change a teacher, suggestions for change...

Hello,

Suggesting changes/activities for teachers was in fact a difficult task. The suggestions that the CBAM article offered to help teachers move up to the next level respectively were a few professional development activities such as peer monitoring and workshops. These are great suggestions but are limited in scope. I do realize that the suggestions were given to be general due to the nature of the topic and not knowing how each will use the writing. However, I would love to design some pro-d days that meet the typical inquiries and concerns of teachers in incorporating resource references into lessons. From my interviewing of teachers for this assignment I discovered that the teachers I talked to barely attended pro-d events during the school year. They did not want to appear arrogant but felt that pro-d activities could not benefit them due to not covering their particular subject matter or because the pro-d activities were too simplistic or obvious in content. I realised before this assignment that pro-d days attracted thousands of teachers and now realise that there is a big opportunity to design activities to benefit those interested in utilising library resources. Yes, many teachers use the library but I feel there are several that do not. This trend of teachers overlooking the resources of their school libraries deserves some recognition and needs to be changed. In the future I will begin to design pro-d activities in a captivating way to interest those teachers not taking advantage of the libraries resources.

Thanks.
-Regen

change a teacher, limitations of the CBAM article....

Hello,
The tables and descriptions offered within the CBAM article were a great help in getting the user thinking about particular categories that people fit into regarding new innovation use and concern. After interviewing each teacher and gathering information about their levels of use and concern the next task was to fit each teacher into an accurate ‘level’ or ‘stage’. This process was pretty straight forward but suggesting and creating a plan to move a particular teacher to the next level was a little more difficult and extremely unique depending on the teachers experience and personality. As I began drafting plans to get teachers operating at the next level I quickly discovered that I was referencing more of the teacher’s personality most. In a perfect world, all teachers would be ready to change and open to all suggestions but this is not always the case. Even thought the ‘Change a Teacher’ project involved fielding suggestions for change from the teachers being interviewed, it does not guarantee that these changes will in fact take place. I then realised that constant monitoring would also be required to be sure that focus and change both exist. For example, one of the teachers I interviewed was quite challenging because his outlook towards the library was quite negative. For me to convince him to attend a workshop would be great but if the particular workshop failed to meet his inquiries and concerns then this could reinforce his preconceived perceptions.
Thanks.
-Regen

change a teacher, how well you know someone...

Hello,

Another obvious detail that was going to help during the information gathering stage was the level at which I knew the teachers I interviewed. Typically in an interview, the 2 people involved have never talked together and there is a level of unfamiliarity that sometimes prohibits the person being interviewed from sharing truthful feelings. In my case though I realized that the teachers I chose to interview I had known for a while and had therefore felt perfectly comfortable in communicating truthful feelings regarding the use of reference resources in the classroom. Sometimes those being interviewed will try and tell the person interviewing them what they want to hear and sincerity is the lost. Again, in my case, I am totally certain that the comments and feelings shared with me by those being interviewed were very truthful and sincere. Hence, in the future if I am planning to interview someone regarding topics from the field of education I will remember that the answers I receive from interview participants depend on how well they know me and how well I phrase the questions. The teachers I come to interview know all of their beliefs and ideas, and it is up to me to try and extract that information in the most efficient and unbiased way.

Thanks. -Regen

change a teacher, interview skills...

Hello,

In the initial stages of this assignment it was obvious that good interview skills were going to help when it came to interviewing teachers from my school. As described in the Reidling text, good interview skills are an important characteristic of teacher-librarians in surveying students on their research goals. I therefore felt it would be good practice for me to try and interview these teachers to the best of my ability. During the interviews I was looking for information regarding their library resource use, and their attitudes towards using library resources within their classrooms. I quickly learned that as the interviewer I needed to read into each response in order to better form the next question to extract the most information. As I interviewed more teachers I began to get more comfortable with the process and began to think of the interview as a discussion and not so much a question and answer period. During the first interview I was frantically writing all the details but in the second and third interview I left most of the writing until after each interview. From a teacher-librarian perspective, interview skills would be more of a question and answer format, but when one is interviewing for information regarding personal thoughts and feelings then a more structured interview is more appropriate and beneficial.

Thanks.
-Regen

My previous post....

Hello,

Just wanted to add that my previous post was inspired by Lenora's post that included the quote...."Another concern that I think relates to use of my time is my expertise. Over time I can learn more about subjects but evaluating a science reference would be difficult for me". When I read this quote I immediately agreed with the feelings of not being able to properly/efficiently critique a science or a social studies article because I predominantly teach math at the secondary level.

Further from this quote, I love its honesty. Everyone loves to be confident and show no fear, but in reality, there are times within the classroom where I forget something or don't remember how to explain something effectively. Eventually when I do begin working within the library I foresee there are going to be times when I don't know what my job is supposed to be, or what other responsibilities I have.

Our school is adopting a longer school day to address our schools overcrowding and so this means that our current TL won't be able to work the entire day. The administration knows I'm taking the diploma in teacher librarianship and have asked if I want to work in the library for the extra blocks. I'm very excited, but at the same time very anxious about what my duties will be and if I can execute them correctly. I'm truly looking forward to those first few days of working a few blocks within our school's library. I wonder if I'll like it? I wonder if I'll be successful at it?
All these questions run through my thoughts upon finally getting to work within the school library, and I'm looking forward to answering my queries/worries.

Thanks.-Regen

TL's helping students find resources....

Hello,

More on the TL’s role in the library, I loved the quote in the beginning of Riedling’s Chapter 1, p.3…’The half of knowledge is knowing where to find it.” This is a great quote and I believe this quote becomes more powerful as the level of technology available to students increases. There has never been a faster time to locate information on electronic devices such as cell phones/ipods/blackberry’s than the present. Students don’t need to remember factual data when that same information is held on a website just waiting to be accessed. Though a great feature of the internet is its abundant information, students and potentially TL’s have similar problems in evaluating online resources. With the advent of wikis, blogs, and free websites, anyone can become an online publisher of data. This creates an online atmosphere where one has to be very vigilant in finding reliable, scholarly sources. The precursor to differentiating between reliable and unreliable sources is a solid background in the subject area being studied. Obviously, due to the infinite range of research topics, one can’t be an expert in all fields/subjects. This knowledge gap in some subjects creates hesitation among students selecting resources and it also could potentially create uncertainty for the TL as well. There are resources that a TL and a student could consult such as online book reviews of a potential source. There would also be some critiquing required of the person writing the book review, but this should give the TL and/or student somewhere to begin.

Reflection regarding the TL's roles & responsibilities.....

Hello,

I’ve really found the Reidling text does a great job of outlining the theoretical roles and responsibilities of a typical TL. One of the first concepts I learned about was the topic of ‘reference services’. This concept was well-explained and I drew a diagram right on the blank pg. 2, to the left of its description in the Reidling text. The TL’s title is the mediator and I pictured information as flowing from all highways imaginable. The TL’s job is to metaphorically reach into this stream of information and connect the most appropriate information to the students. The word ‘appropriate’ relates to the process of the TL gathering prior information about the student and the particular research topic. A TL can continually find information about any topic. In order to make the sources more meaningful to the students, it’s a good idea for the TL to talk/interview students in order to acquire more information about the topic and make judgment regarding the grade level and/or ability of the student. If the TL suggests or provides resources that do not match up with a students abilities then the student could become frustrated and discouraged. If a TL suggests a resource for a student and the student does not see its benefit then the TL could potentially make a negative impact on a student and this student may not be as willing in the future to request the services of the TL.