At this point in the semester, my partner and I are now in the mid-planning stage of our collaboration project. So far, Nichole and I have been "meeting" online for the past three Saturdays to discuss our project and plan out what we hope to accomplish during the upcoming week. At the moment, things are going really well. We've been using Google Docs to write up our unit plan and have started creating pages within the wiki for each section of the assignment.
In terms of assignment tasks, I think Nichole and I have divided them fairly evenly. Since Nichole is a teacher at the school we selected, we decided she would work on the school narrative. Also, since Nichole is more familiar with social studies and the students, she has been gathering the appropriate standards, clarifying our essential questions, and writing up some of the unit objectives. As much as I can, I try to offer suggestions that I think will improve the unit. For my part, I have focused more on identifying resources for the students to use, gathering the AASL standards we will address, and planning out the research related lessons.
As for assessment, we are still thinking that we want to assess three aspects of the project: the written law brief, the in class presentation, and the research process. In terms of grading, Nichole and I decided that she would be responsible for grading the first two components and that I would be responsible for the research process. After looking at the AASL standards, I can now see that there are several skills and dispositions that I would like students to demonstrate as they research. I am thinking that perhaps we could have a rubric that covers aspects of the research process such as source citations, use of multiple sources, evaluation of sources, collaboration with others, etc. I may even include some self-assesment opportunities for students to complete as they progress through the research process.
Additionally, Nichole and I have begun to look at how we can address the needs and abilities of historically underrepresented students in our unit plan. In the case of Nichole's class, these students are primarily English Language Learners and resource students (students with IEPs or 504 plans) Apparently, her school has received a number of Middle Eastern refugees in recent years, some of whom have had little or no experience in a traditional school setting. Since Nichole has experience working with these students, she came up with two different sets of accommodations: 1 set for resource students and 1 set for non-native English speakers. Examples of accommodations we plan to utilize include cooperative grouping, use of a translator, use of visuals, extended time for assignments, and teacher created templates. I am also thinking we may want to utilize K-W-L charts to access the students' background knowledge. While the Middle Eastern students may not be familiar with the United States court system, they may be able to draw on knowledge of similar institutions in their home countries.
Sunday, February 20, 2011
Saturday, February 19, 2011
Week 7: Website Recommendation
Google Sites
Since this week the focus of our readings is on assessment, I decided to share the website Google Sites, which is basically an app created by Google that allows users to create a basic webpage. The best part is that the website can be created with little or no knowledge of HTML code!!! Other nice features include the ability to utilize web site templates, upload documents, and incorporate other Google apps such as Google Calendar. Like other Google apps, Google Sites also allows the user to determine the share settings, meaning you could have a group of students working together on the same website. In terms of assessment, Google Sites would be a great way for students to create portfolios of their work for a particular class.
Since this week the focus of our readings is on assessment, I decided to share the website Google Sites, which is basically an app created by Google that allows users to create a basic webpage. The best part is that the website can be created with little or no knowledge of HTML code!!! Other nice features include the ability to utilize web site templates, upload documents, and incorporate other Google apps such as Google Calendar. Like other Google apps, Google Sites also allows the user to determine the share settings, meaning you could have a group of students working together on the same website. In terms of assessment, Google Sites would be a great way for students to create portfolios of their work for a particular class.
Week 6: Website Recommendation
Authentic Education
Authentic Education is a company that offers training and support to schools looking to implement school change, improve student assessment, and align curricula using the Understanding By Design framework designed by Grant Wiggins and Jay McTighe. In terms of services, the company offers workshops, web conferences, action research, and other on and off site services. Specific to curriculum mapping, the company also provides an online curriculum design software called Curriculum Framer that facilitates the creation and maintenance of a school curriculum. While this method of curriculum mapping is costly, I really like many of the ideas behind the Understanding By Design framework and I think the types of services provided by this company would be useful if used by an entire school district.
Authentic Education is a company that offers training and support to schools looking to implement school change, improve student assessment, and align curricula using the Understanding By Design framework designed by Grant Wiggins and Jay McTighe. In terms of services, the company offers workshops, web conferences, action research, and other on and off site services. Specific to curriculum mapping, the company also provides an online curriculum design software called Curriculum Framer that facilitates the creation and maintenance of a school curriculum. While this method of curriculum mapping is costly, I really like many of the ideas behind the Understanding By Design framework and I think the types of services provided by this company would be useful if used by an entire school district.
Week 6: Curriculum Mapping - Response #2
Everett, J. (2003). Curriculum mapping and collection mapping: Otherwise known as "The Camel with Two Humps." In B.K. Stripling & S. Hughes-Hassel (Eds.) Curriculum Connections through the Library (pp. 119-137). Westport, Conn: Libraries Unlimited.
Focus Quote:
"As with curriculum maps, collection maps provide the 'big picture' of how balanced the library collection is in relationship to the school curriculum." (Everett, 2003, p. 124)
In Jo Ann Everett's chapter on curriculum mapping and collection mapping, she discusses the importance of using both types of maps in schools. Since I was already familiar with curriculum mapping, what I found most interesting in this chapter was her discussion of the collection map. According to Everett, "As with curriculum maps, collection maps provide the 'big picture' of how balanced the library collection is in relationship to the school curriculum." (2003, p. 124) I particularly liked that she focuses on the importance of developing a "big picture"view of the library collection - one that encompasses the library's past, present, and future. I think it can be very easy to get caught up in the day to day tasks of the present that you can forget to plan for the library's future in terms of collection. Doing a collection map, would certainly help a librarian to think more broadly.
Another part of the collection map process that I found interesting was Everett's recommendation for dividing up the library collection into Dewey sections and then evaluating each section individually. (2003, p. 125) This seems like a lot of work, but if I'm not mistaken there are two services available from Follett TitleWave (TitleWise and TitleMap) that would help expedite the process. From what I can gather from the TitleWave website, the TitleWise service provides collection analysis while TitleMap helps librarians map out a plan to improve their collection. Unfortunately, these services do come at a cost. Still, it might be worth it to have Follett do the initial analysis and then maintain your own records afterwards. I'd be interested in talking with other school librarians that have used this service.
Lastly, one other step of Everett's that I liked was her creation of a web room or a room where she assembled unit boxes containing numerous resources (books, videos, CDs, etc.) that a teacher might use for a particular unit. This is something that I would like to do more of at my school. However, I would expand Everett's unit boxes to include online resources as well as print materials and other physical resources. One way to do this might be to create a Symbaloo webmix or a webpage with relevant links for each unit.
Focus Quote:
"As with curriculum maps, collection maps provide the 'big picture' of how balanced the library collection is in relationship to the school curriculum." (Everett, 2003, p. 124)
In Jo Ann Everett's chapter on curriculum mapping and collection mapping, she discusses the importance of using both types of maps in schools. Since I was already familiar with curriculum mapping, what I found most interesting in this chapter was her discussion of the collection map. According to Everett, "As with curriculum maps, collection maps provide the 'big picture' of how balanced the library collection is in relationship to the school curriculum." (2003, p. 124) I particularly liked that she focuses on the importance of developing a "big picture"view of the library collection - one that encompasses the library's past, present, and future. I think it can be very easy to get caught up in the day to day tasks of the present that you can forget to plan for the library's future in terms of collection. Doing a collection map, would certainly help a librarian to think more broadly.
Another part of the collection map process that I found interesting was Everett's recommendation for dividing up the library collection into Dewey sections and then evaluating each section individually. (2003, p. 125) This seems like a lot of work, but if I'm not mistaken there are two services available from Follett TitleWave (TitleWise and TitleMap) that would help expedite the process. From what I can gather from the TitleWave website, the TitleWise service provides collection analysis while TitleMap helps librarians map out a plan to improve their collection. Unfortunately, these services do come at a cost. Still, it might be worth it to have Follett do the initial analysis and then maintain your own records afterwards. I'd be interested in talking with other school librarians that have used this service.
Lastly, one other step of Everett's that I liked was her creation of a web room or a room where she assembled unit boxes containing numerous resources (books, videos, CDs, etc.) that a teacher might use for a particular unit. This is something that I would like to do more of at my school. However, I would expand Everett's unit boxes to include online resources as well as print materials and other physical resources. One way to do this might be to create a Symbaloo webmix or a webpage with relevant links for each unit.
Week 6: Curriculum Mapping - Response #1
Vlasis, C. (2003). Librarian morphs into curriculum developer. In B.K. Stripling & S. Hughes-Hassel (Eds.) Curriculum Connections through the Library (pp. 107-117). Westport, Conn: Libraries Unlimited.
Focus Quote:
"The curriculum map is also useful to librarians because it allows them to make connections across grade levels and help teachers avoid repetitions in the curriculum." (Vlasis, 2003, p.112-113)
This week the focus of our class readings was curriculum mapping. This educational practice has many benefits. One of these benefits is curricula alignment. For librarians, this ability to view what standards and topics are being taught and when, is especially useful since they are in the unique position to collaborate with teachers from multiple grade levels and content areas. As Charlotte Vlasis states in her chapter on the librarian's role as a curriculum developer, "The curriculum map is also useful to librarians because it allows them to make connections across grade levels and help teachers avoid repetitions in the curriculum." (2003, p.112-113)
Just recently, at my practicum school, I witnessed a situation in which a lack of curriculum map hampered the ability of the school librarian to provide instruction. Basically, the school librarian was trying to plan out a set of lessons for freshman English students on how to search the web effectively, utilize databases, and import their bibliographic information into a citation maker. However, upon teaching the lesson, she discovered that half of the students had already received some of this same type of information while others were completely unfamiliar with it. Had the school librarians within the school district created a curriculum map for research skills the librarian at my school wouldn't feel pressured to teach a lot of skills in a short amount of time and could perhaps have focused the lessons on different research strategies.
Despite the many benefits of curriculum maps, as a former teacher, I can attest to how difficult it can be to keep a map up to date. With regard for making time to create and maintain a map, Charlotte Vlasis, states, "Scheduling the time to work on maps needs to be addressed before the process is begun, and a commitment to spend time on the maps has to be made by each participant." (2003, p.115) I completely agree with this statement, however, I would like school administrators to support teachers in this pursuit by providing professional development time on a regular basis for teachers to work on their maps. In my own experience, the professional development time allotted for curriculum mapping was often spaced too far apart. We would work on maps one day, but then it would be several months before we picked them up again. At that point, it was almost like we had to start all over again.
Focus Quote:
"The curriculum map is also useful to librarians because it allows them to make connections across grade levels and help teachers avoid repetitions in the curriculum." (Vlasis, 2003, p.112-113)
This week the focus of our class readings was curriculum mapping. This educational practice has many benefits. One of these benefits is curricula alignment. For librarians, this ability to view what standards and topics are being taught and when, is especially useful since they are in the unique position to collaborate with teachers from multiple grade levels and content areas. As Charlotte Vlasis states in her chapter on the librarian's role as a curriculum developer, "The curriculum map is also useful to librarians because it allows them to make connections across grade levels and help teachers avoid repetitions in the curriculum." (2003, p.112-113)
Just recently, at my practicum school, I witnessed a situation in which a lack of curriculum map hampered the ability of the school librarian to provide instruction. Basically, the school librarian was trying to plan out a set of lessons for freshman English students on how to search the web effectively, utilize databases, and import their bibliographic information into a citation maker. However, upon teaching the lesson, she discovered that half of the students had already received some of this same type of information while others were completely unfamiliar with it. Had the school librarians within the school district created a curriculum map for research skills the librarian at my school wouldn't feel pressured to teach a lot of skills in a short amount of time and could perhaps have focused the lessons on different research strategies.
Despite the many benefits of curriculum maps, as a former teacher, I can attest to how difficult it can be to keep a map up to date. With regard for making time to create and maintain a map, Charlotte Vlasis, states, "Scheduling the time to work on maps needs to be addressed before the process is begun, and a commitment to spend time on the maps has to be made by each participant." (2003, p.115) I completely agree with this statement, however, I would like school administrators to support teachers in this pursuit by providing professional development time on a regular basis for teachers to work on their maps. In my own experience, the professional development time allotted for curriculum mapping was often spaced too far apart. We would work on maps one day, but then it would be several months before we picked them up again. At that point, it was almost like we had to start all over again.
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Week 5: Website Recommendation
This week our readings focused on guided inquiry and inquiry-based learning models. Since inquiry often involves brainstorming and organizing one's thoughts, I decided to share a website that allows users to create online mind maps or visual organizers. Basically, to utilize Mindomo you add a central topic and then continue adding subtopics as needed. After creating a mind map, students can then save and export their maps as picture files. The one downside is that the basic free version of Mindomo only allows 3 maps per year. Despite this shortcoming, this tool could still be useful especially if a teacher has only a few big inquiry projects per year.
Here's an example of a Mindomo map.
Image: http://www.mindomo.com/maps/080a2a033949479b97c8e353cfa3c1af
Week 5: Early Planning Stage
Well, I am now in the early planning stage of my collaborative project. At this point, Nichole and I have firmed up our intention to do our project on the subject of social studies. Our focus will be on law in the United States, since Nichole is currently teaching this class. In terms of how we plan to collaborate, we have decided to utilize Google Docs, email, and possibly Skype. We didn't want to use any sort of calendar tool since we are both super busy people, but we tentatively agree to "meet" online Saturday mornings to discuss our project and establish weekly goals.
In terms of the unit itself, we are still planning on having students pair up with a classmate and research a Supreme Court case that deals with the Bill of Rights. After researching their case, students will prepare a presentation that showcases both sides of the argument. For student assessment, we are thinking of assessing three aspects of the project. First, we will use some sort of assessment to measure the students' ability to locate and identify quality information. Second, the students will be assessed on the written portion of their assignment. Finally, the third piece of assessment will be the partner presentation.
As for how the collaboration process is progressing, I would have to say "quite well." Nichole and I haven't encountered any major roadblocks and I think we work pretty well together. The only thing that I can envision being a problem, is finding times to "meet" online. Hopefully though, our Saturday morning meetings will be productive enough that we won't need to meet more frequently.
Well, that's all for now. More on our collaboration process to follow later.
In terms of the unit itself, we are still planning on having students pair up with a classmate and research a Supreme Court case that deals with the Bill of Rights. After researching their case, students will prepare a presentation that showcases both sides of the argument. For student assessment, we are thinking of assessing three aspects of the project. First, we will use some sort of assessment to measure the students' ability to locate and identify quality information. Second, the students will be assessed on the written portion of their assignment. Finally, the third piece of assessment will be the partner presentation.
As for how the collaboration process is progressing, I would have to say "quite well." Nichole and I haven't encountered any major roadblocks and I think we work pretty well together. The only thing that I can envision being a problem, is finding times to "meet" online. Hopefully though, our Saturday morning meetings will be productive enough that we won't need to meet more frequently.
Well, that's all for now. More on our collaboration process to follow later.
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Week 4: Website Recommendation
Doodle
This week, since our focus is collaboration, I though I would post a website that might come in handy if you are trying to set up a meeting with a group of people such as your school's English department. The website is called Doodle. This site is free and super easy to use. Basically, this site allows you to create an event, select date/time options, and send an email relaying the information to the event participants. The participants then vote on the time slots that work best for them. After they have voted, you can view a chart that highlights the best time for everyone. From there, you send one more email to your participants letting them know what date/time the meeting will take place. The best part is that all of this decision making can occur with only 2 emails! Other nice features include no required login, linking capability with other types of online calendars (i.e. Google Calendar), and mobile access (iPhone, etc.).
Check out this page for a short video on exactly how to use the site. Enjoy!
This week, since our focus is collaboration, I though I would post a website that might come in handy if you are trying to set up a meeting with a group of people such as your school's English department. The website is called Doodle. This site is free and super easy to use. Basically, this site allows you to create an event, select date/time options, and send an email relaying the information to the event participants. The participants then vote on the time slots that work best for them. After they have voted, you can view a chart that highlights the best time for everyone. From there, you send one more email to your participants letting them know what date/time the meeting will take place. The best part is that all of this decision making can occur with only 2 emails! Other nice features include no required login, linking capability with other types of online calendars (i.e. Google Calendar), and mobile access (iPhone, etc.).
Check out this page for a short video on exactly how to use the site. Enjoy!
Week 4: Collaborative Leaders
Abilock, D. (2002) Ten attributes of collaborative leaders. Knowledge Quest, 31 (2), 8-10.
Focus Quote:
"Leaders focus on horizon goals, not local crises or imminent deadlines. Many of these authors are hardcore dreamers; they have been thinking about the role of school library media specialists in teaching and learning throughout their professional careers. So, too, you have a life's work ahead." (Abilock, 2002)
The second article I selected to read this week focused on collaborative leadership. In Debbie Abilock's article "Ten attributes of collaborative leaders," she shares the collaborative attributes she has seen in the various school library leaders she has worked with on various task forces and projects. The very first attribute she highlights caught my attention right away. It is "Collaborative leaders envision the ideal and work backwards." (Abilock, 2002) She then goes on to explain this attribute by stating, "Leaders focus on horizon goals, not local crises or imminent deadlines. Many of these authors are hardcore dreamers; they have been thinking about the role of school library media specialists in teaching and learning throughout their professional careers. So, too, you have a life's work ahead." (Abilock, 2002)
This quote reminded me of two things. First, I just recently read the book Dreamer by Pam Muñoz Ryan about the poet Pablo Neruda as a child. It is a wonderful book and I highly recommend it for anyone who likes poetry. (Plus, it recently won the Pura Belpré Author Award for 2011!) But, what I loved most about this book was how it championed the qualities of a dreamer. In the book, Neftalí (Pablo's childhood name) views the world through a lens different from that of his family and, as he grows older, learns to stand up for himself and his dreams. This ability to dream, to think outside the box, and to stand up for our dreams is an important attribute according to Abilock and I couldn't agree more. School libraries today are in a state of change and we need to be dreamers that can envision the goals we want, communicate them to others, and fight to make them reality.
The second thing that this quote reminded me of was Dr. Nancy Larsen's interview that was recently posted to our class Blackboard site. In the interview, Nancy responded to a question about how to best manage one's time by saying that when she worked in a school she focused her time on two things: teaching and learning. Like Abilocks's first attribute, Nancy advocated spending the bulk of one's time on big picture goals and then using any remaining time for other tasks. I think this is great advice especially now that the role of the school librarian is changing to become more focused on instructional support. Additionally, I believe this attribute will help administrators understand the value of employing a school librarian in the school.
I'm looking forward to being a "dreamer" and to focusing my time on teaching and learning. I know it won't always be easy, but like Abilock says I have my "life's work ahead" to achieve it.
Focus Quote:
"Leaders focus on horizon goals, not local crises or imminent deadlines. Many of these authors are hardcore dreamers; they have been thinking about the role of school library media specialists in teaching and learning throughout their professional careers. So, too, you have a life's work ahead." (Abilock, 2002)
The second article I selected to read this week focused on collaborative leadership. In Debbie Abilock's article "Ten attributes of collaborative leaders," she shares the collaborative attributes she has seen in the various school library leaders she has worked with on various task forces and projects. The very first attribute she highlights caught my attention right away. It is "Collaborative leaders envision the ideal and work backwards." (Abilock, 2002) She then goes on to explain this attribute by stating, "Leaders focus on horizon goals, not local crises or imminent deadlines. Many of these authors are hardcore dreamers; they have been thinking about the role of school library media specialists in teaching and learning throughout their professional careers. So, too, you have a life's work ahead." (Abilock, 2002)
This quote reminded me of two things. First, I just recently read the book Dreamer by Pam Muñoz Ryan about the poet Pablo Neruda as a child. It is a wonderful book and I highly recommend it for anyone who likes poetry. (Plus, it recently won the Pura Belpré Author Award for 2011!) But, what I loved most about this book was how it championed the qualities of a dreamer. In the book, Neftalí (Pablo's childhood name) views the world through a lens different from that of his family and, as he grows older, learns to stand up for himself and his dreams. This ability to dream, to think outside the box, and to stand up for our dreams is an important attribute according to Abilock and I couldn't agree more. School libraries today are in a state of change and we need to be dreamers that can envision the goals we want, communicate them to others, and fight to make them reality.
The second thing that this quote reminded me of was Dr. Nancy Larsen's interview that was recently posted to our class Blackboard site. In the interview, Nancy responded to a question about how to best manage one's time by saying that when she worked in a school she focused her time on two things: teaching and learning. Like Abilocks's first attribute, Nancy advocated spending the bulk of one's time on big picture goals and then using any remaining time for other tasks. I think this is great advice especially now that the role of the school librarian is changing to become more focused on instructional support. Additionally, I believe this attribute will help administrators understand the value of employing a school librarian in the school.
I'm looking forward to being a "dreamer" and to focusing my time on teaching and learning. I know it won't always be easy, but like Abilock says I have my "life's work ahead" to achieve it.
Week 4: Fixed vs. Flexible Scheduling
Hurley, C. (2004). Fixed vs. Flexible scheduling in school library media centers: A continuing debate. Library Media Connection, 23 (3), 36-41.
Focus Quote:
"Johnson's article runs counter to generally accepted ideas reflected in library literature. He focuses on five arguments in favor of fixed scheduling (see sidebar on page 39), the most important of which is that "you can't teach kids you don't see." For Johnson, giving some kids great library skills (kids whose classroom teachers are open to collaborative efforts), and other kids no skills (kids whose classroom teachers are not open to such efforts) is simply not acceptable." (Hurley, 2004)
This week the focus of our class readings was collaboration. Since I am not very familiar with elementary school library practices, I decided to read the article by Christine A. Hurley on fixed and flexible scheduling. According to Hurley (2004), flexible scheduling, despite ALA/AASL support, is still widely used in many school libraries, especially those at the elementary level. Furthermore, there is still much debate among school librarians over which is the best method.
Doug Johnson, Director of Media and Technology for Mankato Public Schools, sparked this debate in October of 2001 when he wrote an article for School Library Journal titled "It's Good to Be Inflexible," in which he argued in favor of fixed scheduling. Referring to this article, Hurley states, "Johnson's article runs counter to generally accepted ideas reflected in library literature. He focuses on five arguments in favor of fixed scheduling...the most important of which is that "you can't teach kids you don't see." For Johnson, giving some kids great library skills (kids whose classroom teachers are open to collaborative efforts), and other kids no skills (kids whose classroom teachers are not open to such efforts) is simply not acceptable." (Hurley, 2004)
This quote resonated with me because it reminded me of the blog post I wrote for the first week of class on critical inquiry. In my post, I discussed how I agreed that critical inquiry should be part of library instruction, but could not foresee many teachers giving up class time for it due to the many standards they are already trying to cover within their own subjects. Now, after reading Doug's arguments, I wonder if fixed scheduling could be used to make time for critical inquiry? Plus, I do think he has a point in that we can't give skills we never see. In my own experience as a teacher, I know there were definitely some teachers who never used the library except to give their students free days to play computer games.
On the other hand, I can see the value in flexible scheduling. It does make sense that library instruction should coincide with student/teacher needs. Additionally, this flexibility gives school librarians and teachers the opportunity to collaborate before instruction occurs. One of the major complaints I hear from elementary school librarians is that they find if very difficult to find time to meet with teachers in order to collaborate because they are busy with students during the teacher's planning period.
Clearly, this is a problem that will not be going away any time soon especially given the fact that many elementary schools would have to hire more teachers in order to provide both planning time for teachers and flexible scheduling for school librarians. Hurley (2004) concludes her article with a call for more research (current findings are inconclusive) and a call for school librarians to remain open to to the idea that the real solution might be more related to library practices rather than scheduling type. This approach seems like a good idea to me, given the changing face of school libraries today.
Focus Quote:
"Johnson's article runs counter to generally accepted ideas reflected in library literature. He focuses on five arguments in favor of fixed scheduling (see sidebar on page 39), the most important of which is that "you can't teach kids you don't see." For Johnson, giving some kids great library skills (kids whose classroom teachers are open to collaborative efforts), and other kids no skills (kids whose classroom teachers are not open to such efforts) is simply not acceptable." (Hurley, 2004)
This week the focus of our class readings was collaboration. Since I am not very familiar with elementary school library practices, I decided to read the article by Christine A. Hurley on fixed and flexible scheduling. According to Hurley (2004), flexible scheduling, despite ALA/AASL support, is still widely used in many school libraries, especially those at the elementary level. Furthermore, there is still much debate among school librarians over which is the best method.
Doug Johnson, Director of Media and Technology for Mankato Public Schools, sparked this debate in October of 2001 when he wrote an article for School Library Journal titled "It's Good to Be Inflexible," in which he argued in favor of fixed scheduling. Referring to this article, Hurley states, "Johnson's article runs counter to generally accepted ideas reflected in library literature. He focuses on five arguments in favor of fixed scheduling...the most important of which is that "you can't teach kids you don't see." For Johnson, giving some kids great library skills (kids whose classroom teachers are open to collaborative efforts), and other kids no skills (kids whose classroom teachers are not open to such efforts) is simply not acceptable." (Hurley, 2004)
This quote resonated with me because it reminded me of the blog post I wrote for the first week of class on critical inquiry. In my post, I discussed how I agreed that critical inquiry should be part of library instruction, but could not foresee many teachers giving up class time for it due to the many standards they are already trying to cover within their own subjects. Now, after reading Doug's arguments, I wonder if fixed scheduling could be used to make time for critical inquiry? Plus, I do think he has a point in that we can't give skills we never see. In my own experience as a teacher, I know there were definitely some teachers who never used the library except to give their students free days to play computer games.
On the other hand, I can see the value in flexible scheduling. It does make sense that library instruction should coincide with student/teacher needs. Additionally, this flexibility gives school librarians and teachers the opportunity to collaborate before instruction occurs. One of the major complaints I hear from elementary school librarians is that they find if very difficult to find time to meet with teachers in order to collaborate because they are busy with students during the teacher's planning period.
Clearly, this is a problem that will not be going away any time soon especially given the fact that many elementary schools would have to hire more teachers in order to provide both planning time for teachers and flexible scheduling for school librarians. Hurley (2004) concludes her article with a call for more research (current findings are inconclusive) and a call for school librarians to remain open to to the idea that the real solution might be more related to library practices rather than scheduling type. This approach seems like a good idea to me, given the changing face of school libraries today.
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