High School Interviews
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Erin Oliver_High School Librarian Interview_9/29/9
Two librarians currently work at our school district’s one high school. One of the two will retire at the end of this year. She has been told that due to budget cuts and a bit of restructuring (done by the previous superintendent) that the vacancy will not be filled. This will leave only one librarian in the high school. I spoke with both librarians on Tuesday, September 29, 2009. When asked where they felt they fell on the continuum, they said sometimes a one and sometimes a two. It seems that the level of collaboration varies depending on the subject area and the teacher involved. They work most often with the English teachers. I was also informed that due to some state wide and district mandated curriculum programs, teachers are not given as much freedom to be creative and collaborate. They pretty much have to stick to specific regulations. They feel that if the teachers were allowed more freedoms, more collaboration could take place. “Teach to the test” also came up in conversation. I think right now the teachers and librarians in this school feel limited.
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Tahni Holmes_High School Librarian Interview_29SEP09
The High School Librarian has served in her position for several years. She is not a certified librarian. She currently fulfills all of the job’s responsibilities, supporting the school’s library and does not feel there is a big need for volunteer service. The collection itself is made up of just 10,000 titles. She does not perform tech support/media specialist duties. She has added to the school’s library website by providing resources that enable students to search reputable databases for information not found within the library’s catalog. When asked if teachers were stressing the importance of using library resources and referring students to the school’s librarian as a reference resource expert she told me it wasn’t happening. The librarian clearly feels unsupported by the teacher faculty and plans to speak to the school’s principal in hopes of bridging the communication gap. The librarian informs teachers of new arrivals to the library’s collection and provides a broad range of services to students and teachers who use the library. It doesn’t appear that the librarian is making a proactive stance in pushing for greater collaboration with the current teacher staff –but this could largely be effected by a reluctant teacher staff willing to adopt web 2.0 technologies and thus interactive communication means between student, librarian, and teacher. Upon the completion of the interview and assessing the librarian's completed questionnaire, I believe she falls under the Stage 2, maybe even Stage 1 teacher/librarian relationship. On the one hand, she is providing more students with greater online resources available on the library’s website, however she has a very limited contact among the teacher staff. So, I think she is moving in the right direction towards a Stage 3, but I think there is a lot of room for her and the fellow teachers within her school to grow and become a better team in educating the students of the school.
Brian Thomas
Interviews with three high school librarians
Librarian #1
What struck me as an 8th year as librarian is that teachers or projects are at different stages not the librarians.
I have several long term teachers, department chairs, who are at stage 3 and several at stage 2. An English teacher and a Science teacher work with me the most and I have a wonderfully collaborative relationship with each of them.
It's our job to make the library experience as seamless and comfortable for our teachers as possible.
I tried marketing myself at first to the teachers who were only at stage one, but I found that many simply can't make it to the library.
If there is an average stage that most teachers or projects are at, it is stage 2. Most brand new projects start at a stage 1.
A teacher who just took over for another on maternity leave started a project on history of the Balkans and history of Cuba, these have started at stage 1.
Librarian #2
I feel like I fall solidly in the Stage Two category of the continuum with some teachers and I am pre-Stage One with others. Most of the times that classes come into the library, I insist (or ask nicely) if I can have time to teach info-lit lessons. This year I have been particularly successful. I have gotten whole blocks to teach! Previously, I was lucky to get 15 minutes. Other times, I spend time and energy going "rah-rah... this is what I can do for you" and often don't get much response. Teachers who are locked into their lesson plans sometimes aren't the most open to changing their plans to incorporate info lit EVEN if it streamlines the process for them. I also don't have a lot of expectations set by the administration. The only measures I have for what I'm supposed to be doing at work are made up by me as I consult professional resources.
There are a couple of teachers that I help brainstorm about lesson planning (a la Stage Three), but often the information literacy elements of the lesson don't get fleshed out enough or I am not given adequate time to teach the skill.
Mostly I am on my own in here. I am getting better about telling people that I am helping them whether they like it or not. :)
Librarian #3
I feel like I am Stage Two with most faculty. I feel like I have attained Stage Three with 2 or 3 teachers. Some teachers only require a Stage One relationship (i.e. math teachers). I think that as a new librarian (this is my third year), I assumed I would have a stage 2 role right off the bat. Boy was I wrong! I went back to a stage 1 role but explained at faculty meetings, to departments heads, and to individual teachers that the role of the librarian is to support the curriculum as well as teach information literacy, a vital component to the high school curriculum.
I think that in order for the information literacy curriculum to grow at my school, I have to be able to be all three roles depending on the faculty member I am working with. Right now, for instance, I am working on a scope and sequence that will be a tool to take to department meetings and hopefully recruit more teachers into stage 2 or 3 realm.
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Lori Hermelin
Interview with a high school librarian, Sept. 29, 2009
High School
In talking about the changes in the role of the librarian, there was one common theme: time. All the interviewees agreed that the biggest obstacle they work to overcome is time to collaborate. One librarian who works in a local high school maintains a log of her time spent collaborating. She estimates that she works with two-thirds of her faculty regularly. She was the only librarian that I spoke with who felt she was working consistently at stage three, but she did not have 100% staff participation. She also had the least experience of the three, and was the most recent graduate from her MLIS program. Perhaps her success is due to the fact that her training embraced the more active and collaborative role that a stage three library media teacher demands. Even working with clients who use her as a stage one or stage two resource receive her active participation and intervention. She supervises and guides classes during their use of the resources. This further informs her of what resources and further instruction might be needed. Getting out into classrooms for drop in visits helps her get an idea of what content is being covered and gives her a window into the variety of teaching styles her colleagues have. This further helps to generate project ideas for future collaboration. Once a project is concluded (she performs the assessment of the research process), her log includes a follow up interview to reflect on the success of the interaction and to note any alterations in the project. It also notes any further material needs for future acquisition. She shares her notes with her co-teachers as this will help with future planning.
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LIBR 250 Interviews
MIndy Harper
To gather information for this assignment, I first went to our middle school’s teacher-librarian, Dr. D.T., and I asked her for a few high school librarian recommendations. Because I am currently undecided as to which level of students I would like to work with in a library setting, I chose to interview one middle school librarian and two high school librarians. I sent out an email to each of these librarians, and their responses were enlightening! I included only the high school responses below. (The middle school response was posted separately.)
High School Librarian #1 - P.B.
1) Where do you feel you fall on the continuum? (i.e., stage one, two, or three) Why?
I am still, after about 9 years, at stage 1 or 2 with a lot of teachers. I was really glad a music teacher came to me this year for the first time to get some help with a research paper the kids were doing on composers/musicians. I was able to go into her classrooms and talk about citing sources, what resources the library had, and databases. That was about it, but it was a start.
Sometimes it depends on the subject matter (better luck with English than math), but sometimes it's the individual teacher. I've had English teachers that did not "get" that they needed to support kids throughout their research project, and some art teachers who were great to work with, for example. I do work most closely with 1-2 English teachers, and really almost at level 3 with one of them. It makes everything--creating reading lists, presenting/supporting research process, assisting with using databases--SO much more effective when a teacher will sit down and work as a partner. In general, it goes on a case-by-case basis.
2) In what area would you most like to improve? Explain.
Being able to think on my feet. When kids ask for certain kinds of books for leisure reading, I can't always think of 2-3 titles to "book talk" off the top of my head. And that's my job! Also, being pushier (in a nice way) about what I can do for the teachers/students. I get in that mode-all energized, with some great ideas--and hit a brick wall because the teachers are inundated with other things, their personality is different, or for some reason they don't want to collaborate on something (even if it's pretty small). Then I kind of retreat into doing my own thing in my own space. I guess I need to be able to persevere...
3) What do you think the future holds for school libraries and the teacher-librarian profession?
I hope there will be some legislator (plus more $$$ to back them up!) that realizes that libraries are an important part of a school, but it looks pretty bleak in California. I haven't been doing it long enough to know about any times that were worse than this (!), but I hope more people like David Achterman (?), Keith Curry Lance, David Loertscher, etc. can provide statistics/studies that show effectiveness of good school libraries. That seems to be what politicians are interested in.
State standards? National standards? It would be great if something like that were instituted that people (other than TL's) would read and take seriously so there would be more equity within a state like California, and among all the states as far as school libraries go. I think as more and more new teacher librarians show that we are not the stereotypical crabby old ladies checking out books, people will begin to realize how useful we can be on a school campus.
I think the pendulum will eventually swing back--it will definitely get better, and then it will swing back and we'll probably be cut again, but maybe not as much...It seems that public libraries always have to justify their existence, too--maybe that's just how it is...
High School Librarian #2 - L.L.
1) Where do you feel you fall on the continuum? (i.e., stage one, two, or three) Why?
I would be a combination of stages one and two. I do all of one and have moved into the second stage. Part of my job is creating awareness among the teachers on the available information technology so that they can then incorporate that as a requirement in their assignment. Teachers must reserve the library so at that time, I try to plan the lesson with the teacher and find out what their needs are. Throughout the years, I have even sat down with teachers to create the actual lesson and they have been surprised at my ideas and suggestions, not realizing I have been a teacher myself. I see my role as a supplement to the teacher's instruction. Stage 3 would be something to aspire to.
2) In what area would you most like to improve? Explain.
From the above selection, I would say the area of educating the teachers on incorporating information technology into their lesson. To maintain our academic integrity of rigor, I would like to see all teachers require the use of databases at some point in their lessons.
3) What do you think the future holds for school libraries and the teacher-librarian profession?
I think that there is great potential for libraries and librarians of the future if they are open to change and willing to embrace technology and adapt to what their users need. For instance, because I work with high school students and a generation that is so music and technology oriented, I am incorporating more of that into my lessons. My library is not a silent place-there is a constant hum- and different areas need to be created to service the different needs of students-small and large group, individual settings, areas of chess, computers...it’s all about creating a welcoming and user-friendly environment.
My Thoughts Prior to Interview…
Before the interviewees responded to the questions posed, I examined the stages in detail. I predicted that all librarians interviewed would be at Stage 2 or higher. My own perception was that school libraries had already evolved from the typical school libraries of the past. I have watched our own middle school library change from Stage 1 to somewhere between Stage 2 and 3. This amazing transformation began when our current librarian came to our school about six years ago. It certainly was not easy for her to make so many changes, but over time, the library has truly become a real information hub.
Reflections on Interview Responses…
I was somewhat surprised to learn that the high school libraries had not completely made it to Stage 2. As a teacher myself, I definitely understand how difficult it is to schedule library time separate from required instruction. So many teachers just do not understand how useful the librarian can be in helping content area teachers achieve objectives through the use of the library or media center. Teachers are busy, and they do not want to put forth the extra time for collaboration with the media teacher. As a future teacher-librarian, I will have to come up with some very creative ways to inspire a variety of teachers to utilize the library as part of their instruction. I am certain that this may be a Herculean task!
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I interviewed three librarians at the lower, middle and upper school levels at a nursery-12 private college preparatory school.
Interview #3 by Joanne Bradley, September 2009
The Library Director who also functions as an upper school librarian identified herself as in the middle of Stage 2 and said it was “rare to be a Stage 3 due to lack of administrative support and reluctant and uninterested teachers.” Also, she has administrative duties so lack of time is a factor. She hasn’t done a lot of true collaboration because she doesn’t sit down before a class with the teacher. What happens is that she sometimes comes up with a lesson and tells a teacher about it or e-mails the teacher who either wants her to do the lesson or not. Part of the problem is cultural because she said the upper school is mostly grounded in a traditional learning environment. She said she has made some headway with the history department because the Chair is open and technologically savvy. However, she notes that the English department shuns technology and does not have any respect for YA literature. According to the librarian, the teachers have to cover a huge amount of information so they feel they can’t give up classroom time. Sometimes when they do come, it is at the last minute so she doesn’t know ahead of time what they are covering. An example she used was that last week a Spanish class came in and started researching Latino figures on Google. Once she found out their topics, she directed them to some databases that made their searching easier, but she was in a support role rather than a collaborative one.
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Interview #1 with Librarian A
After having taught Biology and Integrated Science for ten years in Los Angeles, Librarian A decided to change careers. When asked about why she chose to be a librarian, her response was that the previous librarian had a baby and quit which left the position open. She asked the principal about the position and was offered the job. Librarian A is now in her second year as a teacher librarian at a high school in Los Angeles. She is also currently working on her Teacher Librarian Services Credential at a private school. Her library is very neat and organized. There are various stuff animals on top of shelves. She mentioned that the previous librarian did a great job keeping everything organized and well decorated. When asked about where she is on the continuum, she said that she is between stage 1 and 2. As last school year was her first year, she took the time to get to know the collection and the needs of the faculty. She did not do a lot of planning with teachers, however, she did experience some collaboration with several teachers. She introduces the research topic and point out where they can find sources. This school year she hopes to reach stage 2. Her ultimate goal is to reach stage 3.
Interview #2 with Librarian B
Librarian B has been in the education field in the Los Angeles area for a long time. She taught 6th grade English and History for ten years before becoming a Teacher Librarian. I asked her about her change of profession and her response was that all the testing got in the way of teaching. A growing frustrating in regards to the growth of testing that seem to increase each year prompted her to look into the library science field. She chose to be a teacher librarian because she wanted to continue being an educator. Librarian B completed her library services credential in 2008 and is in her second year as a teacher librarian. She informed me that the previous librarian at the high school was very strict and did not collaborate with teachers. Librarian B came into the job with a desire to change the culture. She said that the first several months were spent creating a welcoming space in the library so students and faculty would come in. Slowly, she was able to gain the trust of students and teachers and began collaborating with some. By the end of the second semester she was able to plan together with some teachers. Her process of planning involves asking the teacher for the lesson plan and she would view the plan and add her library lessons accordingly. She rates herself as a stage 2.7 on the continuum.
Interview #3 with Librarian C
Librarian C was an English teacher for two years at a private school and seven years at a public school. Although she enjoyed being in the classroom, a librarian friend introduced her to the world of librarianship. She became interested in the field and went to school to obtain her library services credential. She has a combined experience of being a librarian at two local Los Angeles high schools for a total of seventeen years. Librarian C shows excitement in the field and is excited about new learning opportunities that technology can bring in motivating students’ interest in learning. A fellow teacher librarian introduced her to GoogleSites and she sees the potential of making good use of a virtual library. When asked about where she is on the continuum, she said that she is between stage 2 and 3. She plans with teachers who come into the library seeking for collaboration on research projects. She creates a PowerPoint presentation to show the class on research day and is present the entire period to answer any questions that students may have. She sees the same class for two days or longer if necessary.
__Kim Leng/September 24, 2009
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Interview #3 - Lisa Katz/ September 2009
This librarian has been at this private college preparatory high school for grades 9-12 in Marin County for 9 years. There are about 400 students. This librarian is a 2005 graduate from the SJSU MLIS program and he is a history teacher as well. I love visiting this particular library because it is very much set up like a learning commons with the soft cushiony movable furniture, the different areas in the library with computers, books, as well as spaces for laptops and learning rooms (or laboratories). It very much is the center of everything in school, even socially. This sometimes does create a problem for the librarian but he is learning to deal with the noise and understanding the importance of allowing the library to be a social outlet as well. I had the great opportunity to visit this library last semester while he was teaching a lesson, or shall I say collaborating with a history teacher. Based on that experience and my first meeting with him I realized that he probably does a lot of successful collaborating with teachers. Based on this, he rated himself at stage 2.5. He does quite a bit of collaborating, it could be more, but at the same time he is only one librarian in a very large private high school and he teaches history classes as well. My guess is he is getting to the point where he will be getting ready to hire an assistant to help in his collaborating efforts. Teachers do come to him for help with projects, papers, and research topics and teaching exercises that involve books and computer technology. Just yesterday he had the art teacher come in to talk to him about bringing the students in for a lesson on finding a piece of art work from a book, and then being able to take that art, and transforming it themselves on paper. He was happy to help and was able to pull many books from the shelves for her to use with the students. Another example he spoke about was an encounter he had a few years ago with a Spanish teacher. She was always very intimidated by the library but with her advanced Spanish class, she needed them to do research on a part of Spanish history and realized that she couldn’t do the lesson alone and came to him for some help. Every since that experience she comes in all the time for collaboration and help. That began their relationship of collaboration over the years. Basically he feels that everyone really uses the library to their advantage probably except for the math teachers and performing art teachers.
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Cussary_Nancy Fall 2009 Teacher Librarian Interviews
To answer the question - At the beginning of this class and without any further investigation, what is your reaction to the three suggested stages? My initial response comes from the perspective of my experience as a resource specialist and working at a few different schools. The first stage is very much how I have worked with teachers and feel that it’s also the role of the teacher-librarian (TL). Over the last year, I’ve worked as a TL and have been in many meetings with other TLs, many of who are in the SJSU SLIS cohort. Because of this exposure, I developed a working knowledge of stages two and three.
I was fortunate to interview five TLs, three who work in public middle schools and two who work in public high schools. The questions focused on the teacher-librarians’ work across the three roles or stages (being resourceful to the teacher, work with a teacher on lesson materials or activities, and forming a partnership to plan and execute an instructional sequence), administrative influence, work across the curriculum, instructional sequences they’ve developed, successes and strategies.
Each TL indicated that he/she found his/her work spread across the continuum of the three roles or stages. One of the TLs stated “I feel that these stages illustrate a great continuum in library instruction”. Another felt that “they (the stages) fairly accurately reflect the transition from the traditional role of the school librarian as a custodian of books and information resources to the new role of co-teacher/curriculum leader/instructional design facilitator…”. The TLs indicated that most of their work was at stage two, because of differences among teachers. Usually the teachers willing to collaborate had some technology skills or were younger.
The TLs expressed feeling content when they were able to plan and collaborate with teachers. One indicated “One thing I really enjoy about my role is I get to work with teachers in all content areas and with all level of learners…” Each TL worked with teachers in more than one area of the curriculum, with more in language arts, science and social studies. Although, one TL said “Lately, I have just started collaborating with the math department-which to me is a huge accomplishment”.
Four of the five TLs have no restrictions from their administration. Three indicated that their administration understood their work as a TL, and the other two said that their administrators didn’t “get” it. Fortunately, all of the administrators allowed the TLs a flexible schedule.
The TLs provided many successes and strategies. These include, but are not limited to, promoting the library, transforming projects into “collaborative, culturally-relevant, community-involved research projects”, co-teaching, “intensive communication with the administers and staff”, taking on leadership roles, discussing website evaluation and MLA citations, and “teaching teachers, counselors and parent center people to create their own sites”.
This was a very informative exercise. I gained lots of knowledge about the work of other TLs and several useful suggestions. As I grow in my practice, I will strive to implement many of these effective ideas and activities.
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Interviews by Sharlene Paxton
Interview 1
The first librarian I interviewed works at a high school and has one full-time library assistant. They are in charge of textbooks as well as library books and a computer lab. After examining the continuum, she considers herself to be somewhere between a 2 and 3, depending on the teacher she is working with. She stated that “Many of the newer teachers are much more open to working with me and listening to my suggestions. They also see me in a different light than some of the older ones who recycle the same projects for the library year after year.” As a result of WASC last year, the faculty’s Common Planning Times this fall are spent working on the school website and creating webpages. This has given the librarian a chance to let other teachers know about the library’s page, how they can utilize it, what the librarian can put on the page for them, etc. Many of them had no idea that she did those kinds of things. She joked that perhaps some still consider her to be merely a book collector and stamper! She welcomes the chance to work with teachers, and the students are gradually realizing that the library has a lot more to offer. However, because of the budget, they are very limited as to the types of online resources they have access to. Her library piggybacks on another high school’s databases, and she tries to "require" kids to have a county library card so they can use the county library’s online subscriptions. She commented on what “tough times” her library was facing as a result of decreased budgets.
Interview 2
The second librarian I interviewed also works at a high school, has a full-time library assistant, and is facing budgetary cuts. This librarian is the only certificated librarian in the whole district, which consists of only one comprehensive high school. The two middle schools and the elementary schools are staffed solely by classified personnel. As with the librarian in the first interview, this librarian was responsible for textbooks as well as library materials and a computer lab. This librarian commented that she spends some time in each category as she performs different tasks, but that she considers herself to be mostly a 2 and sometimes a 3. She stated that her biggest obstacle to spending more time performing functions of a 3 is collaboration time. As a result of the last WASC, collaboration is a school-wide focus, so she said that it would be interesting to see how they work more collaboration time into the schedule since no formal collaboration time was built into the schedule this year, and the visiting team will be back soon for a three-year review. She mentioned that collaboration takes a time commitment from both teacher and librarian, and that often teachers either do not have the time or do not make it a priority to meet with the librarian to plan collaborative projects. This made some projects feel thrown together; consequently, they were less successful than the librarian felt they could have been. Also, the librarian felt the school’s online resources were underutilized, but she blamed herself for that because she had a hard time finding time to offer inservice/training to teachers to show them how useful the databases are. Some teachers do not request the librarian’s help, and she was adamant that it was not because she had not offered her assistance repeatedly. She claimed to have good working relationships with the other faculty at her school, but she felt that some teachers who had done the same unit for decades simply did not want to have to change anything or add anything to their unit that might create more work for them. She said she had assured some of these veteran teachers that she would do all the extra work and that they could bring their classes to the computer lab, and she would show the students the online resource and provide bibliographies and citation assistance. She didn’t feel like this was moving her into stage 3 because it was not a fully collaborative experience, but she said that at least it would be a foot in the door because she would be moving these teachers from utilizing her at stage 1 to utilizing her as a stage 2 librarian. Hopefully, she said, she might be able to get some of them to work with her in stage 3 eventually. Newer teachers are more likely to take her up on her offers for collaboration and invite her into their classes or bring their students to the library. She believes that persistence is one of the keys to a librarian being able to spend more time in stage 3 than any of the other stages and that librarians must constantly promote their services to remain viable and valuable in the eyes of the school district.
Interview 3
The third librarian interviewed works at a middle school and has only a part-time library assistant. She mentioned this was one of her biggest impediments to being able to work in stage 3 more frequently because when her library assistant was not there, she spent more time doing clerical work and less time planning and implementing lessons with teachers. As with the first two librarians, she considered herself to spend most of her time in stage 2, but she stated that she feels like she may have performed some functions of stage 3 only a few times. She is still building relationships with the teachers and just trying to keep up with the daily business of her library. Managing the collection and performing routine library tasks took up a great deal of her time. It sounds like if she had a full-time library assistant, she would feel more capable of spending her time on integrating information technology into lessons and spending more time teaching. The teacher who taught the computer classes had maintained the computer lab at her school, and he was reluctant to give up control of the lab, which had not yet been moved into the library. This was another obstacle she faced. She felt that if she managed the scheduling of the computer lab, she would be able to capture a moment of the teacher’s time to inquire as to what they are working on with their students and offer assistance. Her school had no online resources, so she was limited to working with free online resources. She mentioned that she felt the outlook for school librarians in California is grim because it is not a priority to fully staff and fund school libraries in this state. She expressed a strong desire to be able to teach information literacy skills, and stated that she felt the students would be so much better prepared for high school and the high school librarian would be able to do more with students if they moved to the high school with more information literacy skills.
Reflections
It is very apparent that all three school librarians are faced with similar obstacles: lack of time, limited resources, and less-than-enthusiastic teachers. Newer teachers seem to be more likely than veteran teachers to utilize the librarian as a resource, but two of the librarians interviewed also mentioned that some of their veteran teachers were their strongest allies and collaborators. Developing relationships with the teachers was certainly emphasized. Also, each librarian perceived herself as spending most of her time in stage 2 but strived to work in stage 3 more frequently. Each librarian spoke enthusiastically about working with technology and teaching information literacy skills and considered doing so and working collaboratively with teachers as the most important part of her job.
Interviews by Karen Zahller submitted Sept. 16, 2008
Interviews by Margaret Williams submitted Sept 15, 2008
Esther – 32 years in the district (28 years as librarian)
I would say that Esther is “old school”, she knows that computers are necessary but the real information is in books. She is very proud of her longevity at her site and her relationship with faculty and administration. She is quick to point out that she has a very strong Library Practice Elective Course and that many of her students have gone on to get jobs in the public library or at their university.
When I showed her the Stages Continuum, she nodded and “uh-hummed” through Stage One, agreed that Stage Two was common sense (but seemed a little hesitant about the fourth bullet regarding “information technologies”) and felt that she did have a “partnership” with her fellow teachers. She stated that she is firmly in Stage Three.
Chris – 21 years in the district (10 years as librarian)
Chris would be the first to tell you that he is a great librarian. Just look at his facility if you doubt him. His shelves are neat and weeded. He has had pretty murals painted on the walls and purchased coordinating furniture. Administrators and District leaders would also agree “Chris is the best” because he knows how to market himself. He as written grants, regularly brought in authors, and invited the community to use the library for meetings.
When Chris read over the Continuum, he stated that he does the points mentioned in Stage Three. When I asked him to share some examples he said he had attended a week long summer workshop a couple of years ago that had him create a lesson unit that he could share with History teachers (his credentialed subject) and he was a member of the school staff development committee so he was able to inject Information Literacy into those planning meetings and present library centric skills/tools at faculty meetings.
Pat – 6 years in the district as librarian (has previous library and teaching experience outside the district)
Pat loves technology, “computers are where it’s all going”, she says. Which explains why she bragged about removing 60 linear feet of shelving while she was showing me around her library. Pat has pored much of her energies into her website, online collection of e-books and computer hardware.
Pat wanted to know why Stage One doesn’t mention “technology” and when I suggested that the term “materials” could include technology, she responded that it should state it specifically. I pointed out that it does mention technology in Stage Two and she then said, “OK, I’m in Stage Two”. Then she read Stage Three and said, “Oh, I do all that!” and proceeded to share with me (in great detail) the project that she and the Integrated Science Teachers had developed to guide the students through a project. It really blends Information Literacy with a specific science topic to research. (BTW, I asked her to get me a copy of the project)
Conclusion
I have just reread my descriptions of my colleagues and I fear that they might not be very flattering, because I really do admire each of them. I developed my Library Practice Elective from Esther’s program that she graciously shared with me. I have benefited from the largess of Chris’ community contacts, which have provided my library with tens of thousands of dollars of free shelving. And Pat reminds me that I must be passionate about what I do.
However, even though all my friends stated that they are in Stage Three of the continuum, I suspect that they are only dabbling in Stage Three. Chris seems to have skipped Stage Two altogether and redefined Stage Three to fit his agenda. I think we (librarians in general) are lucky if we can say we are firmly, regularly providing Stage Two services – even in the good years for Teacher-Librarians. So much conspires against us: ignorance of our profession by administrators and misuse of our library facilities; external pressures on teachers to follow curriculum maps and ennui to attempt something new; and our own inertia – reading and book talks are fun. Lesson planning and collaboration are hard work. But the writing is on the wall for my district’s librarians because we didn’t make ourselves indispensable when we had the chance.
Interviews by Susan Marks, September 15, 2008 (2 high school; please see third under middle school):
- Mrs. M just retired as district librarian. She spent 7 years in the district office guiding the K – 12 school libraries. Before that she worked for 28 years in a high school library. Mrs. M. is inspirational in her enthusiasm and advocacy for school libraries. She truly believes that the role of the teacher librarian fully falls within stage 3. She explains that in order to keep the librarian position as a credentialed teacher and not just a clerical position it is essential to emphasize instruction and professional collaboration. She has had to fight to keep these positions within the district over the years. She explained that when she first started working in the high school library, she insisted on release time so that she set up individual appointments with every single teacher within the school. In this way she was able to speak with all teachers (including the photography teacher, the shop teacher …) to learn about their curriculum, to see how she could support them, and begin a collaborative relationship. Mrs. M insists that the teacher librarians must take on a leadership role in the school; advocate for the importance of teaching and integrating information literacy, collaborative efforts. As a leader, the teacher librarian should be offering professional development trainings to the staff on how best to integrate both information literacy and technology into the curriculum.
2. Ms. J is a school librarian in a high school. She has completed just one year in the position and is still in the process of completing her MLIS. She explains that. unfortunately, she is still firmly in stage one with a smattering of stage 2. She has been frustrated with finding enough time to complete the clerical tasks with little assistance. Furthermore, she has met much resistance from teachers in regards to requests to plan ahead before bringing in a class to the library. She says she has offered to collaborate with teachers frequently, but has yet to find how to make in-roads into actually convincing teachers to use her offers of assistance. When students are in the library, either she is instructing or the teacher is instructing; never are they working together. She does acknowledge the desire to reach stage three and insists that she will keep trying and hoping with time it will be possible.
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Interviews by Mandy Ballenger
Sept. 15, 2008
- Rhonda Sancibrian (Merced City School District Librarian)
Rhonda clearly has a passion for collaborating with teachers to help students learn. She finds one of the most difficult parts of collaboration is time. Many teachers want to use the library and plan lessons with Rhonda but they find it difficult to find the time in their already busy curriculum. Rhonda finds herself being overly helpful and too often taking on the majority of responsibility for the library instruction. She even has teachers that will leave their class with her alone during the library time. However, she finds it very satisfying that she has a handful of teachers that are passionate about integrating information literacy skills into their already packed curriculum.
The Merced City School District recently cut back the number of librarians they employ, so Rhonda is now part time at two different sites. Her “new” site presents some challenges. The prior librarian had set times for each class to the use the library and he basically read to the kids then had them check out books. Rhonda strives to do more but it has been difficult to reach teachers and help them realize that a school media teacher is much more than they were used to.
Rhonda is a teacher consultant for the UC Merced Writing Project and tries to work writing into all the lessons she is part of. She really believes that the reading writing connection is the key to literacy. Rhonda also uses the Big 6 model for many of her activities.
Rhonda describes herself as mostly Stage Two but always striving to be Stage Three. She is aware of the goals of a Stage Three librarian and they are always on her mind as she attempts to work with teachers.
- Sheryl Garman (Atwater High School Librarian)
This is Sheryl’s first year as school librarian at Atwater High School and she is feeling the challenge of being the new kid on the block. Sheryl was the district librarian for the local elementary schools for two years before making the move to AHS due to the potential cut of her position. Sheryl is working hard to become visible before she starts to approach her new staff.
Sheryl thinks that communication is one of the key components to forming a collaborative relationship with teachers. She recently created a library newsletter to help teachers realize all she has to offer them. Even though Sheryl understands that Stage Three is where she needs to be, she doesn’t think she has attained that level in any of her partnerships.
At the elementary district, Sheryl offered her services frequently but often ended up simply pulling the resources for teachers. She was familiar enough with the curriculum, for example, that she knew fourth grade would soon be studying Anne Frank soon so she would go talk to the fourth grade teachers about a library project. Her involvement would range from pulling books about the project and placing them on a cart to creating a web site with links for kids to use to for research. Sheryl utilizes the CSLA standards when planning and implementing projects. She hopes that her new position at the high school will allow her to teach more kids valuable information literacy skills.
- LK (High School)
This librarian was fortunate enough to inherit a library that was well organized and well used. She said that her biggest obstacle was getting to know the teachers so they would feel comfortable to plan with her. In an attempt to get out, she plans Book Talks in English classes every week and invites teachers to bring students in to check out books.
While developing curriculum units is high on her list, she sees time as an obstacle for both her and the teacher. The high school is a large, overcrowded school and she finds scheduling difficult for the school day. Teachers are also sometimes reluctant to work with her because they don’t know where to fit it in. But, she keeps trying by visiting collaboration meetings and sending out library newsletters.
This librarian is knowledgeable of all three stages. She says realistically she operates in Stage Two but she does strive to make it to Stage Three – someday.
My Reaction
I was surprised that each of the librarians was knowledgeable of all three stages and truly strived to be at Stage Three. They all thanked me for the interview because they said I reminded them how important it was to try to get to that Stage Three. It does seem that time is a huge factor in librarian – teacher collaboration and I hope to find some ways to overcome that.
Interview by Tracy Christopher
September 14, 2008
Speaking with Ms. L was very easy. She seemed very open to the stages that I described. After going over the stages, Ms. L explained that she thought the levels were consistent roles and very realistic. She actually saw herself at every level because of different situations. Depending on the class, she explained that she jumps around on the continuum: “With the English Learners, I may be on stage one; with the History department, I may be on stage three”. Thus, because of the teacher and the subject matter, she is not always at the same stage. Different needs and different relationships with the teacher can cause her to change and move to a different level. However, she always strives to be at the third stage but knows it is difficult to get there for every class and instructional focus on campus.
And now, with heightened needs of testing at the high school level, she rarely sees the standard core classes come into the library. Because of that, she focuses on developing stage three relationships with the electives, doing more activities and more developed lessons with these classes and teachers. Though these courses are electives, she is still reaching all of the students and helping them understand the library and the resources available there.
Interview by Tracy Christopher
September 9, 2008
Mrs. C has been in the education world for many years – 25 years as a teacher, 5 years as a Teacher Librarian. When speaking to Mrs. C, it is clear that she is very proud of her experiences as a professional. She also seems very guarded and unwilling to critique herself. As soon as I sat down with her, she was instantly bubbly and excited. Then, once I displayed the three stages of interface with teaching and learning, she immediately pointed to stage three. “You can’t be in any other place,” she exclaimed matter-of-factly. Then, in order to back her opinion, she explained that as a teacher, she has learned that one must interact with teachers constantly. “You can’t just be a librarian that shhh-es people, you have to be proactive” she explained. This was job security to her, the reason why she existed at this school and why the school wanted her there. Because she was a teacher in the past, she understood information literacy and that she was still a teacher as a librarian. Thus, to make sure the library was on the third stage, she taught the students about the library, conducted inservices and promoted literacy. She believed she was a leader on the campus, helping students understand the library and aiding the teachers with their curriculum.
Interview by Jessica Gillis
The third librarian I talked to was at S High School in Santa Cruz. She had been a librarian for 5 years and this was her 4th year at this library. She had received her teaching and library credentials in the mid-70’s but then didn’t work in the field until 5 years ago. When I asked her what she felt her role was she replied that it was to teach kids how to select quality work and appropriate resources and it was her job to direct the students in that. She stressed quality versus quantity. She did work with some teachers but not to the extent that she was at stage 3. She talked about wanting the library to have a welcoming atmosphere that was a safe place for all. There was a computer lab in the library and teachers brought classes in during which time she would work with the class and the teacher. There didn’t seem to be any planning for long-term or in-depth projects with her and the library. There is another computer lab in the school but the teacher who taught computer literacy retired and they were not going to replace him. Instead the English teachers were going to teach word processing, science would teach Excel, and History would teach Power Point. Mrs. B. was skeptical on how well that would work and was anticipating that she would end up teaching many of those skills.
Interview by Jessica Gillis
The second librarian I talked to was Ms. V at S High School. She has been the librarian there for 5 years, having completed coursework for her library credential before she received her teaching credential which she was able to do while working. When I asked her about her role as a librarian she said she is teaching students almost all the time and working with teachers collaboratively on the lessons. She then described the lessons she has been doing this week with the health classes. She went on to tell about how she has almost every period booked with classes and that she is “a victim of her own success”. I follow-up with a question about what she meant to which she replied, “well, I had Loertscher as a teacher”, (at which point I interrupted and said, “so do I!”), “so I made a point of getting out there to the teachers finding ways to work with them, telling them about a lesson I just did with one of their colleagues and suggesting that I do it with their class, etc.” I asked her if all the districts had such collaborative librarians and she did not think so. From what she has heard the other ones are more old school, checking books out to teachers rather than the students and some of them have to deal with the textbooks as well. Ms. V said she refused to do that, she felt that was a clerical job and not something that was part of her job. She divides her time between teaching information skills and book talks. She says not all teachers are receptive to her suggestions for collaboration. She described one teacher who, no matter what she said, would send 6 students in to get information off the computer and copy it into their reports (your typical bird unit) and she said no matter what she said she couldn’t change that. But since she was so booked she didn’t know how she would fit all the teachers in anyhow.
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Allyson McAuley
Library Interviews: High School Library Media Teachers
Interview 1
Librarian 1: Full-time professional Library Media Teacher, urban/suburban public high school with between 1,000-2,000 students, California.
Interviewer: Where do you think you are in the following 3 stages of teacher-librarianship, and why?
Librarian 1: “Stage 3, definitely. A lot of my teachers take advantage of the opportunity to collaborate. Just today I confirmed two different collaborations [that will take place in the future]. Why do I collaborate? One reason is job security. [If you work in stage 3] teachers depend on your input…This is why teacher-librarians are required to be classroom teachers too [and have a teaching credential]. Teachers say, ‘Wow, she really does get it.’
[Collaborative opportunities can be small and simple.] For example, as a teacher, I used to use a digital camera to take student photos and make a bulletin board with facts about each student. Now I have teachers coming into the library to borrow the camera and my lesson plan for that lesson…I read NEA magazine and sometimes, if there’s a good article, I email it to the appropriate department chair or drop it in their box. Same with any magazine articles (Time, etc). [This is a good way to reach out to Math and other departments that may be reluctant to use the library]. Collaboration can start as simply as an interchange with another teacher while you’re picking up your mail. You have to understand what it’s like to be a teacher and how busy they are…they really appreciate that.”
Interview 2
Librarian 2: Full-time professional Library Media Teacher, urban/suburban public high school, with between 1,000-2,000 students, California (same city as #1).
Interviewer: Where do you feel you are in your professional practice on the continuum of these 3 stages, and why?
Librarian 2: “I would find myself somewhere in-between Stage 2 and Stage 3. Often when working with teachers we do form a partnership--an instructional design team, and it's quite satisfying. I have worked as a team member with several teachers to build great projects. However, with NCLB many teachers find themselves stretched to meet the standards and standardized testing limitations. Much of the creativity has been taken out of education. Also, many teachers don't want to work as collaborative teachers - they don't know how to "play well" with others. I also find that some teachers don't want to "plan something else" - they'd rather hide in their classroom and hope no one else stops by - they feel they may be judged. That's why it's so important to build relationships with classroom teachers - a smile, a cup of tea of coffee, assistance in any small way, produces partnerships and comraderie.
It's very easy to fall into Stage 1, and some teachers are comfortable with that. But I work to push them beyond that - I suggest lessons or offer up - hey, let me look for some websites, or find something creative regarding ... (Great Gatsby, geographical terms, dance steps, etc.)
I believe that most school librarians utilize all of the stages, depending on the client. It's not nice to PUSH someone into doing something they don't want to do. It is far better to encourage, model, assist, and build on relationships. If we try to shove something down their throats we will never be trusted. We must begin with ‘baby steps’ and work from there. Being as friendly as I can, a smile, a kind word, works wonders. I don't want to drag them in kicking and screaming.
I'm not sure that any librarian could assess themselves at Stage 3 and hope to stay there every period and with every teacher. I aspire to be a Stage 3, but I am realistic. Time, money, and teacher experience will always be factors in building collaborative partnerships.”
Interview 3:
Librarian 3: Full-time professional Library Media Teacher, small rural high school, Texas. Formerly Library Media Teacher at interviewer’s school, Irvington High School, Fremont, CA, 2,100 students.
Interviewer: Where do you feel you are in your professional practice on the continuum of these 3 stages, and why?
Librarian 3:
“My work has elements of all 3 stages.
From Stage 1: ‘c) librarian is helpful to teacher/client and learners as they use materials,’
From Stage 2: ‘d) teacher/client and the librarian work together as the materials and info technologies are used by learners,’
…and from Stage 3: ‘b) together, as colleagues, they plan, execute, and evaluate an instructional sequence (a unit of instruction…etc).’
I would love it to be C (stage 3 c: ‘The librarian takes responsibility along with the teacher/client to help learners master content and process’) but often there is just not enough time!”
My Reaction to the 3 Stages At This Point:
It seems to me that most people’s work would realistically incorporate elements of all three stages, and that they might move up and down the continuum depending on the lesson, which teacher they’re working with, and how amenable that person is to collaboration. My first interviewee was the only one who described herself as “definitely stage 3,” but then proceeded to define collaboration very broadly, in some cases as very small and simple actions, rather than as having every lesson be a co-taught partnership from start to finish. She was not describing her job in the same way that Stage 3 is described in our assignment, but she was indicating that she is a collaborative librarian who has constant, two-way contact with the staff in many different ways. The others said they had elements of all 3 stages, even my interviewee #3, whom I’ve worked with in the past and whom I would have labeled immediately as a “stage 3 librarian.”
A stage-3-inclined librarian might also change schools from a “pro-stage 3” school to one that isn’t used to collaboration, and that librarian might have to move back down to stage 1 and work his/her way back up slowly, changing the school culture one teacher at a time. It seems like we have to be careful not to drop the ball on our Stage 1 services while we’re shooting for Stage 3, either—I can’t be so absorbed in the project I’m designing with one of the 10th grade English teachers that I forget to pull the books needed by the Health class coming in today. I liked what my interviewee #2 said about not pushing people, but instead making suggestions, building friendships, and trying to make it easy for teachers to start collaborating. Sometimes you have to start with one teacher or one department and let other teachers see an example of how well it works and how you can add value to their unit or lesson.
The level of collaboration also may depend on the type of lesson. I am currently starting a new job as a high school librarian, and I have had a class using the library almost every period so far—it’s busy! I am extremely involved with some lessons, and others not as much. Two weeks into my new job, I’m still learning how to do Stage 1 well (Where are the books on modern psychologists for Ms. Olson? What resources can I provide Mr. Gomez that are grade-appropriate and entirely in Spanish, when I don’t speak Spanish?) and Stage 3 is still out of my reach, although I’ve started to work in Stage 2. The teachers all want and need different things, and honestly, it doesn’t seem that ALL of the lessons need my help to be transformed into “non-bird units.” I don’t have time to do all of them this way, either. Maybe as I learn more, I will see more opportunities to transform all lessons, but perhaps, as Dr. Loertscher suggested in the last class, there are some lessons that don’t make great transformations, and in that case, maybe there are times when the librarian needs to work in Stage 1 or 2.
At this point, my reaction is that a good librarian would move up and down the continuum depending on the situation—that the stages describe one’s work in different situations rather than oneself (not a question of “stage 1 librarian” vs. a “stage 3 librarian”). I hope to spend most of my time in Stage 3, but I suspect I will always have times that I need to be Stage 1 or 2, and I would hope that my work experience and my education in library school can help me learn to see the difference between those times.
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High School Responses
Submitted by Erica Turner: LIBR 250-11
9/14/08
Question One:
What is your reaction to each of the three stages above?
Teacher Librarian Two: (An experienced librarian who has been working in the field as a teacher librarian for over ten years with many years of teaching experience gained in Canada. This person is a real asset and is a mentor to the other Teacher Librarians, both middle and high school, in the school district.)
The stages are powerful and the goal is compelling. I have been driven to do whatever it takes to move through the stages with many of my faculty.
Teacher Librarian Three: (This Teacher Librarian has worked in both middle and high school libraries for over ten years, in both Hawaii and California. She acts as the Destiny coordinator for the elementary, middle and high school libraries in the entire district. She has a sound knowledge of libraries in the school system and is an asset to the district.)
The three stages make sense. I see Teacher Librarians using all three stages depending on the project/teacher.
Teacher Librarian Four: (This Teacher Librarian has only recently returned to the school library system after spending many years in the Public Library sector.)
I don’t know, it seems a bit simplistic. I believe with some teachers you will never get past stage one and some teachers will always want stage three. Given the limitations of personnel and budgets for resources, I feel forced to spend more time in stage one and two than in stage three.
The stages do not consider anything beyond the teacher and librarian. Sometimes you can move up or down a stage with community (public library) involvement and or staff involvement.
Question Two:
Where do you feel you are on the continuum?
Teacher Librarian Two:
I am able to collaborate with individual teachers and/or with teams of teachers at any of the three levels. I used to aggressively seek to move teachers along the continuum to stage three - but sadly I found little district understanding, support or recognition or reward for me engaging teachers at this level. They (administrators) don’t seem to get it. Every time progress is made, they make my job harder by taking away funding or support staff.
Personally, I enjoy stage three the most because I feel I am able to make the greatest contribution. This is the essence of being a library media teacher. However working at Stage 3 and maximizing my contribution takes time and with insufficient support staff, I have begun to question whether this striving to work at this high level and the extraordinary effort and hard work it entails, makes sense.
Teacher Librarian Three:
It really depends on the project. There are projects where I am at stage three and there are those where stage one is all the teacher wants/needs for their students. Stage three takes more time & commitment from both the classroom teachers & teacher librarian. At my current school, there are probably only two major projects where I reach stage 3. The majority of my collaboration with teachers is probably at stage two. Every day, I experience stage one with students.
Teacher Librarian Four:
I would say I have reached a stage three but not here at my current high school. I have worked in smaller districts, with more funds and time for collaboration. In those districts I got to a three more than once. I find it extremely frustrating to know that I could be better and not be able to get there. But I think we must all keep on pushing ourselves. That is what we expect of our students, so can we ask less of ourselves?
L.E. Spear
Library Interview One
Type of library: High school library servicing grades 9-12 located in a rural community 150 miles from the Nevada/California border with a student population of 2150 students.
Staffing: one full time teacher-librarian and one full time paraprofessional library assistant
Librarian’s choice of appropriate library services stage: below stage one
Stage One:
• The librarian inquires what types of materials/information resources would be helpful to a teacher/client.
· Library services are very standard. Reservations are few. Majority of student services revolve around textbook use as the library is also the textbook center. A small number of teachers (5-7) visit the library regularly to check out reading books. The librarian attempts to inquire about necessary materials but many teachers do not respond. Students are more vocal; however, their requests for materials are limited by the library budget which is tied directly to the school’s general fund and does not exist independent of the overall budget. Some students and teachers make materials requests however the librarian is not aware of the standards and frameworks of the curricula. There are no online library services.
• The librarian helps the teacher/client locate materials for the learners to use.
· The librarian does attempt to help students find books however she is hampered by the lack of an online catalogue. The collection is on the second floor and the librarian sometimes cannot leave the circulation area to climb stairs to the collection. New items are few and 25% of the available area is taken by textbooks. The librarian does not use information literacy strategies and although computers are the most frequently used research tools, she does not review online resources or work directly with students on their online research.
• The librarian is helpful to teacher/client and learners as they use the materials.
· The librarian, by her own admission, is unaware of paid databases, or advanced search techniques. She admits that much of the research work is carried out independently by students. Some teachers do not accompany students to the library and choose this time to leave campus. Lesson plans and overviews of the project are often not available or require aggressive requests. She has also felt very intimidated by the preconceptions of teachers who do not understand the skill set needed to be a librarian and often confuse her with a clerical worker. The library is not open before or afterschool or during lunch which decreases the opportunity to interact with the school community.
Library Interview Two
Type of library: High school library servicing grades 9-12 located suburban southern California located 25 miles from Los Angeles with a student population of 3300.
Staffing: one full time teacher-librarian and one full time paraprofessional library assistant
Librarian’s choice of appropriate library services stage: stage two
Overall narrative: The librarian does work continuously to provide quality materials and is part of the curriculum and instruction program at the school. She has tied the library directly to all teacher pages in www.yourhomework.com so she is aware of new projects at the same time as students. She was not aware of IGoogle but is interested in testing them with students.The online services are updated every two weeks to add resources to the library website. Library use is tied to a dual calendar. Although she has often worked in collaboration with teachers, she admits that much of the time, she must offer the services to the teachers as they are unaware of library services. There are a number of bird units. Often she find herself focusing on moving students away from the surface web to the paid databases. Students often ignore these services because it requires them to remember the passwords to access them. Some teachers are unwilling to engage in more process based projects because they cannot get into the library to work on them in tandem. The librarians tries to go to classes to work directly with students if the library is not overpopulated. Because the library services provides numerous online services through LA Unified and materials for research often focus on the use of these paid databases. Accelerated Reader is used and the librarian often troubleshoots this system or help teachers match appropriate reading material to individual students. Planning prior to projects is largely dependent on individual teachers and she has noticed that some departments are more willing to collaborate than others (English). Other teachers still place the librarian in a peripheral role preparing bookcarts of materials rather than planning information literacy strategies. The librarian has noticed that if she speaks with teachers about curricula outside the library (in the staff cafeteria, for example) they feel less awkward and more willing to work together. Newer teachers are more open than more experienced teachers especially if the project is content based.
Library Interview Three
Type of library: private school library servicing grades K-12 located in affluent community 15 miles from Los Angeles with a student population of 1300 students.
Staffing: one full time teacher-librarian for grades K-6, one full time teacher-librarian for grades 7-12, one full time assistant librarian, one part time librarian/cataloguer, and one part time assistant librarian. All staff either holds teacher-librarian credentials and master’s degrees in library and information science from either UCLS or SJSU or is currently enrolled in a library and information science master’s program.
Librarian’s choice of appropriate library services stage: stages two and three
Overall narrative: based on overview of numerous library and teacher interactions, the librarian feels that the current library services program collaborates extensively with the faculty. The library is 7,000 square feet and can hold up to four classes. With the increased library staffing, some collaborations include three-four teachers, and four librarians working directly with students. The secondary librarian also teaches information literacy courses to all seventh grade students. The elementary librarian serves a population of 350 students and has worked in planning projects with all teachers in grades K-6. Both the secondary librarian and elementary librarian join with teachers in grades 6-9 to work on specific projects. The collaboration program has been in use for over four years, so both teachers and librarians have had the opportunity to review and reflection on projects. Although there are some “bird units,” the teachers have been very responsive to revisions to projects that allow students to focus on process and evaluation as well as content. Both librarians admit that upper grades are more problematic for collaboration because 11th and 12th grade teachers are reluctant to “interrupt” curriculum for library services and believe their students should do their own independent research at home.
Julie Boyer
Interview 1: Public School; Lower to Middle Class Demographic
This was the high from which I graduated in 1990. Since I generally expect things to improve over time, I had high expectations. The library was great when I attended. It had three librarians (I found out one was a clerk). Now, I know I can’t expect the building to still look as good, it has been almost twenty years, but what I found was a huge disappointment. The library is down to one librarian who has been with the district for thirty years. She has no assistance, not even from student assistants or TAs. I felt so bad for her! She was clearly aware of and wanted to be accomplished on the third level of our spectrum, but she just didn’t have the time. I would put her at level one with a few forays into level two with a couple of teachers who came to her to collaborate. She was very frustrated. She has a $5000 budget for the school year, which she cannot access until the state budget is signed. The school was even planning to take seventy-five percent of the computers out of the library without replacing them (she told me the jr. high was removing all computers from their library!). The librarian did not know the reason why. Her guess was that the school was worried about maintenance. The librarian, who referred to herself as a teacher-librarian, is a fan of Professor Loertscher, and was embarrassed that she had not been able implement any of his ideas. When I asked her what she would call her library if it was up to her, she said, “Information Portal.”
Interview 2: Private School; Affluent Demographic
This school is a huge contrast from the above public school. This library has two degreed librarians, one of whom also holds a credential. They have two part-time clerks to assist with basic library functions. The librarians’ main priority is information literacy. They use collaboration with classroom teachers and departments as a way to get into the classrooms as teacher-librarians. One librarian takes on the Math and English departments while the other takes the Science and Social Science departments. They divvy up other departments and teachers depending on who has more of a load at the moment. Much of their day is spent in collaboration and teaching. They are usually responsible for sections of class projects and assignments and often grade student work from the research process. These teacher-librarians were so far above level three that we might need to come up with level four or five!
On a side note, these librarian have been trying to encourage teachers and students to use iGoogle. They were very excited because right before I came in, they had found out that the most technologically reluctant teacher in the school was requiring her classes to use iGoogle and to print out the pages now and then to prove it.
Interview 3: Public School; Mostly Affluent Area, Mixed Socio-Economic Demographic
This high school is lucky in that it has a support base from the affluent Alaskan community it supports. Parents have helped greatly with funding to try to offset the budget cuts the school has suffered. Many students at this school are sons and daughters of the local university’s professors and other academic staff. The library has one librarian and one librarian assistant. The librarian feels she fits into the second level on our spectrum. She has had trouble getting teachers to be willing to work collaboratively. They often start working together then, for various reason, stop during the project. The librarian feels that she does not have the time to keep the projects started on track—she needs the teachers to share equal responsibility. Even though, she does still go out to classrooms and pays visits to teachers during prep period or after school when she can to invite them to work with her. One thing she feels has been helpful in teachers being open to collaboration is that the district has a master teacher/ beginning teacher mentoring program that encourages those teachers to collaborate.
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For this assignment, I attempted to contact a large number of local teacher/librarians in my county. I got few responses. On the suggestion of a fellow student (in 233), Sue Beckmeyer, I joined the CALIBK12 newsgroup online, which is a way to connect with LMTs across the state (and a few outside). This is a great resource that I endorse, if only to lurk, for other students. I posted an enquiry for email interviews and received almost 30 responses. This was very heartening. However, several people suggested that librarians being given regular classroom shifts contributes to the problem, reducing the time they have to respond to queries, and even closing the libraries in some schools.
I tried to summarize the questions and follow up, but the email exchanges didn’t have the flexibility of a phone or in-person interview. However, I was able to contact more people this way and thus a lot of information pertinent to my reading plan. I have picked three teachers who answered fully to use here. I use italics to indicate my own comments (I didn’t necessarily share all of them, as some are vaguely critical).
- How does your relationship the faculty and students work? Has it changed over time? How do you assist students and what process is there to find and receive information?
Librarian #1:
“Last year, as it was my first year and the school had not had a real librarian for a couple of years, I had to convince teachers that they could come to me as a resource. I had to prove that I was more than just a circulation desk. It took almost a half-year of suggestions, presentations, and having an open-door policy, but I finally got teachers and staff interested in what happens in the library. I, also, put out a monthly news letter called "Library Notes" where I inform teachers and staff about what will be going on that month. This year, I had teachers coming to me even before school started with project ideas, and my library spots have begun to fill up four weeks out. My library has now become a central point in the school. So, I would say that I have an excellent working relationship with the faculty that has developed over the course of a year.
1’s experience is a model of the same methods used in LIBR 250 (and 233), but note that it took 6 months achieve a relationship with the faculty.
Students, at first, were reluctant to come in the library last year, but once they saw that I was a "nice" librarian (even though I made them follow the rules), they began to come in, and slowly, my library became a centralized spot for students, as well. I started doing different themes every month, started book displays, found ways to get new books so that I could have a new books display (despite a non-existent budget), and created an art wall. I have colorful posters up and try to maintain a student friendly atmosphere. Due to these factors, and probably some others that I cannot enumerate here, I have students in my library before school, at lunch (big crowd), and after school.”
Librarian 2:
“My school district splits me between two schools--[school B] and [school A]. There wasn't a strong strong collaborative relationship between my librarian predecessor at [school B] versus the opposite of a different teacher librarian predecessor at [A]. Whereas teachers at [B] were indifferent to what kind of powerful teaching [that] could happen, the teachers at [A] were appreciative of still having a teacher librarian and forgiving of the learning that still had to happen so early in my new stint. In my first year of being a librarian, I observed and took a crash course at[a local Community] College to create curriculum and then taught Aragon 11th graders how to research for a controversial issues debates project while figuring out textbook checkout and adoption at [B]. There wasn't a process really for information literacy at both schools though I learned by individually assisting students at both schools.”
Librarian 3:
“I am in a unique position as I was [my school]’s 1st library media specialist. I began this position part-time during [my school]’s first year of operation when we only had 120 students. Second year, I became full-time. I had to write all policies, implement programs, and even decorate the library myself. I have never had an assistant. [My school] is now starting its 7th year with over 1,000 students. During that time, we have had a turnover of classroom faculty, so my relationship with faculty has changed over time due to turnover and change in my duties – plus a growth in my programming. Along with being the LMS, I also ran the bookstore, provided teacher materials, and ordered & sold all textbooks. This took a great deal of my time. I gave up the bookstore manager duties 2 years ago.
She notes the impact of work and lack of assistance in developing a library—but starting from scratch means avoiding pre-existing stereotypes and misguided decisions—this is very rare.
Relationship with faculty: I speak at faculty orientation and at faculty meetings during the year, explaining the library’s services and resources, so they know what I can do to co-teach, design projects, or lead classes for them.
I get a spreadsheet at the beginning of each year with teacher name and courses they teach, so I can make email lists. I use those lists to contact each department or subject-area teachers about special projects we can work together on. I actively pursue work from the teachers. I also ask them to suggest materials that I can add to the library collection, in order to support classroom curriculum. I get copies of syllabi from my Vice Principal, so I can review course curriculum and select units. Then I make suggestions to that teacher as to projects I can design around that unit. I have worked with some of these teachers for 5-1/2 years; others a lesser period of time, if they started 2nd year or later. I get to know which teachers are open to more library instruction, and who I have to go back to several times before I get a bite. I know which teachers want to co-teach, and who want me to run the show. You both have to be open to each other’s styles, seek feedback afterwards, and adjust instruction based on what worked and what did not work.
Relationship with students: I have library instruction built into all 4 years of high school, normally through our Freshman Success class and the English Department. The students get to know me right off the bat when they are freshmen due to the instruction they receive from me both in the library and in their classroom. I assist them with research, selecting reading material, and in the use of the computers in the library. My library is open until 7:00pm each evening, with another faculty member doing the 4pm to 7pm shift. I have students in the library at every break in the school day. I encourage them to email me with research questions and have helped students on weekends when they have needed it.
I think it’s interesting that it is the English department here which uses the library. It is, it seems, more of a challenge to incorporate the sciences into library collaborating, despite the importance of critical thinking in those disciplines.
Process to find and receive information: I am not really sure what is meant by this question, so I will answer with my interpretation of this question. Our library catalog (OPAC) is available from any Internet connection, so the students are taught to use the catalog at home or at school. We have subscription databases by EBSCO which the students can also use from any Internet connection. I teach them how to search and cite the databases. I accept email questions from students, even when I’m not at work. I am also trying a chat reference service using AIM 6.9 software. I have a chat page on my library webpage and am telling the students if they need reference assistance, they can try the chat feature on AIM. I will see how much this is used in the off hours and decide if it makes sense to join a chat consortium.”
- What is your relationship with information technology? How do you use it for patrons? Do you have any frustrations with this relationship?
Librarian #1:
“That is a loaded question. I assist students in various ways. Sometimes the help involves how to use the OPAC to find a book in the system, and sometimes it is how to find a book on the shelf. Sometimes students come for suggestions of books like the one they just finished. Sometimes students come for an SSR book and are pleasantly surprised with what we have. I have steered students toward authors like Ellen Hopkins or Jay Asher, and these students become readers, even if they were not before. When I hear a students say, "I don't read." I reply, "That's just because you haven't found the right book, yet." More often than naught, I get the response, "That's probably true." These are students that I feel very obligated to help. Then, I do take student requests, too, when we have a budget. Of course, I do a lot with English classes in terms of research and information literacy skills, and often students come in at lunch or after school for more help with
this. This year, I am trying to get interest in poetry by doing a Poetry Slam once a month, and we are trying to get a district Battle of the Books going, as well. So assisting students takes on many
dimensions, depending on what is needed.
One of my primary goals is to help students become information literate. Before any teacher does a research paper, I have the students listen to my PPT, and then they do an activity where they evaluate three websites (all fake) to see if they are legitimate sites or not. We reinforce the
skills they learn throughout the year with periodic reviews, one on one help, etc.
Sometimes I have frustrations with the lesson going in one ear and out the other, but most students do listen, especially because the information is new to many of them. When we reinforce the information while they are researching, it tends to sink in and alleviate some of the frustration on both ends. We constantly have to fight the apathy of teenagers, and the idea that a half-assed job is good enough, though.
Librarian #2:
“I am not a digital native, for I was an English teacher previously for 11 years and did the minimal of technology. When I became a librarian, I immersed myself to do what I could with what little base knowledge I had. I've since become a fan of technology and what it can do to enhance instruction though I may have some frustration with bandwidth or deficits in infrastructure to use it more powerfully in information literacy instruction.”
Librarian #3:
“My high school is a wireless laptop school. All students are required to provide a wireless laptop each day, which is connected to the Student Network at [my school]. The faculty are connected to the Faculty Network. The student’s side is locked down and filtered. The faculty side is not. When I teach a class, I ask the students to bring their laptops so they can follow along on their own screens, do online tutorials and participate in games I try to design for classes. For example, I use Jeopardy in a powerpoint so they can interact with the questions themselves and test themselves on the lesson presented that day. I do the Google Game with them, where we have a lesson on searching Google. Then I provide questions that they then need to answer with a partner by using what they have learned about Google. I also try to incorporate cell phones with surveys and other things. I use ideas from the book Toys to Tools: Connecting Student Cell Phones to Education by Liz Kolb. Cell phones are actually banned in the classroom at JSerra, but I try to incorporate them anyway, because the students respond positively to this. I attend the CUE conference in Palm Springs in the spring to refresh my technology skills. Frustrations with this relationship result from lack of support from administration, particularly our I.T. Department, who want to keep all social networking sites out of school. If I had open access with the students, I would incorporate SNSs into instruction. We are beginning a wiki project in one of our English classes this year. I have shown the students Second Life and the relationship between gaming and learning.”
- How much of a partnership/co-teaching role do you have with other staff? How do you learn about and assist in the curriculum?
Librarian #1:
“I do co-teaching every time a teacher comes into my library with a class. I help create projects with teachers and have a collection of hand-outs for these. This is especially important when the evaluators from WASC come through, as I can prove that teachers use my library for a variety of projects. As an example of working with a teacher, the Read-180 teacher asked me to look over the material that she will be giving to her students and help her come up with research projects. So,
I took the teacher's book home and brain-stormed projects for each of the nine lessons. I then gave her a copy of the projects that I came up with; she, also, brain-stormed. We will be comparing and contrasting our ideas later in the week. There are other ways that I work with teachers, too, such as when I wrote a proposal to get approval to use Rosetta Stone for the foreign language department and the English Language Development (ELD) department. Since Rosetta Stone is not part of the standard curriculum, I had to demonstrate how it aligned with standards and would augment the curriculum.
Since I was a teacher prior to becoming a librarian, I had prior knowledge of curriculum-related matters, although for younger grade levels. I do, however, have access to the standards for all subjects and grade levels. When I have done service learning projects with seniors, I have needed to align these projects with the standards and curriculum. When I help brainstorm projects, often teachers make me aware of the goals and expectations for that grade level in that subject area. Also, simply by chatting with teachers (and sometimes venting), I learn a lot. I would say that just by doing one's job, one learns more about and can assist better with achieving the goals set forth in the
curriculum.”
Librarian #2:
“I am now in my third year of being a teacher-librarian and my role as instructional partner has expanded greatly. Because I was an English teacher prior to becoming a teacher librarian, I know the language arts standards pretty well and can tease out what overlaps with information literacy instruction.
(after a follow up explanation of the question, she also wrote):
“Our organizational system is Destiny, purchased by the district. Destiny manages both our library books and textbooks for check-out to our students and cataloging. We do interlibrary loans of textbooks, but not of library books. I develop the collections at the library separately because the two high schools differ a bit on instructional focus. [School B]'s English teachers all have classroom libraries of high quality YA books that they check out to students through Destiny, and so I concentrate on improving their nonfiction collections to extend breadth and depth to the other curriculum departments. The fiction I do tend to buy at [School B] is geared to the interests and reading levels of our English learners. At [School A], the nonfiction collection is pretty robust due to its development by my predecessor, and so I order a lot of YA fiction that has proven already successful with [School B] kids. I also make recommendations to the English teachers of YA titles that are literary connections to their core literature. The 9th grade English teachers also assign kids to find a reading book at the library as part of literature circle, and so I'll order multiple titles of books for that assignment. I don't think our English Curriculum Council will ever let go of the idea of teaching a single book from the literary canon to all students each quarter--and so a student will read an average total of 7 novels or plays supplemented by reading from anthologies and articles. However, quite a few English teachers want their students to be lifelong readers, and so they're amenable to my suggestions of titles that appeal to teenagers in the required summer reading. Also many assign outside reading, allowing for more student choice.
We do have the Internet available at both schools. At [School B], I have two computer labs of 30 terminals each and at [School A], I have one lab of 35 terminals. We've a communication tool purchased by the district called School Loop, where our students check grades and assignments from their teachers and it also contains the library webpage for accessing the catalog and our subscription databases: Gale's Student Resource Center, Gale's Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center, Newsbank, Facts on File's Controversial Issues, Facts on File's Issues and Controversies in American History, World Book Encyclopedia and Encyclopaedia Britannica. A couple years ago, I also purchased NoodleBib for creating MLA citations. Most students at the libraries are checking School Loop, not Facebook or MySpace because it's a digital locker that also stores their Word or Excel documents for school. Our teachers are encouraged to use and assign Google docs though we have the site licenses for Microsoft Office 2003.
School Loop sounds interesting. These databases are sound, but kind of stereotypical. They also teach an unrealistic reliance on authority when we know very well that students use google and Wikipedia extensively and reflexively. I’m very Open Source-oriented and wonder about the ownership of knowledge that is promoted by ‘on high’ authorities—an essential Behaviorist teaching method.
As for information literacy, I'm getting more teachers in my third year of librarianship at both sites to bring their classes to the library for that instruction embedded in their subject content. For example, at Aragon, the health teacher and I will be planning to assign and teach freshmen not only how to use School Loop and find a book, but also to evaluate information from a website and database for an annotated bibliography which can turn into a research paper later. I also teach the Freshmen Humanitarian Project and later the Junior Lincoln Douglass Debates Project assigned in English classes. I also teach the A.P. U.S. History classes the research skills they need for their controversial issues paper. A teacher librarian really needs a supportive administration and school culture in order to collaborate with teachers.”
The controversial issues paper, while focused on critical thinking, tends to become the ‘bird unit’ of libraries. The public library I’m working at now has a whole range of potted issues books with different opinions for contrasting and discussing. But the issues are poorly packaged in this way. The books must be re-issued every few years to update them, and reflect the most common subject assigned, rather than student choice. Exploring blogs and other forms of online social discourse isn’t presented.
Librarian #3:
“I believe I already addressed most of this in the first question. I teach around 8 to 10 classes a month. Some parts of the year are busier than others. Library instruction slows down near exam time. From the teacher’s syllabi, I learn when a research paper is being assigned, and I make sure to discuss with the teacher what I can offer as help and instruction for their project. We have found that just-in-time instruction works best for high school students. They retain information and learn best when they have the immediate need for that information, e.g., when they have a 10 page research paper to complete. The departments I work with the most are English, Religion, and the AP Teachers – like Art History and European History. JSerra is a college prep high school, and we have a 100% go-to-college rate. We believe very strongly in not just preparing our students to graduate, but for their success in college and beyond as lifelong learners.
To that end, I have made it a point to partner with surrounding universities, like Soka University, UC Irvine, CSU Fullerton, Concordia University and UCLA, plus our community college – Saddleback. I have visited all of these schools and sat in on library instruction classes. I have interviewed freshmen students at the college reference desk to learn how prepared they felt for college. I have learned that most colleges have first-year experience courses, which are required for all freshmen and include a writing component and library instruction. They do this in order to prepare freshmen for college level writing and research. Thereby, I make my high school instruction program more rigorous in order to meet the demands that will be placed on my students as college freshmen. I also then have stories to tell my students that incorporate real-life into their instruction so they know what they will face when they go to college. The students really enjoy those applications. High school students always want to know why they need to learn something. If you apply it to real life and their future, they engage in their own learning more often.
I am on the Curriculum Committee. We meet once per month. I incorporate information from my membership on the ALA LIRT Transitions to College committee (a national committee that you have to be appointed to) into my curriculum suggestions in these meetings. At this time, we are working on including Information Literacy standards into our campus curriculum. Once those standards are fully integrated in coursework, my opportunities for teaching or co-teaching will increase, as teachers require my services to meet the new standards. The Curriculum Committee gets me face time with all the department heads, our Vice Principal of Curriculum & Instruction, and our Principal.
I also attend department meetings in order to convey information to a particular department or to learn what they are working on so I can suggest areas in which the library can assist.
It’s basically marketing the library’s services every week to classroom faculty – via email, face-to-face, at faculty meetings, and department meetings. Faculty are busy. You have to make it easy for them to incorporate the library into the classroom.”
One of the most important findings I have is the association of English and History to the library runs pretty deep. But I wonder if this is a problem, since students less interested in these subjects also need information literacy training. The same pattern holds at my partner’s school. She teaches writing skills (essays, mainly) in a lab within her community college’s library. In this case (to her and my benefit) the library abdicated oversight over writing research papers and merely gives a 1 credit class in finding information in the stacks and online.
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