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From Now On is a leading provider of free information to guide school thinking about new technologies.

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Educational Leadership:Coaching: The New Leadership Skill:The Coach in the Library

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Educational Leadership:Coaching: The New Leadership Skill:The Coach in the Library

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From ASCD

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October 2011 | Volume 69 | Number 2
Coaching: The New Leadership Skill

Carl A. Harvey

In most schools, the word coach is used to describe a teacher with special expertise that he or she uses to help teachers improve instructional skills. Although educators rarely think of school librarians as coaches, the help librarians provide is similar to what a coach offers. A coach gives teachers guidance and support, which school librarians have been doing for many years. Like coaches, an effective librarian (also called a media specialist these days) gives teachers ideas and resources for instruction, models lessons, and provides information when educators have questions.

The role of the school librarian has evolved greatly. The days when a librarian checked out books all day are gone. A school librarian worth his or her salt must be involved with enriching the literacy, technology use, and curriculum of a school. That means collaborating to design instruction and assessment and coteaching lessons. Good classroom instruction today needs to embed various literacies-information literacy, digital literacy, and so on-into the curriculum, and these are librarians' areas of expertise.

Although the classroom teacher is generally the expert on the content standards, the school librarian is the expert on the process of finding, evaluating, using, creating, and sharing information. Bringing the two together engenders powerful learning opportunities for students and provides professional development to teachers.

After all, part of ensuring that students and teachers have access to the resources of the library is making sure teachers know how to use these resources to enhance instruction. I have been a school librarian/media specialist for 14 years. Throughout my career, I've seen many librarians-including myself-guide teachers by modeling how to use cutting-edge resources, leading small-group presentations, and providing one-on-one instruction.

Modeling as a Springboard to Learning

When I began my career as a school media specialist, our school district was transitioning from Mac computers to PCs. The way a PC worked, including the associated software, was foreign to most of our teachers. One of the first projects I remember guiding a teacher on was a research project on animals for 3rd graders using a program for the PC called HyperStudio. The teacher, Barbara, and I sat down together to map out the project. We had to plan the instruction students would need not only for the research component, but also for the technology component. Because HyperStudio was new to Barbara, she had no idea how to help students use it to share their findings.

We decided early on that in guiding students through this project, I would take the lead on demonstrating HyperStudio. Barbara sat down and followed right along with her students, observing how I taught them, as they learned HyperStudio, and creating an animal project of her own. As we continued to use this program with her 3rd graders, Barbara spent less and less time creating her own project; instead, she moved around helping students. Her comfort level improved, and she switched from being a learner to facilitating the project. It wasn't long before I found her in the lab using this technology with students on her own.

I've seen this process repeated time and again over the years. Today, it might be a 2.0 offering like a wiki that I'd introduce to teacher and students simultaneously, but the process works the same: As teachers feel more confident, they take ownership. I don't think I've ever called this way of assisting "coaching," but it's certainly a key way librarians give teachers training to bolster their skills. Because the training comes at the point of need, is focused on the task or project at hand, and reflects something the instructor wants to do with students, it's meaningful. To this day, as I collaborate with teachers-whether I'm teaching in the library, the computer lab, or the classroom, I'm always thinking about how I can give teachers a chance to see the potential of new technologies, books, or other resources.

Modeling a new technology as I work with kids provides a springboard for teachers who want to learn more. For example, my school now has two document cameras. As I worked recently with 2nd grade students on their research project on biomes, I used the document camera to model how students could organize the information in their research journals. My presentation wasn't elaborate, but as classroom teachers helped their students, they saw me using this new tool and began to ask about it. How did it work? What would they need to use it in their rooms?

An effective media specialist also models creative technology use by initiating conversations about potential projects. Each week, I attend my school's grade-level planning meetings. I often throw out ideas such as, "You could use the student response clickers for that activity" or "Have you thought about having students create that on a wiki?" Sometimes teachers take me up on it; other times they don't. But now that I've been working with these teachers for years, one thing I don't hear as much during weekly meetings is, "I don't know how to do that." Instead I hear, "You'll have to help me with that"-because teachers feel comfortable that I'll give them the support they need.

Coaching Small Groups

I discovered the power of working with small groups of teachers in 2009 when North Elementary's principal Vince Barnes shared his plan for professional development for the coming school year, telling me, "I have an idea, but you'll have to lead it." His vision was that North Elementary School would focus on using web 2.0 to improve students' literacy and 21st century skills, and teachers would explore how they could best use 2.0 tools. As the principal and I mapped out what spreading learning about web 2.0 schoolwide might look like, we decided to use existing teacher meetings as a forum to introduce such tools-and to gently require teachers to give them a try, with support as needed.

In the past, I'd struggled with whole-group staff development. Some faculty member always said, "That doesn't apply to me!" When I used middle-of-the-road examples, the kindergarten teachers often perceived the suggested project as too hard for their kids and shut down; the 4th grade teachers assumed it was too young for their kids and shut down. Special area teachers would assume this didn't apply to them at all. Obviously that approach wasn't going to work this time. Instead, we looked at how we could provide focused staff development that met teachers' needs at their particular grade levels.

With each web 2.0 tool, the principal used a whole-staff meeting to introduce the tool or resource, and he and I presented basic activities that gave teachers an understanding of how it worked. To showcase podcasting, we located a variety of examples on the web and played them. My principal and I made sample podcasts and shared them with the group to demonstrate how easy it was to create one.

Rather than go into depth at whole-staff meetings on how to use each tool, we scheduled our trainings during the teachers' weekly professional learning community meetings. These meetings are organized by grade level and are typically held during teachers' preparation period. In each meeting, the principal and I trained teachers in using the tool appropriately for their grade level, talked about how this technology might look with their kids, and answered individual questions. In suggesting how to apply the tool, we focused on future curriculum topics.

For example, 1st grade was beginning its farm unit, so we discussed how a podcast might work with that topic. Students researched farm animals and used the information they gathered to create acrostic poems, which they recorded as a podcast. In music, 4th graders were going to be studying composers, so we planned podcasts in which each student took on the role of a composer that student had studied and responded to questions from fellow learners as if conducting a radio interview.

Teachers had six to nine weeks to decide on a project connected to their curriculum (not something "extra") that used a specific web 2.0 tool with students. Our planning during professional learning community time got them started, but if they needed additional time to talk about options, the principal and I helped during weekly planning meetings. I made it quite clear that teachers were free to do this completely on their own, or if they wanted, I would collaborate with them. It was important to provide as much or as little support as each teacher needed.

Our kindergarten teachers opted to do a grade-level podcast about their field trip to the pumpkin patch. They took pictures, and back at school, we downloaded the photos, put them into a file, recorded the kids' voices talking about what they saw and learned, and uploaded the podcast to the web. I walked kindergarten teachers step-by-step through the entire process. Our 4th grade teachers felt confident in what they were doing and so opted to be more independent; each group worked on a different project. I was available when they had questions, but they were able to work on their own once our nudge got them started.

Following these trainings and the various projects teachers saw through to completion, we celebrated their hard work at a staff meeting. It was amazing to see what these teachers and their students accomplished in their early tries with 2.0 applications.

One-on-One Help

During the second year of North Elementary teachers using web 2.0 tools, they knew enough that I didn't need to do trainings for whole grade levels. Instead, I focused on being available to individuals. Some new teachers required in-depth training, and some veterans needed a refresher or help answering a question. Most important, teachers know that they can call, e-mail, or stop by the library, and I'll try to provide them with all the support they need for trying out a new technology application.

These are just a few examples of how school librarians act as coaches. Although the projects described here focus on technology, there are plenty of other ways a good school media specialist can guide teachers. For example, they

Bring new literature to teachers and students and suggest innovative projects or lessons that might connect to books.

Introduce teachers to resources-educational websites, newsletters, or online databases-with a note saying, "Have you thought of trying...?"

Draw from their particular talents and experiences to enhance instruction or offer professional development, such as training on a new technology tool.

Building Trust

For coaching to be effective, there has to be trust between specialist and teacher. Building trust requires following through on what you say you will do. If I promise to come and support teachers while they are learning a new technology, for instance, I have to be there-ditto if I promise to coteach a project with them at a certain hour.

In these hard economic times, schools must use each staff member to the fullest. School librarians have great knowledge about 21st century skills, technology, literacy, and much more. Schools should take advantage of the opportunities this knowledge store can create and run with them-for the benefit of our students.

Carl A. Harvey is the school librarian at North Elementary School in Noblesville, IN, and president of the American Association of School Librarians.

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October 2011 | Volume 69 | Number 2 Coaching: The New Leadership Skill Carl A. Harvey In most schools, the word coach is used to describe a teacher with special expertise that he or she uses to help teachers improve instructional skills.

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Why We Still Need Libraries and Librarians

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Why We Still Need Libraries and Librarians

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Article from From Now On: The Educational Technology Journal

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Why We Still Need Libraries and Librarians

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Pink Slips-and Rumors-Fly in L.A." published in the American Libraries' Inside Scoop published March 17, 2010. The same pattern is being repeated in many districts.

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The School Librarian as Learning Alchemist | American Libraries Magazine

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The School Librarian as Learning Alchemist | American Libraries Magazine

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From American Libraries Magazine

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The landscape of learning is changing. Children and young adults learn not only in school but fluidly across home, school, peer culture, and community. This transformation in learning and the school environment has prompted educators to ask challenging questions about how to develop learning spaces to meet these needs within the sometimes competing economic, social, and political realities.

At the same time, school librarians continue to serve their communities by linking children, young adults, and teachers with both the information they need and the skills to use it. We've identified three trends that we see as most affecting the role of the school librarian in the near future.

Information on demand

In the near future, there will be a significant reduction in physical library space and collections. Educational technology is becoming more mobile, embracing one-to-one laptop or tablet initiatives and bring-your-own-device (BYOD) policies. Young adults also have access to their own devices: According to 2013 Pew Research Center data, some 37% of teens aged 12-17 own a smartphone and three-fourths use mobile devices to access the internet at least occasionally. More and more schools are shifting their policies about the use of these devices in the classroom away from rigid restrictions-and many educators are incorporating them into their lessons.

Even as some schools move to virtual collections, the opportunities for school librarians to influence learning will actually increase. When a collection is housed in the cloud and accessible through mobile devices, the school librarian has a greater capability to enhance learning. Colorado teacher-librarians Phil Goerner and Krista Brakhage

report such augmented reality programs as Aurasma allow students to use their devices to scan physical objects and receive interactive help and instructions. Responsive technology, or the internet of things, allows us to connect directly to objects and record real-time information, such as cost or temperature. School librarians thus control a limitless collection that taps into devices and data around the world, enhancing the research experience for students.

The importance of mobile devices in school adds to the need for school librarians to serve as policy experts for their districts. The BYOD movement, for example, can influence several school, district, local, state, and federal policies, such as those regarding access, copyright, filtering, usability, and privacy. Filtering is perhaps the most salient example, as student use of personal devices has taken the control of internet access away from school administrators. The urge to protect children and young adults on school devices and Wi-Fi must be carefully weighed against the need to teach them how to safely use the internet. Much of the information on the success of BYOD comes from companies with a vested interest in these products (for example, Intel Education's K-12 Blueprint). School librarians must advise other educators impartially on these issues.

Connected learning

The connected learning model makes use of networked technologies to promote education that is academically oriented, peer-supported, interest-driven, production-centered, openly networked, and grounded in a shared purpose. New media can support connected learning by increasing student access to knowledge, providing timely feedback and individualized learning experiences, and connecting youth to a network of individuals with expertise in areas of shared interest. The model supports learning in a variety of subject areas, including STEM subjects, but its major benefits are in out-of-school learning environments. For example, US public libraries are embracing the connected learning model by creating learning spaces and labs, thanks in part through funding from the Institute of Museum and Library Services.

Unfortunately, school is often the place that young people are forced to disconnect from ecosystems of learning that they most enjoy, resulting in a rupture between in-school and out-of-school learning. School librarians

are best situated to overcome this barrier as the "connected learning person" on staff, trained to embrace technology and youths' interests and trends.

Most connected learning models in school libraries take the form of after-school or time-bound programs and clubs that focus on actively creating, making, tinkering, producing, experimenting, remixing, decoding, and designing. School librarians can transfer these experiences into formal learning by offering more lenient technology policies and mobile learning, and by conducting research that supports the success of connected learning, ever-expanding technology, and new standards. The scientific and mathematical practices and dispositions that Common Core State Standards and the Next Generation of Science Standards require in preparing students for college and careers are perfectly suited to the connected learning environment.

From learning in situ to learning in the wild

Children and young adults lack the skills to evaluate the information they find on the open web. As they move away from controlled information resources, students must develop critical thinking skills. School librarians are spearheading a shift from learning in situ to learning in the wild. Librarians will likely move away from expensive, underused subscription databases and cumbersome keyword searching to teach students how to search effectively on the open web. This shift places a renewed emphasis on three key roles that librarians play in teaching students how to evaluate the credibility of information, respect copyright, and protect their privacy.

Indeed, these concepts formed the basis of Standard 3 of the American Association of School Librarians' Standards for the 21st Century Learner: "Share knowledge and participate ethically and productively as members of our democratic society." School librarians can encourage learning by fostering critical thinking skills, developing an ethical framework for creating and sharing information, and ensuring personal privacy.

Students will need to understand the process of creating and sharing information responsibly. A 2014 study by researchers at Northwestern's Institute for Policy Research showed that 88% of teens shared an image online recently, and a surprising number of children under the legal age of 13 are online and sharing information in social media contexts. Many of them are sharing information, intentionally or not, that their parents would prefer they keep private. These trends point to the need for youths to undertake a deeper understanding of ethics and privacy, skills that are rarely taught by teachers and parents. However, the school librarian can and should be the educational leader in developing these dispositions that will aid in intellectual growth and responsibility.

The school librarian of the future

Even though the primary purpose of the school librarian continues to be access to information, the new mix of mobile technology, personalized learning, and expanded learning spaces makes providing access more complicated, necessary, and exciting than ever before. The school librarian of the future will be the learning alchemist in the school, directly involved in transforming the physical and virtual spaces for learning in the school, leading shifts in technology and media-enhanced learning, and building robust partnerships with community anchors. In tandem with public librarians, those working in museums and after-school clubs, school librarians will ensure that learning-as educational researchers Ola Erstad and Julian Sefton-Green put it-is "lifewide, life-deep, and lifelong" for all children and young adults.

From left: NATALIE GREENE TAYLOR MEGA SUBRAMANIAM AMANDA WAUGH

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The School Librarian as Learning Alchemist | American Libraries Magazine

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At the same time, school librarians continue to serve their communities by linking children, young adults, and teachers with both the information they need and the skills to use it. We've identified three trends that we see as most affecting the role of the school librarian in the near future.

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Article from From Now On: The Educational Technology Journal

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Joan of Arc? Have we reached the point where teacher librarians will be replaced by artificial intelligence and poorly paid aides? New Zealand did away with most of its highly skilled and trained teacher librarians at the turn of the previous century.

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Chapter 1: School Library Impact Studies 101: An Overview of the Research on Vimeo

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Chapter 1: School Library Impact Studies 101: An Overview of the Research on Vimeo

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Video:  The Impact of School Libraries on Student Achievement (AKA the Colorado/Lance studies)

Chapter 1: School Library Impact Studies 101: An Overview of the Research

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Chapter 1: School Library Impact Studies 101: An Overview of the Research

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This is "Chapter 1: School Library Impact Studies 101: An Overview of the Research" by on Vimeo, the home for high quality videos and the people who...

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Pam Moran - Transforming Libraries - YouTube

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Pam Moran - Transforming Libraries - YouTube

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Published on Jul 3, 2015

"Dr. Pamela Moran has served as the Superintendent of Albemarle County Public Schools since January 2006. She oversees a division with an annual operating budget of $160 million, with more than 1,200 teachers educating over 13,600 students in 26 schools."

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Dr. Pamela Moran has served as the Superintendent of Albemarle County Public Schools since January 2006. She oversees a division with an annual operating budget of $160 million, with more than 1,200 teachers educating over 13,600 students in 26 schools.

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HCPS TV - Henrico County Public Schools Television - Video Vault

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HCPS TV - Henrico County Public Schools Television - Video Vault

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"Today's Library - A fun look at school libraries and how they have changed over the years."

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Teacher Librarians at The Heart of Student Learning - YouTube

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Teacher Librarians at The Heart of Student Learning - YouTube

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Published on Jan 9, 2013

"School library and information technology programs are a vital resource for student learning. This video to highlight the essential role teacher librarians play in information and technology literacy instruction, reading advocacy, and information management."

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Teacher Librarians at The Heart of Student Learning

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School library and information technology programs are a vital resource for student learning. This video to highlight the essential role teacher librarians play in information and technology literacy instruction, reading advocacy, and information management. More information available on our website: http://WLMA.org

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School Libraries Matter: The Changing Role of the School Librarian - YouTube

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School Libraries Matter: The Changing Role of the School Librarian - YouTube

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Published on Oct 22, 2014

"Support over 50,000 school librarians making a difference every day in our schools. Join the conversation. #SchoolLibrariesMatter"

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School Librarians are Teachers - YouTube

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School Librarians are Teachers - YouTube

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Uploaded on Jun 5, 2010

"Across the nation, schools are in crisis. Unfortunately, this means that school libraries are caught in the tug-of-war between budget and quality education. It is important to remember that your school librarian is a teacher who has an impact on all children in the building. The teacher-librarian is an essential member of the educational team. Teacher-Librarians collaborate with other teachers in all subject areas, they foster a love of reading, they teach research skills, and they teach 21st century skills. Please support your school library."

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Across the nation, schools are in crisis. Unfortunately, this means that school libraries are caught in the tug-of-war between budget and quality education. It is important to remember that your school librarian is a teacher who has an impact on all children in the building. The teacher-librarian is an essential member of the educational team.

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The Future of School Libraries - YouTube

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The Future of School Libraries - YouTube

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Published on Jul 26, 2012

"This video was created for EDES 545 Information Technologies For Learning, as part of the Teacher-Librarianship by Distance Learning Masters Program through the University of Alberta. The purpose of the assignment was to represent our personal vision for librarianship, teacher-librarianship or teaching and learning for the 21st century."

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This video was created for EDES 545 Information Technologies For Learning, as part of the Teacher-Librarianship by Distance Learning Masters Program through the University of Alberta. The purpose of the assignment was to represent our personal vision for librarianship, teacher-librarianship or teaching and learning for the 21st century.

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Position Statement on the Role of the School Library Program | American Association of School Librarians (AASL)

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Position Statement on the Role of the School Library Program | American Association of School Librarians (AASL)