collaboration – Learning to Library

In my introductory post to the ETL504 discussion forum, I said I hoped to gain more knowledge and tools to advocate for the teacher librarian (TL) role and how I could have the most positive impact on our school (Doherty, 2019, July 21). As we now come to the close of the subject I am pleased to say that this is most certainly what I have gained from ETL504.

While my own blogging and forum posts have been minimal, this was a conscious decision as a time management strategy. Completing this subject during a time of great personal difficulty, I prioritised commitment to my group for the case studies and my own personal readings. As my response to case study six demonstrated, putting strategies into place to avoid burnout is essential (Doherty, 2019, September 29).

I found the case study scenario to be slightly frustrating as it was far from my own library experience where I am the sole practitioner, not even an administrative assistant or library technician for me to manage, let alone a number of TLs. Having said this, I can see the massive collaborative effort the TL must make with staff across the school, where many personalities, priorities and levels of expertise collide just as in the case study scenario.

In our Group 12 response to case study four (Group 12, 2019a) we began to explore the need for TLs to collaborate with staff on planning for the library as well as on teaching and learning programs. Further reading and completion of assessment items one and two has confirmed collaboration as an essential TL requirement. From the beginning of this subject (and indeed my entire time as TL) I was floundering a bit with what value add I could bring to the school and the best way to so. Now I feel I am best suited mainly as servant leader. With the wide range of personalities and expertise in the school, the level and type of support and professional development I provide may be vastly different for each staff member. I have been motivated to begin a strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT) analysis to inform the development of a strategic plan for our library (Group 12, 2019a; Group 12, 2019b).

I have definitely felt the lack of understanding from school leadership and staff for the role of the TL that our response to case study five addresses (Group 12, 2019b). I hope that from the strategic plan I am able to create a clear vision for our library that will get staff on board with common goals such as collaboratively planning, teaching and assessing using guided inquiry design. Working closely with the principal to enable such initiatives will be vital.

What ETL504 has made very clear is that being new to the library provides great timing for these changes to occur but the management style I adopt will be key to their success (Doherty, 2019, July 30).

References

Group 12. (2019a, September 6). Group 12 [Online forum comment]. Retrieved from https://interact2.csu.edu.au/webapps/discussionboard/do/message?action=list_messages&course_id=_42385_1&nav=discussion_board_entry&conf_id=_78888_1&forum_id=_164189_1&message_id=_2468010_1

Group 12. (2019b, September 20). Case study 5 -Group 12 [Online forum comment]. Retrieved from https://interact2.csu.edu.au/webapps/discussionboard/do/message?action=list_messages&course_id=_42385_1&nav=discussion_board_entry&conf_id=_78888_1&forum_id=_164188_1&message_id=_2499678_1

As I stated in 2.1 Definitions of information (2019, April 22a.), I began this subject (and return to tertiary study in general) with somewhat of an eye roll wondering if we were over analysing the term ‘information’ and for what purpose. However as Hutchinson (2017 in Doherty 11 march 2019) points out, it is now more important than ever in our ‘google everything’ society that students are armed with the skills to search a database, use keywords and research techniques, evaluate where their information comes from and be aware of plagiarism, copyright and the consequences of poor research. What I now know as being information literate. I have discovered through this subject that the library is the perfect place and the teacher librarian, in collaboration with classroom teachers, the perfect person for the job. Living in this information society there are exciting opportunities but also challenges. The ease with which we all create and contribute information means the issue of integrity comes to the fore. The plethora of information available can make it hard to know what is reliable, relevant and useful (Doherty, 2019, April 22b.); cue the teacher librarian as an information and guided inquiry specialist.
Hutchinson (2017) and Leech (2019) reassured me that I wasn’t the only teacher frustrated with the quality of research their students provide. In my 2.1 Definition of information blog post (2019, April 22a.) I owned up to being unsure of how to improve this in the past but I could see now how the teacher librarian had a role to play. I was still lacking confidence ‘in providing this service to teachers’. Now, my confidence is still developing, but Assessment Item 3 has certainly helped to settle some of those nerves and make it very clear that it is not a ‘service to provide to teachers’ but a collaborative practice that needs to be employed. I see now that the teacher librarian needs to be more active and take on a leadership role in changing the mindset of the school and create a shift toward inquiry learning (Maniotes & Kuhlthau, 2014).
This subject opened my eyes to inquiry learning models, I was a bit surprised there were so many of them. I had come across the NSW ISP not long ago, when I began working in the library and was searching the DoE website for information to guide me. I was not aware of this document as a teacher and I am sure very few of the teachers I work with are. I have used that model in teaching stage 2 and 3 students and found it a useful tool. I was impressed by The Guided Inquiry Design (GID) process, however, for its ability to be used as a planning tool for teachers and simultaneously as a process for students to follow (FitzGerald & Garrison, 2016). I also like that The GID process ‘places great importance on initially building students’ background knowledge before launching students into the research tasks’ (Scheffers, 2008). The low socio economic status of much of our student population, means background knowledge is often lacking and the opportunities presented by this model in helping build that up for students is very appealing.

I can also see that more teaching time will be dedicated to information literacy than I had previously thought. The library is definitely more than enjoying a good story (Doherty, April 22c). With more knowledge on information literacy models under my belt, this view has only been strengthened. While I love the idea of guided inquiry, the realities of fitting it into the timetable while still allowing students to borrow and grow the reading culture of the school is something I am still grappling with. Even more so, the idea of collaboration can seem romantic when days can pass without seeing another adult. Both obstacles that are worth figuring out but I anticipate will take time and a mix of careful planning and trial and error to reconcile.
So, from viewing the library as mainly reading for pleasure and a resource for teachers, my understanding of the teacher librarian role has shifted greatly throughout the subject. I now see we need to position ourselves as information and inquiry learning experts. We must provide evidence of our value add to the school and take on a leadership and collaborative role, rather than mere support.

References

Dawson, M. & Kallenberger, N. (Eds.) (2015). Information skills in the school: engaging in construction knowledge. NSW Department of Education. Retrieved from https://education.nsw.gov.au/teaching-and-learning/curriculum/learning-across-the-curriculum/school-libraries/media/documents/infoskills.pdf

Doherty, H. (2019, March 11). Assessment 1 Part B [Blog post]. Retrieved from https://thinkspace.csu.edu.au/learningtolibrary/2019/03/11/assessment-1-part-b/

Doherty, H. (2019, April 22a.). 2.1 Definitions of information [Blog post]. Retrieved from https://thinkspace.csu.edu.au/learningtolibrary/2019/04/22/2-1-definitions-of-information/

Doherty, H. (2019, April 22b.). 2.3 The information society [Blog post]. Retrieved from https://thinkspace.csu.edu.au/learningtolibrary/2019/04/22/2-2-the-information-society/

Doherty, H. (2019, April 22c.).2.5 Teacher librarian in the information landscape [Blog post]. Retrieved from https://thinkspace.csu.edu.au/learningtolibrary/2019/04/22/2-5-teacher-librarian-in-the-information-landscape/

FitzGerald, L and Garrison, K (2016). Investigating the guided inquiry process. European conference on Information Literacy (ECIL) proceedings.

Guided inquiry community (n.d.). Retrieved from http://guidedinquirycommunity.pbworks.com/w/page/45297132/FrontPage

Hutchinson, E. (2017). Navigating the Information Landscape through Collaboration. Connections Issue 101. Retrieved from http://www2.curriculum.edu.au/scis/issue_101/articles/navigating_the_information_landscape.html

Leech, K. (2019, April 8). Re: Assessment 1 part B [Blog comment]. Retrieved from https://thinkspace.csu.edu.au/learningtolibrary/2019/03/11/assessment-1-part-b/#comment-4

Maniotes, L. K., & Kuhlthau, C. C. (2014). MAKING THE SHIFT. Knowledge Quest, 43(2), 8-17. Retrieved from https://search-proquest-com.ezproxy.csu.edu.au/docview/1620878836?accountid=10344

Scheffers, J. (2008). Guided inquiry: A learning journey. Scan, 27(4), 34-42. Retrieved from https://search-informit-com-au.ezproxy.csu.edu.au/fullText;res=AEIPT;dn=172157

Tag: collaboration

ETL504 Assessment item 2: Part B

Assessment Item 3, Part C: Reflective Practice