Final thoughts...

This will be my last blog entry for this course.  I have really enjoyed this course.  The reference section is all too often forgotten.  Along with learning about all the different types of reference material, this course has also helped me change how I see my role as teacher-librarian.  When I started my position as TL this past September I was so overwhelmed that I didn’t know where to start.  Now I can see that one of the most important roles that I have is to provide reference services to the staff and students.   If I stick to this as one of my main goals for next year I think I will have done a pretty good job fulfilling my role as TL.  I can’t wait until September to weed out my dusty reference section.  I just hope I can find good resources to replace them! 

When I look over the course objectives I feel pretty confident in most areas.  Now the hard part begins, implementing all that I’ve learned in the last 3 months! 

My course of action is as follows:
1. Evaluate and weed out current reference material
2. Find good reference resources to replace them (print and electronic)
3.  Provide adequate instruction to the students on where the reference resources are located and how to use them effectively
4. Provide instruction to teachers on reference material and other resources on a regular basis at staff meetings. 
5. Initiate collaborative work with teachers.

Yikes…that’s  a pretty long list…the journey and adventures continue in the exciting world of a TL! J

 

Bibliographies

Bibliographies are a tool that I'm not very familiar with.  When the hot topic question was asked about which bibliography I would recommend, I had no suggestions.  Like others mentioned I do consult frequently the books from Reading Power however the French list is not updated regularly like in English and some of the books are hard to find.  I'm still looking for a good French bibliography website. I also find it quite difficult buying books without seeing them.  I tried doing that a few times and was often disappointed when the book arrived but sometimes I was also pleasantly surprised.  The previous librarian would go visit her family in Quebec every summer and would spend a couple of days in one of the largest bookstores in Montreal, Renaud-Bray.  There she would spend a good chunk of her budget.  Maybe I need to propose to my principal a business trip to Montreal... :)  Until that happens I have been consulting the Renaud-Bray website for ideas.  They have a section called ‘Coup de Coeur’ which where I typically look.  They provide the reading level and also a brief summary.  I think for now this site will be a good starting point.

I can see the value of using a bibliography.  I particularly like the idea of subject bibliographies.  I would love to find one in French.  I think this would be something that the teachers would really appreciate.  My goal is to find a good bibliography based out of Quebec and one from France.  This way I will have all of the publishing companies covered.  Riedling reminds me that not all bibliographies are created the same.  It’s important to look at authority, frequency, organization and scope.  Based on the criteria given I can see that Renaud-Bray is a good starting point.  By using such a site I’m hoping that it will keep me organized and save me money by making good decisions in book purchases.

Geographical Resource

Google Earth has to be my favourite interactive map website.  I showed my gr. 2 students Google Earth a few years ago and they nearly fell off their chairs! The fun part is that through Google Maps you can see in great detail a given street or even house.  I typed in the addresses of those who know their address and we could easily get a street view of their home.  Some boys were talking about Google Earth for days afterwards. It was great seeing the kids so excited about maps!  Of course seeing anything in 3D is always more fun!

When analyzing this site I had the chance to check out the different tabs and features.  Not only can you view earth but also the sky and some planets!  The thing that I liked the most about this site is that it’s so easy to use.  I was looking at other interactive map sites and they could be quite confusing and complicated.  Of course, those sites did offer more map-like features but for young children Google Earth is very user-friendly.  Google Earth provides a great introduction to exploring maps and the earth in general.  I particularly think this is a great site for primary and early intermediate grades.  When teaching, if I couldn’t get my hands on a globe I used Google Earth.  I wouldn’t however recommend this site for high school students working on advance mapping skills.  Google seems to be very reliable and the site is up-to-date. 

The second site I checked out was the Atlas of Canada site.  I quite liked this site.  There are many different maps to choose from and there are even short explanations about each map.  It is not the most user-friendly but it has the necessary features that a good map should have and the maps should be accurate given the source.  I was really amazed by all the different types of maps there are, for example: Highest Level of Education Attainment or Marital Status, Health Behaviours etc.  The most recent were from 2006 but once the census is done hopefully some of these maps will be updated.  The map archive section is also quite interesting, the maps go back as far as 1906.  I see this site as being more of a teacher resource than one for students.  This site would be more appropriate for late intermediate to high school.  The big downside to this site is that many of the maps are quite out-dated. 

Overall I've discovered that different kinds of sites have different purposes.  It's important to have a variety of geographical resources since it can be quite a broad category.  Often times people just think of geography as maps- country names and capitals.  There needs to be also some historical, physical, cultural and economic geography reference materials.   I have a feeling that finding the appropriate resource for all students may prove to be quite difficult!

Databases

I'm a little embarrassed to say that databases are quite new to me. My school does not have any subscriptions to online databases. I was recently speaking to a Wordbook representative and I was trying to get some information on online resources. He wasn't able to give a fixed price because typically schools go through ERAC to purchase subscriptions. He made it sound like it's very difficult to purchase a subscription directly through Worldbook. Looking on the ERAC site I did find that many other schools in the Catholic School Board have subscriptions. In the Fall I plan on contacting the TLs at these schools to find out how much the subscriptions cost and whether or not they negotiated as a group or independently. The Worldbook representative did say that it would probably cost our school about $1.25 per student and that would include a few subscriptions and not only Worldbook. He seemed frustrated that the subscriptions had to go through ERAC. He did mention that one school district opted out of ERAC and negotiated with the companies directly and it was cheaper.

I think that having a subscription to some online resources are important. For my school, it's essential that I have an online subscription to an encyclopedia. This is my first priority. Being a French Immersion school it's hard to find things in French at an easy level for the students. I didn't see anything specifically in French on the EBSCO site or Gale Schools. I looked on the Montreal Public Libary webpage and they had some databases in French but it looked advanced. I wasn't able to access them since I needed a password but they didn't look like they were geared towards elementary schools. At this time, I don't think that having a subscription to online databases is important for our elementary school. If the students and staff at my school can learn to navigate the online encyclopedia and use it on a regular basis then I would be very happy.

I few colleagues posted about the importance of training TLs and teachers on how to use online databases.  I worked for almost 10 yrs for the VSB in a few schools and never once heard anything about databases. I was teaching primary classes so perhaps that is a possible reason but I still think that all teachers should have been made known about these resources. Having a rep or someone from the district come sounds like a great idea. The district can't spend so much money on something like databases and not provide the necessary training at different levels on a regular basis. It takes time to adapt to and use new tools. 

Change a Teacher

Well, finally got assignment 3 part 1 handed in.  At first I didn't see the value of this project and now I definitely do.  Working in a group proved to be really interesting and I got to use Google Docs for the first time...what a great application!  It was so easy to share everything and we could even chat while working on our assignment. 
The change a teacher project itself was also quite interesting.  The one thing that really stuck with me was in the CBAM video one of the professors said that introducing something new is not an event it is a process.  This has helped me immensely in how I view my job.  It's so simple but something that I forget all the time.  I expect so much from myself as a new TL and this past year got in way over my head.  I expect to already be a fully functioning teacher librarian when it is a process that will take many years.  This statement will also help me when working with other teachers.  Every person will be at a different level and despite the level they are at they need to be followed and supported throughout the change. 
I also enjoyed working with "my" teacher.  She was so excited about everything I proposed.  I know this won't always be the case but it was still nice to have someone interested in working with me and willing to participate in something new.  I had some teachers this past year that wanted to work with me but wanted me to do everything.  I will have to approach them differently next year.
Overall this project has given me hope.   Hope that I can eventually instill some change in the teachers at my school that are stuck in their ways...only time will tell!

Wikipedia and Established Encyclopedias

When doing research I believe that both types of encyclopedias, established and free citizen- built, are important.  In doing the assigned readings this week I have learned a lot about Wikipedia.  In previous years I have been teaching primary grades and never had to think about how students were using Wikipedia.  However over the last year as a TL I had numerous discussions with intermediate students about how they do research.  While having these discussions every group of students said that they would go only on Wikipedia to find all their information.  I didn’t quite know how to react to their comments since I had pretty good experiences with Wikipedia but had heard how it was not a reliable source of information.  I didn’t approach the topic too much and simply introduced new sources of information.   

Next year, I will be approaching the topic far more in depth.  Reading these articles has helped me feel more comfortable in how I will approach the topic.  I plan on introducing Wikipedia along with the other encyclopedias in print and online.  I will use these two types of encyclopedias to do an activity of compare and contrast.  This will help students see that Wikipedia is still a valid point of reference but the sources need to be checked.  I will show them the history button which I didn’t know existed!  This is a great tool in helping the students to evaluate the article before use.  Once students take some time to do an assessment of the article then they can decide whether or not it is appropriate for their project.

I also plan on introducing Harris’ three rules regarding research:
1) At least three sources are required to verify research.
2) General encyclopedias like Wikipedia are a great place to get started, however …
3) Serious research projects cannot cite general knowledge encyclopedias

Overall, in elementary schools I think that Wikipedia is a good source for students if used properly as is the case with all encyclopedias.  However they need to know that when very precise information is needed and accuracy is of great importance then they need to consult an established encyclopedia.  My advice to them is to first consult an established encyclopedia and then Wikipedia.  This will help them determine the accuracy of the information and to also have the opportunity to access more current information.

Research-model update...

I happy to say that I have successfully convinced my entire staff to adopt a school-wide research model.  At the year-end school growth plan meeting I asked my principal if I could take 20 mins to present a couple of models.  Before presenting the models, I met with every teacher to discuss next year and quite a few of them wanted to work on research skills.  By the time I was presenting the models about half of the staff was on board.  I presented the Big6 model and the BCTLA inquiry model.  We decided that we would like to adopt the BCTLA model since it’s based on BC IRPs and that the document is so well laid-out with all the PLOs for each step of the model.  We took a few minutes to translate the key words into French and we were done! 

In September, the hard part will begin… making sure that all the teachers are using the model and that the students understand what each step means.  To ensure success, I plan on introducing the model myself and providing teachers with necessary support to follow-up in their classroom.   Throughout the year I will go more in depth with each step to further develop their research skills.  Hopefully everything will go as planned!