Journal+Entries

=Journal Entries/Reflections=

//I attended my 9th grade son's Open House at Harrison High School this week after having done my leadership reading. The reading made me think of ways that the school librarian could involve parents in seeing the value and importance of the library. Parent advocates are important-they can lobby the school board to maintain funding and staffing and are often involved in fundraising efforts on behalf of the school district. The library should have been presented as a separate class. I also think that Deb Levitov had some great ideas to get parents involved-issue them library cards, encourage the formation of a "friends" library group and develop a web presence that the PTA could promote.//
 * Reflection on Leadership Readings, 9/21/11**

//KAO'B//


 * Reflection on NYS Standards and NYS Social Studies Curriculum, K-12, 9/21/11**

//The NYS social studies skills "include the ability to gather, interpret, organize, analyze, evaluate and synthesize information." ( p. 12) These skills are closely aligned with our goals of information literacy.Students need to be able to find and use data to produce maps, graphs, charts, etc. They need to be able to put information into their own words and avoid plagiarism. At my 9th grade son's social studies open house class the library or librarian was never mentioned. We did meet, however, the literacy coach who supports the social studies teacher. This was a missed advocacy opportunity for our school librarian.//

//KAO'B//

**Reflection on AASL's "Standards for the 21st Century Learner", 9/28/11**
//One of the most important roles of a education is to create responsible citizens who can engage actively in their democratic government. AASL standards require students to acquire the skills to evaluate information sources and discern authentic sources and author bias. These skills prepare students for life as an engaged American citizen.//

//The "Dispositions in Action" that support the 4 standards are important skills that students need to acquire: initiative, confidence, creativity, persistence, resilience, flexibilty, leadership, teamwork, etc. These characteristics are important across all disciplines and throughout life.//

//KAO'B//


 * Reflection on what AALS's Standards and ISTE's NETS for Students have in common, 9/28/11**

//One obvious goal that these two standards have in common is to make students technologically/digitally literate. This entails using digital tools ethically and legally which is a key teaching role of the LMS.// //Both standards also demand that students be capable of creating new knowledge from that which they have found. Students are also expected to be able to communicate this new knowledge.//

//KAO'B//


 * Reflection on differences between the 2005 ELA Core Curriculum and the Common Core Standards for English, 9/28/11**

//The buzz words "college and career readiness" are the glaring additions to the 2011 CCSS in ELA. In the current job market these words resonate with parents who are hopeful that their children are being prepared for meaningful careers. The new guidelines include 34 college and career readiness "anchor" standards that translate to grade specific standards as opposed to the earlier guidelines that presented P-12 grade specific expectations organized around the four main standards: reading, writing, listening and speaking. The new CCSS for ELA were drafted with international benchmarks in mind, which is very important in the current globally competitive society.//

//KAO'B//


 * Reflection on how a new LMS can collaborate with teachers to help students meet these new standards, 9/28/11**

//As a new LMS I could collaborate with teachers to help students meet these new standards by preparing literacy lessons around the content area that a particular grade level is studying. For example, if the 9th grade is studying Ancient Egypt in Social Studies I could prepare a list of useful databases for further student research and a bibliography of a range of fiction and nonfiction books on the topic. In the introduction to the CCS for ELA it was noted that the 6-12 literacy standards are not meant to replace content standards, but to support them. As the LMS I can partner with the teachers to teach students digital literacy.//

//KAO'B//


 * Reflection on the importance of information literacy, October 4th, 2011**

//After reading (and re-reading!) the "Information Literacy Standards for Student Learning" (and the levels of proficiency offered as assessment tools in __Information Power)__ I am struck by the huge task that it will be for librarian teachers to chart the effectiveness of their strategies with data. It is difficult to gather legitimate data that shows the value of school libraries in relationship to student test scores. And I have a problem with the research study, "School Libraries Work!" being funded by Scholastic. A bit of a conflict of interest, wouldn't you say?!//


 * Reflection on Online Class, 10/12/11**

//This was my first "real time" online class session so it took me a little bit to figure out the technical aspects & get into the stream of discussion. Once I was there, though, I enjoyed the topics of discussion. However, I am not very good at formulating responses on the spot and prefer to have time to mull things over. I have been thinking about the quote about the candle and the mirror. It serves to remind us that even if we are not the originators of a brilliant idea we can have as much, or more, impact by implementing it and spreading its reach.//


 * Reflection on Module 5, October 21, 2011 "How has teaching the research process/information skills evolved over time?"**

//Traditionally the teaching of "library skills" focused on skills related to finding information by locating, accessing and using sources in isolation, without subject context. Recent approaches to library skills instruction emphasize the development of research skills within the context of a school's curriculum. The new "integrated approach" teaches "information skills" in the context of subject area curriculum and classroom instruction. The library media specialist gets more time in the clasroom to collaborate with teachers on specific class assignments. I witnessed the efficacy of this approach in my observations at the Rye Neck MS/HS library. The LMS taught a class in the library with the 6th grade Spanish teacher on a class assignment on Spanish speaking countries. The teachers collaborated and the LMS taught the students how to post their resources on Noodle Bib and create a bibliography. This library lesson was effective because it tied in to a specific project the children were doing in class. Under the old model students would have been taught about Noodle Bib in isolation, without a project in mind, and it would have had less impact on their learning.//


 * Reflection on Module 7, November 11, 2011 "What is the relationship between teaching information/literacy skills and inquiry learning?"**

//Learning about the purpose of Webquests by reading Tom March's article "The Learning of Webquests" and browsing the Channel 13 site brought the distinction between teaching information/literacy skills and inquiry learning into focus. As a LMS we can not merely lead our students to information, we must require them to use the acquired information to make something new with what they have learned. According to the Channel 13 website, students should spend their time using information, not looking for it. I think the use of role play by taking the particular viewpoint of, for example, a businessman or environmentalist in studying an energy issue, leads to true learning because students deal with real issues that have no prescribed solution. This type of learning leads students to see the many possible sides of an issue and trains them to become more educated and active citizens as adults.//


 * Reflection on Module 8, November 22, 2011**

//In my library observations I have seen that the most effective lesson plans taught by the LMS were those that were integral parts of a core curriculum assignment. This requires active collaboration between the subject teachers and the LMS in discussing the curriculum and formulating lesson plans. Unfortunately the school day leaves little time for teachers and the LMS to collaborate on lesson plans.// //I agree that assessment can enhance student motivation by emphasizing achievement (rather than failure) and reinforcing the idea students are responsible for their own learning. It also reinforces the notion that learning is a process and takes trial and error and hard work.I especially liked the notion that the LMS must teach students to discern the quality of the resources themselves by using the critical evaluation measures of authority, objectivity and bias.// //I found chapter 4 helpful in giving me good ideas for my assessment rubric for my WebQuest.//
 * Reflection on Collaboration and Assessment**

//The LMS is in a unique position as an educator because she sees students for many years and can get to know their strengths and weaknesses. In the school's that I observed the students had a real rapport with the LMS. The LMS serves as an advisor and mentor to many of the students. In this role she can "teach up" and treat the students as though they are capable. Since the LMS knows the students she can differentiate instruction by having multiple levels of reading resources available to encourage the students to read- from graphic novels to classic English literature.// //Another way that an LMS can differentiate is to have research materials available in various formats-visual, auditory and tactile-to meet the learning style of her students.Yet another way that the LMS can differentiate is by teaching multiple note taking strategies so students can find the one that best suits their learning style.//
 * Differentiated instruction is as important in the school library as it is in classrooms. Here are ways I can differentiate in the library classroom.**

//In one of the library's I observed the LMS teaches an information literacy class to 10th graders. The students just took the TRAILS assessment and the LMS realized that the students were shaky on the concept of "Boolean" logic. She prepared a thoughtful lesson to teach this concept using the web tool "Boolify' and the Common Craft video "Web Search Strategies in Plain English." I couldn't help thinking that the lesson would have been so much more effective if the students were researching with meaning in furtherance of a class assignment rather than just practice.//
 * What is the relationship between teaching information/literacy skills and inquiry learning?**


 * Reflection for week of 12/5/11**


 * "in the long run, we only hit what we aim at" Thoreau**

//This quote is on my bulletin board to inspire me (and my children) to dream. It is interesting to think of it in terms of education and formulating "essential questions." Backwards design of lesson plans makes sense. How can we plot our course if we don't know our desired outcome?//


 * Reflection for week 12/12/11**


 * WebQuest Evaluation**

My webquest Essential Questions required higher level thinking, lead to deep and enduring understandings and have no obvious right answers.
 * To what degree does my WebQuest provide effective Essential Quesitons to guide learners?**

My webquest connected to AP Environmental Science and NYS Living Environment standards, as well as 21st century learner standards.
 * To what degree does my webquest connect to appropriate subject-specific academic standards and the overarching Standards for the 21st century learner?**

My webquest provided a real life scenario (hearing before the NYSDEC) and multiple points of view from which to explore the topic.
 * To what degree does my Webquest provide meaningful, clear, and engaging scenarios and tasks?**

My webquest provided students with relevant and appropriate internet resources, however, they would need to be constantly updated as this is a very current topic that is always being updated in the news.
 * To what degree does my webquest provide learners with relevant and appropriate Internet resources?**

My webquest does not necessarily lend itself to creativity-most view points that the students will advocate for have been argued ad nauseum. It would be great, however, if students came up with an innovative solution to hydrofracking! I guess the presentation format that the students choose (power point, speech, Glogster) could be another venue for creativity.
 * To what degree does my webquest promote creativity?**