School Libraries and Pre-Service Teachers

I have done some reading on this topic lately and have been encouraged by some of the readings that I have read in recent times because it gives school libraries a great opportunity to begin engaging with our future teachers and help them appreciate and value the role that school libraries and teacher librarians have in supporting student learning. 

But the big challenge arises from the universities themselves as they coordinate the professional experience programs that education students undertake at either a undergraduate or postgraduate level. I reflect on my practicums and it was left to us, the pre-service teacher to engage with the library. We were not educated on their role nor the role or importance and staff that manage school libraries. 

Marlene Asselin, Associate Professor at the University of British Columbia has provided a number of papers on school libraries and their roles in supporting pre-service teachers but has also engaged in pre-service teacher programs through introducing inquiry-based intergrated unit planning and information literacy pedagogy. 

As part of their practicum they had to engage in collaborative experiences with teacher librarians including the planning of and delivery of lessons to develop information literacy skills. 

On the Advocacy Committee of the School Library Association of NSW (SLANSW), my fellow member Vicki Bennett and I have been collaborating with a lecturer at the University of Wollongong to provide presentations focusing on the role of the teacher librarian and their importance as educators. At the moment, Vicki has engaged in online presentations but is envisioned that it would be delivered face to face We also envision embedding a requirement for pre-service teachers at the University of Wollongong to engage with the library and even deliver one lesson in collaboration with the teacher librarian. 

After the holidays, I shall answer the question of what we can do right now to support our pre-service teachers.

 

Stop Reading the News by Rolf Dobelli

I confess to being a news nut. I recall watching the news each night as a six year old, even if I didn't completely understand what the content was about. It may have been years before I realised that I was actually a witness to history if I see or read an item years later. I enjoyed reading newspapers as a seven year old, even if it was just the weather page but just seeing pages loaded with lots of words and pictures. It made me feel grown up. 

Recently, I read Stop Reading the News by Rolf Dobelli and his main argument is that watching, reading, or listening to the news is harmful to a person and impacts our personal wellbeing. He goes as far as arguing that people are less likely to concentrate.

In addition, he argued that the content we view is pointless and that if its important, we will hear about it. The news is irrelevant.

He also suggested that in building our knowledge and understanding in the world, that we read on topics that interest us and read deeply into it. We should specialise our knowledge on a small range of fields.

I can see his point, particularly when it comes to reading deeply into a topic and as an educator, I need to encourage students to read widely and deeply on a topic.

But I have concerns about having to not watch, read or listen to the news, particularly in an educational context because watching the nightly news, reading a daily newspaper or reading a magazine helps us to make connections between the theory and application of knowledge. 

My best subject in the HSC in 2003 was Legal Studies. By watching the news and reading the newspaper each day, I was exposed to how the law was being applied. I kept folders of newspaper clippings from court cases or legislation being debated in our State and Federal Parliaments. I would be encouraging students in 2022 to do the same.

I think we as a species are wired to be curious about the world and its happenings but also to be able to share with others what is going on the world.

But if it was a takeaway note for me, maybe we need to slow our approach to how we view the news. For example, I should try and focus on longer articles instead of shorter articles. Fortuantely, I still subscribe to printed newspapers. The digital replica is the lazy way out unless on a ery crowded train. I notice in a printed sense, I abosrb the news more slowly but at the same time immerse myself with the content. 

We should not fear if we miss the nightly news on television or not have enough time to read it the next day. 

ASLA Webinar - The 2022 CBCA Shortlist- and Beyond (1 June 2022)

I decided last night to attend another ASLA webinar and it was because I was guaranteed a good presentation if Paul McDonald was the presenter.

He own's The Children's Bookshop, a specialist bookseller catering to schools and school libraries in NSW. It originally began as a physical bookstore at Beecroft, trading between 1971 and 2019. McDonald had run the store for its final fifteen years.

I enjoyed listening to his insights into the Children's Book Council of Australia (CBCA) shortlists for 2022, predicting who is likely to win and their suitability for various audiences. 

As a bonus, we were also treated to some of the latest trends on Young Adult and Children's reads. He is always "on the ball" with the latest developments and he does it with alot of passion. It was surprising to hear that Historical Fiction is gaining some appeal. I guess people either want to explore a different world from that of 2022. As a history teacher, this is encouraging, because it allows the reader to learn about different historical periods through fiction texts.

Not surprised about Graphic Novels and Manga continuing to gain a broader appeal. I see it at school myself as fans of Graphic Novels crave the next set of books in the series in that they may be interested in.