The end, or just the beginning? A critical synthesis of my learning from ETL401

When I signed up to study for my masters in teacher librarianship, I was eager to learn how to better perform my role as a teacher librarian (TL). As I worked my way through the modules in ETL401, I began to realise that there were many gaps in my understanding of the role I should be playing in my school. I believe that my misguided understanding was probably due to lack of training and role models, and the uninformed expectations of my colleagues. I subscribe to a number of listservs and find that these help immensely to increase my knowledge and understanding of teacher librarianship, but to be perfectly honest, it is the reading and research I have done since beginning ETL401 that have really made an impact on my understanding of the complex role I need to play in my school. Having the opportunity to read forum postings by fellow students and make my own contributions to them has encouraged me to question some of my teaching practices and to make changes where necessary. I consider this to be an essential part of being a teacher as we are also learners and learning together can enrich our experiences (Roulston, 2010, September 4).

My learning from ETL401 helped me to realise how valuable it is for a TL to work on a flexible schedule. I discovered that it is more important that classes are booked for lessons after the teacher and TL have planned collaboratively and not booked on a permanent basis (Haycock, 2003). “It's my time that needs to be more flexible so that I can to try to cater to every year group's needs and collaborate with them when planning.” (Roulston, 2010, July 25). I had been working on a fixed schedule (which only allowed me enough time to see infant classes) because in my school this is expected of all our specialist teachers. After meeting with my principal and showing him the benefits of a flexible schedule, I have now moved away from my previous timetable.

As I worked my way through the topics, I realised that there is more important learning that needs to take place not only in the library, but in the whole school environment, and my priority has to be to begin creating an information literate school community (ILSC). It is my responsibility to see that an information literacy (IL) policy is written and adopted (Hore, 2010, August 10) in order for our students to be able to access, use and manipulate information in a thoughtful manner (Henri, 2005, p.19 and McKenzie, 2005, p.144).

I discovered that communication between my principal and I needs to be regular and focused on our students’ IL needs; he needs to be informed and educated. In the past I thought that one of the ICT teachers would be the driver of any initiatives in this area, but now I realise that I am the one that should be leading the way. I need to focus more on the library being seen as a centre of learning and not just a place where we keep resources (Herring, 2007, p.27). Our library is a busy, vibrant centre, but it is underutilised. “I can see that we have a long road ahead of us to raise the profile of our libraries and to show that we do more than just store books and read stories!” (Roulston, 2010, July 19). I now understand that collaboration is the key and I must make time to meet with class teachers to plan units in order for us to begin creating an ILSC.

For the past year I had been looking for a library curriculum that I could use to teach library lessons. Being a classroom teacher for over 20 years, I was used to having a curriculum to follow, but no matter how hard I trawled the Internet, I couldn’t find one. And then the penny dropped. “Now I realise that I've been searching for the impossible. It's the products of collaboration between the TL and the teachers that form the curriculum - it's not something that can be bought online or from a bookstore. It's the planning that meets the needs of the learner that is the basis for what needs to be taught in the library.” (Roulston, 2010, August 5). This “light bulb moment” has totally changed and informed the way I plan and teach.

I will finish with a quote from librarian Joyce Valenza, as I feel that it illustrates the kind of library environment I wish to create. “You understand that library is not just a place to get stuff, it is a place to make stuff, collaborate on and share stuff. Not a grocery store, but a kitchen!” (Valenza, J., 2010). An exciting and challenging time awaits me!

A pothole in my learning road

Having family come to stay for the last two weeks has really put a dent in my study time. Going to work every day, coming home to cook dinner and then entertaining our visitors has meant that trying to find a chunk of time to sit down and read articles and undertake research has been really difficult. It was lovely to see them and have them stay, but it was also a great relief to wave goodbye yesterday. Now I can knuckle down and get Assignment 2 finished. Really didn't need this distraction - I'm already an expert at procrastination and now I feel that I've "lost" two weeks of valuable learning time. Hmmm.

Topic 5 and the beginnings of an ILSC

This week I have started the ball rolling into beginning to create an ILSC in my workplace. My principal and the senior management team have given their support to the adoption of the NSW ISP and for most teachers (including me), this will be the first time a model has been used seriously to guide the research tasks undertaken by our pupils.

There was a look of bewilderment on many teachers' faces when I gave them each a copy of the ISP. I explained that this year we will working together to embed IL skills into our curriculum and I will be supporting them as we plan units of study together. In the short term, I think that I will need to tread gently as I look for these opportunities and to show teachers that my job is to assist them in providing the best possible learning outcomes for our pupils and not to make their job any harder.

From the Topic 5 readings, I especially like Senge's (2007) comments about building learning organizations "where people continually expand their capacity to create the results they truly desire, where new and expansive patterns of thinking are nurtured, where collective aspiration is set free, and where people are continually learning how to learn together." I think I will be referring to this statement regularly to keep me focused and to inspire me as I work with my school community to create an ILSC.

Information Literacy as an evolving state

In Langford's (1998) article she refers to literacy as being an evolving state that "mirrors the expanding information needs of society" (Breivik & Gee), thus meaning that it has become a "dynamic concept". This is so true.

The number of websites, online tools, games, etc. available to society is limitless. It seems that every day a new "must have/must use" technology is promoted to us. Just this morning I read that Google is soon going to release a Facebook competitor. My first response was 'Why? Do we really need another FB?' And then I thought, 'Why not?' It's just another avenue for people to express themselves and connect with each other.

This is the nature of our love affair with technology, and with progress in general. We are attracted to the newest, fastest, coolest that are on offer.

Nobody is forced to use these new technologies. I have many friends who refuse to sign up for FB accounts. However, the children we teach ARE participating in 21st Century technologies and they need to be taught the skills to be able to confidently and competently use these technologies in a responsible way. TLs need to ensure that the curriculum taught in their school supports the information needs of the learners.

One of the statements in Warlick (2007) resonated with me. He says that "We can no longer be the gatekeepers. We must, instead, teach children how to be their own gatekeepers, and this is an ethical imperative." Having heard of a number of students in my school using social networking sites inappropriately, this reinforces the importance of learners being taught the IL skills to manage their expanding information needs in an ethical manner.

Need more hours in the day!

It's been two weeks since I last blogged. Going back to work to begin a new school year certainly reduced the time I could put into my ETL401 studies. I'm a week behind in my readings, which I am really not happy about. At least I've got a few public holidays coming up soon, so hopefully I can catch up then. If only there were more hours in the day. If only I could exist on less sleep. If only I could get out of work earlier so that I didn't come home exhausted each day. If only ...

Maybe I need to re-read Covey's reading from Topic 6. There's an idea!

I met with all the teachers last week and explained how my role would be changing this year. With me working on a flex. schedule for the first time, I am looking forward to collaborating with all year groups with their planning.

This change seemed to be received well, so here's hoping for a fun, productive year of collaboration!

Assignment 1 finished!

Yes, my first assignment is finished, so I thought it would be a good idea for me to reflect on what I have learnt during the process of researching and writing it.

From this experience I have learnt that although I knew that teaching information literacy skills to children was important, I really didn't know how to go about creating an Information Literacy School Community. From the readings I have learnt the value of collaboration and that this is something I need to encourage in my school if we are to enrich the learning opportunities we offer to our pupils. I realise that there may be some reluctance from a couple of teachers, but I feel that in the main, most teachers will be happy to have my input into designing, teaching and assessing our curriculum.

I look forward to a challenging year ahead and hope the rewards we reap as a teaching community will make it all worthwhile.

Accept the challenges so that you can feel the exhilaration of victory. -- George S. Patton

Referencing

I have learnt a very valuable lesson this week. I found that organising my references in the APA style is a mammoth task. It's taken me nearly as long to get the referencing right as it did to write the assignment! Not really, but I can't believe how long it took me to get every date, bracket, full stop, italic, page no., etc. in the right place.

Gee, I will never, ever leave it to the end again. From now on, I will make sure I do my referencing correctly as I use each quote in my writing.

I am learning all the time. The tombstone will be my diploma. ~Eartha Kitt

A breakthrough ...

I met with my principal yesterday and presented my case for moving from my fixed schedule to a flexible schedule so that I can begin my journey of creating an ILSC. Funnily enough, he said that he always thought that I should be working on a flexible schedule, but he wasn't really sure why. After presenting my case, he understands why we need to do this and is in full support. Yay! There's one obstacle out of the way. How many more left?

Why didn't I realise sooner?

The penny has dropped. For ages I have been searching the Internet for a library curriculum and couldn't understand why there wasn't one available. I could find lots of examples of standards from different US states, but couldn't lay my fingers on a curriculum that would tell me how to help my students become information literate. Now I realise that I've been searching for the impossible. It's the products of collaboration between the TL and the teachers that form the curriculum - it's not something that can be bought online or from a bookstore. It's the planning that meets the needs of the learner that is the basis for what needs to be taught in the library. Is this worm a bit slow or what?

In love with ETL401

Only joking! Seriously though, I love the fact that ETL401 has broadened my knowledge about what the role of a TL entails. This subject has ignited a fire inside me to want to develop the TL role in my school so that we can build an Information Literate School Community. In these last 3 weeks I have learnt how important the TL is in creating an environment that prioritises, facilitates and celebrates learning for all and that TLs are key players in leading change in their schools.

We must become the change we want to see in the world.
Mohandas Gandhi

My brain is swollen

What a whopper Topic 2 turned out to be. I have spent more than a week trying to do all the readings, trying to absorb as much advice from the professionals about how I can be a first class TL. Now my brain feels swollen - there are so many thoughts, ideas, directions I want to take on board. Realistically, I know that I have to start small, so I'll need to make a plan. First thing to do is to meet with my principal to share with him some of my learning and to convince him to move the library onto a flexible schedule. This will free me up to meet and plan with all the year groups and enable me to find resources to support theirs and the children's learning. Small steps.

This worm now needs to find a nice, quiet, cool hole somewhere to wriggle into and ponder all my recent learning.

Understanding the ILSC - Henri 2005

Having read Henri (2005), my understanding is that the core business of a TL is to lead their school in developing the context or culture for learning for all: principals, teachers and students. He refers to Senge's (1996) argument that "leadership cannot force meaningful change but it can create the ingredients for a dynamic learning culture". TLs are fortunate in that they are usually one of the few professionals in the school who interact with every student and teacher on a weekly basis. By getting in at the grass roots level, TLs can try to influence their school community into wanting to create an environment where everyone is a learner. Henri tells us that school leaders must model what matters and they must "create an environment in which people are open to new ideas, responsive to change, and eager to develop new skills and capabilities" Senge (1996). Because the TL is in a central position, they can open the door to a variety of learning possibilities and can help to make "something personally understandable from a range of information sources" (Henri 2005). They can foster the notion that learning need not take place just in classrooms, but should take place in and around the school community.

Role of TL - ASLA Standards

Upon reading the ASLA standards of professional excellence for teacher librarians, I realise that although I've been doing (what I think) is a great job of managing my school library, there are many roles that I have been underperforming, or not performing at all. This is not due to lack of care or interest, but more due to lack of awareness that these are roles that are vital to the TL's function and also perhaps because I teach 20 classes on fixed schedule each week, manage two libraries on two different sites, one resource room and one reading books room AND I try to make contact with all 850 pupils every week. (These past 3 weeks, since I began ETL401, have been a very steep learning curve for me).
One area that I feel that I should address immediately when school resumes is my lack of collaboration with class teachers. Occasionally I have attended planning meetings, but looking back now I feel that my purpose or intention was misdirected as I was only involved from a resourcing point of view, not really focusing on the teaching and learning taking place. I realise now that I need to get involved in the nitty gritty of their planning and look for meaningful ways that I can support them and the learning outcomes and experiences we want for the children.

What a relief!

Aaaahh - that's me breathing a sigh of relief. I've just finished reading a very enlightening paragraph in Skrzeczynski's "Breaking the barriers: sculpturing an information literate school community" (1999).
After reading all the roles and responsibilities of excellent TLs over this past week, I was beginning to think that I would need to be cloned in order to fulfill all of these expectations. How can one TL possibly juggle their time well enough to be involved in so many important areas of the school? I sort of felt like I was drowning under this weight of responsibility, thinking that I would have to be involved in the teaching of every one of the 850 kids in my school every week. I already work 50+ hours a week - how can I possibly take on any more work?
Skrzexczynski explains that TLs don't have to be "engaged in the face-to-face teaching of students", it's the expertise they bring to the "planning, organising and management" of the curriculum that is important.
I'll sleep well tonight knowing that yes, I will still be involved in face-to-face teaching, but not expected to teach every lesson. My worth will be guaged by the contributions I make during the planning process, not in the actual execution of every lesson.
Now I realise that I won't have to move a camp bed into my library and take up permanent residence there.

Time management, negotiation & leadership

"Only dead fish swim with the stream" made me smile. I have never been known to be one who 'goes with the flow' just for the sake of it and I'm pleased about that -not sure I'd ever want to be compared to a dead trout.

At first reading of Sanders (2004), I thought that the idea of conflict being a useful part of the change process as it can "isolate the weaknesses in the proposals in time to correct them" was a new idea to me. However, after some thought I saw how conflict often worked in the meetings I've attended over the years where there have been differences of opinion and lively, productive, passionate discussion has taken place, usually ending in something being changed, often for the better. In quoting Wertheim et al (1992), Sanders tells us that "conflict management is a skill that can be learned" and that there are four major ways in which we respond to conflict: fighting, pacifying, avoiding discussing and compromising. In a school setting I must admit that usually my first response to conflict is to try to compromise, as it is in my nature to try to keep the peace and I generally run a mile before I involve myself in heated conflict. (It's a different story when I'm dealing with my teenage kids, though).
The idea of using "I" statements rather than "You" statements and describing the offending behaviour rather than the offender are not new ideas. These have been highlighted numerous times in the psychology courses and inservice training I've attended over the years.

Covey (1990) tells us that "Leadership is ... an art; it's based on a philosophy. You have to ask the ultimate questions of life when you're dealing with personal leadership issues." While leadership decides what "first things" are, it is management that puts them first, day-by-day, moment-by-moment. I feel that as a manager I'm good at 'getting the job done'. One former colleague once commented that the reason I was so busy and on so many committees is because people believe that a job will get done if you give it to a busy person - and that was usually me! I like the idea of activities fitting into one of four quadrants in the Time Management Matrix. I realise now that I need to take time out to think about and reflect on my Quadrant 2 activities to be able to give them more priority.

One way I can make myself more productive is to delegate the ordering of resources to other teachers. Until now I have worked solo on ordering, but in the new school year I intend to tap on the shoulders of teachers who are passionate about children's literature and ask them to assist. I'm also thinking about getting a signature stamp made so that invoices can be stamped by one of the library clerks, instead of each and every one of them (and there are many) manually signed by me. Not sure if this is legal or even acceptable in my school, but it will save me a lot of valuable time that could be spent better elsewhere and is certainly worth a try.

What sort of TL do I want to be?

Thought this would be a good time to think about my role as a TL and to review it at the end of this subject. Here we go ...

In order to become an exemplary TL, I need to:
- collaborate with teachers to provide meaningful lessons for children that help to build their skills to become productive, life-long learners.
- ensure that children have the means and opportunities to develop their information literacy skills.
- be a leader in curriculum development and in using information technology.
- do more teaching and less clerical work.
- provide my school community with a wider range of learning resources.
- be adaptable and ready to trial new developments in learning.

I believe that my school library "should be seen as a centre of learning first and a centre of resources second (Herring, 2007) and goals like this can't be achieved overnight. I realise I'll have a busy year ahead of me and will need the support of my colleagues, especially my principal. His approval for, and belief in, the changes I want to make to our library program will be necessary if I want keep all the staff "on side". And there need to be more hours in the day!!

Ghosts of libraries past (with apologies to Dickens)

After reading a couple of other posts made about childhood memories of libraries, I thought I'd reminisce to see if any libraries had left their mark on me. Having attended about eight Primary schools (my mother had itchy feet - still does even though she's 73!) in three different states, I had to really think hard to figure out which library went with which school.

Anyway, one of the ones that stands out was in Adelaide. The school was very progressive (for 1977) and in Years 6 & 7 much of our work was conducted by contract, so if our work was completed early, we were given passes to go to the library to use the listening post. How I lived for the times I could sit and listen to stories about Helen Keller, Louis Braille and other notable people. I remember there being a great range of books to borrow so my thirst for reading was easily quenched.

At times we performed research tasks, but I can't remember whether the librarian assisted us or not. Thinking about this library brings back pleasant memories for me, so I can only assume that it was a safe, welcoming place to kick back.

In contrast, the library in my Secondary school in Townsville most definitely did not have a "welcome" mat at its front door. Staffed by a couple of 90 year old nuns and a very stern male librarian, we knew in no uncertain terms that upon entering the library silence was the order of the day, every day to be precise. Giggling and gossiping teenage girls were most certainly not the type of clientele they were looking for. I remember visiting the library only when I needed information for homework tasks, getting in and out as quickly as I could. The eagle-eyed staff and the physical environment of the library did not encourage us to linger any longer than necessary.

Delving back through my memories has been a good experience for me. It has made me realise that even though the resources available in the library from 1977 would be vastly different (dinosaur-like in comparison) to a library in 2010, that the staff in that library were obviously offering a facility which children were excited and eager to visit. Somehow they created an environment which encouraged children to want to visit time and time again. This is the type of library I have tried to create in my school, where children are not forced to remain silent, a place where they can read, play board games, undertake research, complete homework, draw pictures - a place where they know they are welcome. My vision is for the library to be a learning hub, a trellis to support and nurture our seedlings' learning until it takes root and blossoms independently (fits nicely given the fact that the word "garden" makes up part of my school's name).

School libraries moving into the 21st Century

Although there is plenty of evidence to show that TLs have an enormous effect on the quality of education provided to children, it is evidenced in Haycock's 2003 report that the Canadian government continues to slice away at funding for school libraries. Library services in Canadian schools are dwindling away, so much so that in 59% of schools in Ontario parents raised money for library books. The picture Haycock paints is one of desperation. I finished reading this article feeling disbelief that the government of a progressive nation like Canada could neglect its children's educational needs.
Herring's reading very clearly laid out the roles expected of a TL. The multi-faceted role of the TL visualised in Figure 2.1 took a while for me to absorb at first. It is daunting to think that one teacher could wear so many hats. I felt relieved when I then went on to read Herring state that "It is clear that no teacher librarian could fulfil all of these roles at the same time ...". He says that in order for TLs to meet the needs of their school community, they need manage their time effectively. This is definitely something I need to address in my current position, as I spend far too much time performing clerical tasks and not enough being involved in the important roles, the ones which clearly make a difference on the learning taking place.
Haycock's recommendations to avert the crisis in Canada's school libraries are sound ideas (in my opinion) and if I had to pick one to begin working on now it would be no. 11. I can see that when school begins again in August that I will need to work hard to raise my profile. Although the library itself is a centre of activity in my school and the children and teachers love coming in, I realise that I have many more skills to offer to teachers to improve the learning going on and one of these skills is not my ability to check invoices!
I intend to strive towards Hay's message of school libraries being places where "students, teachers, teacher librarians, resources and technology come together to create engaging and meaningful learning experiences for all".

History of school libraries in Australia

Libraries in Australia have evolved over decades and are no longer rooms where books are kept. They are a central part of each school communy and provide a range of information services. I see a number of issues affecting school library services highlighted in Hazell's paper, the main ones being:
1. the need to produce information literate students;
2. the role of teacher librarians not being given the recognition they deserve; and
3. financial constraints affecting decision making.

I think it's ridiculous that in 2010 these same concerns are still affecting schools worldwide. Even after all this time, TLs continue to advocate for the need to develop the skills in children which will enable them to safely and competently navigate their way through the abundance of information available to them, but often hit brick walls when trying to plan collaboratively for this with classroom teachers as they see this as something the TL should teach in isolation in the library. From posts made in forums by my fellow students, it appears that many schools continue to use TLs for providing non-contact cover for classroom teachers. This, to me, is a blatant waste of a TLs expertise. Government schools continue to work to tight budgets and often library services are the first to be pared down as school budgets dwindle.

Why, after so many years and so much research, are school libraries still being affected in this negative manner?

The worm begins wriggling ...

The worm has well and truly been pushed out of her comfort zone. For many months I have contemplated starting a blog, but have always found a good reason not to bother (had to cook dinner, chase my kids to do their homework, go to the gym, read a book, feed the cats, etc. etc.). Until now.
Having made the decision to pursue my Master of Ed. in Teacher Librarianship at CSU, I have now been pushed into a corner and have had to venture into this new world of online musings. I quite like the idea of having a place to store my thoughts on the readings for my first subject ETL401, but just hope I have a sufficient amount of intelligent, insightful comments to make.
The worm squirms.