The Principal Connection: Educating Your Administrator to Value Your School Library Program Presentation for the 15 th Annual National Conference American Association of School Librarians Minneapolis, Minnesota October 2011 Facilitated by Judi Moreillon, Assistant Professor, and Becky McKee, Ph.D. Student School of Library and Information Studies Texas Woman’s University

Objectives for this presentation At the end of the session, the participants will be able to:  Articulate the key components of a school library program that matter to administrators.  Articulate the key components of an effective strategy to educate administrators regarding the roles of school librarians and the potential of the library program to impact student achievement and educator proficiency.  Access resources to support administrators in understanding and advocating for the school library program.

ELDR5223: Professional Development and Supervision in Education Pre-Survey  What is your current position, and in what district do you serve?  What will you look for in your school's library program when you begin your principalship?  What specific contributions can librarians make to the learning community?

ELDR5223: Professional Development and Supervision in Education Pre-Survey (continued)  What tasks do librarians perform that connect them to campus curriculum and instruction?  In your opinion, what is the difference between cooperation and collaboration?

Pre-Survey Data What will you look for in a school library program? 33% -- variety of books and materials 22% -- teaching reading and research 17% -- inviting environment 17% -- collaboration with teachers

Pre-Survey Data What contributions can a librarian make to the learning community? 33% -- instruct students 28% -- promote reading 22% -- provide materials 11% -- support school objectives

Pre-Survey Data What tasks do librarians perform that connect them to curriculum and instruction? 39% -- locate and “pull” books 28% -- teach reading skills

Cooperation - Collaboration  That everyone does their own part.  Getting along with someone to do a particular job.  Everyone bringing their own ideas and finding a way to make them all… work.  Complying with a request.  Just working together to accomplish a task.  Agreeing to something and being supportive.

Cooperation - Collaboration  We work together to get a common goal.  A group of people giving input in order to produce a specified product.  The group coming up with ideas together.  Working with a team of educators toward a common goal or objective.  When someone opens up their experiences with others in order to make a better environment for students.  Seems more intense.  Involves one in the planning stages.

What Every Principal Should Know… about Evaluating the School Librarian and the School Library Program Interactive Workshop: The Roles of School Librarians Facilitated by Judi Moreillon, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, and Becky McKee, Ph.D. Student School of Library and Information Studies Texas Woman’s University

Coteaching Images

Five Roles of the School Librarian  Leader  Instructional Partner  Information Specialist  Teacher  Program Administrator

Predictors of Student Achievement, particularly in reading and language arts  Planning with teachers;  Coteaching;  Teaching ICT (information and communication technologies);  and providing in-services to teachers (Achterman, 2008, pp ).

Predictor of Student Achievement in Standardized Tests in Reading  A study of National Educational Statistics 4 th -grade reading test score data and school librarian layoffs showed that fewer librarians translated to lower performance—or a slower rise in scores—on standardized tests. (Lance & Hofschire, 2011).

Five Roles of the School Librarian  Leader  Instructional Partner  Information Specialist  Teacher  Program Administrator Serves as teacher leader Takes a global view of the school Integrates 21 st -century skills throughout the curriculum Demonstrates commitment and knowledge Builds relationships and partnerships

Five Roles of the School Librarian  Leader  Instructional Partner  Information Specialist  Teacher  Program Administrator Develops policies, practices, curricula Collaborates with colleagues to co-design instruction, co-teach, and co-assess: academic standards, critical thinking, technology and information literacy, social skills, cultural competencies

Five Roles of the School Librarian  Leader  Instructional Partner  Information Specialist  Teacher  Program Administrator Integrates technology tools Creates engaged learning tasks Connects school with global community Models emerging technologies Models ethical use of information

Five Roles of the School Librarian  Leader  Instructional Partner  Information Specialist  Teacher  Program Administrator Empowers students to become Critical thinkers, enthusiastic and strategic readers, skillful researchers, ethical users of information Follows trends in reading materials Advocates for resources in all formats

Five Roles of the School Librarian  Leader  Instructional Partner  Information Specialist  Teacher  Program Administrator Provides equal access to resources Co-develops library’s mission, strategic plan and policies Manages staff, budget, physical space Partners with stakeholders and other organizations

1. Inquire, think critically, and gain knowledge. 2. Draw conclusions and make informed decisions, apply knowledge to new situations, create new knowledge. 3. Share knowledge and participate ethically and productively as members of a democratic society. 4. Pursue personal and aesthetic growth.

Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) Identify information needs then  Access  Evaluate  Manage  Integrate  Create  Communicate information using 21 st -century technology tools.

Standards

Keywords 6 th -grade ELA-R Research Follow a research plan Collect data from print and electronic sources Differentiate between primary and secondary sources Differentiate between paraphrasing and plagiarism Record bibliographic information Refine major research question Evaluate relevance and reliability of sources

Job-embedded Professional Development “The organic nature of the classroom-library collaboration model offers on-site, job-embedded professional development integrated into the daily practice of educators. Through shared responsibility, collaborators create opportunities for reciprocal mentoring and ongoing shared reflection….The opportunity to learn alongside a colleague as an equal improves teaching practices for novice as well as veteran educators” (Moreillon, 2007, p. 9).

Copyright-free image from Morguefile.com

Benefits to Educators  Extra resource  Promotes critical thinking  Coteacher  Integrates technology  Promotes enthusiasm  Assists in implementation and management  Helps to promote student and teacher learning

Benefits to Educators  Wonderful resource  Generating new ideas  Updated materials  Technology  Partner  Flexibility  Knowledgeable

Benefits to Students  Cart of books – info at fingertips  Better assessment due to collaboration/rubric  Person chosen for them/pairing helps classroom management  ELLs – highlighted, read-to text  Primary sources – authentic documents/pictures  Schedules synced so more time for research

Benefits to Students  Coteaching – best of both teachers’ perspectives  Collaborated to be more flexible  Use of technology – Glogster – poster yourself – engages  Alignment of TEKS/higher order thinking  New books – use of databases for more accurate info

Benefits to Principals  Student achievement  Leader – innovative, excited, motivating  Instructional partner – help absent students, note-taking, rubric tips, prior research experience (collaboration)  Info Specialist – online encyclopedia, student passwords, added resources

Benefits to Principals  Teacher – willing to use planning time, willing to make changes, help grade – coteach (without the cost of a coteacher)  Program Admin. – collection research  School climate improves  Job-embedded PD  Implementation of technology  Curriculum alignment

Comparison Pre- and Post-Surveys What will you look for in a school library program? Responses Prior to Session: 33% -- variety of books and materials 22% -- teaching reading and research 17% -- inviting environment 17% -- collaboration with teachers Responses After Session: 69% -- collaboration with teachers 23% -- certified librarian 7% -- professional development /campus leader

Comparison: Pre- and Post-Surveys What contributions can a librarian make to the learning community? Responses Prior to Session: 33% -- instruct students 28% -- promote reading 22% -- provide materials 11% -- support school objectives Responses After Session: 61% -- co-teaching with classroom teachers 15% -- train teachers 8% -- support school objectives

Comparison: Pre- and Post-Surveys What tasks do librarians perform that connect them to curriculum and instruction? Responses Prior to Session: 39% -- locate and “pull” books 28% -- teach reading skills Responses After Session: 38% -- provide a variety of materials that connect to the classroom 31% -- train staff

Self-Assessment – 5 Roles  Review the five roles as outlined in Empowering Learners: Guidelines for School Library Media Programs (AASL, 2009).  Rate yourself on a scale of one to five, with five being the most proficient in a particular subcategory of the role.  Note strengths.  Note areas for improvement.

Principal Interview Elementary Principal: Paula Godfrey's Testimonial Paula Godfrey's Testimonial  Paula was completing her first year as a principal at Gale Elementary in Tucson, Arizona at the time this video was recorded. While earning her principal certificate, her two youngest children attended a school with a well-developed model for classroom-library collaboration. She entered the principalship with high expectations for this model.

Principal Interview Middle School Principal: Dr. Ann PooreDr. Ann Poore  Dr. Poore is principal at Austin Academy for Excellence, a 6 th -8 th grade magnet school in Garland, Texas. The school motto’s is: “What do we do at school each day? We read critically, write eloquently, and solve problems creatively.”  She has worked closely with the librarian, Janice Borland, to integrate the library into the curriculum and to integrate Janice into professional development activities. She provides additional funds for annual YA author visits to the school and a variety of library activities.

Job-Embedded Professional Development Coteaching as a model for job-embedded professional development:  Coequal partners  Working together in real time with  Actual students  Taught curriculum  Available resources and tools  Within the supports and constraints of the school’s learning environment.

Job-Embedded Professional Development Third-Grade Teacher: Judy’s TestimonialJudy’s Testimonial  At the time of this recording, Judy was a third- grade classroom teacher. She worked extensively with classroom-library collaboration in order to support her students' inquiry learning.

Job-Embedded Professional Development 8th-Grade Language Arts Teacher: Karen's Testimonial Karen's Testimonial  Karen teaches 8th-grade at a junior high school. Although a veteran teacher, this was her first year at this particular school. In addition to booktalking and recommending resources for her class, she cotaught lessons with the librarian.

Job-Embedded Professional Development High School Student Teacher: Kelly's TestimonialKelly's Testimonial  Kelly was a student teacher in a high school English class at the time of this testimonial. She and the librarian collaborated from start to finish on every aspect of a Harlem Renaissance unit of study. .

Resources   Original 60- and 90-Minute Preservice Principal Presentations and Resources  AASL Presentation and Resources

References Achterman, D. L. (2008). Haves, halves, and have-nots: School libraries and student achievement in California. Denton, Texas. UNT Digital Library. American Association of School Librarians. (2009). Empowering learners: Guidelines for school library media programs. Chicago: American Association of School Librarians. _____. (2007). Standards for the 21st-century learner. Lance, K. C., & Hofschire, L. (2011). Something to shout about: New research shows that more librarians means higher reading scores. School Library Journal, 1 Sept /something_to_shout_about_new.html.csp Moreillon, J. (2007). Collaborative strategies for teaching reading comprehension: Maximizing your impact. Chicago: ALA Editions. Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills: English language arts and Reading. (2009).