3. ROLE OF THE LIBRARIAN

Australian School Library Association. 2004. Statement of standards of professional excellence for teacher-librarians

Professional knowledge
~ understand the principles of lifelong learning;
~ know about learning and teaching across curriculum areas and developmental levels;
~ develop a rich understanding of the school community and curriculum;
~ develop a specialist knowledge of information, resources, technology and
library management

Professional practice
~ engage and challenge learners within a supportive, information rich learning environment;
~ collaboratively plan and resource curriculum programs which incorporate transferable information literacy and literature outcomes;
~ provide exemplary library and information services consistent with national standards;
~ evaluate student learning and library programs and services to inform professional practice;

Professional commitment:
~ model and promote lifelong learning;
~ commit to the principles of education and leadership:
~ demonstrate leadership within school and professional communities;
~ participate actively in education and library networks.


My Professional Knowledge is still under construction. But, las with teaching, I believe that it is through being actively engaged in a real-life library context that my proffessional knowledge will be solidified. I have certainly found this to be true since begining paid employment in a library. My education degree has equipped me with understandings of the principles of lifelong learning and cross-curricular knowledge of teaching and learning. Specialist knowledge of information, resources and technology is continually being built and improved through theoretical information encountered during my university studies, practical experience working in the libraries and expanded via my own personal interest in cyber applications.

Lifelong learning is close to my heart. I have greatly valued the educational experiences encountered in my life, both formal and informal and believe that it is vital and that one never stops learning. I am committed to the principles of education and leadership as they lay the foundations for lifelong learning.

2. INFORMATION ACCESS and USE & TEACHING and LEARNING

My Masters studies have greatly increased my understanding of and appreciation for digital literacy. This has particularly been through the opportunities offered in CLN646: The Knowledge Hub: information services for dynamic learning and CLN601: Cyberlearning: Information and knowledge in a digital age. Both these subjects have challenged me to learn about and utilise various cyber applications including wiki, web, blog, PowerPoint, forum conversation and live chats. I have also had to think about how these may be incorporated into the curriculum and why this might be beneficial to students. I have written frameworks for Cyber-learning experiences (as an assesment item for CLN601 - I got a 7), pathfinders for inclusion on school websites and brochures that provide research tips and suggestions for students undertaking research (a hard copy of a pathfinder, if you will (see below), both for CLN646 assessment - I think I got a 6).

I have found the expansion of knowledge of cyber-space personally rewarding. I now have my own website, participate regularly in online forum discussions, use Windows Movie maker, created visual manipulations and posted videos on Youtube. Once I would have found the prospect of creating web-based documents daunting and intimidating; now I’m eager to continually experiment and expand my knowledge and capabilities in this area and see them as an area of great potential in educational contexts.

I feel that my teaching qualifications in English and SOSE (Geography) have given me a broad knowledge that is very employable in the library context. I find it easy to work with other teachers and understand what they want because of the cross-curricular applications of my teaching areas. I appreciate texts, the written word, the importance of information and how students can actively contribute to the production of quality information . This diagram that I formulated for my cyberlearning framework shows the cycle of information production and how students can be producers of information, not just consumers. It highlights the need for critical evaluation of cyber-resources for quality, trustworthiness, substantiation and reliable source. Use of critically evaluated information to inform the writing/critiquing process and production of Cyber-resource that is trustworthy, reliable and useful.

(h) Library Environment

While I have had not had any opportunities to re-design a library learning space, I do have an understanding of the importance of spaces for the learning process. This has been developed through the undertaking of CLN603: Designing Spaces for Learning. This provided theoretical knowledge of how spatial, psychological, physiological, behavioural realms can be affected by the learning space. Theoretical knowledge was put to practical use through the completion of a design project based on a real-life learning space. (I chose to do an outside space to make possible a range of interactive learning experiences. It got a 7.) In addition to this, while I was a classroom teacher I was notorious for moving furniture around in order to facilitate particular learning experiences. I know that the layout of the classroom can effect how students respond to, participate in and benefit from offered learning opportunities.

While working in the library I have contributed to the atmosphere of the library by preparing displays. This has included selecting books to be featured in the display as well as choosing and creating visual features to make the display eye-catching and appealing. Some of the displays I have created have been:

• Children’s Book Week display that made use of student artwork
• Social Justice display
• New books
• Seen the movie? Read the book!
• Jane Austen

This is often done with meagre resources and literally, with what I can find stashed in various nooks and crannies in library storage. This is an aspect of the job that I find both fun and
challenging; it improves the atmosphere in the library itself, increases interest in the resources that the library has to offer and often shows that the library is ‘in tune’ with the whole school community as the displays often mirror or respond to particular class or school activities.

I have also maintained the free-standing book display racks. There are about five of these. Two are for new and popular fiction books, one is for fantasy novels, one is for crime and particularly aimed at the older students and one is for biographical texts. These are often the first port of call for borrowing so it is important to keep them stocked, neat and tidy and appealing.

I also routinely keep the library presentable, making sure that chairs are left pushed in under desks, the floor and tables are rubbish free and the shelves are neatly packed. This just creates a welcoming, inviting atmosphere. There is nothing worse than a messy library!

(g) Personnel

I have observed teacher-librarian lessons at both primary and secondary levels. In lower primary they generally involve the Librarian reading a story then encouraging the children to borrow books and reminding them of borrowing procedures. In upper primary they begin to do tasks designed to get them to learn about finding resources and understanding the systems that make the library operate. In secondary school the initial library lessons are designed to familiarise the new students with the library and all that it has to offer. This naturally builds on the generic knowledge of libraries that students already possess. The librarian is also involved in teaching students how to use particular computer-based applications such as Photo Story, Power Point and web page design. They also teach the students how to access and use online databases, how to use the internet as a research tool efficiently and proper referencing procedures. Teachers often approach the librarians for assistance with locating resources, designing pathfinders and to discuss technology and information elements of their curriculum. I believe that my teaching background has prepared me very well for this aspect of the librarian’s role. I am naturally interested in technological applications and have a good understanding of many of those that are typically used in school environments. I am always looking to improve and extend my knowledge in this area so am an enthusiastic student of new technologies and eager to assist teachers to implement their use in the curriculum.

I particularly like how working in a library is team oriented. It doesn’t feel as isolated as regular classroom teaching. At Brigidine, and I’m sure this is the case in many libraries; the lines between job delineations are quite blurred. This has been of particular benefit to me as I have felt that I’ve learnt about library functions from the ground up and this has built a fuller understanding of the various roles of the library staff. It has also enabled me to be of assistance to the various volunteers who assist in the library from time to time.

Area Identified for further Development: Facilitating teacher-librarian oriented lessons

(f) Collection Management

The management of the collection is an important aspect of managing a library. Shelving is an inevitable part of the job. I have conducted shelving using Dewy Decimal system of information organisation in the general collection, teacher resources area and the audiovisual collection. Part of shelving is ensuring that the books have been put away in the correct order, reorganising shelves when they get too overcrowded and relocating books that have been left in the wrong place. Shelving work can be time consuming and tiring but there is something oddly satisfying about seeing untidy shelves transformed into neat, orderly rows of books. If only the students didn’t have to touch them so soon after it was done…

Periodically we cull books and other resources from the collection. Sometimes this is because new books simply won’t fit in the shelves, sometimes it is a more concerted effort where shelves are deliberately inspected for books to cull. We generally take a numerical bracket (say, for example, the 300s) and generate a report that shows the resources that haven’t been borrowed in the past five years. Then these are pulled from the shelves and examined. Sometimes it is obvious why they are not popular with the students – they may be obviously dated in appearance, the information may be out of date and sometimes the subject matter is just very obscure or of little interest to the students. In the cases of the sciences, economics or technology it is generally quite easy to cull because the information in older books is usually quite out of date and has been replaced by newer resources with up-to-date information. In the case of the social sciences, history and the arts it can be more challenging to cull because the information in these areas often retains relevance for a much longer period of time. In this case it is necessary to look at the collection and determine if the subjects have adequate representation in order to make an informed decision about whether to cull or not. I have observed that it is helpful to have a ruthless streak when culling; many librarians seem to be able to justify keeping a text on the slimmest of grounds and then nothing gets culled.

Part of management of the collection is covering and security encoding books to ensure durability and deter theft. I’m the first to admit that I’m not the fastest coverer in the word, but I’m pretty fussy about it and the end result is usually pretty nice, and bubble-free.

(e) Circulation / Loans

Circulation and loans is the daily lifeblood of the library. Processing loans and returns is a regular part of my duties in the library. I find it an enjoyable aspect of the job because it allows for opportunities for interacting with the students. Discussions about their chosen books and other interests often develop out of the loan process. Sometimes students will ask for assistance in locating particular resources and this too helps you get to know the students better. Seeing what the students are borrowing keeps you up-to-date with what is popular, what reading trends are sweeping the school and what is being studied in the classroom. I have also:

• Prepared resource boxes for teachers for use during research lessons
• Helped teachers find suitable resources
• Assisted teachers to locate a specific resource that they particularly want (sometimes from very little information to begin with).

I am familiar with overdue loan procedures and generate the weekly overdue list.

(d) Bibliographic Organisation

Cataloguing has been an important component of both my university studies and work experience. Constructing a reference database consisting of and describing print, audiovisual, digital and other items was part of the assessment requirements for ITN 275 – Information Organisation. Unfortunately, I no longer have the database that I built (as it was very heavy on the memory usage) but I do have this reflection that I wrote as part of the reporting stage:

The construction of the Medieval Mayhem Database has been a valuable learning experience regarding information organisation. It has been helpful to see how databases work from a perspective other than as a user of them. I am glad I completed the assignment on my own as I don’t think I would have learned as much if I had worked in a group. I believe I have gained a good, overall understanding of databases and their construction. If the project had been produced within a group context then, I believe, that the knowledge I have garnered from the task would be incomplete, or limited only to the sections I worked on. I learnt not by doing the DB/Textworks tutorial but from doing and experimenting with the program while the database was built. If I encountered a problem with or saw a deficiency in the database I solved it by experimenting with ideas or through trial and error. Thus my knowledge and understanding was constructed along with the database. I realise that if such a project was to be undertaken in the real world it would most likely be done with a team, but the realities of external study and time frames made group work an unattractive option. The database I have built may be simple in its functions and perhaps a group could have created a more sophisticated version, but it does the job it is designed to do and I learnt from the experience so I have to be happy with that.

I think the most interesting thing I learnt about databases is the power of the subject terms and thesaurus for assisting in information searches; if the subject terms have been poorly described or the thesaurus limited then this makes searching difficult for database users. I found when cataloguing texts that had multiple subjects (some over a dozen) I was faced with the dilemma of transcribing them in full or trying to limit them in someway. I chose to categorise all the subject terms into broad subject terms and employ the thesaurus to provide direction to users of the database as to what subject they should use when searching for a particular topic. After I had constructed the thesaurus I kept thinking of more and more subjects that could be included in the thesaurus and wondered if the categories I had used in the description were too broad. I made only minor adjustments to the thesaurus but realised that thesaurus maintenance is an ongoing task that is never really complete.
(Extract taken from ITN 275: Information Organisation, Assignment 2 – Bibliographic Database Project Report, written by E. Hornsby October, 2006)

It is interesting that even when I was relatively new to the world of cataloguing, subject headings stood out as an area of important consideration. This is still true for me now with more real-world experience with cataloguing under my belt. Part of my duties in the library has been using SCIS and ALICE to catalogue resources for the library and it is this combined with helping students locate resources has really made me see the importance of quality employment of subject headings. A particular resource may be the greatest thing in the world but if it can’t be found through the database then it is completely useless. I have, prepared and uploaded orders for SCIS, catalogued print and audiovisual resources using SCIS information and written descriptions and subject headings for particular items when no description is available. Even thought the library uses SCIS information for most of the listings we always check the subject headings carefully in order to add, remove or alter where appropriate. All biographical texts are re-classified as 920.

At Sherwood S.S. I often managed the book room where the class readers are stored using a context specific, unique cataloguing system (in which resources are organised by publisher and reading levels). The system demonstrated that libraries often design their own systems to suit their own specific needs. The system works, the resources are able to be located easily even though it doesn’t follow conventional cataloguing principles