I found Foley and Hays article 'Shaping our Profession'(2007) relevant to our Blogs. This sort of reflection is a way of developing and sharing knowledge and may lead us to feeling confident enough to contribute teaching experiences and ideas with others in professional journals perhaps at a later stage.
"While it is important to map the profession's journey in practice, the development of a strong body of research that is based on Australian practice is also fundamental to the shaping of our future. Hay and foley (2007)
"Over the years, Scan has published the writings of teacher- librarians, teachers and principals who have evaluated their learning and teaching experiences. Capturing these reflections in formal publications, such as professional journals, conference papers or book chapters, not only provides each of the writers with an opportunity to share their learning, it provides us with a wealth of evidence, a documented history if you like, of our profession's growth, challenges, changes and future directions." p24
Sunday, 18 September 2011
Priorities
Priorities need to be juggled. The number one priority should be student needs. Cooper and Bray suggest "The reality is there will be some tasks that just don’t get done and others that will be done minimally. “It is imperative, however, that the focus of the school library media specialist’s efforts remain on things that most directly impact instruction, efforts that often involve collaboration with
teacher colleagues.” Cooper & Bray( 2011)p55
I think it is easy to lose sight of the top priorities when there is so much that needs doing. Delegate admin tasks wherever possible and focus on student needs and motivating factors.
teacher colleagues.” Cooper & Bray( 2011)p55
I think it is easy to lose sight of the top priorities when there is so much that needs doing. Delegate admin tasks wherever possible and focus on student needs and motivating factors.
Saturday, 17 September 2011
Topic 4 - Information Literacy and Transfer
Information Literacy and Transfer
Herring’s article ‘Assumptions, Information Literacy and Transfer in High School.’ indicates that teachers including the teacher librarian generally make many incorrect assumptions about IL. These are as follows:
1. Information literacy is developed across the school
2. There is a common understanding in the school of information literacy
3. All students understand the concepts that lie behind information literacy teaching
4. Transfer of knowledge and skills is a key element of high school education
5. Students will transfer knowledge and skills across time and across the curriculum as a matter of course
6. Students and school staff will view information literacy teaching in a similar way
Teachers often assume that the information literacy practice is being taught by other staff. These assumptions can then lead to teachers relying on other teachers or the students themselves learning some of these skills themselves without any specific teaching or guidance( via osmosis). For effective transfer of information literacy to other KLA’s requires all staff not just the TL to have a responsibility to teach IL as part of the research process.
Herring’s recommendations (2011)– Teacher-librarians and teachers may be able to improve both learning and teaching in their schools if they : revise the way they teach, encourage and reinforce information literacy practices across the school.
• Teacher-librarians and teachers initiate a discussion of the transfer of knowledge, skills, and practices across the school, particularly in relation to information literacy.
• School senior management explore the ways in which a culture of transfer might be created in the school, taking both a top-down and bottom-up approach.
• Teacher-librarians and teachers seek the views of students across all school levels on developing and transferring information literacy practices.
This research was carried out in secondary schools and it has me wondering at what age should we really be expecting students to show IL transfer? Herring’s recommendations should also be taking place in primary schools. The foundations for IL must be set in the early years of school. Maybe it needs to become part of programming practice. There appears to be a need for an Information Literacy policy with a clear definition of what information literacy is and this would be the start providing a culture that encourages IL and it’s transfer into all KLA’s. Teachers have to consider Aboriginal Ed perspectives, multiculturalism etc , so maybe we need to start including information literacy as a component to be considered as part of programming also.
Herring’s article ‘Assumptions, Information Literacy and Transfer in High School.’ indicates that teachers including the teacher librarian generally make many incorrect assumptions about IL. These are as follows:
1. Information literacy is developed across the school
2. There is a common understanding in the school of information literacy
3. All students understand the concepts that lie behind information literacy teaching
4. Transfer of knowledge and skills is a key element of high school education
5. Students will transfer knowledge and skills across time and across the curriculum as a matter of course
6. Students and school staff will view information literacy teaching in a similar way
Teachers often assume that the information literacy practice is being taught by other staff. These assumptions can then lead to teachers relying on other teachers or the students themselves learning some of these skills themselves without any specific teaching or guidance( via osmosis). For effective transfer of information literacy to other KLA’s requires all staff not just the TL to have a responsibility to teach IL as part of the research process.
Herring’s recommendations (2011)– Teacher-librarians and teachers may be able to improve both learning and teaching in their schools if they : revise the way they teach, encourage and reinforce information literacy practices across the school.
• Teacher-librarians and teachers initiate a discussion of the transfer of knowledge, skills, and practices across the school, particularly in relation to information literacy.
• School senior management explore the ways in which a culture of transfer might be created in the school, taking both a top-down and bottom-up approach.
• Teacher-librarians and teachers seek the views of students across all school levels on developing and transferring information literacy practices.
This research was carried out in secondary schools and it has me wondering at what age should we really be expecting students to show IL transfer? Herring’s recommendations should also be taking place in primary schools. The foundations for IL must be set in the early years of school. Maybe it needs to become part of programming practice. There appears to be a need for an Information Literacy policy with a clear definition of what information literacy is and this would be the start providing a culture that encourages IL and it’s transfer into all KLA’s. Teachers have to consider Aboriginal Ed perspectives, multiculturalism etc , so maybe we need to start including information literacy as a component to be considered as part of programming also.
Information Process - Kuhlthau
I have been reading Kuhlthaus article The Process of Learning From Information She has made me more aware that information literacy requires a process to be followed. " A sense of process allows students to draw on a wide range of skills that they learn throughout their years of schooling for application in everyday living." Kuhlthau explains (in regards to) the abundance of information, "it is not the difficulty of access but the time, effort and difficulty of using the information that are deterrents to library use."
required to which muscertainly didn't take into consideration the affective domains of the information process as stated in Carole Kuhlthau's article 'The Process of Learning From Information'(1995).
The light bulb started to glow dimly when I considered my own learning and research in context with her process. The idea of information as a process rather than set of skills seems more logical now.
I could relate to the typical uncertainty and anxiety identified in her process model as I studied and moved through the research process.
" A wholistic view of the information user encompassing affective experience as well as cognitive aspects is needed.'p7
This knowledge allows us to prepare and reassure students about these feelings and address them as they arise.
required to which muscertainly didn't take into consideration the affective domains of the information process as stated in Carole Kuhlthau's article 'The Process of Learning From Information'(1995).
The light bulb started to glow dimly when I considered my own learning and research in context with her process. The idea of information as a process rather than set of skills seems more logical now.
I could relate to the typical uncertainty and anxiety identified in her process model as I studied and moved through the research process.
" A wholistic view of the information user encompassing affective experience as well as cognitive aspects is needed.'p7
This knowledge allows us to prepare and reassure students about these feelings and address them as they arise.
Monday, 12 September 2011
Developing Professional Dispositions and Competencies
Dispositions and competencies are something which I have given a lot of thought to whilst studying ETL 401. I located the e book titled 'Tales Out of the School Library: Developing Professional Dispositions' by Bush and Jones (2010).
Chapter 1 - "Dispositions' looks at the various points of view on student and teacher dispositions. The American Association of School Librarians identifies the following dispositions for students:
Display initiative
Demonstrate confidence, self direction, creativity, adaptability, productivity, leadership, teamwork, motivation.
Maintain a critical stance, openess to ideas.
Use divergent and convergent thinking.
Have and show an appreciation for social responsibility.
After reading chapter 8 -Communication, I considered my own emotional intelligence competencies.
The authors refer to Daniel Goleman's (1992) focus on emotional intelligence as an array of competencies that drive leadership performance.
these are:
self awareness- using emotions and using gut feelings to guide decisions
self management- keeping ones emotions and impulses in check
social awareness- interpersonal skills; ability to sense, understand and react to others emotions.
relational management - empathy, ability to influence, inspire, mentor and manage conflict.
Bush and Jones suggest that for TL's, relational dispositions are important. Rather than hide away in our libraries we need to step out boldy, communicate our role with succinct messages to our constituancies. If necessary we do this one teacher and administrator at a time. "Listening more than talking, knowing when to speak and recognising that variety(as well as flexibility) is the spice of Life."p69
The important idea I gained from reading these chapters is that we don't necessarily have all of these competencies or dispositions but
they are those which TL's should aspire to. Most of us would not possess all of them but they can be used to inform our practice and provide room for growth. They suggest that "dispositions are best acquired, taught and caught through modelling."p4 Teacher librarians must have acquired them first before they can model them for students.
I feel confident that I have the emotional intelligence for the job and feel sure that I have been and will continue to use it to promote good collaborative practices and advocacy for the role.
The challenge for me is how I will develop leadership skills which do not come naturally to me. My image of leaders has always been of strong, vocal, independent individuals . I know that Leadership is far more complex and yet it is still an area for concern for me as I don't see myself as a leader just yet. Perhaps I need to further investigate and re evaluate what effective leadership is all about.
Chapter 1 - "Dispositions' looks at the various points of view on student and teacher dispositions. The American Association of School Librarians identifies the following dispositions for students:
Display initiative
Demonstrate confidence, self direction, creativity, adaptability, productivity, leadership, teamwork, motivation.
Maintain a critical stance, openess to ideas.
Use divergent and convergent thinking.
Have and show an appreciation for social responsibility.
After reading chapter 8 -Communication, I considered my own emotional intelligence competencies.
The authors refer to Daniel Goleman's (1992) focus on emotional intelligence as an array of competencies that drive leadership performance.
these are:
self awareness- using emotions and using gut feelings to guide decisions
self management- keeping ones emotions and impulses in check
social awareness- interpersonal skills; ability to sense, understand and react to others emotions.
relational management - empathy, ability to influence, inspire, mentor and manage conflict.
Bush and Jones suggest that for TL's, relational dispositions are important. Rather than hide away in our libraries we need to step out boldy, communicate our role with succinct messages to our constituancies. If necessary we do this one teacher and administrator at a time. "Listening more than talking, knowing when to speak and recognising that variety(as well as flexibility) is the spice of Life."p69
The important idea I gained from reading these chapters is that we don't necessarily have all of these competencies or dispositions but
they are those which TL's should aspire to. Most of us would not possess all of them but they can be used to inform our practice and provide room for growth. They suggest that "dispositions are best acquired, taught and caught through modelling."p4 Teacher librarians must have acquired them first before they can model them for students.
I feel confident that I have the emotional intelligence for the job and feel sure that I have been and will continue to use it to promote good collaborative practices and advocacy for the role.
The challenge for me is how I will develop leadership skills which do not come naturally to me. My image of leaders has always been of strong, vocal, independent individuals . I know that Leadership is far more complex and yet it is still an area for concern for me as I don't see myself as a leader just yet. Perhaps I need to further investigate and re evaluate what effective leadership is all about.
Thursday, 8 September 2011
Critical Thinking
O.K I'm back tracking to topic 3. Hmmm Critical thinking. This I find difficult. I'm consulting the 'Critical Thinking Community' website to see if it can help me. I do a lot of thinking but find it hard to convey my thoughts using the right words. The website states "To make significant gains in the quality of your thinking you will have to engage in a kind of work that most humans find unpleasant, if not painful — intellectual work." Yes I would have to agree with that at times.
I know it seems logical but I'm going to try and reinforce the following things by thinking about my thinking, as suggested by the Critical Thinking Community Website.
Clarify thinking - Try to figure out the real meaning of what people are saying.
Stick to the point - Be on the look out for fragmented thinking, thinking that leaps about with no logical connections.
Question questions - Be on the look out for questions. The ones we ask. The ones we fail to ask.
Be reasonable - Be on the lookout for reasonable and unreasonable behaviors — yours and others.
Upon further exploration of the same website I viewed some of the 'Children's Guide Video Series' on critical thinking. These could be useful in assisting students in developing information literacy and the skills required to work collaboratively with others.
Here is one of them. (also on You Tube)
I have also used another great website on the various thinking skills. The Kurwongbah school website has some great ideas and contracts to use - see links
I know it seems logical but I'm going to try and reinforce the following things by thinking about my thinking, as suggested by the Critical Thinking Community Website.
Clarify thinking - Try to figure out the real meaning of what people are saying.
Stick to the point - Be on the look out for fragmented thinking, thinking that leaps about with no logical connections.
Question questions - Be on the look out for questions. The ones we ask. The ones we fail to ask.
Be reasonable - Be on the lookout for reasonable and unreasonable behaviors — yours and others.
Upon further exploration of the same website I viewed some of the 'Children's Guide Video Series' on critical thinking. These could be useful in assisting students in developing information literacy and the skills required to work collaboratively with others.
Here is one of them. (also on You Tube)
I have also used another great website on the various thinking skills. The Kurwongbah school website has some great ideas and contracts to use - see links
Monday, 5 September 2011
Joyce Valenza - The Game Changer
I got sidetracked last night by Joyce Valenza's 'The Game Changer' presentations for the School Library Association of Victoria. It was the next best thing to hearing her speak in person. There are four sessions to watch on You Tube. I have watched the first two sessions and went to bed with a head full of inspiration, new ideas, wonderful websites and tools to investigate and possibly use. Her ideas are probably more suited to secondary schools however. I would highly recommend watching these when you have time if you haven't already. They are long!
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