School library media candidates provide leadership and establish connections with the greater library and education community to create school library media programs that focus on students learning and achievement; encourage the personal and professional growth of teachers and other educators, and model the efficient and effective use of information and ideas.
Evidence: Internship
Summary
- Under the supervision and guidance of a practiced school library media specialist, students enrolled in this program complete at least 100 hours in a school's media center. During this time, students fulfill the role of the media specialist, performing any tasks presented to them.
Reflection
- My internship provided me with an abundance of practical experiences that I will have to deal with on a daily basis as a media specialist. I was able to work collaboratively with another teacher and instruct students purely from an information literacy standpoint. I spent one day each in a middle and high school media center, observing a few similarities and many differences as each media center met the needs of its students. I was even able to learn a great deal more about the Dewey Decimal System as I shelved books in the non-fiction section and helped students find the books they were looking for.
Self-Assessment
- I believe I learned a lot during my internship, both regarding aspects I plan to implement in my own media center and aspects I do not wish to include. I've decided if I ever planned to work in a high school media center, I would have a lot of reading to do seeing as I've been in an elementary school and focused on children's literature for so long. Surprisingly enough, I also discovered that I wouldn't mind working in a middle school media center if the opportunity presented itself. I never thought I would enjoy working in a middle school, but visiting the middle school media center helped to change my mind and open my eyes to possibilities!
Evidence: PDEP
Summary
- The Program Development and Evaluation Plan is an instrument utilized to help the media specialist focus on the needs of the media center. An effective plan is the foundation of the school's library media center covering the management policies, procedures, and principles of the media center as well as ALA and AASL standards.
Reflection
- My focus for this project was to find and formulate the legal and ethical aspects of the PDEP, as well as devise long and short term goals and objectives based upon the needs of the media center. I have become better acquainted with the inner workings of the media center, as well as developing an awareness of how important it is to have sound policies in place to protect the media specialist and media center if problems arise.
Self Assessment