Leader? Adviser? Team member? All of the above?

Where do we fit in?

Brown (2008) suggests that School media specialists or TLs “hold the key to ensuring successful research projects that bring our world, and its vast amount of information, into a manageable perspective.” (p. 16). An undeniable fact yes, the TL is a curriculum expert and as such should perform his/her role as a leader within the school. The TL holds a voice of authority (with particular reference to resource selection and creation), and their advice, support and knowledge should be considered an essential part of the curriculum development process. Reflecting on my readings I do see a great deal of value in TLs and teachers working together and benefiting from each other’s strengths to provide the best possible teaching and learning environments for our students. As such a TL should be given the opportunity to work with all stage groups to provide their whole school big picture view (Lupton, 2016) creating a culture of proactive and cohesive collaboration.

A TL has a myriad of skills and tools to support curriculum development:

• Assisting with resource selection and creation to help with resourcing the curriculum subjects that the teachers will be presenting to their students.
• Providing annotated bibliographies or perhaps through online environments such as Libguides or using Oliver (as an example of library software) to curate resources.

It is essential that the Principal sees the importance of including the TL in all discussion, creation and development and provides the opportunity for this to happen through collaboration with the classroom teaching cohort. How this actually looks I am not sure, time is a big factor and ensuring the TL can meet with all the necessary stakeholders is a matter of clever scheduling, but it can be done. It is dependent on whether the Principal and Executive are prepared to make it work and see the value in a potential timetabling nightmare.

Schools and ultimately students lose out when the TL is excluded from curriculum development. With a focus on IL in the classroom and understanding the TL skills of teaching literacy and digital/information literacy, it is essential to utilise their presence. TLs know how to manage information, they have a crucial understanding of the information landscape and its ever evolving and challenging nature. Harnessing their knowledge and recognising their ability to develop and resource a curriculum providing rich learning experiences for students is key.

References:

Brown, C. (2008). Building Rubrics: A step-by-step process. Library Media Connection, 26(4), 16-18.

Lupton, M. (2016). Adding value: principals’ perceptions of the role of the teacher-librarian. School  Libraries Worldwide, 22(1), 49-61.