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.

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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.

5.4 Ethical Practice: Candidates model and promote the ethical practices of librarianship, as expressed in the foundational documents of the library profession including the American Library Association Code of Ethics and the Library Bill of Rights.​

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Evidence

 

• Required: LIS 653 Grant Proposal

  • 5.3

• LIS 693 Professional Development Lesson

  • 5.1, 5.2

 

How It Aligns

 

The LIS 693 Professional Development Lesson was the initial step in an ongoing series of professional development activities I led to educate current staff about resources, policies, circulation, and challenges at our elementary school library. As the school librarian at an elementary school that hasn’t had a librarian for months, one of my first challenges was to understand these issues and provide a “state of the library” report to faculty. This served two purposes: to ensure all faculty were aware of current policies and practices, and to get their feedback on which of these challenges were most pressing and their opinions on a variety of decisions that needed to be made. The workshop involved a summary presentation of major findings of my Follett Destiny analysis and documentation of current issues including some that truly fall under the ALA Library Bill of Rights. For example, we have been limiting circulation to three books per student; is that sufficient to guarantee their access to the materials they need? We have a section dedicated to Spanish language books; not all teachers were aware of this. While this presentation involved a detailed discussion of current circulation and issues facing the library, the presentation adhered to all privacy standards for individual students and staff at our school. Finally, as a new librarian, this enabled me to meet the majority of the current faculty in person and make clear my desire to collaborate with them in the future.

 

Given current funding challenges, a critical part of library advocacy requires each of us to seek out the funds necessary to support the learners we serve as school librarians. The LIS 653 Grant Proposal is a request for funding via the AASL Innovative Reading Grant for a year-long student reading engagement program designed around the concept of “reading around the world.” Students would get a “passport” and receive a stamp for every country or region they visited as readers. A completed passport earns a globe keychain that can be displayed on their backpack. While it is not explicitly spelled out in our ALA Bill of Rights, it is evident that sustaining the efficacy of current successful library practice will require school librarians to serve not only as champions for literacy, but as fundraisers for programs that serve our students.

 

What I Learned

 

• How to structure an effective grant proposal that includes a detailed budget and timeline in order to support innovative practice in the library.

• While all teachers rely on library resources, even good teachers may not be aware of the breadth of resources available in their own school library.

• A “state of the library” workshop is an excellent way to keep faculty informed of current resources and challenges and ensure a positive, collaborative spirit between the librarian and the teachers.

 

Impact on Students and Connection to Best Practices

 

My “state of the library” presentation was well-received by the faculty at my school as evidenced by the surveys they filled out after the workshop. The workshop educated them on some things they didn’t know (Spanish collection, graphic novel location, and more) and served as a mechanism to collect their feedback on important policies. One of the final questions I asked was how often they would like to have this kind of presentation on the library. There were three options: once a quarter, once a semester, and once a year. 54% of staff voted for once-a-quarter updates on the library, the most frequent option. I think this demonstrates the value they found in this information.

 

The LIS 653 Grant Proposal was written as part of my MLIS program and has not been submitted for official grant funding yet, but I do intend to implement a similar program in my school. While it would be nice to have some funding to support the acquisition of additional reading materials to ensure we have the broadest possible representation, I am planning to proceed with this project in the future regardless.

 

References

 

American Library Association. (2017, May 19). ALA code of ethics. American Library Association. https://www.ala.org/tools/ethics

 

Montiel-Overall, P., & Jones, P. (2011). Teacher and School Librarian Collaboration: A Preliminary Report of Teachers’ Perceptions about Frequency and Importance to Student Learning. Canadian Journal of Information & Library Sciences, 35(1), 49–76. https://doi.org/10.1353/ils.2011.0001