Impact

Cursory Review of the Administrator's Guide

   I view the purpose of the Administrator’s Guide as a resource for administrators to learn about the profession of the 21^st Century school librarian.  This is a tool that can be used to highlight the tasks and duties that school librarians are doing.  The profession is evolving and it is important to highlight the importance of the school librarian as a leader and collaborator in the school.  My cursory review of the Administrator’s Guide was looking at visual appeal and relevance of content. 

   The first thing I looked at was the visual appeal of the Administrator’s Guide.  There are two links to the Administrator’s Guide from the main page.  It is a navigational link on the horizontal toolbar and is a green box in the middle of the home page.  Clicking into the link brings you to a green page.  This is a different color than the rest of the pages on the website.  I am assuming this is intentional to make it stand out from the rest of the website.  I am not sure if this is necessary.  There is a drop down list from the grey navigation bar as well as a box on each page of the Administrator’s Guide with links to each page in the guide.  The two lists do not match in format.  In the grey navigation bar the topic program development has a sub list of pages.  I think the navigation bar and the green box should match.  The format of the pages match each other which leads to consistency.  There is a YouTube video on the home page of the guide.  This video is 17 minutes long.  I fear that the length of the video is too long to hold the attention of an administrator.  There is an icon on the pages of the guide for the Institute of Museum and Library Services.  I think the link to the website should be added.  Personally I feel that the font size should be larger to make it more readable.

   After reviewing the other pages in the guide I have a few suggestions.  The links open in the same window.  I like when the links open in a new page for a few reasons.  I like to have the original page remain available and I often click into additional links and lose the original page.  There are articles from BadgerLink in the website.  BadgerLink articles require an additional step to log into them.  I don’t think that is very effective and administrators may pass over them and the information will not be read.  There is a video linked on the Vision page.  I think it may be more effective and appealing to have the video embedded on the page.  There are some dead links that need to be updated.  Currently many of the links and articles refer to information from other states.  I wonder if the information would be more powerful if more of it came from Wisconsin.  I noticed that the job description and interview questions links on the Licensed Professional page open in a Word document.  I would rather see them open to a web page or PDF. 

   There are many features of the guide that I like.  Some of the features are that the pages are consistent, there are quotes from professionals on some of the pages, and peer reviewed information is referred to.  Highlighting the importance of the 21^st Century librarian is essential to building the program and having others view them as professionals, collaborators, and leaders.

Cursory Overview of Administrator’s Toolkit

            I reviewed the Administrator’s Toolkit portion of the UWSSLEC website from the viewpoint of a relatively uninformed administrator who is looking to see what libraries and librarians might look like in the 21^st century. First I looked at the site with a critical eye for visual appeal.  The green color was not pleasing and does not match with the blue of all the other pages in the drop down menu. Perhaps this intentional because all the other pages are dedicated to potential librarians and this portion of the site is dedicated to administrators. I like the blue, however, because of it’s appeal. The page itself is clean and not too cluttered. Navigation is easy and very user-friendly. What could be improved is the size and style of font – mainly the size. The way the text appears on the page makes me almost not want to read it. I think the administrator quotes are a nice touch.

            Access to the Administrator’s Toolkit is an important component. UWSSLEC wants administrators to find it and use it. When I Googled “school librarian license Wisconsin”, UWSSLEC came up fourth on the list of hits. I tried a few other key word searches in Google, and each time UWSSLEC or UWW (with reference to UWSSLEC) appeared third or fourth from the top of the list. I also tried every link for each strand of the drop-down menu in the toolkit. There were only a couple of dead links. Under Vision, What Should an Administrator Expect a School Library Media Specialist To Be? by Carl Harvey (Library Media Connection, October 2009: 45) was a bad link. Under Impact, School Libraries Work - Scholastic Library Publishing, 2008 was not an active link. Also, under Additional Resources, Church, Audrey (2009). The Principal Factor. Library Media Connection, 40-41. (Available through Badgerlink) was not a viable link. Those links should be checked and fixed. I think it’s a good idea to have the links open in a new window so the user does not need to keep using the back button to navigate to additional places within the site.

            Within the Administrator’s Toolkit, I believe it is a thorough and comprehensive overview of what a good school library program entails and why administrators should support the library. Some helpful additions to the toolkit would be to have more than one video to show a variety of ways the librarian helps to improve student learning. I also think a photo gallery of re-designed school libraries in the state, along with contact information so administrators could visit these libraries and talk to the district administrators and librarians would be helpful. One such district is West DePere, with Mike Slowinski being a good spokesperson for library re-designs. 

            I examined the UWSSLEC’s online resources for administrators to determine what was helpful about the site and what could be improved.

            First of all, I think the “Administrator’s Guide” link could be renamed to something like “For School Administrators” so that visitors to the site aren’t confused about the audience for the resources.

            The main page of the guide begins with an important quote, but the text does not stand out and grab the reader’s attention like the quotes on the main page of the UWSSLEC site that are featured with photographs of the student librarians. Also, it might be beneficial for the video to show up in the center of the screen as opposed to demanding that visitors scroll down to see it which makes it possible that it could be missed.

            In the sections that follow, the resources seem very valuable, but they appear in list form, which does not make them very visually appealing. I would also add that every resource should include a brief annotation as to the usefulness of that resource for busy administrators.

            In aligning the administrator resources to the 21^st century mindset, I think it would be important to include more multimedia resources within the site such as videos, blog feeds, slide shares from impactful presentations, and photos of 21^st century libraries.

            Finally, I would like to see the Glossary and FAQ section expanded as I think many administrators might rely on these two links for quick consultation. The FAQ could also be expanded to include problem-solution scenarios that administrators commonly face.

            I will be working with my WISE colleagues to further analyze and make suggestions for the “Impact” section of the site.

Keith Curry Lance, PhD is the founding director of the Library Research Service at the Colorado State Library, and the lead researcher on several school library impact studies in the United States. This presentation demonstrates the importance of teacher and administrator involvement in school library programs in Idaho and Indiana with important implications for all public schools in our nation.

This presentation was created by Joyce Valenza, a teacher-librarian at Springfield Township High School in Pennysylvania. In a succinct and concise manner, she urges administrators and citizens to consider how library media specialists impact student achievement.

Robin Hosemann

Janet Sager

Laura Wipperman

Learning is what most adults will do for a living in the 21st century.
-S.J. Perelman

Wisconsin Study Results - this article links to a state resource and should remain in the toolkit

Key Study Findings - this links to a state produced PDF and should remain

Common Traits - this links to a state produced PDF and should remain

School Libraries Work - This is a publication from Scholastic Library from 2008.  The link does not work.  The correct link is http://www.scholastic.com/content/collateral_resources/pdf/s/slw3_2008.pdf

Another paper that is similar to this is http://digitalreshift.org/files/adminguide.pdf  This article was written by Christopher Harris, Coordinator, School Library System, Genesee Valley BOCES Le Roy, NY.  This paper gives a guide statements about what a librarian does and also gives links to evaluation tools for assessing school librarians. However a few of the links are broke, but the links to Texas and Tennessee work.  The Tennessee document was revised in 2009.

School Libraries Make a Difference to Student Achievement - This article was last updated in 2008.  It comes from International Association of School Librarianship.

What's it Take? - This article is from Gary Hartzell, a professor at the University of Nebraska.  The paper references resources that are dated.  The most current is from 1998. This article is written like a research paper and is not very dynamic.  I think this article should be replaced.

Frame of Reference:  School Librarians and the Educational Ecosystem - This article is from 2009 and is dated.  It references NCLB.  A more current article that references the Common Core State Standards.

Recommendations

• Keep the first 3 links
• Find current articles that are dynamic
• Find articles that make reference to the librarian and CCSS
• Find or create a presentation that could be used as a presentation or easily viewed by an administrator

            In the article Library Media Programs and Student Achievement: Research and Research-Based Practices for Library Media Specialists and Education Leaders (2009), Andy Spinks of the Cobb County School District Library Media Education Department in Georgia has compiled and summarized some of the most current and important research on the impact of school library media programs on education. This article is a valuable resource for school administrators to help explain the importance of school library programs.

            Spinks cites studies by leading researchers in the field such as Keith Curry Lance, Carol Kuhlthau and Ross J. Todd. He begins with a powerful reference to the research that demonstrates the 10-20% higher reading achievement score data for schools that have strong library media programs (1).  Spinks goes on to elaborate further on four factors within library media programs that impact achievement. He clearly identifies these elements that administrators may not be aware of as follows:

• High staffing levels
• Collection size and quality
• Use of library media centers by students and staff
• Collaboration with classroom teachers to teach information literacy curriculum standards

            In terms of staff, Spinks summarizes the research that supports the impact of certified library media specialists on student achievement, and that the number of support staff matters more when the district employs certified library media specialists. In other words, a large number of support staff alone did not impact student achievement. The studies cited in this section of the article would be important to investigate if school districts are considering eliminated certified library media specialists in favor of staffing libraries with support personnel, because the certified specialists are the only ones who can deliver instruction in information literacy that is essential to student achievement (1).

            Spinks goes on to summarize the research that discovered how funding for collections impacts student achievement. While the idea that well-funded collections are important to student achievement may be obvious to most educators, the importance of having a certified library media specialist to manage the collection is often overlooked. The role of the library media specialist is essential in ensuring that collections are kept current and that they include access to online resources. The library media specialist also plays an important role in weeding collections, making sure that collections are well-balanced, and helping patrons access the collections. It is important to note that certified library media specialists are the only individuals qualified in making determinations in these areas (2).

            Facility use is also important in student achievement as Spinks outlines in the next section of the article. He cites studies that demonstrate how longer open hours for school libraries coupled with the ability to access online resources outside of school hours are the factors most influential on student test scores. It is important to note that the research also supports a flexible schedule model for facility use as being more influential in student achievement because it supports the two areas that are deemed most “educationally-productive”: individual student visits and collaborative instruction with classroom teachers (2).

In the section devoted to collaboration, Spinks focuses on how information literacy instruction through collaborative work with classroom teachers is one of the most important factors in student achievement. One specific factor covered in the article is the model of co-planning, co-teaching, and co-assessing information literacy instruction that is integrated into the curriculum versus simply teaching library skills lessons in isolation. The article also points out that the role of the library media specialist as a leader in collaboration efforts is important to setting the tone in a district or school for the collaborative practice that improves student learning.

            After summarizing the most current research on the impact of school library media programs on student achievement, the article has a very useful section on the implications of this research. This advice is clearly outlined in one page to correspond with the four key factors that increase student achievement. The final section of the article shares implications for principals. This page could be a very useful guide for administrators who are already supportive of the library program to clarify what is needed to maximize student achievement. This includes avoiding assigning non-instructional duties to school librarians, ensuring that the library does not become the “go-to” location for non-library activities during the school day like voting or meetings that would displace learners and teachers, and ensuring collaborative time with teachers (5).  For administrators who are just beginning to define their school or district’s library media program, this page would be an excellent guide for basic “do’s” and “don’ts” to creating a library media program that has the most impact on student achievement. This article could also serve as a talking point to begin building a plan to assess current library media programs for areas of improvement.

            Overall, this article merits a place in the toolbox for creating 21^st century libraries that support increased student achievement because it summarizes the most recent studies and articles in a way that makes them useful to busy educators.  The article keeps the idea of improving student achievement at the forefront, and this is something that library media specialists and school administrators can focus on in their work together.

Spinks, A. (2009). Library Media Programs and Student Achievement: Research and Research-Based Practices for Library Media Specialists and Education Leaders.Cobb County School District Library Media Education Department. Retrieved July 17, 2012, from http://www.cobbk12.org/librarymedia/proof/research.pdf

Hartzell, Gary (2002, June).  What's It Take? White House Conference on School Libraries, 2002.

            What’s it Take? is an article that is a little dated (2002).  Hartzell addresses school administrators who have apparently just watched some presentations on 21^st century libraries and librarians. There are two main questions the author asks: “Why Haven’t You Heard?” and “What Will It Take?”

            The author makes four main points about each question asked. Concerning the point that school administrators often aren’t aware of the potential of the modern librarian and his/her programming, he offers four main reasons. First, most administrators are 50 years old or older and they remember the librarian of their youth. She is stereotyped as a “shush-er” and librarians only checked out books. Second, administrative certification involved no course work that addressed the new role librarians play and their potential  to affect learning in 21^st century schools. Administration instructors still see librarians in their traditional role and view teachers as independent operators. Third, since librarians now collaborate with teachers to help them with their lessons and projects, they are not tooting their own horns. Administrators will make themselves aware of the successes of the teacher without realizing that behind that success may be the collaborative efforts of the librarian. Lastly, librarians haven’t spent time publishing and sharing their research with school administrators. Instead, they publish for each other and their professional associations.

            Hartzell goes a step further and suggests that contemporary administrators who understand the potential of modern librarians have an obligation to advance their understanding of what can be done in their districts. Again, Hartzell suggests for actions for administrators to take. First, they should learn what the librarian has to offer in his or her own district. Next, administrators need to shift their paradigm to considering the library as an investment in their students’ future, rather than a cost to the district. Third, understand and commit to staffing the libraries of the school district with full time librarians who are dynamic individuals and trained to be instructional leaders. Finally, the principals in the district must be committed to advancing the role of the librarian and supportive of the librarian to be a leader in the district, including allowing librarians to have collaborative time with staff.

            Following the article is an extensive bibliography of resources administrators will find helpful. I find the information in this article to be in line with all we have learned in our library media specialist course sequence. I would share this article with my principal and suggest he check out some of the resources listed in the bibliography.

            Although the article stands on its own, I think it would be very helpful to provide access to the presentations referred to at the top of Hartzell’s article. It would be most helpful for the administrator to be able to relate to the points made if they had viewed the presentations. Are they on You Tube or TED? Could they be included as links with the article on the UWSSLEC web site?