I like Spencer’s blog title, ICT stands for “I Can’t Think” (of one way that PC is better than MAC!). Because I am a hardcore MAC lover and a diehard PC hater, well….just had to let you know that I’m with ya on that one bro! But I digress…back to the task at hand: continuing to develop my skills, pedagogy and professional development in my library and beyond LIBE 477.

Teacher-librarian collaboration: Currently, this is my number one way of developing skills in my topic area of mastering Destiny Quest. Once a month, all the t-ls in my district who have recently made the OPAC switch to Follett’s Destiny Quest, get together for an after school collaboration session. Each month, we examine a new aspect of the program, what is working well for us, what isn’t, etc. This last session, we looked at cataloguing new books in our library. It is very informative and extremely helpful, as most of my “big burning questions” are answered and I go back to my school excited to implement my newest skill acquisitions!

“Professional development”: Love this photo from the National Library of Norway, 1946. What does it have to do with professional development? Not much. But Nicole’s blog really got me thinking about my own professional development and how it is best spent. She says that “after all these days are meant for learning, not just getting work done” (i.e. picture above). My job share partner and I recently booked the second of our bi-annual “professional development” days together in March.  It is sooooooo hard to work with a teaching partner that you don’t actually work with! So, twice a year we get together for the day. The first day is in the fall, and we make a trip to Vancouver Kids Books and spend a truckload of money. The second day is in the spring, where we close our library for the day and just plan, problem solve, talk, fix, process and laugh. This year, we are going to focus on how to catalogue. We are going to share what we have learned through trial and error and also through the collaboration sessions we have attended.

Social media: Of course, staying connected through blogs, twitter, pinterest, etc. is a key component of learning, developing skills and expanding one’s horizons. I am going to take some time after the course is done to really examine different blogs and find a couple that spark my interest. The Daring Librarian is a really fun, dynamic blog. It has lots of ICT content, ideas, media literacy and teacher-librarian professional development ideas.

Real professional development: Our school district offers many opportunities for professional development. I have the above “professional development” in quotes because it is more of a self created development, whereas our district has more formal opportunities on the SD33 website, PD Place. I plan to register for more sessions in areas that I need to grow in, chiefly, implementing technology with my students in the library. Although I have done small projects, most of my ICT learning is theoretical, not applied. I really am just beginning in my journey.