Through my teaching journey, teacher librarians have always been in the periphery of my school experiences. In the first school I taught in, I loved the library. I was teaching English and I brought my year 7 class in for wider reading. I loved the couches for quiet contemplation and the possibilities held in the vast rows of books. I loved the quiet hush that meant that I was free to imagine and dream alongside my class. I never thought at that time that the librarian was responsible for creating such a space. The librarian would always be present in these sessions with a wide smile and the gentlest approach. She would patiently listen and steer students to books that might interest them, gently suggesting that there were more books in the world to read than Diary of a Wimpy Kid! She was there as a vital support to me, the classroom teacher. In this way, her role was as an adviser, children’s literature expert and to extend the reading interests of my class.
Thinking back, I saw the support the librarian gave for students on the library computers. It seemed she fixed paper jams and helped students login in a seemingly endless stream. Her role also being to support students in their research and helping to navigate through their varied assignments. Again, her positive and approachable manner enabled students to seek her support – like an accomplished waiter in a restaurant – always watching and finding the perfect time to intervene. In reflection, her role was as an information technology leader, enabling students to feel empowered to use technology in a savvy way. Unlike the IT teachers who did not seem to possess a strong interpersonal intelligence, the librarian filled that niche.
On reflection, I knew on some level that the teacher librarian was there to support the curriculum that I was implementing, but I never thought to seek her support. I remember her compiling boxes of resources for some of the other teachers but I think that I felt that, as a competent adult, I could find and source the resources that I needed. I wish that I did utilise her skills and I think that the school had a role to play in highlighting the multi-faceted role of the teacher librarian to raise the profile of her role within that school context.
In my current school, the teacher librarian also existed in the quiet corners. He was a kind, gentle man to say hello to when I went into the library to pick up photocopying. He supported me with discipline issues, providing a quiet space to use if I needed to threaten the dreaded ‘written work’ in a drama classroom when all the students wanted to do was play.
It was in discussions over adult fiction reading where I started to see more dimensions of his role. He created and updated the library website, he taught classes in referencing, he created the booklist and he was always looking for fiction that would spur the reluctant readers in our school on. I learned that he saw his role as creating an adult learning environment for students, an intellectual centre for students to extend themselves. It was through those conversations that I started to consider that this might be a career path that I would like to tread.
Now, looking back I see the role of the teacher librarian is pivotal within the school. Their role within the school is both varied and vast in scope. Collaboration with the learning leaders in the school is vital and a vision for the library as an innovative and inclusive learning space to extend, welcome and challenge learners seems key.
What a great post Nafisa. You have outlined the role of the TL well against your own experiences as a classroom teacher. It is varied and challenging at times, but oh so rewarding!