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Candidates in school librarian preparation programs are actively engaged in leadership, collaboration, advocacy, and professional networking. Candidates participate in and lead ongoing professional learning. Candidates advocate for effective school libraries to benefit all learners. Candidates conduct themselves according to the ethical principles of the library and information profession.
5.1 Professional Learning: Candidates engage in ongoing professional learning. Candidates deliver professional development designed to meet the diverse needs of all members of the learning community.
5.2 Leadership & Collaboration: Candidates lead and collaborate with members of the learning community to effectively design and implement solutions that positively impact learner growth and strengthen the role of the school library.
5.3 Advocacy: Candidates advocate for all learners, resources, services, policies, procedures, and school libraries through networking and collaborating with the larger education and library community.
How it Aligns
How it Aligns
The professional development assignment is a great way to highlight not only professional learning, but leadership and collaboration. Conducting and guiding the teachers through the training that will teach them things that can be used to enhance student achievement is what AASL standard 5 represents.
The advocacy plan that we develop is one that will encompass all learners in my library. I am going to use this plan to advocate for funds and space in which to install a makerspace in our library. This assignment helped me to see that advocating for my library will take collaborating with others, not only in my building but on a larger library community scale as well.
What I learned
What I learned
This project was the first time I really considered advocacy and what it truly looked like in a library setting. I assumed that being an advocate meant you had to be outspoken and loud, protesting for what you believed were injustices in the field. However, I learned that advocacy at a lower level is actually the foundation to real change. Without individual librarians doing little things to support their libraries and other librarians, there could really be no larger stage advocacy going on. My budget was one thing that changed my mind about advocacy. I always believed that I got a budget and then I added new things to the collection and well, job done. I realize now though that being an advocate not only for money to provide new resources but an advocate for my actual position is something that I will need to be focused on for all the years I plan to be in the field.
Professional Development is something that I have always loved. I love attending PDs to learn new things and I absolutely love teaching teachers. I've done a few trainings in the past and I really enjoyed getting to collaborate with others, because in my opinion a true PD is a collaboration between the instructor and the participants. It should never be a sit and get. The true love for professional development though, has deepened and been solidified through this program. I love introducing teachers and colleagues to something they can take back and incorporate in their classrooms. I love knowing that something I've shared is being used to deepen student understanding or introduce them to something new and wonderful. I love hearing how these new things enhanced their classrooms. I look forward to continuing with the trainings and collaborations as I move forward in my role as the school librarian.
Student Impact
Student Impact
"Investments in school library services are on a downward trajectory." (Holland & Vance, 2015) This is an alarming problem that is sweeping our nation. Funding is down and librarians are being stretched thin or eliminated altogether. Even when research shows that having a school librarian has a direct correlation on reading scores, there are still massive cuts in money and positions. This is just one of the reasons that being an advocate for not only my library and school and students is important, but also the system as a whole. But how do we do it? Well, a study done by Advocacy Associates, said that "A lack of knowledge of how to go about advocating is the number one reason why school library supporters don’t speak out." (Holland & Vance, 2015) This is exactly why this program and what we are being taught is so important. This program is teaching us how to advocate, why advocating is important and better yet they demonstrate and put into practice what we as librarians should be doing, they are out there in the real and virtual world advocating for all librarians.
Professional Development is where one form of not overt advocacy comes into play. By bringing teachers into our libraries and equipping them with information and tools to help them improve or support instruction, through technology integration or texts to support standards, we are advocating for why we as librarians are important, why we are needed, and how we can be a teacher and support the curriculum just as they do. Teachers are in the trenches each and everyday. They are working hard to keep up with the changing waves in education and continue to foster a safe, productive learning environment for their students. They need our help now more than ever. We have to be able to "offer ideas when we know the curriculum" (Hylen, 2004) and help in any way we can. We also encourage students to ask for help when needed, well teachers need help too and it's our job to show them that through collaboration we can be a tool for them as well. This is the first step to advocacy in our profession.
References
Holland, K., & Vance, S. (2015). School Library Influence and Advocacy. School Library Monthly, 31(6), 27–29.
Hylen, J. (2004). The Top Ten Reasons a Library Media Specialist Is a Teacher’s Best Friend. The Clearing House: A Journal of Educational Strategies, Issues and Ideas, 77(5), 219–221. https://doi.org/10.3200/tchs.77.5.219-221
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