Laurel's+Site+3+Case+Study

LEARNING HUBS - CASE STUDY - SITE #3

LAUREL BALL n8043141

THE SITE:

Site 3 is a co-educational, systemic Catholic school located on the Gold Coast, QLD. The school opened in 2005 and currently has approximately 1300 students from Prep to Year 12 and a total of 125 staff. This is an expanding population as the school continues to grow. There is one library, staffed by two full-time Teacher Librarians (TLs). Other library staff include; two full-time Library Assistants and three Information Communication Learning and Technology (ICLT) Staff. For the purposes of this Case Study, the focus is on the role of the Head Teacher Librarian who mostly works in the secondary area.

ROLE OF THE LIBRARY WITHIN THE SCHOOL:

The library’s Vision and Mission Statement emphasizes the School Library’s role as a provider of “resources, services and programs” that are there to “enhance and support the curriculum so that students can develop skills to become lifelong learners.” The services centre around the collaboration with teachers to provide curriculum support whereas the programs focus more on the promotion of reading. The TL also emphasizes the role of the library as a resource centre commenting that, “learning does not happen without resourcing” (TL Interview, 15/03/11).

The library at this site has recently changed title to reflect its role and purpose more significantly. It is now known as the “i-Centre” (information centre). The TL believes that the role of a school library is to be part of a “networked school community” (TL Interview, 08/0311). This involves trying to create a closer educational relationship between the home and the school through the use of digital literacy. The TL says, “The library is the hub of the school, not just because of Information Literacy (IL) or Information Technology (IT), but because we are blending these areas together now” (TL Interview, 15/03/11). As part of this process, the ICLT Staff have moved into a room in the library which is known as the i-Help Desk.

ROLE OF THE TEACHER LIBRARIAN:

Brisbane Catholic Education’s (BCE) Role Description of a TL emphasizes collaboration with staff, advocating literacy and developing and managing information (BCE Role Description of a Teacher Librarian, 2009). The TL sees her role equally divided into three main areas; teaching, librarianship and administration. At this site, the TL’s initial focus has been to resource the library, establishing its position as the learning hub of the school. Now that the library’s resources and procedures are more established and since the addition of a 2nd TL in 2010, she has been able to focus more on the teaching and librarianship aspects of her role. This includes service such as: curriculum planning and teaching partnerships; advice and consultation in embedding technology in curriculum programs; teaching services to facilitate the guided inquiry approach, note-taking skills, writing bibliographies, locating information and using online databases. The TL has also been able to provide a greater variety of programs such as: library skills for Prep to Year 6, Literature Circles and Readers Cup.

PEDAGOGY AND CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT:

In terms of pedagogy, the TL’s role has been to develop strategies that allow inquiry based and digital learning to take place. These are the two strongly emphasized pedagogical approaches of the school. The TL believes that inquiry based learning relies on having a library that has a strong digital pedagogy. In accordance with this, the library aims to cater for: student-centered, shared, non-linear, multi modal and anywhere-anytime learning. The TL believes that part of her role is to ensure that the library environment and resources allow this pedagogy to take place.

In regards to curriculum development, the TL is seen as a consultant who the teachers can liaise with on a one-to-one basis. Because of the size and hierarchical structure of the school, the TL relies on individual teachers initiating time with her. She does not attend formal department meetings but has developed strategies in order to maintain input into the development of curriculum. This is done through a Student Manual that uses the Inquiry Approach as its framework and by facilitating the use of the Dimensions of Learning Framework to organize curriculum. She implements these dimensions by giving professional development at staff meetings and through the provision of resources as requested.

STAFF DEVELOPMENT AND COLLABORATION:

Because of her extensive experience, the TL plays a significant role in staff development. She is viewed by staff as an expert in pedagogy, IT and trends in teacher librarianship. This knowledge is consistently passed on to other staff members. She addresses full staff meetings and sends regular emails to staff about updates in ICLT and literacy. The TL was a QLD Representative on the ASLA Standards Committee and has recently worked with Mal Lee on a report about the role of the TL in the future.

The TL collaborates effectively with members of teaching staff, using a simpatico approach. She relies on the relationships she has already fostered with various members of staff for integrated instruction. The TL’s role with secondary classes is more about embedding curriculum, rather than as a relief teacher and as such, she has a flexible timetable. There is some friction between perceptions of teachers and what the TL knows to be best practice in her role as a collaborator.

INFORMATION & LITERACY DEVELOPMENT:

The development of Information Literacy at Site 3 is an area that the TL believes is a major part of her role. The aim of the TL is to have students engage in complex skills such as analysis, synthesis and evaluation. In reality, the TL’s role at the moment, focuses more on a Pathfinder Model where she provides support in locating and selecting information. The TL recognizes that this is an area of development and is currently working on a Draft Information Literacy Policy with the Head of Middle Years. They are developing a Scope and Sequence, Assignment Templates and Research Booklets for assessment tasks. The TL envisages that future professional development in this area will allow teachers to embed these tools and skills in their everyday teaching without the individual guidance of the TL for every class.

Literacy development is also an important component of the TL’s role. The aim at Site 3 is to “stimulate a love of reading, learning and inquiry.” (Library Vision and Mission Statement) The TL runs a Literature Circle Program for Year 9 English classes, a Book Club for staff and various author visits. The library space itself is filled with displays to encourage reading. These include window displays, themed reading spaces, featured book shelves and displays of book reviews written by staff and students. There are also book trailers on the student intranet, book sale days and the promotion of Book Week.

LIBRARY MANAGEMENT:

The overall management of the school library as a learning hub is the role of the TL. She believes that administration and management comprises about a third of her role. There is a heavy focus on the acquisition of resources and making them quickly and easily accessible. There is a shift towards the use of digital texts which the TL is managing with the ICLT Department. The TL is also currently managing the merger of ICLT staff into the library where she is facing some resistance.

The Library Policies and Procedures Manual outlines other aspects of management that the TL deals with on a daily basis. She manages the overall procedures for circulation, loans, collection, ordering, maintenance, staffing and missing resources. The library support staff play a significant role in this area with one Library Assistant positioned at the front counter and one in the workroom. These roles are often interchangeable.

VISIONS FOR THE FUTURE:

It is very important to the TL that she leaves a “good legacy” before she retires in a few years. Her goal is to retain maintain traditional library services but to incorporate ICLT services and make it a place that is open to “adaptive reinvention.” She would like to have a synergistic partnership with the ICLT staff and her challenge is to create this partnership “in light of what is best for learning.” (TL Interview, 08/03/11)

Another vision of the future is to increase the collaborative relationship between the TL and the rest of the staff. She would like to work more closely with staff on assessment tasks in particular. “I would like to make it a part of teacher’s routines.” (TL Interview, 15/03/11) The TL believes that this would lead to deeper levels of Information Literacy competency and thus assist in the creation of lifelong learners.