The more I learn the less I realize I know.

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Finishing up with another course, learning the ins and outs of Librarianship, absorbing the vast charts, graphs and lists that itemize my responsibilities and duties as a teacher-librarian, I find myself overwhelmed, and inspired! I know that I will continue learning for the duration of my career. The possibilities of improving the Learning Commons from its current state and possibly elevating it, not only to acceptable standards according to the AIL, but perhaps even meeting some exceptional standards is something to be excited and optimistic about. My biggest hurdle is to figure out a way to become more motivated, and less despondent about the current state of my Learning Commons funding. It seems that this will be an eternal struggle, books and literacy always seem to take a back seat to the current educational trend of the day. I'm going to have to learn how to be creative, tap resources, and educate and engage my school  community to care as much as I do.
As I'm only in my second year in the library I know I have a vast quantity of duties to still yet fulfill. Educating my colleagues, parents and administration is still a high priority and one that must be on my to-do list for the present and future.

This video by Melanie Sibley does a great job of outlining the various roles our job entails, along with the never-ending innovation and need for implementation. Ours is a job of continual reinvention.

"The Evolution of a Librarian", Melanie Sibley, TEDxMarcusHighSchool


I am so pleased to have taking this course on reference services and resources as I was fairly ignorant and uninformed previous to this course work. It will be a challenge to provide my students with an acceptable quantity and quality of reference materials. I enjoyed learning about the Deep Web, which translates directly into our role as information gatherers, and we must all realize that there are alternate ways to gather reliable information. Having the opportunity to analyze and evaluate my current reference section was an imperative part of moving my Learning Commons forward. This analysis helped to create precise goals in order to help my collection be more well-rounded and current. I also greatly enjoyed the opportunity to engage with a colleague that I hadn't before. I loved the opportunity that helped me to educate and instruct students on how to use our newly accessible online reference material. I know that this learning opportunity will help my students in the future. I look forward to introducing is resources to the entire school population as the years progress.

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Works Cited

Asselin, Marlene, et al. Achieving Information Literacy: Standards for School Library Programs in Canada. Canadian School lIbrary Association, 2006

Sibley, Melanie. "The Evolution of a Librarian", TEDxMarcusHighSchool, YouTube, June 14, 2016.

Comments

  1. Aaron Mueller6 April 2018 at 06:57

    A good look back on your new skills, awareness and understanding of the role of the T-L and the importance of a solid collection and reference services. Your growth and development over this course has been impressive, and your passion and energy for setting even higher goals and striving to overcome the challenges we all face in building a great space, collection and program is inspiring. You did a great job reflecting on this course, your new learning and the connections you've built. All the best in the future!

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