Picture this… I’m completing my second course of university study and in the lecture theatre of about 150 students equally taking on further study, Ken Robinson’s latest offering is one of the course materials. Brilliant!

Of course, we are all going to incite change within the primary school system that we are heading into with eyes open as to the flaws which it contains and we would not continue to perpetuate within the walls of the classrooms we were soon to inhabit…

Problem is, this did happen in 2010, and, unsurprisingly, I have not been able to change the world of education as we know it. As I reflect on the state which Australian education is in, what is spoken about in has not been bettered, but has continued along the conveyor belt it has been on already. So, how can I make a change?

I realise that what I have shared has negativity in it’s core, and this might be because I continue to see the Creative Arts, which I love, pushed aside for another standardised data collection. However, all is not lost, I can make a difference from within.

When thinking about a difference I can make, it is to make change societally; through education of not only students, but their parents and my colleagues. It has been said that all are ‘experts’ in education because they have been educated themselves…, however, through relevant sharing with adults about evidence based education processes, this ‘expertise’ may grow in all.

Creating a culture of investigative learning, through research and a place of collaboration in the library is one way which change may occur. Allowing children and teachers the opportunity to gain skills and awaken and encourage divergent thinking, or as Robinson (2010) describes it as ‘an essential capacity for creativity’ (8:01). The capacity to work in groups and in an exploratory way is something which a librarian needs to strive for.

Structurally, a librarian can think of the physical layout of the learning space and encourage collaboration in this way. Thinking about my own library, I currently take students for lessons while teachers are released from face to face teaching. A future dream of mine is to teach collaboratively in the library with class teachers, so that while curriculum content is covered, there are the information skills and research skills which a teacher librarian can offer are taught simultaneously.

Reference

Robinson, K. [RSA Animate]. (2010, October 14). Changing education paradigms [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDZFcDGpL4U

As I leap into Teacher Librarian as Leader in the upcoming trimester, I would like to take the time now to reflect on where I think this subject and the content will take me.

In my career I have taken the opportunity to participate in leadership training as a classroom teacher in Victoria. While doing this training I had the opportunity to shadow Principals and Assistant Principals, looking at their different leadership styles, along with some theory about leadership. I believe that this subject will add to what I have already experienced, adding more depth and understanding to what leadership looks like. While participating in this former training, my goal had been to lead from within, showcasing wellbeing programs which were of great benefit to the school I was working in. It gave me an opportunity to work alongside teachers by collaboratively working with them in the implementation of this specific program, along with organising whole school events.

Now as I come to this subject with a focus of leadership from the library, I think of the context of where I am now, and where I would like to be. Ideally collaboration with teachers and the time to do this is ultimately my goal in the position of Teacher Librarian, however, current circumstances, such as being the person who provides teacher release time, do not allow for this in a scheduled timeframe. This means that I will need to focus on how to come alongside teachers and leadership in a busy working environment to see how I can assist in the goals of the entire school. I hope that this subject will give me theoretical understanding of how to work with all; the reluctant, the enthusiastic and those in-between.

Now to move forward and learn…