Leader, Partner and Promoter: The role of a TL in ICT Professional Development

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I inherited a library that until last year was underutilized by staff and students at my school. I have worked very hard to change the underutilized space to busy thriving LLC. Even though the changes have had a positive impact on students and staff, I still have a long way to go. I feel overwhelmed, but inspired to continue to meet the personalized needs of needs of my school community.

I am in a transitional phase right now in how I support teachers. Prior to my arrival there were no teacher supports offered through the LLC and as a result I have had to work very hard to change the perception of what services are offered. I am still in a transitional phase because I have not yet been able to reach all of my staff. There are some teachers with whom I have collaborated and co-planned/co-taught, and I have provided support to them. Because of this they realize the resources and supports available to them to support their professional development. There are others who are “too busy” to utilize the LLC but are aware of the services and supports, and there are some teachers who I need to reach because they are not aware of the opportunities for professional growth that can have a direct impact on our students.

With the ICT professional needs of my school community in mind I have outlined some ways that I can better support my colleagues ICT professional growth.  

Co-teaching

Collaboration has been an integral part of my professional growth and I know that it is the key to supporting teachers with ICT.

I also know that for professional growth in this area to be effective and have a positive impact on both teacher and student learning  it must model effective teaching pedagogy. A study, Effective models of staff development in ICT, looked at staff development around ICT and found that professional development  “based on pedagogy has had far greater impact on teachers’ use of ICT than any other type. Further, it indicates that there has been a great emphasis placed on technical and academic staff development and insufficient on pedagogy” (McCarney pg.70) This suggests that co-teaching has the greatest impact on teachers’ use of ICT.  While I was researching ideas I came across the article Coteaching: A Pathway to Leadership by Judi Moreillon and Susan D. Ballard that succinctly articulates the power of instructional partnerships in advancing teachers professional growth. It suggests that “through the development of instructional partnerships, school librarians can increase the impact of our expertise as information specialists, teachers, and program administrators” (Moreillon and Ballard pg. 6). Just what will this look like? In order to meet the diverse needs of students and teachers, TLs need to be a part of the planning, teaching, assessing and reflecting process:

We practice the best kind of professional development—job-embedded professional development—when we coteach actual students in real time, using the taught curriculum, available resources and tools, and within the supports and constraints of our particular learning environments (Moreillon and Ballard pg. 6).

I am currently involved with several instructional partnerships and the professional growth for me personally has been significant. I always feel that I am learning more from them then they are learning from me, and this creates a reciprocal mentoring opportunity. This is the power of instructional partnerships and I continue to look for new opportunities.

Promoting and Communicating

I know that I need to find a way to reach out to those who I have not worked with yet and are not aware of the professional development opportunities available to them through the LLC. I prefer face to face interactions but I realize that not everyone is ready or willing, whether it is simply because they are too busy or maybe just not ready. I need to not only promote the LLC’s physical services and supports, but also the virtual services and supports. I have been working on the LLC website since I started two years ago but I realize that there are many teachers who don’t know about it or are not using it to its full potential. I have three ways that I would like to promote both the virtual and physical capabilities:

1. Create a Library news blog that is posted on the library website where I can showcase what is happening in the LLC, post how-to tech solutions, share ideas and share resources. I was able to find a great link that has many examples that I can look at to get inspiration:

https://www.theedublogger.com/2015/07/15/23-great-library-blogs/

2. Fight for time at staff meetings to promote co-teaching and provide examples and have other teachers share their experiences. Although I have very supportive administration, I am often put at the end of staff meetings and we often run out of time. Alinda Sherman in Three in one: teacher, information specialist, leader states how administration plays an important role in supporting TLs and can enable this by “providing professional development sharing opportunities for the TL to demonstrate to teachers that the TLs collaborative teaching program is effective” (Sherman pg. 6).
   
3. Send out interactive tech tutorials or updates. I can send these out when there is a tech issue that can be solved by a series of steps or a short video. Our district tech department has great examples of both:

Video Tutorial: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B7CF1hY_5tjPekZRX3o1NmhRRDg/view?usp=sharing

Tech Updates:

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B7CF1hY_5tjPR1RzVmoyM29Ebms

Although these ideas are not revolutionary, they are definitely areas where I can promote the LLC services and supports and perhaps reach some of the teachers that are not using the professional development supports and services. They are also areas where I need to continue my own personal professional development in order to meet the ICT needs of my school.

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Web 2.0

Prior to taking this diploma I did not consider myself very good at technology. When I became a TL and started my diploma I had to make a decision. Would I let my insecurities limit me or would I just dive in and see what happens because I had nothing to lose. Now that I am in my final 2 courses I realize that I have learned so much and have been able to share that with my school community which for me has been very rewarding. I still have so much to learn and feel that right now there are several specific skills that I need to focus on in order to better support my colleagues ICT professional growth.

1. Learn to make a simple tutorial using a tool such as Screencast-O-Matic. This would help those that have tech issues solve them without me having to be there. This would free me up and allow them to access support from anywhere anytime.

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2. Learn to post videos on YouTube. This would be helpful for library resources as well as supporting students who are making videos.

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3. Using Google Classroom to collaborate virtually with teachers and students.

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These are just a few of the areas that I need to develop in order to better meet the needs of my community. Research by O’Brien and Wisbey demonstrates that when TLs are involved in building a dynamic online learning and community environment, they become more well known throughout the school:

There is real respect for their skills and knowledge and, importantly, they are seen as educators with an effective knowledge of pedagogy and the uses of ICT to enhance the education of their students. (O’Brien and Wisbey pg. 34)

The power in this is that the LLC has the potential to become the physical and virtual hub of a school.

I believe that right now the most responsive way to support the diverse of needs of my educational community it through co-teaching. Working side by side together will be most the effective way to meet the ICT professional needs of my community. For me to be an effective leader I need to better communicate and promote the services and supports of the LLC as well as continue to develop and expand my personal ICT skills and tools.

Works Cited

John McCarney (2004) Effective models of staff development in ICT, European

Journal of Teacher Education, 27:1, 61-72, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/0261976042000211801

Moreillon, Judi and Susan D. Ballard. "Coteaching: A Pathway to Leadership." Knowledge Quest, vol. 40, no. 4, Mar/Apr2012, pp. 6-9. EBSCOhost, ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=82578135&site=ehost-live&scope=site.

O'Brien, M., and J. Wisbey. Access (Caulfield East): Building a Dynamic Online Learning and Community Environment. 22 Vol. Australian School Library Association, 09/01/2008. Web. 20 Oct. 2017. http://web.a.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=1&sid=8a1491ce-f299-40ea-9e3d-03fce6856c06%40sessionmgr4009

Sheerman, Alinda. Access (Caulfield East): Three in One: Teacher, Information Specialist, Leader. 27 Vol. Australian School Library Association, 06/01/2013. Web. 20 Oct. 2017. http://web.a.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=1&sid=30fed0a7-3a2d-477e-8d24-0cc763401ac9%40sessionmgr4006

TEDxTalks. The power of co: Angela Rasmussen & Andrea Reid at TEDxCCS. Dec 19, 2013
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9CVtMmNnBFE

Collaboration is Key!

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In order to for me to continue to develop my skills, pedagogy, and professional development I need to be collaborating. Whether it is learning a new tech skill, teaching a new unit or embarking on a renovation of space, I need to be working with others. In this post I will outline a few collaborative relationships that have been instrumental in developing my knowledge, experience and skills, relationships I plan to continue using for collaboration.

Teachers

Collaborating with my fellow teachers has been and continues to be one of the most powerful learning environments. It was not until I became a TL that I really experienced the power of collaboration. Working together and sharing ideas really helped me to see that everyone has unique ideas and ways of doing things, and when you come together the knowledge is just so much greater. One thing that I have learned when collaborating with fellow teachers is the importance of not just planning together but also teaching, assessing and reflecting together. A big part of becoming a successful TL includes going through the process from start to finish, reviewing what went well and what didn’t and having someone to share your thoughts and next steps with.

When collaborating I always try to incorporate ICT into the units that I plan with teachers. I ask them what they would like their students to learn or what skills they would like their students to develop, and we try to figure out which tech tools will best meet their needs. I am currently working with a teacher on a short story unit and she wanted her students to use technology to collaborate with each other. We both use GAFE, but we were not very familiar with using Google classroom. I was able to arrange for a district technology person to come for a lunchtime session and help teachers set up their Google classrooms. We also  attended a workshop during our implementation day that was a little more advanced that allows us to experiment with more advanced features in Google classroom. This collaborative learning experience has not only allowed me to learn how to set up and run Google classroom, but it also allowed others who were interested to participate in this learning opportunity. I feel that I can now better help and support others if they are wanting to use GAFE. I would not have pursued this learning if I had not collaborated with this teacher.

District Technology Experts

As part of my role as TL I am responsible for the technology at the school. I work with a school based technician and district staff to help troubleshoot technology problems, help implement and organize how technology is allocated, and help with school based professional development and in-service sessions. Our collaborative relationship is such that I am able to run ideas by them, they give me suggestions, and we make big decisions together so that our school's technology needs are met. This is a little bit humorous because prior to being a TL I was not known for being tech savvy. This is definitely something that I have had to learn quickly, but this has been a very rewarding part of my job because I am able to assist staff and students in obtaining the skills and knowledge to help them learn. Collaborating with school level and district staff is the only reason I am able to be effective in my role.

Teacher Librarians

There is a great network of TLs in my district. Many get together once a month to share information, ideas and anything that is important. This is a wonderful group of who are willing to work together and help each other. Some of us have embraced the LLC and others are still working in a very traditional setting. What is really great is that we are all willing to help each other out. An example of this was in my first year as a TL I knew that I needed to get an new website up and running, but I had never created a website before. Two TLs in particular helped by giving suggestions, tips and supported me throughout this process. To this day we still work closely and I know that if I need help all I need to do is ask.

Instructional Leadership Team

The Instructional Leadership Team is a “team of educators from the Central Okanagan Public Schools in Kelowna, B.C who collaborate with groups of educators from all of the district’s 43 schools in iterative cycles of co-planning, co-teaching, and co-learning.” This is a collaborative resource that I use in many different ways to help continue my professional growth. There are members who are assigned to my school who are currently helping myself and another teacher to co-plan and co-teach an inquiry unit. There are also many resources on their website and on our school drive that I can access. Like I have stated before I have a network of people that I feel comfortable asking for help and support, and they are willing to help in any way they can to support us at our school. It is through this collaborative relationship that I feel I can take risks to learn new things. In fact I feel so supported that I often bring others with me so we can learn together.

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For now I feel that I have a great collaborative network that is not only pushing and challenging me to grow, but also providing support and resources for that growth. As I am learning, whether it is how to use a tech tool or planning an inquiry unit, I am connecting with others to share that knowledge and it is through this process that I am to learn so much more.

 

The Joy of Reading

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Reading for pleasure and giving choice to students are two areas that I have been working on to try to foster a reading culture. There is ample evidence demonstrating that both of these factors have a powerful impact on student achievement. Stephan Krashen speaks about it in The Power of Reading, and Dawn Finch writes about the research that supports these concepts in Reading for pleasure and empowerment. Based on these findings I started two initiatives that have been successful, and I am currently working on another one. Hopefully I can continue to foster a positive reading culture in my school.

The first initiative was started two years ago when I worked really hard to update our English Language Arts novel book room. In the past it was filled with class sets of novels with the majority of them being classics or published at least 10 years ago. Certain class book sets were only to be used by certain grades.  In talking with our school planning team it was decided that instead of purchasing class sets of novels we would purchase sets of 10-15 so that we could have more titles and thus more choice for students. We would also provide professional development to teachers for using Literature Circles in their classrooms.

I was really excited because I had worked very hard to find books in a variety of genres that would also cater to all types of readers. We had science-fiction, true stories, fantasy, graphic novels, mystery, humour, historical fiction and dystopian and many other types, and students could choose a book that they wanted to read. What better way to foster the joy of reading? I also did not put books into grade groups because I felt that there were enough choices and options.

About half of the English teachers at my school were ecstatic and couldn't wait to share all the novel choices with their students. Many of them had read the new novels and loved them. The other half were really upset because the classics they had previously used were either no longer available, or only 10-15 were available. They were also upset because they didn't know what Lexile level the new novels were and how were they going to match their students with the proper level of book. They did not want their students reading something that was too easy. Interestingly enough, they had not read the new novels.  I was so deflated and really was thinking that what I had done was a disaster. I talked to our school planning team and voiced my concerns and frustrations. My vice principal put the following article in my mailbox  Every Child, Every Day.

This article demonstrated the importance of students reading books they choose based on what interests them. After reading the article I felt that I had professional data to backup my cause. Later on in the year, students who were participating in literature circles came into the library in droves, many excited about the new books and looking for a sequel or another book like the one they had read. The enthusiasm was very noticeable. What started to happen was students who were not doing literature circles started asking their teachers why they were not doing them. Pressure was being put on the teachers from the students. This year there are more teachers wanting to try literature circles and are starting to see the power of choice.

The second initiative was specifically geared toward grade 9 English teachers at my school. They were the ones most reluctant to the change I spoke about earlier, so I created a bibliography of novels. I also put together a literature circle unit that I offered to co-plan and/or co-teach with them. The intent was to try and open them up to new philosophies about reading: allowing choice and reading for pleasure. I tried to anticipate every possible student: reluctant readers, voracious readers, ELL students, resource students, readers who struggle and everything in between.  I also had students read and provide feedback on the books I had selected. Knowing that some of the teachers were still teaching novels that would be considered classics I wanted to provide a variety of genres as well as formats so that they could be exposed to the endless possibilities of choices available to teachers and students.

In the face of adversity, what causes some individuals to prevail while others fail? This was the inquiry question that I prepared for grade 9 English teachers at my school, and that I asked their students to answer in the Literature Circle Unit. The idea was that by having students look at different characters and the unique situations they face they would be able to articulate the character traits, choices, attitudes, and mindsets that are necessary to overcome adversity. By comparing and discussing the differing characters, situations, environments, beliefs, and values in the variety of novels, students would hopefully be able to define what resilience, grit and survival mean to their characters. The hope was that through this inquiry students would carry their knowledge of survival and resiliency over into their own lives, and this would allow them to see that adversity can be overcome, and what it takes to overcome it.  

Finally the initiative that I am currently working on is creating an online presence for the LLC. Currently students can browse the school library catalogue, use tools on the library website like Bookseeker and LibraryThing, or ask me to help them if they need a book to read. We have ordered Overdrive and should have it up and running this week. This will allow students to take out eBooks and audio-books from wherever they are 24 hours a day. My hope is that with this technology students will be better able to get their hands on books that they are excited to read or listen to, and will have a positive effect on the reading culture of my school.

Works Cited

Finch, Dawn. "Reading for pleasure and empowerment" The Library and Information Association. Posted on 3 August 2015. Retrieved Oct. 6 2017. https://www.cilip.org.uk/blog/reading-pleasure-empowerment

Allington, Richard L, and Rachael E Gabriel. "Every Child, Every Day". Reading: The Core Skill.

March 2012,Volume 69, Number 6.Retrieved Oct. 6 2017. http://www.prn.bc.ca/lyrics/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/Every-Child-Every-Day.pdf

How can I help support innovative implementation of ICT through the Library Learning Commons?

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My research experience has helped me to develop a vision and framework for helping implement ICT in our school. I believe that it is through collaborative partnerships that the LLC can provide supports and resources so that we can transform the way we teach and learn in our school. I initially started out with 3 questions:

• How can I continue to support collaboration within my school?

• How can inquiry be used effectively to help teachers and students learn?

• How can technology be used innovatively to support inquiry and increase student engagement with learning?

I knew that I wanted to address all of these issues but I was unsure how to go about it. After doing some research and reading it became clear that they are very much connected to each other, and that I do not necessarily have to address them separately. Knowing this helped me to narrow my focus to:

• How can I help support innovative implementation of ICT through the Library Learning Commons?

What I also discovered through my research and readings is that the key to helping support innovative implementation of ICT through the LLC is using collaboration.

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I had no trouble finding articles, reports and studies that explained the need and importance of ICT in the classroom, and the positive impact it has on both student engagement and learning. When I reflect on what is currently happening in my school I realize that most teachers see the importance of ICT, but lack the knowledge or support to implement it in a way that will enhance the learning environment of their learners.

Two resources resonated with me and showed me that I need to focus my attention on how we are using ICT, and that we need to make sure that our method of teaching is not using ICT to reinforce tradition teaching. Can You Hear Me Now? Student voice: High school & middle school students’ perceptions of teachers, ICT and learning clearly communicates the frustrations that students have with teachers’ slow and ineffective integration of ICT. I found this resource to be valuable because it represents the student voice, and is therefore very difficult to ignore. The second resource is Larry Cuban blog As Teacher Use of New Technologies Has Spread, Have Most Teachers Changed How They Teach? which suggests we need to change how we teach first and then use innovative technology to support innovative learning. This important point made me realize that our school focus on inquiry does not need to be addressed separately, but rather ICT can be integrated into inquiry.

Every teacher at my school has a different level of comfort when it comes to incorporating ICT into their classrooms. This means that I have to meet them where they are at and help to nudge them forward. I came across an approach or a way of looking at this problem that made a lot of sense to me. Jeff Dunn’s article How to integrate Google Apps using the SMAR method  outlines a framework that helps to understand where teachers are at with their level of ICT implementation, and then the goal is to move them forward so that they can eventually get to the redefinition level. John Spencer outlines this very clearly in his video “What is the SAMR Model and what does it look like in schools?”

Our School District is currently using Google Apps for education and our staff is at varying levels of implementation. I see this as an opportunity to help incorporate ICT in our classrooms. For some, just learning how to create an account has been a challenge, while others are using many of the Apps to connect, communicate, create and collaborate with their students in new and innovative ways. I see collaboration as an opportunity for me to not only help and support those who are just beginning to use GAFE, but also for me to learn from teachers who are using GAFE in creative and innovative ways.

By no means is GAFE the only way to incorporate ICT into teaching. Rap Universal: Using Multimodal Media Production to Develop ICT Literacies demonstrates the power innovative use of technology can have on the development of ICT literacies. This article inspires me to keep searching for new and innovative technology and to discover ways that it can be used to support innovative learning for everyone in my school community. Understanding the SMAR method gives me a framework that I can use with staff so that I can help with their implementation of ICT.

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When I first began 3 years ago as a TL I knew that I had to make significant changes in order for our LLC to meet the needs of my school community. If I want the LLC at my school to emulate the vision set out by Pam Sandlian Smith at TEDxMileHigh, or meet the big picture goals set out in Inspiring Libraries, Connecting Communities: a vision for public library service in B.C., I need to have a plan that will help “bridge the physical and digital worlds, connecting people not only with a world of information but with each other”, as well as supporting and contributing to lifelong learning by providing safe, open spaces for people of all ages and backgrounds (B.C. Ministry of Education pg. 5). This research assignment and the reading I have done have demonstrated how to develop a strategic plan for helping my school community implement ICT in their teaching and learning. I now have a clearer vision for how I will collaborate to help support innovative implementation of ICT through the LLC.

Works Cited

B.C. Ministry of Education. “Inspiring Libraries, Connecting Communities: a vision for public library service in B.C.”. 2016. http://www2.gov.bc.ca/assets/gov/education/administration/community-partnerships/libraries/libraries-strategic-plan.pdf. Accessed 29 Sept. 2017.

Cuban, Larry. “As Teacher Use of New Technologies Has Spread, Have Most Teachers Changed How They Teach?” Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice, 20 Sept. 2012, larrycuban.wordpress.com/2012/09/20/as-teacher-use-of-new-technologies-has-spread-have-most-teachers-changed-how-they-teach/. Accessed 16 Sept. 2017.

Dunn, Jeff. “Integrate Google Apps with the SAMR model”. DailyGenius.com, Nov. 16 2015  http://dailygenius.com/integrate-google-apps-with-the-samr-model. Accessed 29 Sept. 2017.

Nat Turner, K. C. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy: "Rap Universal: Using Multimodal Media Production to Develop ICT Literacies”. 54 Vol. The Association, 05/01/2011. Web. 23 Sep. 2017.

Smith, Pam s. (2013). “What to expect from libraries in the 21st century: Pam Sandlian Smith at TEDxMileHigh.” Accessed 23 Sept. 2017. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fa6ERdxyYdo

Spencer, John. “What is the SAMR Model and what does it look like in schools?” YouTube.com, Nov. 3, 2015. Accessed 29 Sept. 2017. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SC5ARwUkVQg

Stefl-Mabry, J., Radlick, M. & Doane, W. (2010). Can You Hear Me Now? Student voice: High school & middle school students’ perceptions of teachers, ICT and learning. International Journal of Education and Development using ICT, 6(4), 64-82. Open Campus, The University of the West Indies, West Indies. Retrieved September 23, 2017 from https://www-learntechlib-org.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/p/42263/.