Teacher Librarian as Leader

"That's what this post is for: to teach teachers how to get ahold of research that can inform what you do in your classroom, hopefully in ways that won't require crazy amounts of time."

"Digital citizenship education can and should span learning about everything from biased algorithms to misinformation to sexual or racial harassment online. Understanding these issues is essential for youth to reap the benefits of technology while reducing risks. There is a lot to unpack, and as more attention is drawn to the need for digital citizenship, the question becomes "Who is responsible for talking and teaching about digital citizenship? Families? Schools? Both?""

"Real World Learning is authentic to the learner, connected to the community, and valuable to both. It includes community-connected projects and entrepreneurial experiences, work-based learning, and credentials valued by employers. Five steps to expand access to high-engagement valuable learning experiences."

"Becoming a digital citizen entails a nuanced understanding of the intricacies surrounding the concepts of copyright, fair use, and creative commons. To help students develop such an understanding, Copyright and Creativity -a site I discovered through AASL- offers this excellent collection of educational resources ready for use in classrooms. "

"Many schools are looking to transform, or have already transformed, the traditional teacher librarian into a broader role of information facilitator, particularly as the numbers of physical books in libraries decrease and students and teachers access more material online."

Short article highlighting success of distributed leadership

"Media and technology are central to how young people learn, socialize, and participate in the world. This makes it all the more important to consider how our student's digital lives can impact their social and emotional well-being. We've prepared this guide to help you navigate this world where digital citizenship and social and emotional learning are deeply intertwined."

"While traditional leadership styles accumulate a great extent of power at the top rungs, servant leadership puts other people's need first and shares power with them."

"What makes some leaders more adept? While many qualities might come to mind, six traits in particular define stronger leaders who empower everyone in the building to keep striving for greatness."

"we are one of the only educators that actively teaches every student in the school, and showcased the types of programming school librarians are capable of when fully supported by administration. Many of the school leaders were just not aware that a modern school library involves so much more than just checking out books to students."

Kay Oddone maintains a current website and regularly contributes to her blog. Interests include professional and connected learning and leadership.

Potter looks at the shift from a hierarchical model to one of inclusiveness across the learning community and that acknowledges the expertise of others in different fields.

"'Know thyself' - pithy self-help aphorism? Impossible task? Life-changing wisdom? What really is the value of reflection? And how is it effectively taught? In a world characterised by hurry, progress and efficiency, reflection requires a change of pace. It requires that we pause, breathe, and shift our future-orientation to dwell instead on what has been. This does not come naturally to many of the students in our classrooms (perhaps not even to ourselves)."

"How can you inspire teachers to keep or rekindle the joy of teaching that brought them to the profession? How can you maximize time and resources while also keeping great educators in the classroom?"

"Nurturing the conditions for what the authors call "conflict-agility," a mindset that aims to ease discord by "harnessing conflict in the service of improving educational outcomes and relationships," is an ongoing process-and a critical one because, the authors note, "dissension does not simply vanish if it is ignored or driven underground." When skilled leaders don't shy away from conversations about, for example, "critical race theory, institutional power relationships, implicit bias, and inequitable outcomes," they help build the school's capacity for improvement and communicate a willingness to honor and hear all voices in the school community."

" As a school librarian, I feel it is our responsibility to look into these programs and practices. Not only should we research these practices, but as school leaders, we should offer training on these practices to our teachers. Librarian Scott McGinley commented, "School librarians need to be proactive in providing professional development to staff, whether it be an informal grade level team meeting or something school-wide" (2021)."

"Our connections with others have an influence on our own behaviour. Social networks form in lots of different contexts, including at school and in the workplace. Social Network Analysis (SNA) is now offering insights into these important, but often invisible relationships."

"Better listening requires a shift from a reactive frame of mind to one which is more receptive. For school leaders, daily conversations can often be something that requires immediate action. "