Standard 3: Information and Knowledge
Candidates model and promote ethical, equitable access to and use of physical, digital, and virtual collections of resources. Candidates demonstrate knowledge of a variety of information sources and services that support the needs of the diverse learning community. Candidates demonstrate the use of a variety of research strategies to generate knowledge to improve practice.
3.1 Efficient and ethical information-seeking behavior
Candidates identify and provide support for diverse student information needs. Candidates model multiple strategies for students, other teachers, and administrators to locate, evaluate, and ethically use information for specific purposes. Candidates collaborate with students, other teachers, and administrators to efficiently access, interpret, and communicate information.
The above Collection Analysis and Management Plan shows precisely how librarians can assure they are meeting the needs of their patrons. This type of plan can highlight a problem area and find possible solutions for that problem area. When our group performed this Collection Analysis, we did just that.
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Our job in creating this Collection Analysis was to study, in depth, and evaluate, an elementary school library. In the steps to evaluating an elementary school library, I found and brought to light several problem areas. I collected data from students, teachers, and administration in a variety of ways. I then used the data I found to help come up with possible solutions for that library.
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Collection Analysis & Management Plans are a necessity when taking a closer look at your library. We create objectives, look at any milestones, summarize responsibilities, find any problem areas, create possible solutions. This Collection Plan is a living document in that it needs to be kept relevant and updated as much as needed, depending on the problems and solutions. The outcome of a successful Collection Analysis will be focusing on the possible solutions to problems found through this process.
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We need to keep our libraries current and relevant, and a Collection Analysis can do just that. We can find areas that our libraries may be lacking in and then create solutions to these problem areas to help better meet the needs of our students.
3.2 Access to information
Candidates support flexible, open access for library services. Candidates demonstrate their ability to develop solutions for addressing physical, social and intellectual barriers to equitable access to resources and services. Candidates facilitate access to information in print, non-print, and digital formats. Candidates model and communicate the legal and ethical codes of the profession.
Similar in some respects to the Collection Development Plan in that we are looking for solutions to problem areas, a Collection Development Plan helps the librarian set goals and create definitive strategies to reach and meet these goals. The librarian assesses the library in seeing that it is meeting the varied needs of all students, and then creates a five year plan to ensure that the library will meet these needs. Data is collected from areas of the library, the school, and the community surrounding the school. These will all help in creating data that will be used in making the 5-Year Plan.
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Using the school and surrounding community information and data collected from them to advocate for programs and materials in the library is one of the best ways to advocate for the needs of the library's students. Knowing who is involved is an important factor in putting together this plan.
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Being an advocate for the students that use the library is what we need to focus on, and rather not on being an advocate for the library. We must be involved in the community and get the community involved with us. A school is a great place to get the community involved. Cumberland County has many opportunities for its community to get involved with its schools from local businesses sponsoring schools, to reading programs like Reading Rocks that get the schools out into the community. With this Collection Development Plan assignment, I was able to get a clearer picture of the funding our school library receives and to the endless possibilities of outside donors I could call upon to help meet these collection needs.
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Advocating for the users of the library is our job. We must involve the community in our library program, so as to create a better, more useful, library system.
3.3 Information technology
Candidates demonstrate their ability to design and adapt relevant learning experiences that engage students in authentic learning through the use of digital tools and resources. Candidates model and facilitate the effective use of current and emerging digital tools to locate, analyze, evaluate, and use information resources to support research, learning, creating, and communicating in a digital society.
The above artifacts show how using different information technology can reach a greater audience at the same time as well as bring subject matter to a wider audience at the same time. With the technology that we have today, we can engage our learners in a way that the age of technology has made them accustomed to.
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The PSA shows how I am able to use technology to bring light to a popular topic: will eBooks totally wipe out the existence of print books? This was a fun topic to research and bring to light through a Power Point presentation. It was a quick and to the point method of bringing a topic into the discussion arena. Using technology like this can then facilitate discussions among our students in the library and engage them in higher level thinking.
The Professional Development assignment used technology to teach users how to access Destiny, the online catalog of the library. The flipped instruction within the Professional Development assignment allowed me to reach my audience ahead of time so I could get a feel for what they already knew and the areas they were lacking in. Technology makes it easy to reach a large audience at the same time. Everyone at the school has access to technology. Not everyone always knows how to use Destiny, so the flipped lesson was very useful for students and teachers to show them all the parts of Destiny and how they could use it to find what they were looking for. I keep this PD on hand digitally so that I can show it to new students and parents as well as people who have questions about Destiny while I may be teaching a class. In this way, I can continue teaching my class while at the same time, answering questions about Destiny. Part of 21st Century Learning allows students the means to take what they have learned and apply it to other situations to become problem solvers. The flipped instruction shows them how to use Destiny, but they can take this knowledge and put it into practice on their own.
3.4 Research and knowledge creation
Candidates use evidence-based, action research to collect data. Candidates interpret and use data to create and share new knowledge to improve practice in school libraries.
Using different forms of research, like a telephone interview for my research assignment and the different ways of collecting data for the Needs Assessment project, I was able to familiarize myself with the varied methods to collecting data and performing research. I was then able to interpret the data to find areas of strength as well as weakness and possible solutions to the weak areas.
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All of the above assignments had us collect data, interpret the data, and then use the data to suggest solutions. I learned different ways to collect data, as is evident in the Needs Assessment Project, and then how to interpret that data so that I could find ways to solve problems.
The solutions our group suggested, if put into practice, I believe would foster a better learning environment and use of the library’s resources and library itself.
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As an example, in the Needs Assessment assignment, our group found that a single copy of a book was not always enough. Having more than one copy of a book was preferred among the students, according to the data we collected, and so we made the suggestion to the librarian at the school. Multiple copies of books might take up more space on the shelves, but we felt that they would be checked out at such a rate that shelf space would not be a factor. This is just one of the examples of a problem/ solution area we found through our research and data collection. We found that this Needs Assessment was a great tool for librarians to use and have at their disposal to arm themselves with facts and data to propose things like more funds being allocated to the library. This Needs Assessment gave them the research and data at theirs and their administrator's fingertips.