Critical Synthesis

PART C

A reflection on how my view of the role of the teacher librarian has changed over the course of this subject.



When I thought about career change for the third time in my life, I wondered what I could do that utilised my degrees I already had. I had always loved going to the library when I was at school and I love literacy and children's books and aspire to one day writing a children's picture book. So put all that together and I came up with a Masters in Teacher Librarianship. I never dreamed the role of the TL was so expansive and the course would be so in depth. I must admit my idea of the TL's role was reading stories, coordinating research projects, organising author visits and running book week. I was so wrong and so are many people, the TL might be one of the most underrated professions (second to that of the nurse) in our society. Speaking to a friend who told me this course was a lot of work just to learn how to say SHH made me want to stick the poster "What your Teacher Librarian can do for you" on her head. See blog post 15/5/10. When reading the Australian Library Information Association policies I came across the core knowledge, skills and attributes that a TL should have (blog post 16/3/10). I really had no idea where they would fit into my knowledge base at the time they were just a bunch of skills I did not posses. It was until I continued reading and completing assignment one that the penny dropped and everything fell into place. The library is so much more than a place with books, it really is a learning hub and technology is in the centre of it. Being information literate is crucial in today's society. According to the ALIA, TL’s “have the knowledge and expertise to design, plan, develop, manage and evaluate the delivery of library and information services to meet the information needs of their clients and assist them to become information literate. Through professional education, librarians and information managers will have the ability to analyse, evaluate, organise and synthesis information and to develop programs that will encourage their clients to acquire the sills necessary to effectively acquire the skills necessary to effectively seek, locate and use the information they need” (www.alia.org.au/policies/core.knowledge.html 2005).

Research confirms that it is the TL that is the link in creating information literate school communities and information literate students. The role of the TL and the library is to allow students to develop skills necessary to become life long learners by enquiry, decision making, and analysing, recognising and evaluating information. These are some attributes and skills of an information literate person according to one definition that Herring gives in A Critical Investigation of Students and Teachers Views of the Use of Information Literacy Skills in School Assignments. (Blog entry 13/5/10).
Information literacy models have been developed to improve students learning and help them become information literate. In assignment 2 I researched 3 models and how they compared to each other. This task reiterated the TL’s role and put it into context for me. I could see that the idea of being information literate was only possible if you were taught to be so. The models are a tool that TL’s use to help students learn and develop problem solving strategies. The standards of professional excellence for teacher librarians were also critically evaluated, the following are a summary of the 3 standards, which encompass 12 elements. Within the standards of a TL according to the ASLA the TL will possess: 1-Professional Knowledge which will encompass the principles and understanding of lifelong learners, have knowledge of teaching and learning across curriculum areas, understand the school community and curriculum and have a solid foundation of information, resources, technology used in library management. 2- Professional Practice where the TL creates information rich learning environments, access to information resources, collaborates and plans units of work with other teachers to ensure that programs are accessible to the needs of the learners and monitor and evaluate learning to improve outcomes. 3- Professional Commitment outlines the TL’s ability to empower the school community to become life long learners, show a commitment to promoting the profession and literate community, show leadership by collaboration and sharing of knowledge and information services. Choosing three of these standards that enhanced student learning outcomes was an easy task compared to finding their strengths and weaknesses. I can almost say that I can tick one element of the standard 1.1 knowledge of the principle of lifelong learning- well informed about information literacy theory and practice. Looking back on my blogs I noticed that in First Achievement 24/4/10 I discuss the standards in relation to assignment one and the teachers role. I also say I hope I am on the right track, I know now that I was not quite their and I would not have been ticking off one of the standards. I would not say that I was at a standard of excellence but I did learn something.

My greatest challenge in this subject was participating in chat rooms and forums. I would access the forums and read the posts but most of the time I would get confused with different points of view. I managed to supply my blog address, introduce myself and ask a question, which no one replied to. I thought maybe the chat rooms would be more my style of learning, although these sessions would frustrate me. The pace was extremely fast, my queries were not answered and when I was confused about a topic or question people would start talking about Neighbours or Roy's biscuits. I am not an interactive learner, I like to be face to face, sit around in tutorial groups and discuss the issues.

Now the course is coming to an end, I must make some decisions of where to now- do I defer, continue or change topics. Time is something I need and at the moment it is limited, I think I need to read Covey one more time.

References

• Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA). (2005), The Library and Information Sector: Core knowledge, skills and attitude, http://www.alia.org.au/policies/core.knowledge.html


• Australian School Library Association (2007), Standards of professional excellence for teacher librarians, retrieved 5-4-10, http://www.asla.org.au/policy/standards.htm



• Herring James, Critical Investigation of Students'and Teachers' View of Information Literacy Skills. http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/aasl/aaslpubsandjournals/slmrb/slmrcontents/volume9/informationliteracy.cfm



• Skrzeczynski, C. (1999), Ch 16 Breaking the barriers: sculpting an information school community, pp 241-258 In Henri, J. & Bonanno, K. (Eds). The information literate school community

If I could turn back time

If only time could be turned around or stopped... I am out of time and assignment 2 needs to be sent off, and I have that sinking feeling of total disappointment. I struggled to understand this subject failed assignment one and now as assignemnt 2 travels through internet world I fear it is a doozie as well.

Am I cut out to be a TL

WOW


Can one person really be all these things

School Library Association of Victoria http://www.slav.schools.net.au/

Information literacy

Time for another blog.... finally have five minutes to sit at a computer and blog. I have been doing a course on Autism which I have found fascinating and realise because this is what I work with it is relevant to me. i have had so much difficulty wrapping my head around the TL because I do not work in a library and have had limited exposure to it. I have been in Special Ed for over 6 years why am I not doing my Masters in Special Ed one will never know. Anyway my folder with notes and readings in it, has become my best friend, it comes with me everywhere I go in case I get five minutes waiting in the car whilst picking up my daughter to read and make more notes.

Information Literacy and the need to be information literate has changed the role of the librarian dramatically. Gone were the days of looking up a book in the catalogue flipping through the cards till you found the right book, searching the shelves, only to find someone has put the book you want on another shelf. Now when we want to find information we use the computer, type in the subject and there is all the information you need right before your eyes and you have not even left your chair. So how does the Librarian fit into the process.... I guess it is the TL that will teach our learners how to process and locate this information. Anyone can give students Literacy models but it will be the TL who will teach, explore and develop the Literacy models for learners. Langford 1998 confers that information literacy is understood as something that is teacher librarian orientated and not part of the general curriculum.

Herring a Critical Investigation of Students and Teachers Views of the Use of Information Literacy Skills in School Assignments gives the reader a number of definitions on what Information Literacy are. They are as follows;

1) Doyle (1994) Information Literacy is "the ability to access, evaluate, and use information from a variety of sources, to recognise when information is needed, and to know how to learn".

2) The National Forum on Information Literacy (2004) states information literacy as "The ability to know when there is a need for information, to be able to identify, locate, evaluate and effectively use that information for the issue or problem at hand"

3) Moore (2002) States it is a dynamic concept which extends basic reading, writing and calculating skills for application in information and technology rich environments,

4) Kuthlthau (2001)... for the purpose of learning and solving problems.

5) Herring (2004) "the skills which pupils use ti identify the purpose of, locate, process and communicate information concepts and ideas and then reflect upon the effective application of these skills"

There are many more definitions but it would take me forever to list them all. So to get information literate we use the information literacy models to assist us in getting there, more on these later.

Baby awake, must get out of study mode and into mummy mode (only took me an hour to get into study mode) that's alright maybe I will get some more time tonight.

Reference,

Herring James, Critical Investigation of Students'and Teachers' View of Information Literacy Skills. http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/aasl/aaslpubsandjournals/slmrb/slmrcontents/volume9/informationliteracy.cfm

First Achievement.

After much procrastination as to where and how to make a start I finally finished my first assignment. WOW what an achievement only 10 or so more to go!!!!!!

My hat goes off to all the librarians out there, I now have a better understanding of their role and the challenges they face. When I told my friends I was doing a masters in Librarianship they all said what a great job hiding out in the library reading books all day, some even made comment at how easy the librarians job is as they do not do much!!! One could safely say they have not read the Librarians job/role description. It seems to be the age old debate of professionalism, a fight I have personally fought before when I was a nurse.

The first assignment really opened my eyes to the librarians world and throughout the assignment I constantly questioned myself...can I do this, can I create an Information literate school community. I was fascinated by the skills attributes and role the librarian plays in creating such a community and how underrated the librarian is by certain people. I am gaining insight into the TLs world and I feel there is light at the end of the tunnel a real AH UM moment. If I know what is expected of me I will find it easier to learn, develop skills and strive to be the ideal TL. Part A of the assignment was to describe the role of the TL in an ILSC, as easy as it sounds I found this rather difficult due to the vast role a TL has. I summarised the following standards of a TL according to the ASLA. The TL will possess: 1-Professional Knowledge which will encompass the principles and understanding of lifelong learners, have knowledge of teaching and learning across curriculum areas, understand the school community and curriculum and have a solid foundation of information, resources, technology used in library management. 2- Professional Practice where the TL creates information rich learning environments, access to information resources, collaborates and plans units of work with other teachers to ensure that programs are accessible to the needs of the learners and monitor and evaluate learning to improve outcomes. 3- Professional Commitment outlines the TL’s ability to empower the school community to become life long learners, show a commitment to promoting the profession and literate community, show leadership by collaboration and sharing of knowledge and information services.

These are only the standards that a TL will possess and a small detail in the TLs role, the skills and attributes they will posses. With all these qualities schools should be utilising the TL to foster collaboration and promote life long learners in their schools. Those that do not are wasting a valuable resource. As I say that many Principals are not effectively using the T'L's contributions. Part B of the assignment was focused on the obstacles the TL faces in creating an ILSC. I chose the obstacle of lack of Principal support and as Oberg (2006 pg 14) suggests, the number one challenge faced by TL’s is the school administrators. I do not mean to bag out the principal (nor generalise as their are some brilliant principals who run amazing schools) however they are the control centre for the school and are responsible for the running of the school. If the principal has poor management skills and does not utilise his/her staff the their full potential then the school is not going to be tailored to promoting life long learners or information literate schools. The assignment was a real learning curve I hope I was on the right track, wrote the right things and answered the right questions. For now can not worry about that, must continue reading, blogging and concentrate on assignment 2.

Getting Motivated

OH MY GOD... i finally worked out how to get back into my blog. I spent all last week trying to do some study and get into my blog. HOORAY. 2 Sundays ago I sat down to do some serious study and get on top of things. The girls were playing and all was peaceful except for the buckets of rain landing on the roof. The sound made me feel so sleepy I could not concentrate, all I wanted to do was lay in bed and watch the rain fall. Concentrate... I keep telling myself, but it was almost impossible and the rain was getting heavier and heavier and the backyard was creeping up with water. Finally the yard was flooded and all excitement broke loosse. The rain was too much for us to handle, we were excited and wanted to go and play. The whole town was out and about looking at the flooded areas and our favourite lake which the week before had no water and inplace of water were dead fish was now filling up with water. So that was the end of my study session. Now two weeks later I am back in front of the computer and ready to make a start. I have decided to drop 503 and complete it over summer school and concentrate on 401.

I read Covey and wonder where I can buy some of this effectiveness and the 7 habbits that go with it! My first step may need to be learning the art of saying "NO" then I can move into Quantrant II.

I have also been looking at the skills of a librarian and can see I have some skilling to work on. These are the Core knowledge and skills I will need to possess to be a proficient Librarian as taken from the ALIA website
The core knowledge and skills for library and information professionals include:
Knowledge of the broad context of the information environment, demonstrated by the ability to:
understand and interpret the contexts in which information is originated, stored, organised, retrieved, disseminated and used;
comprehend the ethical, legal and policy issues that are relevant to the sector;
envision future directions and negotiate alliances for library and information sector development aligned with corporate, social and cultural goals and values.
Information seeking, demonstrated by the ability to:
understand and investigate how information is effectively sought and utilised;
identify and investigate information needs and information behaviour of individuals, community groups, organizations and businesses.
Information infrastructure, demonstrated by the ability to:
understand the importance of information architecture to determine the structure, design and flows of information;
forecast, plan, facilitate and evaluate appropriate resource management to library and information services.
Information organisation, demonstrated by the ability to:
enable information access and use through systematic and user-centred description, categorisation, storage, preservation and retrieval.
Information access, demonstrated by the ability to:
provide and promote free and equitable access to information and client services;
facilitate the acquisition, licensing or creation of information in a range of media and formats.
Information services, sources and products, demonstrated by the ability to:
design and deliver customised information services and products;
assess the value and effectiveness of library and information facilities, products and services;
market library and information services;
identify and evaluate information services, sources and products to determine their relevance to the information needs of users;
use research skills to provide appropriate information to clients.
Information literacy education, demonstrated by the ability to:
understand the need for information skills in the community;
facilitate the development of information literacy and the ability to critically evaluate information.
Generation of knowledge, demonstrated by the ability to:
systematically gather and analyse data and disseminate the findings to advance library and information science theory and its application to the provision of information services;
demonstrate a commitment to the improvement of professional practice through a culture of research and evidence-based information practice.
Generic skills and attributes The generic skills and attributes for library and information professionals include:
effective communication skills;
professional ethical standards and social responsibility;
project management skills;
critical, reflective, and creative thinking;
problem-solving skills;
business acumen;
ability to build partnerships and alliances;
effective team relationship skills;
self management skills;
a commitment to life-long learning;
relevant information and communications technology and technology application skills;
appropriate information literacy skills.

How do I rate??????? I feel I have the Generic skills so I guess all I need is the knowledge so maybe ask me at the end of this course.

Reference

Australian library and Information Association, Core knowledge, skills and Attributes

http://www.alia.org.au/policies/core.knowledge.html

Welcome

Welcome to my blog!


This is a first for me and am really not sure what I am doing. I am stepping out of my comfort zone and going techno!!

My name is Yiminta and I live in Wagga with my Husband and 2 girls Ashleigh is 13 and Safiya is 16months. I think I suffer from ADHD or am a sucker for punishment, not sure which. After leaving highschool I decided to do teaching as I always wanted to be a teacher and then I got itchy feet and took a year off and came back to uni to do nursing. As a nurse I could never find my niche, I did paeds, mental health, emergency, worked in a GP practice, endoscopy clinic and even a detention centre. I ran a parenting program for parents on the methodone program, worked in sexual assault and completed my teaching by distance ed. When I finished I was offered a job at a school within a dentention centre and loved the challenge. I also worked in various behaviour areas and now work as a school counsellor whilst on maternity leave from the dentention centre. So now I thought I would try something new. I love books, I love reading and I enjoy working with children so why not be the Librarian, (well lets hope one can find a job in this field!)

Well thats me in nut shell, I hope I pass this course and not sink or end up in the mental ward.

Looking forward to blogging some more.

Yiminta