This semester I was required to take IST661-Managing a School Library, and IST663-Motivating 21st Learners. I was thrilled to be able to take both courses, particularly 661. I've had experience doing cursory work in libraries, but I have not been able to really get into the nitty-gritty of the policies, operating procedures, budgets, etc. that make a school library (or any library for that matter) must have in order to operate smoothly. I was also excited about receiving a more in-depth learning experience on the inquiry process; and how I could take the lessons learned from 663 and apply it to lessons for teaching students inquiry skills. I have had some previous practice with learning the basics of the different inquiry models and how to transfer those skills over to students. The school I worked at in Hawaii had been moving towards a more Project Based Learning model of student learning, and I was able to research and dive into some of the concepts we would be learning about in Dr. Stripling's class. Plus, just to be able to say I had the opportunity to learn from Dr. Stripling was a treat! She's been such a positive force for the school library/library world, especially in regards to her inquiry model.
Lessons and Activities for IST661:
Both classes started off with introductions. Sue Kowalski was my professor for 661. She is a energetic force of thoughtful and creative insights and information about the management of school libraries. She required us to make a video introducing ourselves using the application Flipgrid. This was my first time using the application and it's one I will use in the future with students. However, for future reference note it is called Flipgrid for a reason, everything gets flipped, so be sure to explain this to students. The first is last and the last is first. Other than that I love video introductions, especially for online classes! It makes the class actually seem like a coherent group, rather than just those people you talk with online. Your able to put a face with the name and get a feel for a persons personality. I loved watching my classmates introductions and learning about them. Once again it was a bit of a struggle for me because of the "hotel situation," but I holed myself up in a quite place and knocked it out.
Here is the video I was able to post:
https://flipgrid.com/6a5590
While I was working on my video, I thought it would be neat to have students make a video about themselves during the first week of school that they could post on either a classroom website/blog or a school website. It would be an amazing way to include English Language Learners in an introductory event as well, and help them to feel comfortable with their school. A teacher could have students construct videos and post them on a digital portfolio platform and have students watch and comment on videos. This activity could allow students to quickly connect with one another, and have them begin to build a community environment in their classroom. Plus, the teacher could use this activity as a foundation to introduce digital citizenship and build upon those concepts throughout the school year.
In addition to using Flipgrid for introductions, classroom teachers can use it as an avenue for assessments. This application would be beneficial for students who may not feel comfortable speaking up in class. They could use it break out of their shell and really express themselves in a way they feel comfortable. Students would be engaged in the activity, because technology is being employed in a way to enrich a lesson and the classroom teacher could switch up from having to grade papers to watching a video to assess student learning. The uses for this application are endless, so much creativity could take place! From orchestrating a talk-show or news report, to having students use it for book reviews in the library and posting to a library website. It's a wonderful tool, and fun for both students and teachers. For more information on Flipgrid visit: https://info.flipgrid.com
In addition to our instructions, Professor Kowalski had us start thinking about and reflecting on our beliefs about school librarianship, the role of the library media specialist in today's future ready libraries/schools, and how those would transfer over to developing a vision and mission statement for our future learning commons and ultimately our goals as a library media specialist. This was an extremely thought provoking exercise for me. I started on notebook paper and found myself crossing out words and ideas, and ultimately switched to the computer, because well it was getting messy. Do not get me wrong, creativity=messy, but in just reflecting about it I was getting lost. I knew as time went on I would get my beliefs down more concretely and be able to construct and express them in a clear, concise manner, but that first week was a doozy! As Professor Kowalski told us, BREATHE DEEP.
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| My reflections on my library's mission. Disregard the messy handwriting and misspellings. My hand can't keep up with my mind! |
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