While considering libraries in developing countries, I immediately thought of the weeding process that I am undergoing right now. When we have completed the weeding, the books will be donated to The Compassionate Warehouse, which is a Victoria based company (http://www.crwarehouse.ca/). Some of the Countries that receive donations include: Haiti, Laos, Ghana, Pakistan, Thailand, and Libya. 

The CRW is dedicated to helping others by sharing our cast-off abundance and wealth with those not similarly blessed. Our society has a superabundance of stuff that continues to have a useful lifespan. We gather these surplus items from our region and add them to new items crafted and donated by volunteers across Canada. All these goods, which may include quality medical equipment and supplies, clothing, linens, educational materials, tools, sewing machines, toys and bicycles, are carefully loaded into 40-foot containers and shipped. All items shipped are clean, appropriate and in good repair.

When I consider the books that are being shipped to these countries from my own library, I realize that many of these schools have their few books under lock and key and they are ultimately precious to schools. However, I do consider if these are the best resources for the students. Some of the materials are in good condition, but are out of date and would not be relevant for a student in my school. So these thoughts leave me unsure about what a better solution for these schools would be. By looking online, I found that some programs are working towards getting mobile devices to schools in impoverished areas. CODEcan (http://www.codecan.org/) supports literacy around the world by distributing books published in the local language. Some of the challenges they discussed include:
-Internet access can be very slow and minimal
-Phones don’t always work
-Letter mail can be very slow and unreliable

When we consider how this would affect the access of these resources it could certainly be challenging. As a school who does not have access to Wifi, I can understand how this creates challenges. However, some organizations are taking these challenges on. For example: Worldreader (http://www.worldreader.org/what-we-do/) has put over 944,300 e-books into the hands of 13,596 children in 9 African countries. Many of these books are in local languages. This organization has had major success with the use of ereaders for students and has increased their reading comprehension scores by 13%. They have also started a new program in which people in developing countries can also access books on their mobile phones:

For the first time ever, millions of folks in the developing world have access to a library of books using a device they already own: their mobile phone. With its application for feature and android phones, Worldreader is turning on its head the notion that reading e-books requires an e-reader, tablet or smart phone.

To give you an idea of the enormous scope and potential: feature phones are the largest segment of the global mobile market, with over 60% of the global mobile market share with over 5 billion mobile subscribers. In 2013 an average of 334,851 monthly active users completed 657,475 books on Worldreader Mobile. We hope to have 2 million people reading each month by the end of 2014.

This program truly is inspirational as they have found a way to support schools and libraries with information that is relevant to their culture, up to date and in good condition. By shipping used books, we cannot guarantee this and ultimately ereaders are the best way to learners. Watch the video below for more information on this amazing organization.

As I have begun to settle into my new role as Teacher-Librarian, I have also begun to consider how I can support the staff at our school with professional development and technology. Currently, I am working on connecting with the staff and ensuring that they feel comfortable coming to me with questions. Whether it is helping find them a book in the library or helping them to introduce inquiry based learning into their classroom, I want the teachers to feel that I am a good resource for them to use. At each staff meeting I have been presenting to the staff. Two weeks ago, I brought a selection of teacher resources to the staff meeting from another school that I worked at that has an excellent teacher resource section. I showed them some examples and then together we compiled a list of resources that related to our school goals and would relate to professional development. I also led a discussion on adding to our learning resources in which we have a budget to spend by the end of this year. We now have all of the resources that we discussed and are working on cataloguing them this week. I think a main goal when working with staff and supporting them is to have a quick turn-around whenever possible. Teaching is a busy profession, and it is easy to forget and have things pushed to the side. We always have good intentions to use new tools and resources but we are working against the clock it seems! So ensuring that the resources are available to staff when they need them is important.

Our teacher-resource section is very bare, and one of my goals was to add to this throughout this year. As I consider what this resource section should look like, I also consider its circulation. Teachers at my school rarely access the teacher resource section because it was located in a locked room that was out of sight. I consulted with the staff and asked them where would be a better place and they gave me their feedback. Now the resources are located in a central area in the library where teachers can quickly find the books. One teacher librarian told me that being a Teacher Librarian is largely about servicing the client. The client is the teachers, students and parents in the school. We need to ensure that their needs are being met and that means checking in with them regularly. If something isn’t working, we need to come up with a way for it to work for all members. This may mean speaking with teachers individually for feedback or bringing it up for discussion at a staff or staff committee meeting. In our practice, we should constantly be checking circulation rates and ensuring that our clients are making the best possible use of the resources that are available to them. If not, perhaps highlighting certain resources at a staff meeting or displaying some in the staff room would be a good solution.

To ensure that the teacher resource section is relevant and up-to-date, I find that it is no longer relevant to keep a file cabinet full of articles. It simply does not get used. Therefore the District has an ERAC bundle in which teachers can search through a database of articles to support their professional development. This form of resource is available to teachers at any point, from home or work, and they can keep the article on file if needed. The TRC (Teacher Resource Centre) is available through EBSCOhost and is targeted towards teachers. A goal will be to introduce this to my colleagues and show them how this is a good resource to support their professional development.

When I considered what I could do to support staff in our school that I wasn’t doing already, the list seemed endless. I realized however that I do need to be realistic and do a few things very well, rather than many different things done poorly. My goals for the school year include:

1. Use collaboration time to promote technology tools by showing students and teachers how to use a tool to enhance learning (Prezi, Wideo, StoryBird are my goals for this year).

2. Have regular mini conferences with staff to find out what units they are working on or will be working on. This will allow me to provide suggestions for resources that they can access that are in our school or are online.

3. Present regularly at every staff meeting to address staff questions or to present new tech tools they can use in the classroom or new resources to the library.

4. Ensure an open door policy so teachers feel comfortable approaching me whenever they need support.
5. Work on an inquiry project with two teachers and present at the staff meeting to help with buy-in, so more teachers will be willing to try collaborative inquiry projects next year.

As a new Teacher Librarian, I know that I need to work towards becoming a learning and collaborator in my school. This is done by being supportive, open and willing to help others whenever needed. By taking this approach, I hope that I will be able to support staff with their technology needs and encourage them to take risks and try new programs and teaching strategies with their students.

Here is an interesting video about a training program that teaches teachers how to use technology in the classroom. It is a two year program called eMints. It is interesting to hear about how this collaboration works:

In my District we are currently working on a Teacher Librarian inquiry project in which all the TL’s in the District meet once per month to work together on their individual inquiry. Through these meetings we are working on exploration of our own topics but also on the larger question which is how we implement technology into the learning commons. This support network is the best one I can think of because it is made up of all of the Teacher Librarians from all levels (Elementary, Middle and High School) in our District. Therefore, each teacher is bringing forth a different but relevant perspective. Because this team of Teacher Librarians is so cohesive, it is clear that we are committed to our positions and roles in our schools. We also have a District Collaboration Hub where we can post questions, reflections or concerns, which creates a definite sense of community within our profession. Last month was my first meeting, and I left feeling very supported and excited to be a part of this group of Teacher Librarians, and I know that this will certainly be a big part of maintaining my explorations and development.

To connect with other Teacher Librarians, I feel that conferences are an excellent place to do so. Last year, I attended Jean Prevost’s presentation at the Tapestry Conference in Victoria on Teacher Librarian’s and Inquiry. This was an excellent opportunity for me to meet Teacher Librarians from other Districts and to talk to them about their roles which are surprisingly quite different depending on the District. The BCTLA, Teacher Librarian Conference will be held on Oct. 24, 2014 this year. I’ve heard that this is also an excellent place to connect and share learning. Philip Balcaen’s keynote presentation is available here. He spoke on “New Challenges for e-Learning environments: Pitfalls and Possibilities. http://bctf.ca/bctla/conference/2013/PhilipBalcaen.pdf

Through this course, I have been learning about how I can use Tech tools to continue to support my exploration and development. Twitter is an excellent tool to support collaboration with people that may be in a different country. Twitter promotes conversation on a variety of topics that are categorized based on hash tags. By searching relevant hash tags you can join conversations and find new people to follow. This is one avenue that I have started to explore and will continue to do so after this course.
This link gave me some good information on using hash tags and a list of hash tags that are focused on educational conversations.
http://www.teachthought.com/twitter-hashtags-for-teacher/
Some that I may use include:
#ntchat (fornewteachers)
#edchat
#elearning
#EdApps
Another interesting avenue that many educators are exploring are large, free online courses that are offered without credit in which you can do as much or as little as you would like in order to participate. When looking into it, I noticed websites such as https://www.coursera.org/ that offered these as options. One course that I found was called ICT in Education. At the end, you receive a certificate and it appears that the course is very relevant for primary teachers and teacher librarians. This looks fascinating and although I have 2 courses on the go
right now, this may be something I will look to in the future.

Here is a video outlining the ICT course and children using technology:
ICT in Primary Education

Resources:
ICT in Education. Accessed from: https://www.coursera.org/course/ictinprimary

BC Teacher Librarians Conference 2013. Key Note Speaker Presentation. Accessed from: http://bctf.ca/bctla/conference/2013/PhilipBalcaen.pdf

The Complete Guide to Twitter Hashtags in Education. Accessed from: http://www.teachthought.com/twitter-hashtags-for-teacher/

In my mind, fostering a reading culture is a duty of the Teacher-Librarian, the administration and the classroom teachers. To truly foster a reading culture, everyone in the school setting needs to value reading and make it a priority in the school setting. Some of the ways I have done this include:

Family Read-In: Last year when I was working at another school library, we had a family read-in once a month. Parents, grandparents and community members were invited to read with kids all around the school. It was so amazing to see everyone reading for enjoyment. We would have buckets of library books in every room (computer lab, multi-purpose room, hallways) and students would grab a book and read for 20 minutes with a friend or family member. This really worked well and definitely fostered a culture of reading. It also allowed the kids to see teachers, parents, & community members all enjoying reading, un-interrupted.

Author Michael Kusugak storytelling at our library.

Author Visits: In our District we have money set aside from the District and PAC in each school to have author visits. Every year it is a different author but it really excites the kids. They get to talk to real authors about their jobs and begin to understand what a process it can be to publish a book. Students also make connections between reading and writing and are always excited to take out books written by an author they met!

10 Ways to Foster a Love of Reading
This author discusses that it is important to consider specific needs for specific populations. Thinking about school goals, and the themes that relate to the school you work in will help when selecting resources for the library.
http://www.edutopia.org/blog/cultivating-love-reading-students-elena-aguilar

Author Ann Walsh talking to the students about her experiences as an author.

Purchasing based on student Interest: I really like to set aside some of the money in the library budget to purchase books that meet student interest. Especially for struggling readers, purchasing books that will engage them is so important to me. As a Teacher-Librarian, I absolutely love seeing the excitement on a child’s face when they find a book they really love. Engaging them and encouraging them to love reading, is ultimately my job. I will often ask students about their interests and then order some books with certain students in mind. This week, I ordered some books on Lego. They were lower level readers, but I know some of the grade 3 boys who will be excited about these books. They are at their level and on a topic they are excited about.

Book Talks: I think part of fostering a love of reading is an excitement about books. When we get new books to the library, I love doing book talks to the classes and really building the excitement around the book. When kids come in to reserve a book, I know that they are excited about when they can get it and many of them come check every day to see if it has been returned!

Tumblebooks: These animated books really engage students and there are many popular titles. I show the kids how to use Tumblebooks from home to encourage them to use this resource. This is one of my favourite programs because it is a tool that kids can use independently regardless of their reading level. The books are read out loud and have animation and bright pictures. You can also access Tumblebooks (for free!) through the Greater Victoria Public Library by clicking on ebooks and more.
http://www.gvpl.ca/digital-content/ebooks-and-more/

Home Reading Program: This is my next goal for our school, setting up a home reading program that is run through the library and is school wide. I have spoken with some other Teacher Librarian’s in my District about what has worked well for them in their schools. There have been some great ideas! I think a home reading program can work really well because it ensures all kids are coming to the library regularly to collect their prize/get their next home reading sheet. It is a great way to engage with the students who aren’t regulars in the library. If anyone has any experience with a home reading program that they’ve seen work well at the whole school level, please share!

Partner with the Public Library: Last year, I had the Children’s librarian from the GVPL come to visit our school in June. She spoke about the program the Public Library offers during the summer and the summer reading program. Having her there definitely created excitement about using the library and encouraged kids to read over the summer.

Fostering a love of reading is a process but is important to focus on. As I start my new position, I am constantly looking for ways to engage my students with books and ensure that they are finding books they love in the library. Hopefully, by showing just how much I love reading, I will be setting a good example as well!

The research process was surprisingly more time consuming than I imagined. I think this was because I had so many topics that I wanted to explore and I was focused on finding quality resources that truly answered the questions that I had. Many of the articles that I found, especially on the topic of transitioning to a learning commons were directed towards middle and high schools. I had a hard time finding articles that were targeted towards Elementary school Teacher Librarians. I did come across some relevant blogs but chose to leave this topic out due to lack of resources. I found some great videos on differentiated instruction and student engagement that I spent a lot of time watching. These videos gave me relevant ideas and information about how to differentiate using technology and how to engage students with technology. Some of my key learnings in this area were:

“Students today are creating using digital tools. They’re not creating using analog tools. For us to feel like we really are connecting with our kids, and to make learning fun for our kids and meaningful, we need to meet them where they are” (Hertz, 2012).

Use the resources you have to the best of your ability. Maximize the technology you have in your school.

When students get involved in their learning and create, they are more invested in the learning than if they went and memorized facts from a history text book. Technology helps with engagement.

Collaborative time amongst staff should be treasured time. This means that the time is valued and makes a difference for the students. When staff is working together and are on the same page, the students are supported throughout their schooling.

Overall, throughout the readings and videos I looked into on the topic of differentiation and student engagement, it was unanimous. Technology supports differentiation and engagement, and this generation of learners responds to and needs technology in order to be successful, engaged learners.

“Has the range of technologies helped improve learners’ experiences and the standards they achieve? Or is this investment just languishing as kit in the cupboard? And what more can decision makers, schools, teachers, parents and the technology industry do to ensure the full potential of innovative technology is exploited?”
When I read the first page of the ebook: Luckin, Bligh, Manches, Ainsworth, Crook & Noss. “Decoding Learning: The Proof, Promise and Potential of Digital Education.” (2012). I truly felt that this book presented a fair and accurate representation of where we are heading with technology and how to use it with learners of this generation. The book asked many of the same questions I had and ultimately will allow me to explore technology in more detail. I think this resource will be one that I will work my way through in my spare time as it relates directly to what I’m hoping to implement in my new library over time. 

Some key learnings that I take away from this resource so far:

There has been a huge surge in the ability for people to access information, but there is also a huge need for teachers to support students in accessing this information. We need to teach students how to turn this information into knowledge.

There is no single technology that is best for learning. Technology is used to effectively support a variety of learning activities but we need to be critical about which ones we choose and what purpose it is serving.

We need to make better use of what we’ve got, instead of focusing on what we don’t have.

This process of exploration has left me with many more questions to explore and I feel as if I have only just started my exploration into the world of technology. The biggest lesson that I take away from this process, is to focus on using the technology in my school in the best way possible. Using technology for personal exploration will help me to try new programs and to use technology to engage students in our school.