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Given that I have spent a relatively small amount of time working in a school, the big takeaway so far has been actually seeing the things we are studying in practice as we cover them. This class is packed with great ideas and information anyway, but it is so much more valuable to have a point of comparison in my FE school(s). Coming from a much different background, some of the library classes have felt very abstract, and this sometimes makes it hard for them to 'stick'. But even in areas where my library is not living up to its potential, I am able to get an idea of how problems might be overcome in my future, and how I might create plans to implement change.
It hasn't come as a huge surprise, but I have been seeing firsthand how much of an impact a budget can have on a library. I feel like we are sacrificing so much by not having adequate tech resources in the library, and one possible route to addressing this problem is (hopefully temporarily) currently blocked due to personal conflicts between the librarian and tech teacher. This is yet another example of something I've experienced firsthand while discussing it in class. It is so important to build and maintain those relationships!
Finally, this class has really opened my eyes to just how much support is out there in our community. I know it will take me some time to get adjusted when I need to start creating my own lessons, so it is good to know that there are so many resources available to help me get on my feet.

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The biggest ah ha moments I have had are seeing the big picture of the library world. I consider my library innovative and foward thinking. But the school library component is just the opposite.
How can technology be so behind?
The state I live in has severe local taxes that we pay as individuals directly from our paycheck. Those taxes are 3X what I was paying in New Jersey, yet funds are not distributed more evenly, they are in fact less equal which can be a bit mind boggling.
This has created libraries that are years ahead of where the schools I support are.
Hearing all of the innovation in this class has given me perspective on what I can do as an Outreach Librarian to bring my innovative library to the school. To work to see if there are grants we can apply for as a public library to support our schools.
Most importantly to set major foundations for innovation in place so that they can be built up in the future.

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One of differences I have noticed is just how unique each of my classmates schedules and library personnel vary from school to school. It's easy to assume what's normal for you is normal for someone else, but that's clearly not the case. I wonder why some districts place emphasis on personnel, while others value materials and or technology.

I also noticed that there is a clear line between the haves and the have nots. I am extremely fortunate to work in an affluent community. We have a 1-1 Chromebook initiative K-8. Each year the town hold a technology fundraiser dinner for the school. Last year, they collected over 30K in donations.

Yet, some of my classmates do not have computers for students to use in the library. The digital divide is vast, even in places were you wouldn't necessary think there would be much of a difference. I suppose this also has to do with administration and how they value the library skills program.

Another takeaway is the differences in what is being taught by my classmates in their libraries. It seems there are some who are more what you would call traditional librarians and others who are digital librarians. I wonder if the differences strengthen or weaken us as a profession.

I suppose my takeaways are really all the same. In the realm of school librarians, there are so many variables. How can the profession unite, so we aren't replaced by new technology and/or STEM teachers? What I have noticed is that in the past few years, librarians have completely changed their roles and mindsets. Unfortunately, many administrators have an outdated view of what it means to be a librarian.
Anna

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I think my biggest Aha has just been how much librarians/media specialists handle over the course of a day or week. While I have taken classes that showed how important the media specialist is and how they can be the center of the school, doing the readings and working in a school library really brought it all home.
The most important things that librarians do (in my opinion:
1. Teach and share information with students.
2. Collaborate with teachers to share the library's resources to create rich learning experiences for students.
3. Advocate for the library. If the media specialist is not out there, sharing their successes, talking about their needs and expressing the benefits of the library program, they won't get the support they need.
- Erica Deb

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Advocating, Destiny, & Collection Development

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Advocating, Destiny, & Collection Development

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1. One of my biggest take-aways from this semester so far is how much advocating for your library you have to do as a school librarian. In order to stay relevant and deemed necessary to the admin (and therefore the budget), especially in times of less funding, cultivating relationships with teachers, admin, and the PTA is incredibly important. Those relationships allow you to present just how important the library is, how much learning takes place in the library, and what it is the library can do for them as educators.

2. Destiny has been a huge aha for me this semester since I've never had the opportunity to explore/use it before. I'm still finding out things the Destiny/Follett system can do to improve the flow of the library. Things like processing new books, keeping track of your collection & used as a catalog, the use of timewise as a search engine for books and MARC records, and even social media-like profiles for both educators and students to participate in.

3. Recently we've been discussing collection upkeep. I've always known you want a good collection- but having a good, updated collection goes much further than I originally thought. The key to staying in the forefront of admin's minds as a necessity is having a collection that is useful- which means materials are organized (not hard to find), and updated (not out of date or old) in order to be relevant and useful. In addition to this is the question of how to spend your budget and the digital vs print debate. While I know print will always be useful, there are quite a few instances where spending your limited budget on digital resources is the better move in order to stay current and accessible to all. This has been an extremely interesting debate to really think about what you would prioritize- and, of course, every library is different.

-Rachael Wisniewski

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Curation, Leadership, & Indispensability -Melissa Williams

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Curation, Leadership, & Indispensability -Melissa Williams

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My three biggest learning take-aways so far  are (though it is hard to choose):

1. Curation & knowledge-sharing: The need to do more of it and for resources to not just be curated by a librarian but by students as well.  Also, I have been struck by how fun, varied, and creative curation can be and by  how many avenues there are for curation and knowledge-sharing

2. Emphasis on being a curriculum leader and community leader rather than mostly

reacting to what teachers say they need:   Showing teachers and other stakeholders what they need, when they might not even realize they need it.  I’ve been working on this over the past couple of months in my own practice.  I’ve tried to introduce teachers, and our other librarians. to some tools and resources that they did not know about previously such as Smore, Padlet, and Pinterest (as a research resource curation tool).

3. And related to the last take-away (or, really, to both previous take-aways): How to be indispensable to the administration, respected, and central to the mission of the school.  This involves measures of self-advocacy and of promotion of programs, but it also entails aligning with the mission and vision of the school so that the school’s administration sees you as a valuable partner in achieving the school’s mission.  What is important to them is important to you, and that increases your value to the administrators and your power within the community.  Ultimately, the goal is to become less dependent upon others and have more community members (especially the power brokers) dependent upon you.  I had thought about some of this before in vague terms, but this course has given me both the language and framework to think about these goals within and the inspiration and drive to really go out there and do it.
~Melissa Williams