leu, Forzani, Timbrell & Maykel’s (2015) comment that the online environment is a forest filled with new literacy ‘trees’ and it is up to teachers to ensure the right trees are chosen, struck home for me. I need a solid understanding before I can recommend these resources, and so began my exploration of online digital literacy.

Conducting the digital literature reviews was a valuable exercise in beginning to build my knowledge. I located three vastly different resources, an interactive graphic novel, a digital poem and a digital touch book. The process of reviewing them saw me take into consideration the story, its readability, the animation and special effects, use in the classroom and links to the curriculum. Giving me an overall picture of the resource and its usefulness in a school setting. I was beginning to learn how to find the right ‘trees’. Following this assessment, I continued to search and uncover digital resources to fit curriculum needs. A particular request from a history teacher saw me locate and review SBS’s interactive graphic novel ‘The Boat’. I was able to provide her with the review and link, so she was able to integrate it into her unit of work on the Vietnam War.

With my new-found knowledge, I sat down to my next assessment piece, producing an interactive digital story of my own. As I also teach a year 9 English class who were undertaking the poetry of Edgar Allen Poe at the time, I decided to channel my project in that direction to ensure its relevance. After extensive research, I decided on the use of Microsoft’s platform Sway to produce my story, which I combined with images and audio clips. My original plan was to give the digital version of the story to those students who had processing difficulties and language disorders. Therefore the font used was Dyslexic friendly (Taylor, 2020b, para. 4). In the end, after sharing it with the other year 9 English teachers, the digital story of Annabel Lee was given to all students. It was very timely as we had been forced into remote learning due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Being able to provide the resource for the students at home allowed the team to be more confident of the students grasping the intricacies of the poem that wouldn’t have otherwise been possible in an online environment.

(My digital story)

(School-based affirmation from the year 9 English teachers in response to using the digital story “Annabel Lee’)

My aim moving forward with my new role is to create a bank of this type of resource. Locate where possible, create when necessary. Using this type of resource with a class taught me many things, not least of all that many students have a preference for digital literature. Scharaldi, in her blog (2020) suggests that digital text provides students with the tools they need to change the format to suit their learning needs. A student can hear the words and sentences pronounced aloud if required; they can read definitions, use digital sticky notes to annotate and even change the font to suit themselves. Having a bank of these resources curated to match the curriculum would allow the teachers to cater to those students that require adjustments or if remote learning forces us to work and learn from home again, the ability of all students to hear and interact with a text.  Digital texts can stimulate visual, auditory, kinaesthetic and tactile senses, making them an excellent resource for all students (Neumann, Finger and Neumann, 2016).

ASLA and ALIA Professional Standards

The closer I come to completing my masters as a Teacher Librarian (TL), the more I come to realise how little I know about the field. That said, I have learned a great deal. However, there is still so much to learn. When I read through the standards of professional excellence for teacher librarians, as set down by the Australian School Librarian Association [ASLA] and the Australian Library and Information Association [ALIA], I realise that I am progressing well (ASLA/ALIA, 2004). This document allows me to reflect on my development as a TL, guide my professional development and assist in my lifelong learning of this field.

Being able to put theory into practice daily has been extremely beneficial to me, and more than anywhere else, this is evident in my professional practice. The second of the ASLA/ALIA standards, professional practice is where I feel I am approaching an excellent standard for a TL. Nurturing an environment that the students feel comfortable in, where they feel supported in both their academic and social needs is of utmost importance to me. The desire to ensure my library incorporates these principals was first highlighted to me in ETL401; looking at the significant role the TL can play if they put in the effort. I have found my thinking on this closely aligns to the article ‘The library as ‘third space’ in your school’ (Korodaj, 2019). Korodaj (2019) discusses how the third space for her school, supports the whole child through holistic education, providing social and emotional support as well as information and skills to assist their future development. My library incorporates this ethos. There are quiet areas for study and reading, relaxing spaces for socialising with peers, and more vibrant areas for gameplay and exploration. I make it a priority to be around at recess and lunch for my students, chatting and getting to know them and guiding those that require it.

Guiding my future direction and professional development is the need to nurture my professional knowledge. The first of the three standards according to ASLA/ ALIA, this is the area I can identify as the one I am lacking when striving to attain excellence as a TL (ASLA/ ALIA, 2004). The standard is broken up into four sections, and I believe I am making strides in all four, yet I have some way to go. Gaining knowledge of the curriculum will be my next professional goal. I did cover this to some degree during ETL402, Literature across the curriculum where I learned the importance of ensuring the library’s resources and programs supported the curriculum. The next step here is to build that knowledge up and gain a deeper understanding of current assessment theories and processes in line with the standards (ASLA/ ALIA, 2004). Several teachers at my school are currently undertaking a Masters of Education (Assessment and Pedagogy) and conversing with them is highlighting my lack of knowledge of this area. I will be looking for professional reading centred on assessment theory, rubric development and data analysis.

I look forward to continuing my journey as a lifelong learner.

References

Australian School Librarian Association [ASLA] and the Australian Library and Information Association [ALIA]. (2004). Standards of professional excellence for teacher librarians. Australian Library and Information Association. https://www.alia.org.au/about-alia/policies-standards-and-guidelines/standards-professional-excellence-teacher-librarians

Australian School Library Association [ASLA]. (2019). What is a teacher librarian? Australian School Library Association. https://asla.org.au/what-is-a-teacher-librarian#:~:text=Teacher%20librarians%20support%20and%20implement,the%20development%20of%20lifelong%20learners.

Bishop, K. (2011). Connecting libraries with classrooms: The curricular roles of the media specialist. ProQuest Ebook Central. https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/csuau/reader.action?docID=664534&ppg=18

Gottlieb, H. (2012, October 30). Leading from the middle: Bringing out the best in everyone. Creating the future. https://creatingthefuture.org/leading-from-the-middle-bringing-out-the-best-in-everyone/

Hughes, H., Bozorgian, H., Allan, C., & Dicinoski, M. (2013). School libraries, teacher-librarians and their contribution to student literacy development in Gold Coast schools. Incite, 34 https://eprints.qut.edu.au/60260/38/60260b.pdf

Hughes-Hassell, S., & Mancall, J. (2005). Selecting resources for learning. In Collection management for youth: responding to the needs of learners (pp.33-51). ProQuest Ebook Central. https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/CSUAU/detail.action?docID=289075&pq-origsite=primo#

Johnson, P. (2018). Planning, Policies and Budgets. Fundamentals of collection development and management (pp. 77 to 111). EBSCOhost Ebooks.  http://search.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.csu.edu.au/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=1856983&site=ehost-live

Korodaj, L. (2019). The library as ‘third space’ in your school: Supporting academic and emotional wellbeing in the school community. Scan, 38(10). https://search-informit-com-au.ezproxy.csu.edu.au/fullText;dn=971230698213342;res=IELHSS

Leu, D. J., Forzani, E., Timbrell, N. & Maykel, C. (2015). Seeing the forest, not the trees: Essential technologies for literacy in the primary-grade and upper elementary-grade classroom. The Reading Teacher, 69(2), 139-145. https://doi-org.ezproxy.csu.edu.au/10.1002/trtr.1406

Scharaldi, K. (2020, January 30). Five reasons why struggling readers benefit from using technology. Texthelp. https://www.texthelp.com/en-au/company/education-blog/november-2017/five-reasons-struggling-readers-benefit-from-tech/

Taylor, J. (2019a, March 3). Understanding the role of a TL in schools. Jannet’s journey. https://thinkspace.csu.edu.au/jannet/2019/03/03/understanding-the-role-of-a-tl-in-schools/

Taylor, J. (2019b, April 6).(b) Fiction vs non-fiction. Jannet’s journey. https://thinkspace.csu.edu.au/jannet/2019/04/06/fiction-vs-non-fiction/

Taylor, J. (2019c, April 9). Ordering policies and procedures. Jannet’s journey. https://thinkspace.csu.edu.au/jannet/2019/04/09/ordering-policies-and-procedures/

Taylor, J. (2019d, May 5). Reflective practice for ETL503. Jannet’s journey. https://thinkspace.csu.edu.au/jannet/2019/05/05/reflective-practice-for-etl503/

Taylor, J. (2019e, July 11). My current understanding of leadership for a TL. Jannet’s journey. https://thinkspace.csu.edu.au/jannet/2019/07/11/my-current-understanding-of-leadership-for-a-tl/

Taylor, J. (2019f, August 16). A blog about a blog. Jannet’s journey. https://thinkspace.csu.edu.au/jannet/2019/08/16/a-blog-about-a-blog/

Taylor, J. (2019g, August 31). Collaboration. Jannet’s journey. https://thinkspace.csu.edu.au/jannet/2019/08/31/collaboration/

Taylor, J. (2020a, July 25). Beginning INF533 Digital Literature. Jannet’s journey. https://thinkspace.csu.edu.au/jannet/2020/07/25/begining-inf533-digital-literature/

Taylor, J. (2020b, September 4). Digital Storytelling Proposal. Jannet’s journey. https://thinkspace.csu.edu.au/jannet/2020/09/04/digital-storytelling-proposal/

Category: ETL401, ETL503, ETL504, INF533, My TL life, School life | LEAVE A COMMENT
June 9

Two units left – time to reflect a little

Two units remaining and I will have completed my Masters. What a ride this has been. Next semester I will do Literature in the digital environment and my Professional practice – take two after a false start on this subject last semester due to Covid-19. So as I sit here contemplating the last two year and the remaining six months. I have begun to consider what I have learnt, what I still want to learn and if there are things that I know, but that I’m not aware yet of.

So what do I know? Do I feel ready to be a teacher-librarian (TL)? Yes, I do, I have been doing the job for a while now but a standalone TL? No, probably not. I can’t imagine putting a budget proposal together. I also shudder at the thought of having to do a stocktake. I must admit that while I’ve been doing the job, I have a lot of help. We employ someone to do all purchasing and acquisitions. He does all the data entry and cataloguing of the resources as well as book list for the school. The head of the library takes care of budgets, rosters and staying in touch with leadership. While the other TL looks after copyright and room bookings, I could probably be okay with most of that on reflection, but it would be overwhelming without help.

We currently don’t have any library policies, and I would like to produce a collection management policy at some stage as I was taught in ETL503 Resourcing the curriculum. I think having clear guidelines for procedures would make me feel more comfortable and ensure my ability to do my job correctly. I think I could produce this document with what I learnt during this unit and subsequent units that relate to it.

I would also love to use the knowledge I formed during ETL402 Literature across the curriculum. I think one of the more essential areas a TL can be involved in is collaborative teaching. The idea intrigues me, planning alongside another teacher and delivering lessons on researching skills would be interesting and make me feel like I was doing my job as a TL.

When I stop to think about what I don’t realise I know, I think about EER500 Intro to educational research. That unit just about sent me around the twist, but I received decent grades in. I suppose the idea of research scares me, but for me, it is probably achievable should the need arise. I believe I have learnt some useful skills during that unit that I could apply to my school library setting.

Library promotion is something I’ve always enjoyed, and I love that this is part of the role. In 2018 I compiled a proposal to develop and maintain a library Instagram page. It was accepted and I love curating this channel. I also enjoy coming up with new ways to promote library services, running competitions and creating displays.

What do I still want to learn? So much. I would like to learn more about how to be a curriculum leader. The Australian Schools Library Association (ASLA) website suggests that TLs are involved in curriculum planning and school curriculum committees. I think maintaining literacy is an essential component of being a curriculum leader, and I have just signed on to head up a reading program at our junior campus.

ASLA also discusses how TLs are information service managers. That they develop and implement strategies for evaluating the resource collection and determine curriculum and student needs. This is something I have been trying to implement for some time. I would like to develop our relationship with the faculty heads to the point where they share ahead of time the areas the students will study throughout the year. I would then like to use that information to develop the collection to reflect those areas of study.

 

Category: EER500, ETL402, ETL503, School life | LEAVE A COMMENT
January 21

Reflecting on ETL402

Rounding out the first year of my masters, is the completion of my sixth subject, ETL402 Literature across the curriculum. What can I say? I liked this unit. It was practical and immediately useful to me in my position. The first assignment, producing a rationale for fiction, allowed me to dig deep into the inclusion of fiction in the library collection to support a subject specific area. As a Teacher Librarian (TL)—in training—based at a senior secondary school that does not currently do this, I had never considered the benefits of it.

A requirement of the curriculum is the study of the World Wars, but as time marches forth we become further removed from the events. The students today have not been personally impacted by them. Reading about the events in a text book will give them the facts and figures but will not generate an image of the impact on humanity. Fiction does this. I have always enjoyed reading fiction but I never stopped to consider what a book such as  The tattooist of Auschwitz (Morris, 2019) was giving me. As discussed by Rodwell (2013) there is no history without the people, their emotions and actions. Learning about these people helps the reader to develop empathy and allows us to connect to the humanity in the event.

While a work of fiction is not completely true, there are many historical accurate novels based on true events. Students are able to learn about the lives of the people being portrayed and can then apply that contextual knowledge when reading a nonfiction textbook (Sliwka, 2008).  They can evaluate the information and use higher order thinking skills to engage meaningful with it (Krathwohl, 2002). As I mentioned in the discussion board forum for module one (Taylor, 2019), when information is presented in a story format, readers are able to comprehend and retain key narrative information and concepts more readily (Haven, 2007).

In the second assessment, I continued the historical fiction theme. It required a resource kit to be developed to support the integration of children’s literature in curriculum delivery for a specific subject area. I wanted this assessment to be as authentic as possible, so after speaking to the humanities faculty leader at my school, I decided to base it around the Rights and Freedoms unit we run for year 10 students at my school. I know she is looking forward to seeing the completed kit when school returns for the year, which provides added incentive to do well.

Reading over a blog post of mine I wrote prior to compiling assessment one Knowing children’s literature, I realise how far I have come. I did not even realise children’s literature included young adult (YA) books, let alone put much value in the fiction collection, bar for its entertainment value. My vision for the future of children’s literature post says it all really, I did not have one. Now after completing ETL402? I definitely do. My vision is that our fiction collection has substance, that it’s a collection that includes sophisticated picture books, historical accurate novels and engaging nonfiction narratives. That this collection is supported by a highly motivated TL (me) who can provide curated resources to subject teachers and literacy strategies to complement them.

 

 

References

Haven, K. F. (2007). We’ve reached the research results: The science behind the startling power of story. Retrieved from https://ebookcentral.proquest.com

Krathwohl, D. R. (2002). A Revision of Bloom’s Taxonomy: An Overview. Theory Into Practice, 41(4), 212-218. doi:10.1207/s15430421tip4104_2

Morris, H. (2019). The Tattooist of Auschwitz: Young Adult Edition. Australia: Allen & Unwin.

Sliwka, C. (2008). Connecting to history through historical fiction. Language arts journal of Michigan, 23(2). Retrieved from  https://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1125&context=lajm

Taylor, J. (2019, Nov 17). Why read? [Online discussion comment]. Retrieved from Charles Sturt University website: https://interact2.csu.edu.au/webapps/discussionboard/do/message?action=list_messages&course_id=_38049_1&nav=discussion_board_entry&conf_id=_74552_1&forum_id=_177192_1&message_id=_2578564_1

Category: ETL402, School life | LEAVE A COMMENT
August 31

Collaboration

When I was making the decision to undertake my masters as a teacher librarian (TL) I researched just what a TL does. I want to be the TL who works alongside other teachers. That I’m not just there for the students, I’m there for the teachers as well. Collaborating with teaching staff, providing them with professional development opportunities and team teaching alongside them are all goals I aspire to. This week I have been reading about collaboration and I realise that it won’t be just a matter of me learning the skills but also convincing the teaching staff and leadership that this is something a TL does. Bishop (2011, pp.1-2) highlights the importance of establishing good relationships with colleagues, as it’s through this relationship that the teachers will overcome any perceptions they have about the role of a TL. The TL needs to show intrinsic interest in what the teachers are teaching and know the curriculum inside and out (Bishop, 2011).  On top of this I’ll need a good overview of the preferred inquiry methods the school uses and I’ll need to finish my degree.

So, I started to consider all the obstacles in my way of convincing my colleagues they should be open to collaboration with me.

  1. The current Ls don’t presently have opportunities to do this
  2. The school culture tends to isolate faculties
  3. Everyone has very tight schedules
  4. My own lack of knowledge about collaboration
  5. The school undervalues the TL
  6. Many staff don’t realise that the TL holds a duel degree

Some of these things are easier than others to conquer, my own lack of knowledge for one. This is just a matter of me completing my degree and undertaking appropriate professional development until I am confident. Others will be more difficult. Deringer (2013) suggests four ways for a TL to encourage collaboration that I think are worth mentioning.

  • Start small
  • Respect the teachers and their schedules
  • Don’t be afraid to say something.
  • Say “Thank you” to those who do collaborate (Deringer, 2013).

Deringer (2013) goes further to break open just what start small means. She suggests taking baby steps such as mini-lessons about a piece of technology, which got me thinking. We are starting to roll out Vivi at our school. If I master it I can help other teachers learn to use it. I also realise I’ve started doing taking baby steps already, two days ago I offered to assist a colleague with teaching her how to use her projector with more ease. I also love the suggestion of a Pinterest board that the teacher could access (Deringer, 2013). I’ve set up a school Pinterest board and added my first dedicated board on an area of year 10 curriuclum at our school – World War 2, check it out!

Lot’s to learn and lots to get my head around if I’m going to be the sort of TL I want to be, best I keep reading, ohh and playing on Pinterest.

 

 

References

Bishop, K. (2011). Connecting libraries with classrooms. Retrieved from https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/csuau/reader.action?docID=664534&ppg=18

Deringer, S. (2013). Inspire collaboration: A quick and easy guide for super busy school librarians. INALJ. Retrieved from http://inalj.com/?p=40373

Category: ETL504, My TL life, School life | LEAVE A COMMENT
August 4

Teams

Currently in ETL504 we are undertaking the readings for Module 3: Leading Change. The section on teams has made me feel quite introspective. I’m questioning the makeup of some of the teams I find myself in. One that immediately springs to mind is a current faculty team. We are a group of nine teachers with a core group of six. One of which is the appointed head of faculty. Up to recently I would have labelled us as a well-functioning team. One that achieved most of which it set out to do and did it in a way that utilised each and every member’s skills. I felt a sense of connectedness and support from my colleagues as highlighted as a benefit of a strong team in Effective Teams: The Key to Transforming Schools? Recently the head of our faculty announced his decision to leave. He has given notice and will leave at the end of term.  While the team was disappointed, we understood his reasons for moving on and supported his decision.

The problem that has developed though, is the sense I get in the last few weeks is that he’s ‘checked out’. He no longer appears to be a team player and conversations outside of the team has revealed he no longer has our backs.  I feel a sense of sadness and anger of this situation. It is one I can’t change and one I have to accept. I believe the only thing I have power over is how I react to the situation. My plan moving forward is to not to react to his building negativity and continue to show support to my remaining colleagues. I hope that a new head of faculty will be appointed who is a good fit for the team and can facilitate the change they will bring.

 

References

Aguilar, E. (2012, November 28). Effective teams: The key to transforming schools? Edutopia: What works in education. Retrieved from http://www.edutopia.org/blog/teacher-teams-transform-schools-elena-aguilar

Category: ETL504, School life | LEAVE A COMMENT
March 25

Budget management

Term 3 rolls around quickly in a secondary school. The subject choices for next year are cemented, the faculty heads are busily revamping their areas. It’s time to research text books for the coming year. Is there a new version available? Can we get a copy brought in to peruse for suitability?  Are there other unexplored options? A teacher librarian (TL) needs to be a steward of these endeavours. Reviewing facilities suggestions and weighing then up against other texts they may have no knowledge of. Giving the teachers options.

Non-fiction and fiction books, well that’s more fun. The best day every month is the arrival of the Lamont standing order and the catalogues from our various suppliers. Perusing these books, I work alongside our acquisitions officer, determining what readers the books will suit. Is the book one our students have requested? Is the author one our students respond too? Is it part of a series? What is its target age group? What numbers do we currently have of books in that genre? Do we need more? So many questions to ask ourselves as we browse the books. We discuss our choices with each other, involving the other TLs where necessary.  If it’s one that has been suggested, we generally purchase on release – as long as its age appropriate. Being  a Catholic school, there are some areas we stay away from, mainly dark magic, witch craft, vampires etc.

Category: ETL503, My TL life, School life | LEAVE A COMMENT