Kelly Roys

Herring, J. E. (2011). Improving students’ web use and information literacy: A guide
for teachers and teacher librarians. London: Facet Publishing. doi: 10.3233/EFI-2010-0888

Summary: Review of James Herring's new volume on information literacy skills includes the processing and evaluation on web usage. Herring is a professional who has been publishing works related to teacher librarians and theories for practicum in information literacy for over 30 years. The review of the book details the overarching themes to the nine chapters within the book. The beginning chapters of the book are detailed to introductory on web usage pre-Web 2.0. Herring's volume promotes a few models of theory for learning when using technology and the author reviewing the book notes that there are parts of the volume that not all will agree with and the reader should be made aware of these sections.


Evaluation: I found this review of Herring's book to be of value as it notes the background of the author, the preferences towards theories applicable to teacher librarians, teachers and students. The volume is practical and theory based, which allows the reader to both apply what they are learning in a contextual aspect. The review does not lean heavily to one perspective of the author and his work. The review describes the book for its application and relativity in relation to the topic and allows the reader of the review to make their own conclusion as to whether the volume will be of interest to them to read.

Collaboration and Coteaching

Posted by Karen Kotchka

CO

Loertscher, D. (2014). Collaboration and Coteaching. Teacher Librarian, 42 (2), 8-19.

Summary

In this article the author reviews some of the reasons why the library and librarians have been pushed aside as not being central to a school's needs and then relates the results of a research study designed to see how much added value to student success would be yielded by a true collaboration and coteaching between a classroom teacher and a teacher librarian.  Results of the study showed a much greater impact on student success for the cotaught lessons.  The author includes some tips and ideas for a teacher librarian to get started on the practice of coteaching with other classroom teachers

Evaluation

I thought the article was valuable to stimulate thinking and action towards making the library a more central part of the school academic culture and it also clarified some of the meanings and interpretations of what types of teachig are now going on in the library and how technology and virtual learning can extend the reach and impact of the library.

The Art of War for Librarians

Posted by Caitlin Wallingford

Ken Kempke makes an interesting argument for librarians to implement many of the strategies set forth by Sun Tzu.  Obviously ignoring some principles from The Art of War (don't demoralize the enemy or set fire to their resources), Kempke highlights other teachings that most librarians would do well to heed.  For example: "Standing on the defensive indicates insufficient strength; attacking, a superabundance of strength." Simply put, we all need to become more aggressive about our needs, gifts, etc. and less prone to complaining to our coworkers!

Kempcke, K. (2002). The Art of War for Librarians: Academic Culture, Curriculum Reform, and Wisdom from Sun Tzu. Portal: Libraries and the Academy, 2(4), 529–51.

A Couple of Articles about Co-teaching

A Couple of Articles about Co-teaching.
Caitlin Wallingford


Enhancing the information literacy classroom experience: A cataloger and a reference librarian team up to deliver library instruction.

Overview:

        McCallum and Collins examine the ways in which librarians working in different capacities within a library (in this case an academic library, though  their findings are transferable) can effectively aid in co-teaching.   Believing that playing off the strengths of individuals rather that attempting to fit each librarian into an instructional role, the authors looked at the unique collaboration opportunities with a reference librarian and a cataloger.  In looking at this partnership, they also posed the question, "what is the relationship between IL, collection management, and cataloging?"  McCallum and Collins review the historically spotty (though by no means non-existent) relationship between librarians and instruction (inadequate learning opportunities in library school, too little on-the-job training) in an effort to understand the current environment surrounding co-teaching. The results of their study found that teachers and students were overwhelmingly positively impacted by co-teaching experiences, citing greater engagement and an appreciation for in-depth, specific knowledge.  The overall take-away was that librarians must embrace the opportunity to reach out to faculty as well as other librarians, despite any initial discomfort/lack of confidence in teaching skills.  The authors also highlighted how partnerships among reference and cataloging librarians in an instructional format with faculty can greatly enhance collection development success.

  

Citation:

McCallum, C. J., & Collins, B. L. (2011). Enhancing the information literacy classroom experience: A cataloger and a reference librarian team up to deliver library instruction. Library Collections, Acquisitions, & Technical Services, 35(1), 10–18. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.lcats.2010.12.008

 Co-Teaching Relationships among Librarians and Other Information Professionals

 Overview:
        Shannon and Medaille, like the authors in the previous article, begin by offering a look at the history of librarians and instruction, citing the inadequacy of time given to this topic in library school, and the logistical difficulties of training a staff on the job.  The author differentiate between collaboration and co-teaching, calling teaching a "form of collaboration...[which] allows instructors with different skill sets, knowledge, and perspectives to optomize both learning experience for students and the teaching experience for themselves" (134).  The authors set up and observed a number of workshops where librarians and other IT professionals (most with little to no teaching experience) were asked to co-teach.  Teachers and informational professionals experimented with division of duties, using technology, etc.  Afterwards, students, teachers and the information professionals were asked to rate the experience.  The major benefits described were using different skill sets, teaching to different levels of students in the classroom, and adding energy to the classroom.  A few drawbacks were mentioned, the most significant being that it could get "messy" with more than one person attempting to teach.  Students were overwhelmingly positive about the experience (helping individual students, more information, nice pace), with only one student finding it "sort of distracting" (140).

        

Citation:

Medaille, A., & Shannon, A. W. (2012). Co-Teaching Relationships among Librarians and Other Information Professionals. Collaborative Librarianship, 4(4), 132–148.

Good IDEA: Instructional design model for integrating Information Literacy

Blaylock, Solomon

ET, CO, IL

Mullins, K. (2014). Good IDEA: Instructional design model for integrating Information Literacy. The Journal of Academic Librarianship, 40(3-4), 339-349. doi: 10.1016/j.acalib.2014.04.012

Summary

A presentation of IDEA (interview, design, embed, assess) - an instructional design model created specifically for librarians, with a theoretical foundation in cognitive and behavioral learning. The model is explained in detail from theoretical foundations to practical implementation. The article features several explanatory flowcharts and even templates and rubrics, providing a suite of tools enabling the reader to make use of IDEA out of the box.

Evaluation

Although the theoretical underpinnings of Mullins’ model are in some conflict with those being championed by this course, it seems to me that the author has something of great value to impart, and has gone to pains to ensure that this is done so with a thoroughness clearly aimed at results-oriented praxis. The behaviorist underpinning of the model, particularly in the area of assessment, might actually make it particularly valuable to academic librarians who so frequently these days find themselves the direct and immediate necessity of providing quantitative data to back up any claims to continued relevance against a rapidly shifting backdrop of upsets in scholarly publishing and information retrieval.

Integrating information literacy into blackboard

Blaylock, Solomon

CO, IL

Xiao, J. (2010). Integrating information literacy into blackboard. Library Management, 31(8), 654-668. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/01435121011093423

Summary

The article discusses the case of a librarian at the College of Staten Island who, finding traditional Information Literacy instruction sessions to be of little evident value to students, worked to develop an in-depth, online resource for nursing students. After seeing positive results, she reached out to faculty members to see about having professors integrate her instructional materials into the very classes they were teaching, through Blackboard. A thorough program of assessment was also devised, and the project has met with success.

Evaluation

The author (the librarian in question) demonstrates a practical and proactive approach to her work that serves as a model for 21st century academic librarians. Rather than being a passive information gatekeeper, she demonstrates her unique value as a librarian to students and faculty by engaging directly with both in curricular/instructional design and assessment, offering a unique contribution to her institution’s teaching and learning objectives. This is the blueprint that successful modern librarians will follow in terms of departmental embedding, capacity building, and role definition in the academy. A very useful, encouraging, and well documented article.

If You Give a School a Teacher Librarian

Fleming, Giovanna

CO- Collaboration

Eby, H. (2010). If You Give a School a Teacher-Librarian …. Literacies, Learning & Libraries, 3(1), 28-3

Summary:
Heather Eby uses the circular story format ( also known as cause and effect) similar to Numeroff’s, If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, as an analogy to her article if you give a school a teacher librarian.  She points out to her reading audience a school librarian will ask to collaborate with the teachers on site.  According to Gross and Kientz (1999), “It’s the results of collaboration-improved learning and increased achievement-that make collaboration worthwhile.” Next, Eby suggests after a school librarian has teachers to collaborate with, he/she will want to create instructional units to promote information literacy to his/her students.  A teacher librarian will then differentiate the instruction to better suit the needs of his/her students. The teacher librarian will remember he/she needs to accumulate feedback and assess the learning experienced outcomes and share it with her students and the collaborating teachers.  While the groups of students are working on their collaborative projects, the teacher librarian will assist them with learning and utilizing creative Web 2.0 technology tools so, they will develop the skills needed to become lifelong learners in the 21st century and beyond.  All of this will remind the school librarian how excited he/she gets while promoting literacy and learning and he/she will inspire others to learn.  Last, but certainly, not the least, the teacher librarian now has the data to advocate for his/her career. Finally, every school will want a teacher librarian!

Evaluation:  
This author uses a “tongue in cheek” technique while delineating the significance of a school having a teacher librarian.  I would recommend this article to everyone who has the notion a school teacher librarian is a luxury because it will remind them a school teacher librarian is a necessity!

Working Together is Working Smarter

Jack, Gordon

National Center for Literacy Education (NCLE). (2012, October). Working together is working smarter. National Survey of Collaborative Professional Learning Opportunities.  Retrieved from http://www.ala.org/aasl/sites/ala.org.aasl/files/content/researchandstatistics/NCLE_AASLinfographic_FINAL-download.pdf

Summary

This infographic summarizes the data compiled from the National Center for Literacy Education study of 2,404 educators nationally.  The data confirms that collaboration is a key component for teacher-librarians.  While schools do not always make time for collaboration, librarians are actively seeking professional networks at their site and beyond.  In this particular study, librarians are participating in greater numbers than traditional classroom teachers, with 51% reporting that they share ideas “at least weekly in online networks and communities, compared with 23% of educators overall.”

Evaluation

This data confirms that librarians are not isolated professionals, but engaged collaborators both with teachers at their site and external learning communities.  While most working librarians won’t see any surprises here, this information shows others how connected librarians are and how vital they are to school improvement.  This data should be shown to any person interested in becoming a librarian as a snapshot of the type of work we do.    

3 Big Shifts That Our Schools Need to Make

Shannon Greene

CA

S McLeod. (2013, October 23). 3 big shifts, 8 building blocks, and some guiding questions.
[Web log comment]. Retrieved fromhttp://dangerouslyirrelevant.org/

http://dangerouslyirrelevant.org/resources/3-big-shifts-8-building-blocks-and-some-guiding-questions

Summary: A summary of concrete changes in emphasis that schools could make now to positively impact the learning environment. The 3 big shifts are from low-level thinking to high-level thinking, from analog to digital, and from teacher-directed to student-directed. The 8 building blocks contain subjects such as project- and inquiry-based learning environment; authentic, real-world work; and online communities of interest that supplement and augment more-traditional learning communities.

Evaluation: Excellent and succinct, this article, particularly the 3 big shifts and 8 building blocks, includes many of the subjects discussed in the curriculum of 250 Instructional Design class. The guiding questions would be useful for both professional development and strategic planning discussions as well as daily curriculum planning guides.

Media 21: A Strong Example of Embedded Librarianship

Besich, Lauren

Hamilton, B. J. (2012). Embedded librarianship in a high school library Library

Technology Reports, 48(2), 21-26.

CO- Embedded Librarianship

Summary:  This article provides a strong example of what embedded librarianship looks like.  Since 2009, teacher librarian Buffy Hamilton, and English teacher Susan Lester have collaborated on a course titled Media 21, in which students used participatory tools (Web 2.0 tools) to support their inquiry process.  Hamilton summarized how she collaborated with Lester to integrate social networks and new media into students’ inquiry-based projects.  Integrating Web 2.0 tools like Wordpress, Symbaloo, Wikis, Netvibes, NoodleBib, and Scopp.it helped students control and manage their learning (2009).  Her collaboration with Lester was possible because they shared similar philosophies on teaching and learning, and both parties were willing and open to share responsibilities.

Evaluation: As I stated in the previous article about embedded librarianship, this topic really excites me, and I think this example of embedded librarianship is one every school in our nation should strive for.  Buffy Hamilton, the SLMS, is involved in the teaching and assessment processes, and did a great job integrating technology into the unit.  The students even created their own PLEs using Symbaloo.  Read this article for some collaboration inspiration!

A K-12 Model for Embedded Librarianship

Besich, Lauren

Henry, R. (2013). THE EMBEDDED LIBRARIAN FOR K-12 SCHOOLS. Library Media Connection, 31(4), 22-23.  Retrieved from http://libaccess.sjlibrary.org/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=eft&AN=84557819&site=ehost-live

CO- Embedded Librarianship

Summary: This brief article outlines embedded librarianship, examples of success in the academic setting, and how it can be adapted to the K-12 setting.  Without the budget and staff of an academic library, K-12 librarians should start small.  Librarians need to familiarize themselves with what is being taught and when, so they can suggest materials for use.  Making themselves available helps them become team players, and advertising their services through any means possible builds awareness among staff members.  There are five phases to embedded librarianship, the first being the introductory stage where librarians introduce themselves, attend meetings, and target people to build relationships with. 

Evaluation:  I love reading about embedded librarianship because I believe it has the power to transform our schools.  While Robin Henry’s article is brief, she offers great advice about why and how to become an embedded librarian.  She takes on a “do what you can, with what you have, and with who wants to” approach.  Successful embedded librarianship will take time to fully implement, but as teachers and administrators catch wind of the positive experiences students and participating teachers are having, they, too, will be converted.  Embedded librarianship allows for a more natural integration of information literacy, which is the fourth phase of embedded librarianship, and it will steer the curriculum towards inquiry learning, which is a big part of the Common Core State Standards.  One day, I would like to see schools that employ five or six librarians—enough for each to focus on a specific department or grade level—much like academic libraries already do