Charlotte’s Web, The 27th Annual African Hippopotamus Race, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, My Sister Sif. These are just a few of the titles I remember being read to me as a young student. The library was a safe haven. A place to immerse myself in worlds, imagined and real. A place to load my empty school bag at the beginning of school holidays to bring these worlds to my home.
Later, I came to understand that literature was so much more than just stories. As a class teacher beginning in a small school, I knew that my love of reading was something I wanted to share and promote. Fast forward a few years and I was presented with the unique opportunity of stepping into the Teacher Librarian role. I commenced the role with a naïve excitement not fully aware of the scope of the role.
I have learnt and realised there is much more to the role and practice of the Teacher Librarian. Systems, collaboration, dialogue, curricula, literacies are all but a small part of the position.
In this day and age of technologies and increasing expectations on students to ‘be ready’ for the future, teacher librarians allow opportunities to facilitate an inquiry-based pedagogy. Education allows society to progress and move forward. Students must be prepared with the ability to learn, critically evaluate, and apply new concepts that come their way (Excell, 2010).
The era of new 21st century schools have brought about the construction of schools without libraries and by extension no teacher librarians. Morris Gleitzman, well known Australian author and past Australian Children’s Laureate, has voiced his concerns of this reality and as such continued to promote the validity of libraries. “A good library supports every area of learning within the school, making practical application of the more curriculum-based areas of learning so potent” (Gleitzman, 2019).
It is only by allowing students to explore and develop their use of literacies, can we have a hope of ensuring our future leaders are informed, equipped and critical users of language. And herein lies the importance and need for the teacher librarian to make the library a functional and necessary hub of society. The Australian School Library Association sums up the role of TL in three short key notes: curriculum leaders, information specialists, information services managers (Australian School Library Association, n.d.). The role is clearly a complex and diverse one. One that requires research, training and qualifications.
Through this course I hope to develop skills in facilitating systems that enable students to learn and appreciate the power of communication. By being selective in information literacies, students will be able to shift their understandings into practical applications.
As I begin on this Masters journey, I reflect on my current situation and realise how fortunate I am to be in a school where the library is a valued space. The TL a valued member of the staff.
In time I hope I can build on my knowledge and continue to develop skills to be an expert and leader in information literacy, strengthening the skills of classroom teachers and students (ACT Government Education, 2019). As I’ve always said to my students, reading is everything!
Bibliography
ACT Government Education. (2019). School Libraries: The heart of the 21st century learning. ACT Government.
Australian School Library Association. (n.d.). What is a teacher librarian? Retrieved March 14, 2020, from Australian School Library Association: https://asla.org.au/what-is-a-teacher-librarian
Excell, T. (2010, March 31). Preparing students for the future: Creating personlised Education opportunities. Retrieved March 14, 2020, from SEEN Southeast Education Network: https://www.seenmagazine.us/Articles/Article-Detail/articleid/569/preparing-students-for-the-future
Gleitzman, M. (2019). Morris Gleitzman on the uniquely contributive role of school libraries. Connections(109), 1-2. Retrieved from Schools Catalogue Information Services.
