April 13

INF506 – Librarian 2.0 in Library 2.0

The term ‘Library 2.0’ first appeared in a rather non-descript blog post written by Michael Casey in September 2005. Whether intentional or not, at the time Casey used the term, he did so in an attempt to directly connect ‘Library 2.0’ to the characteristics and technologies of Web 2.0. The hallmarks of Web 2.0 – and by Casey’s unwitting extension, Library 2.0 – are that people use technology tools to widely share their ideas, generate content, and have easier access to collaborative tools.

Burton (2019), Chun (2018), and Dodd (2019), all explore what they believe to be the core knowledge, skills, and attributes of information professionals working within Library 2.0 institutions. Burton argues that amongst those core competencies most valued (and missing) by information professionals are analysis, technology utilisation, communication and project management (2019, p. 43). Chun (2018) poetically discusses the need for LIS employees, specifically teacher librarians, to accept imperfection and be brave in embracing new technology. Meanwhile, Dodd puts forward the idea that employers and managers should be looking at ‘capacities’ of employees, instead of ‘competencies’, which may have an air of “rigid rules and demands from higher-ups” (2019, p. 688).

So what then, do I believe to be the essential knowledge, skills and attributes of information professionals in a Web 2.0 world? I believe that information professionals are expected to be adaptable and fast learners, who are skilled in management, particularly because they often work independently from their peers (Huvila et al., 2013). I believe that information professionals are expected to have the skills to encourage, teach and guide others in information literacy development and the use of Web 2.0 technologies. I also think that in the last 20 decades, librarians have come to see that they need to use these technologies to engage with patrons, interact with professional learning networks, and help others to do the same. Above all though, information professionals must be brave, and open to taking (calculated) risks in their professional lives, as Chun (2018) notes.

As a teacher librarian, I am also reminded that information professionals do a million over things that they are often not credited for. Why? Because they have the capacity. As society evolves — as it has been doing since conception — so must information professionals.

Reference List 

Burton, S. (2019). Future skills for the LIS profession. Online Searcher, 43(2), 42-45.

Casey, M. (2005, September 26). Librarians Without Borders [Blog Post]. Retrieved from http://www.librarycrunch.com/2005/09/librarians_without_borders.html.

Chun, T. (2018). “Brave before perfect”: A new approach for future-ready librarians. Teacher Librarian, 45(5), 35-37.

Dodd, J. (2019). Competency or capacity: Measuring librarians’ potential for success. Journal of Library Administration, 59(6), 684-692.

Evolving Librarian [Image]. (n.d.). Newprofessionalsnetwork. https://newprofessionalsnetwork.wordpress.com/tag/librarian-2-0/.

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March 30

INF506 – ALIA versus ALA

Both @ALIANational and @ALALibrary are Twitter accounts run by and representative of Australia and America’s Library Association bodies, respectively. As such, they have a lot in common, from the content they produce to the audience they attempt to appeal to.

A brief perusal of the contents of their tweets reveals that the content they ‘tweet’ or ‘retweet’ is related, and can be generally organised into three broad categories:

    1. Content relating to the continued running and public actions of the Association, including announcements about upcoming conferences and professional development opportunities; official recommendations or statements to other national and/or state bodies; and business deals/agreements.

    2. Content for and relevant to the work of information professionals, particularly those employed in libraries. These are often retweets, rather than original content produced by the Association.

    3. Content for members of the public who are interested in the broad related ‘fields’ of the Association, i.e. libraries, books, authors, and increasingly — technology.

 

In tweeting (and retweeting) such content, ALIA and ALA  are first and foremost attempting to reach their primary target audience, who consist of individuals employed in the information industry and other related fields, i.e. public/academic librarians, archivists, museum curators, publishers, etc. These individuals may be paying members of the Association, or conversely, have a vested interest in the work of the respective Association. To a lesser extent, these tweets are meant to appeal to members of the general public. These individuals may be regular patrons of libraries or have a broad interest in the work of the Association.

The appeal of these accounts — and the clear discrepancy between the success of each Association — is evidenced in the amount of ‘followers’ for each account, as well the engagement expressed through ‘hearts’, retweets and discussion/comment on each tweet.

A brief analysis of the engagement on ALIA’s last 10 tweets reveals that they received, on average, only 0.5 comments, 3.8 retweets, and 6.6 likes, per tweet. In these 10 tweets, the most popular one was a retweet from Yarra Plenty Library, which offered to print and post essential documents free of charge (2020, March 30). The people who liked this tweet were mostly librarians employed in the Melbourne area, as evidenced by bios.

Meanwhile, data from ALA’s previous 10 tweets revealed that they received, on average, 0.9 comments, 19.2 retweets, and 43.5 likes, per tweet. Their most popular tweet was a link to a NY Times article about how artists were responding to school closures, which received more than 130 likes and 62 retweets (2020, March 28).

The discrepancy in this engagement could be explained by any number of things. It could be simply because ALA reaches a much wider audience (205.8K followers) compared to ALIA’s (10.9K). I also observed that ALA used #hashtags more frequently than ALIA, meaning that interested people following particular hashtags were more likely to find ALA’s tweets than ALIA’s. What is interesting to note is that ALIA has tweeted a lot more frequently than ALA, with 29.1K tweets compared to 24.2K respectively.

Overall though, ALA far outperforms ALIA, reaching a wider audience and demonstrating more user engagement. It also proves that sometimes it’s quality (i.e. hashtags) over quantity.

 

Reference List

American Library Association [@ALALibrary]. (2020, March 28). School closings are a drastic change for kids at this challenging time, so authors are stepping up on social media to keep them engaged [Tweet]. Retrieved from https://twitter.com/ALALibrary/status/1243692027897880577.

Yarra Plenty Library [YarraPlentyLib]. (2020, March 30). Printing and posting services [Tweet]. Retrieved from https://twitter.com/YarraPlentyLib/status/1244451232283906048?s=20.

 

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March 20

INF506 – The Influence of Technology on Society

Although many people have attempted to outline the ways in which society is changing because of technology, few summarise it as succinctly as David Wiley (2008), who outlines five significant shifts in our society because of Web 2.0, namely a movement from:

  1. Analog to digital forms
  2. Tethered to mobile technologies
  3. Isolated to connected experiences
  4. Generic to personal user networks
  5. Closed systems to open systems of information

All of these shifts have presented unprecedented challenges — as well as unique opportunities — for organisations wishing to remain relevant and fulfil their purposes in an increasingly online world.

First, analog to digital forms. In the most obvious example of this, paper as a physical format is quickly giving way to digital documents which are easier to search, copy, share and organise. For organisations, this may mean adapting not how they offer their services, but also potentially what they offer. For instance, many libraries have begun cultivating digital collections of e-books and audiobooks, offering these to patrons as an alternative to physical books.

Second, society is no longer tethered to desks and landlines to work, but can now enjoy the benefits of mobile technologies from anywhere. In fact, 5.19 billion people globally use mobile phones, with mobile phones accounting for 53.3% of all web traffic (We Are Social, 2020). EDUCAUSE argued in their 2020 report that although mobile learning had existed for over 10 years, the ‘future’ of this trend was to focus on connectivity and convenience (p. 21). This is of particular relevance to organisations, as they must consider how people are consuming content, and therefore make their content mobile-friendly.

Third, isolated to connected experiences. Using social media and Web 2.0 technologies, organisations are no longer isolated but instead, belong to connected and global networks. For organisations, this is an opportunity to exploit their potential connectivity and market themselves to a much wider audience, as well as using their audience (through social media, reviews etc.) to market them.

(Visualising the Networked World, n.d.)

Fourth, generic to personal networks. The world of social media and social networks has opened the possibilities for finding individuals and organisations who share the same interests and goals. For organisations, there is also the potential of communicating with individuals on a person-by-person basis through Web 2.0 technologies, thus cultivating relationships with users to create a more personal user experience.

Fifth, closed systems to open systems. Technology has quite literally opened the world in which we live in, becoming an indispensable part of our lives. If organisations fail to acknowledge this and tap into the potential that this new world offers, they risk becoming irrelevant and failing at their purpose. 

 

 

Reference List

EDUCAUSE (2019). Horizon Report: 2019 Higher Education Edition. Retrieved March 16, 2020 from https://library.educause.edu/resources/2019/4/2019-horizon-report.

Visualising the Networked World [Graphic]. (n.d.). Connected World. Retrieved from https://connectedworld.com/visualizing-the-networked-world/.

We Are Social (2020). Digital 2020 – Global Digital Overview. Retrieved March 23, 2020 from https://wearesocial.com/au/blog/2020/01/digital-2020-3-8-billion-people-use-social-media.

Wiley, D., & Hilton III, J. (2009). Openness, Dynamic Specialization, and the Disaggregated Future of Higher Education. The International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning, 10(5). https://doi.org/10.19173/irrodl.v10i5.768

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March 11

INF506 – Assessment 1

‘Web 2.0′ is an umbrella term that encompasses a variety of websites and applications that allow users to create and share information/content they have created (Thompson, 2008). Colloquially, these applications and websites are referred to as ‘social network sites’, and what you do when engaging is called ‘social networking’.

In a professional sense, however, I believe that ‘social networking’ is perhaps too simple a phrase to comprise the entirety of my actions with and on social media. Although social in nature, my actions are not simply social. Thus, I am more comfortable with defining professional ‘social networks’ as ‘social learning networks‘, as this indicates a clear difference in the purpose of engagement. As a professional employed in the library and education industries, I use social learning networks to connect with and learn alongside people who share my passions or are employed in similar fields.

As such, I like to keep these spaces — one for learning, one for social communication — separate. For instance, I use Facebook as a means of communicating with family and friends, while I use Twitter to engage in learning with and from colleagues and other professionals. I do blur the lines, however, by using Instagram for both professional and personal purposes because the visual nature makes it easy to consume and mentally categorise the content.

It is abundantly clear that Web 2.0 technologies have transformed the manner in which we consume, share, and create information — not only with local or national scale but also on a global one. In INF506, I expect that I will gain a better understanding of this transformation, particularly in the context of libraries. I also sincerely hope that by engaging in this social learning network, I am able to apply the developed theoretical knowledge in my own context.

 

Stock image showing stick-figure people who are all inter-linked by dotted lines.

(EdTechTeam, 2020)

 

Word Count: 299

 

Reference List

EdTechTeam (2020). Personal learning networks [Image]. Retrieved 11 March, 2020 from https://www.edtechteam.com/blog/2012/02/personal-learning-networks-for/.

Thompson, H. (2008). Wikis, Blogs & Web 2.0 technology. Retrieved 11 March, 2020 from https://copyright.unimelb.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0011/1773830/wikisblogsweb2blue.pdf

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March 5

INF506 – Social Media and Protest

In their article, Anatomy of a Protest, Karduni and Sauda (2020) set out to study and gain an understanding of the relationship between social media, urban space and the community members of said urban space. Due to the potential scale of this topic, they limit the focus of their research to one instance of a Black Lives Matter protest that occurred in Charlotte, North Carolina, in September 2016. The protests, which went on for 3 days, were a response to the fatal shooting of Keith Lamont Scott by police.

Using a mixed-method approach, and collecting both quantitative and qualitative data (i.e. spatial statistics and interviews), Karduni and Sauda discuss how social media was used by both pro- and anti-movement protesters to motivate, communicate, organise and participate in the protests. They reflect extensively upon the fact that protesters used particular urban spaces deliberately, being mindful of the impact that they would have on police response and the physical flow of the city.

They conclude by succinctly summarising that social media, public space and community are an integrated system. Social media provides the practical means by which community members are motivated and protests organised, while urban spaces provide public stages for the expression of pressing injustices that connect people and can create networks that are extended through social media.

Karduni and Sauda’s paper is strengthened by the fact that they themselves acknowledge a possible limitation to the study: namely, that it is focussed on a single series of related events in a single city. See below a video (TODAY, 2016) that explains the incident and corresponding protests.

There are, however, other limitations that Karduni and Sauda (2020) fail to address and these weaken their argument.

Firstly, by limiting their focus to a case study, they accept the potential restrictions associated with selecting the Lamont Scott shooting. Unlike other Black Lives Matter protests that were occurring at the time because typically unarmed African-Americans were being harmed by police, Lamont Scott was 43-years-old (i.e. not a vulnerable child and/or teenager) and was allegedly armed at the time of the incident. Karduni and Sauda do not address whether his age or his supposed possession of a firearm impacted community response, and therefore the public support protests.

Secondly, they do not ever note that Lamont was shot by an African-American officer, rather than one of another ethnicity. In failing to acknowledge this, they also fail to note whether this impacted the response given by the community, and whether this impacted their study of this one protest.

In conclusion, Karduni and Sauda’s study is an interesting discussion on the power of social media in protests, and the role that it plays both in virtual and physical spaces. There is no doubt that social media can be used as a tool to communicate information and ideologies surrounding protests. There are however obvious limitations to Karduni and Sauda’s study, and if a more dynamic understanding of the intersection between social media, physical space and protests is to be had, comparison of protests are needed.

 

Reference List

Karduni, A. & Sauda, E. (2020). Anatomy of a Protest: Spatial Information, Social Media, and Urban Space. Social Media and Society, 6(1). DOI: 10.1177/2056305119897320

TODAY. (2016, September 22). Protests Erupt in Charlotte After Police Fatally Shoot Keith Lamont Scott [YouTube Clip]. Retrieved March 5, 2020 from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gb5jvZcqiv0

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October 1

ETL401 – Assessment 3, Part C

“Who needs librarians when you have Google?”

There is a harsh reality that is facing the teacher librarian profession. Both personal, social and academic evidence indicates that Australian teacher librarians have been branded a “dying breed” in “survival mode”, with employment numbers hitting a “critical low” across the country (Carmody, 2019; Softlink, 2016; Merga, 2019; Milliken 2019b). Those who do remain in their position do not feel secure or valued in their roles. It is a hard and sobering reality, albeit hardly a new one (Watts, 1999).

The Information Society in which we live is in a constant state of evolution and change (FitzGerald, 2019a). By its very nature though, change brings with it new opportunities. Resistance to these opportunities could prove futile for reluctant teacher librarians (TL). Our survival depends solely upon our ability to evolve in response to these changes, to meet the perceived needs of our students and school community. And despite the question proceeding this post, the need for TLs is very real, even and perhaps in large, because of Google (Cadzow, 2019; Ziffer, 2019). Equipping students with the skills and processes needed to navigate the Information Landscape is essential if we are to create students who are literate, and capable of being active and informed citizens, as described in the Melbourne Declaration on Educational Goals (MCEETYA, 2008).

In today’s complex information landscape, the word ‘literacy’ is often used as a descriptor, encompassing multiple literacies from the more traditional, i.e. reading, writing, etc., to the more diverse, i.e. music, media, etc. One type of literacy that is encompassed by this descriptor is known as ‘information literacy’. Information literacy (IL) is, in itself, a complex concept, with no one definition encompassing all its aspects (FitzGerald, 2019b). In an earlier blog post (Milliken, 2019c), I defined IL for the specific contexts and purposes I used the term in, but upon reflecting, most revise this definition. Information literacy can be understood as a set of skills and/or processes that a learner needs to find, understand, evaluate, apply and transfer information and knowledge to different forms for personal, social, and professional purposes (Abilock, 2007; Herring & Tarter, 2007). The transferability of IL cannot be underestimated or neglected, as this is evidence of true understanding of not only the processes themselves but why we do them.

In Australia, IL has been omitted from the Australian Curriculum. This does not, as the work of Lupton (2012) illustrates, mean that IL is not implicitly present in the Curriculum, simply that ‘strands’ of it exist, particularly in the inquiry skills elements and General Capabilities. Lupton concludes her work by saying that it is ultimately the responsibility — and opportunity for — of the TL to link these elements. One way in which she suggests TLs do this is through the implementation of inquiry-learning frameworks that explicitly integrate IL. Inquiry is an approach to learning whereby students have the opportunity to investigate, explore, evaluate, and apply information.

To help TLs implement IL into the syllabus, several IL models have been developed over the years, each with their own unique advantages and disadvantages. Viewed out of context, or implemented by an untrained professional, these models can reinforce the view that IL is a set of skills or steps to be followed (Llyod, 2010). I have fallen prey to this assumption myself (Milliken, 2019d). Since entering a TL role in a High School in April, I taught four lessons on the research process using the NSW Information Search Process as my model (NSW DET, 2007). Though, due to a packed syllabus, in each of these instances, I’ve only had one lesson to cover the entire process and have never had the opportunity to evaluate the effectiveness of students’ use of the model. For the third assessment, however, I developed an integrated IL unit that used Guided Inquiry as the framework, and I found this model much more inherently natural to the entire inquiry process. So infatuated with the Guided Inquiry model, that next year, I will be putting my unit to use as part of Stage 4 History.

I firmly believe that in order to remain relevant in the 21st century, TLs must acknowledge that our role is to create students who are information literate. We must make our area of expertise the integration of IL skills into our school syllabuses, and become invaluable once more to the information seeking and application process. We cannot be replaced by Google. As members of our school’s instructional teams, we must be involved in all phases of designing instruction, from setting goals and objectives, to designing activities, to establishing means for assessing learning (Kulthau et al., 2007). This role will not be without challenges faced from all corners of our profession – the students we teach, the peers we work beside, the Curriculum and leadership we work under.  We will have to constantly fight to be viewed as valuable contributors to the education of young people. This is our new reality, and I for one, cannot wait.

 

Word Count: 816

 

Reference List

Abilock, D. (2007). Information literacy. Building blocks of research: Overview of design process and outcomes. NoodleTools. Retrieved https://www.eduscapes.com/instruction/inquiry/noodletools.htm. 

Carmody, R. (2019, September 15). School libraries hit by the loss of a dying breed as teacher librarians enter ‘survival mode’. ABC News. Retrieved from https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-09-15/research-reveals-alarming-loss-in-teacher-librarians-in-schools/11494022?pfmredir=sm&fbclid=IwAR1vqGw788HmqJqoRbau6PvbbD8n0gO27q3mL6gA1eAI3m5UYvLvhcaDye0

Cadzow, J. (2019, September 28). One for the books: the unlikely renaissance of libraries in the digital age. The Age. Retrieved from https://www.theage.com.au/culture/books/one-for-the-books-the-unlikely-renaissance-of-libraries-in-the-digital-age-20190923-p52u0j.html?fbclid=IwAR1jysxVIPp57CFtGdzqm54hNCq9jzWtn1hdilE79syt52ykbt5vm8LbqkI

FitzGerald, L. (2019a). ETL401: Introduction to Teacher Librarianship. Module 2.2 – The nature of information [Course notes]. Retrieved 10th September, 2019 from https://interact2.csu.edu.au/webapps/blackboard/content/listContent.jsp?course_id=_42381_1&content_id=_2899453_1 

FitzGerald, L. (2019b). ETL401: Introduction to Teacher Librarianship. Module 5: Information Literacy [Course notes]. Retrieved 1st October, 2019 from https://interact2.csu.edu.au/webapps/blackboard/content/listContent.jsp?course_id=_42381_1&content_id=_2899468_1

Herring, J. and Tarter, A. (2007). Progress in developing information literacy in a secondary school using the PLUS model. School Libraries in View 23, 23-27. 

Kuhlthau, C. C., Maniotes, L. K., & Caspari, A. K. (2007). Guided Inquiry: Learning in the 21st Century. London, UK: Libraries Unlimited. 

Lupton, M. (2012). Inquiry skills in the Australian Curriculum. Access, 26(2), 12-18. ISSN: 1030-0155. 

 Lloyd, A. (2010). Framing information literacy as an information practice: site ontology and practice theory. Journal of Documentation 66(2), 245–258.

Merga, M. K. (2019). Do Librarians Feel that Their Profession is Valued in Contemporary Schools? Journal of the Australian Library and Information Association, 68(1), 18-37.https://doi.org/10.1080/24750158.2018.1557979

Ministerial Council on Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs. (2008). Melbourne Declaration on Educational Goals for Young Australians. Retrieved from http://www.curriculum.edu.au/verve/_resources/National_Declaration_on_the_Educational_Goals_for_Young_Australians.pdf

Milliken, K. (2019a, July 16). ETL401 – The Role of the Teacher Librarian [Blog post]. Retrieved from https://thinkspace.csu.edu.au/readminder/2019/07/16/etl401-assessment-1-part-b/ 

Milliken, K. (2019b, August 8). Module 2 – Teacher Librarian in the Information Landscape [Blog post]. Retrieved from https://thinkspace.csu.edu.au/readminder/2019/08/08/module-2-3-teacher-librarian-in-the-information-landscape/

Milliken, K. (2019c, September 10). Module 5.1 – Information Literacy [Blog post]. Retrieved from https://thinkspace.csu.edu.au/readminder/2019/09/10/module-5-1-information-literacy/ 

Milliken, K. (2019d), September 19). Module 5.4 – Integrated Information Literacy Instruction [Blog post]. Retrieved from https://thinkspace.csu.edu.au/readminder/2019/09/19/etl401-module-5-4-integrated-information-literacy-instruction/

New South Wales, Department of Education and Training. (2007). Information skills in the school. http://www.curriculumsupport. education.nsw.gov.au/schoollibraries/teachingideas/isp/index.htm 

Softlink. (2016). The 2016 softlink Australian and New Zealand school library survey report. Retrieved 1st October, 2019 from https://www.softlinkint.com/downloads/Australian_and_New_Zealand_School_library_survey_report.pdf. 

Watts, J. S. (1999). The teacher librarian past: a literature review. In J. Henri & K. Bonanno (Eds.), The information literate school community: best practice (pp. 29-54). Wagga Wagga, NSW: Centre for Information Studies, Charles Sturt University. 

Ziffer, D. (2019, September 26). Communications technology and education push Australian down digital rankings. ABC News. Retrieved 1st October, 2019 from https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-09-26/internet-digital-ranking-australia-and-the-world/11550614?fbclid=IwAR1vz8xZ4efiT6SDjNT-YNUUZXk0aPBktXRvb3eoVJh04wcJyC0UXojgmB4.

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September 19

ETL401 – Module 5.4 – Integrated Information Literacy Instruction

I’m exceptionally lucky to be a supportive HS that sees the value of the library and the teacher librarian. This being said, the opportunities for integrated information literacy instruction have been limited. In my time at the school (currently 2 terms), I’ve taught maybe 3-4 lessons on the research process. I’m typically given ONE lesson to cover everything, and sometimes not even this, as teachers want students to have the opportunity to immediately put their skills into practice. This is not the teacher’s fault though — the curriculum is already so packed, and while taking 1 lesson out to address information seeking and/or referencing is fine, taking 3 or four out is not.

It’s also not realistic for me to integrate myself into the instruction of multiple KLAs. Firstly, I do not have expert knowledge of every KLA and their curriculum. Secondly, I do not want to repeat similar or the same lessons to identical students multiple times. So instead, I’m going to start looking at how I can embed IL — and myself by extension — into the HSIE faculty. I’m History-trained, so this seems like an obvious choice. Additionally, IL skills and processes seem natural to the historical inquiry process, and overlap significantly with the ‘historical’ skills being taught in History classes, i.e. evaluating sources for bias etc.

At this point in time, I’m confused as to what integrated information literacy instruction would look like across all KLAs. I mean, as obvious as it is for me in History, it is not at all obvious for me in regards to Science, or English.

One way a TL might help the school move toward integrated information literacy instruction is to workshop it with staff at staff/faculty meetings. This has the added bonus of developing collegial and professional relationships with staff members, which obviously help to build teaching partnerships between the TL and teachers in the long-run. My current HT is actually the Instructional Leader, so maybe I should bring it up with them at an appropriate time?

There are obvious challenges to integrated information literacy instruction, beyond the unique challenges that my personal circumstances present. Namely, it’s very easy for ‘Information Literacy’ to be seen by teachers as a fad. Even though IL skills/processes have been around for decades and since its ‘birth’, a concern for Education systems around the world, it’s been growing in recognition and popularity in recent years. And like other fads, without being constantly pushed by staff, it may eventually die out. We only have to look at the General Capabilities. A few years ago, this was a big push by the Department to work skills and processes — LIKE INFORMATION LITERACY — into all curriculums. However, as a relatively recent Education graduate (2017), I sheepishly admit that I had never even really heard of the general capabilities. I certainly did not explicitly work them into programs or lessons I was teaching beyond anything that wasn’t tokenist.

Another challenge might be reflective of my own perceptions — how is IL relevant for ALL subject areas? It obviously is, and for some subjects more than others simply by the nature of the innate processes involved.

I think it’s important to note that Fitzgerald (2019) and Fitzgerald & Garrison (2017) acknowledge that the processes involved Guided Inquiry (an IL model) do eventually become transferable for students, but only with repetition. This means to be truly valuable, IL skills and processes must be constantly practiced and reinforced in teaching, particularly across KLAs and different teachers. To avoid dying out, a TL must be knowledgeable in at least one IL model and be working with teachers across the school to integrate the skills and processes involved into their teaching. But in saying this, I circle back to one of my first observations expressed in this post: the curriculum is already packed. And must I do this alone?

 

Bibliography

Fitzgerald, L. (2019). ETL401: Introduction to Teacher Librarianship – Module 5.1 – Information literacy models in practice [Course notes]. Retrieved from https://interact2.csu.edu.au/webapps/blackboard/content/listContent.jsp?course_id=_42381_1&content_id=_2899468_1

Fitzgerald, L. & Garrison, K. (2017) ‘It Trains Your Brain’: Student Reflections on Using the Guided Inquiry Design Process. Synergy, 15(2).

 

 

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September 10

ETL401 – Module 5.1 – Information Literacy

I did my first assessment for ETL401 on Information Literacy, so this is kind of an area that I semi-understand — can anyone really ever know what ‘information literacy’ is when there are no agreed-upon definitions of it? The way I like to understand is that information literacy is and are the processes by which a learner finds, understands, evaluates, and applies information for specific purposes (Abilock, 2004).

I’ve definitely noted that in schools I’ve been at, ‘literacy’ is often just a term thrown around by people to refer to traditional literacy, that is, reading, writing, viewing, speaking, listening and understanding. As far as I’m aware, it’s very rarely used to refer to any other sort of literacy — whether that’s information literacy, literacy with ICT, etc. I fully believe, however, that for students to be considered ‘literate’ in the 21st Century, they must be able to do more than read and write, but also locate and critically evaluate information — from all sorts of texts — to gain their own understanding and meaning about a particular concept or piece of information. Assessing understanding, particularly in younger students, is quite difficult to do though.

I went out with some colleagues after work last night, and at one point, they began bemoaning the fact that in their assignments, they were encountering so many students who clearly do not know how to locate information, and when they do, reference it correctly. This is obviously something that I can attempt to address in (at this point in time) one-off lessons, but staff haven’t been reaching out despite my previous offerings. I am reluctant to force my services upon them. I’m also curious as to why they are seemingly not addressing these things in advance of handing out assignments. Surely when they go through an assignment with students, they include notes on how they want it presented, referenced etc.? Especially given that so many of our assignments at school seem to be independently-research focussed.

There’s more work to be done here, and as the current TL, I have to be — and will be — on the ground floor.

 

Reference List 

Abilock, D. (2004). Information Literacy: From Prehistory to K-20: A New Definition. Knowledge Quest, 32(4), 9-11

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September 3

ETL401 – Module 4 – Guided Inquiry Beginnings

‘Guided-Inquiry’ has been this buzz-phrase that I’ve been hearing since I began my TL journey earlier this semester, and I’m really interested to explore it in more depth. I get the premise and ideas behind it — allowing curriculum and student interest to intersect, and allowing learning to be student-driven, etc. but I want to know more about how the teacher and TL can actively support and scaffold this. I’m particularly interested in how I might work towards implementing this in my current school, as I’m concerned about students’ being able to direct their own learning while being on-task.

I definitely think I’ll be looking at GID as part of Assessment 3, because I think GID is becoming the favoured model for student-driven learning in HS curriculum and schools. I’ve unwittingly been using the NSW IL model for information seeking and use, but I’m concerned about how much students take away from this model.

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August 30

ETL401 – Module 3.2 – The Work of a TL

The roles and duties that a TL performs are never stock-standard, as each works in a unique environment with unique needs. It is simply not possible for the TL to do, and be everything — particularly not all at once (Herring, 2007, p. 31). And for the most part, or has been my experience, this is not typically demanded of TLs.

Although I found Herring (2007), Purcell (2010) and Lamb’s (2011) comments about school libraries and teacher librarians exceptionally helpful, particularly in explicitly labeling the obvious roles that a TL performs, these roles are often obscure. We’re told to be leaders, but how do we lead? We’re told to be teachers, but what do we teach? We’re told to support the curriculum, but what does this support look like? What does a TL actually do? Sometimes these questions are answered, as they were in these articles, but sometimes they leave the reader more confused than when they began.  I came across this infographic (MacMeekin, 2013) about 6-months ago, and printed it off to sit above my desk. I think this is an excellent example of all the things TLs do that they don’t necessarily receive credit for.

Happy School Library Month (crowdsourced by teacher librarians and created by Mia MacMeekin)

On the whole, however, I do believe that TLs must work with those in the school community — including parents and senior executive — to determine what the current needs of the students, staff and wider school community actually are and therefore define their explicit roles (Purcell, 2010). In order to remain relevant and do away with the misconception that ‘librarians’ read all day, the TL must be willing to transform themselves and their role to suit these needs. This is a theme that seems to be echoing itself throughout my blog posts, but is supported by Lamb’s (2011) view that TLs must be future-focused and develop their technology-related skills, especially if this is where the future of TL-related work lay.

There is a perception held by many TLs that they must constantly demonstrate their worth to principals, teachers, and school community in order to receive support. I agree with Lamb’s suggestion that advertising the programs and services of the library needs to be a top priority, and that TLs should be involved in blogging, writing, newsletters etc. The good stories need to be told.

Bibliography

Herring, J. (2007). Teacher librarians and the school library. In S. Ferguson (Ed.), Libraries in the twenty-first century: charting new directions in information (p. 27-42). Wagga Wagga, NSW: Centre for Information Studies, Charles Sturt University. 

Lamb, A. (2011). Bursting with potential: Mixing a media specialist’s palette. Techtrends: Linking research & practice to improve learning, 55(4), 27-36. 

MacMeekin, M. (2013). 27 things your teacher librarian does [Infographic]. Retrieved from https://anethicalisland.wordpress.com/2013/04/12/27-things-your-teacher-librarian-does/

Purcell, M. (2010). All librarians do is check out books right? A look at the roles of the school library media specialist. Library media connection 29(3), 30-33. 

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