500 Hats

The second hat that the teacher librarian wears is that of information specialist.

According to Learning for the Future (2nd edition) (ASLA & ALIA, 2001), this means we “provide access to information resources through efficient and well-guided systems for organising, retrieving and circulating resources” as well as providing “training and assistance to students and staff in the effective use of these systems”.

In the past, that was a relatively simple assignment – fiction resources were split into two sections, either picture books or novels, and given a classification based on the author’s name; non fiction was classified and shelved according to the Dewey Decimal Classification system.  Students were taught now to use the catalog, how the Dewey system worked so they could make sense of the numbers and then expected to locate the required resources on the shelves.

But the rapid development of technology has changed the goalposts and now, instead of staff and students coming to the information, in many situations the TL takes the information to the students.  Thus, as well as having an efficient, up-to-date catalog we need to know how to use hotlists, databases, social media, content management systems, virtual learning environments and a host of other tools so we can provide efficient and equitable access to the resources 365/24/7.  No longer is the library confined by walls and clocks.

There is also a push to abandon the traditional arrangements of the library so they become more like bookstores – the titles arranged by genre rather than author or subject.  From time to time, this issue is discussed on the TL networks around the world, and Jan Radford has collated a range of articles here.

Before such a change is considered, there is a range of questions that need to be asked and answered with acceptable, independent evidence.  

Given that the definition of being the information specialist is based on providing efficient and effective access to resources, then we must demonstrate that any changes will do this better than what is offered now.  So we need to consider…

• Why is the change being considered?
• Why is what is currently in place not working? What is the evidence that it is not? How can it be changed/ modified to work rather than introducing a non-standard ‘fix’?
• Is the solution based on sound pedagogical reasons whose efficacy can be measured?
• What reliable evidence (apart from circulation figures) exists to support the changes and demonstrates improvement to student learning outcomes?
• Is it based on library-based best practice? Are there successful models (measured through action research and benchmarks and published in reliable authoritative literature) that demonstrate that this is a sustainable, effective and efficient model to emulate?
• How do the changes fit within your library policy, which, presumably has been ratified by the school’s executive and council?
• If a change is made, what S.M.A.R.T. goals will be set to measure its impact?
•  Who will do the measuring and ensure that the conclusion is independent and unbiased?
• If those goals show no change or a decline, will the library be willing to reverse the process?
• How will the proposed change impact on the role and workload of the teacher librarian – will more time than currently necessary be spent on locating resources?
• Have students had input into the proposal?
• Will the proposed changes lead to them being more independent, effective and efficient users of the library’s resources?
• Who decides the genre categories and their location – are 26 letters of the alphabet not a more organised format already?
• Who decides the location of each title and on what criteria is that placement based?
• Who decides the placement if a book straddles genres?
• How is that decision made?
• How is consistency across time guaranteed if personnel change because decisions are so subjective?
• Who is responsible for developing and maintaining the criteria for placement and the Procedures Manual to ensure consistency?
• If your library is to be more like a bookstore, then why is that more important than being like other libraries?
• How do the purposes, target audiences and procedures of the school library and the bookstore differ, and can one model be successfully superimposed on the other despite those differences?
• If it is to be more like a bookstore, is the bookstore model effective particularly if you don’t know quite what you’re looking for? Is there evidence that the proposed solution satisfies the needs of the customers in the bookstore, or are they frustrated?
• Is the change worth the time that is invested in re-classifying every title and the money invested in new labels, staff wages etc?
• Could that time and money be better spent?
• If students do not learn how to use Dewey in the primary setting, how will they manage it in high school or public libraries, particularly where there is an expectation by the high school that an understanding of how to use it is an acquired skillset?
• If students are browsing by genre will they then confine themselves to that genre?
• Do primary-aged students, particularly those under 11-12 years, have preferences for particular genres or do they use different criteria at that age??
• What is the purpose of switching non-fiction resources to a ‘genre’ classification when Dewey essentially does this by grouping like subjects together?
• If students say they cannot find what they are looking for is this because Dewey is not efficient or other factors such as clients being unwilling to use the OPAC or arbitrary limiting of the Dewey number?
• If students need to use the OPAC to search for every title, what impact will that have on computer facilities?
• Would better signage, including more shelf dividers address the problem?
• What role can displays play in highlighting different and unfamiliar genres and subjects?

Library 2.0 means that Librarian 2.0 keeps changing and we need to continually monitor and modify the shape and the fit of Hat 2.  

Every now and then there is a challenge to encapsulate the role of the TL into six or seven words, and I always respond with “curriculum leader, information specialist, information services manager” that I learned way back when from Learning for the Future (2nd edition) (ASLA & ALIA, 2001).

I believe that that sums up what we do so succinctly and is timeless. Regardless of any changes such as a name change of the space, the new horizons opened by technology, new curricula or in-vogue pedagogy, those three roles remain our core business. 

For me, the hat that fits most snugly is that of curriculum leader for that is the one that puts the teacher in teacher librarian. I’ve been working with a colleague developing a new Library Development Plan, in particular aligning it to the school’s development plan, and almost every proposal came back to putting on the curriculum leader’s hat.

The nature of the role means it is the TL who has the best overview of the entire curriculum being designed and delivered in the school, sees how it all interweaves and locks together and through collaborative planning and teaching, can embed the information literacy process into it so there is connected, meaningful learning for the students. 

The rollout of the strands of the Australian National Curriculum across the country is an exciting time for TLs because not only does it give them the perfect opportunity to shine but they are the ones with the birds-eye view who can pull together the old and the new so the transition is smooth; identify the connects and disconnects so learning is cohesive and coherent; and support staff and students through the provision of the most relevant resources.

In a school I once had the privilege to teach at, the curriculum only had two strands – investigation and communication.  Everything fell under one umbrella or the other – we were either learning about something or we were sharing what we had learned.  As the TL, I held the ends of both strands.

Investigation is based on research.  Regardless of the depth required to solve the information need, the skills of research are an essential and those skills are based on information literacy -the ability to identify an information need, locate appropriate resources to solve it, then reading, evaluating and interpreting what is found to create a satisfactory solution.

If, as Mike Eisenberg says, information literacy is “the most basics of basics”, then who better than the teacher who has information literacy as their specialist subject to lead its embedding as an across-curriculum perspective? To teach the teachers as well as the students? To lay the foundations of a scaffold that will support that platform  of lifelong learning that is the stated outcome of Australian education for K-12?

Communication is based on talking, listening, reading, writing, viewing and performing so who better than the teacher who has the whole curriculum as their specialty to support the development of the essential skills? To provide leadership in curriculum planning so these are to the fore? To collaboratively plan and teach with teachers so opportunities are explored and exploited.? To provide a range of resources to make the design, delivery and assessment of the curriculum seamless?  

ICT stands for information communication technologies so who better than the information and communication specialist to be the leader in the introduction and implementation of new ways to do old things? To encourage teachers to pose problems that cannot be answered through copy-and-paste and a few mouse clicks?  To ensure that ideas, information and images are used ethically? To understand the potholes and pitfalls that exist in the online world and help staff and students navigate them safely, managing their digital footprints responsibly? 

The TL is also the person who sees every student in the school, often at least once a week, so who better to tap into that long tail of students who don’t see the library as meeting their needs and addressing their concerns? Who, with a reasonable budget, a knowledge of the collection, and the ability to search effectively and efficiently, can better respond to students needs at the point of need?

If we are to ‘future-proof’ our positions, then it is essential that we promote the teacher part of teacher librarian.

Have I got myself any closer to pinpointing the role of the TL?

There are a dozen documents I could cite that could give an official guide to the role of the TL, perhaps the key one being the ALIA/ASLA Statement on Teacher Librarians in Australia (2002)

Teacher librarians support and implement the vision of their school communities through advocating and building effective library and information services and programs that contribute to the development of lifelong learners. A teacher librarian holds recognised teaching qualifications and qualifications in librarianship, defined as eligibility for Associate (i.e. professional) membership for the Australian Library and Information Association [ALIA]. Within the broad fields of education and librarianship, teacher librarians are uniquely qualified. This is valuable because curriculum knowledge and pedagogy are combined with library and information management knowledge and skills.

This is supported by ASLA’s Standards of Professional Excellence which identifies the three domains of Professional Knowledge, Professional Skills and Professional Commitment (each with four elements described  by relevant performance indicators) which, while closely aligned to the AITSL National Professional Standards for Teachers spell out just what it is that the TL knows and does that makes having those post-grad qualifications mandatory.  As Judy O’Connell says,”A good teacher and ICT leader can do a lot – but they are not versed in the discipline of library and information studies and there is just so much that they can’t know. No fault of their own – they just haven’t ‘learned the trade’”.

There is also the School Library Bill of Rights which states, “School libraries are concerned with generating understanding of freedom and with the preservation of this freedom through the development of informed and responsible citizens” and outlines the responsibilities of the school library to do this.

Then add to the mix the concept of Library 2.0. No longer is the library confined to a physical building or its collection to print resources lined up on shelves. Rather than the transfer of information it presumed users wanted, the emphasis is now on the creation of information that users have indicated they need.

In the past, “Web 1.0 took people to the information; [whereas] Web 2.0 will take the information to the people.”  (Davis, cited in Miller, 2005)

The “new” library has to be focused on its users, delivering information, resources and services that meet their actual, rather than their assumed, needs, guided by client requests, response, participation and feedback. And from Library 2.0, emerges Librarian 2.0. 

Librarian 2.0 is a mashup of the old and the new focusing on the users, services, technology, content and context in a collaborative, interactive environment. (Barbara, 2011, private blog)

While the traditional knowledge, skills and attributes remain an essential core, they are enriched by new Library 2.0-based capabilities enabling a more diverse, richer experience for both librarian and client. Policies, programs and practices reflect the new paradigm and the users’ needs become their driver. Rather than being the sage-on-the-stage dispensing information, Librarian 2.0 becomes the guide-on-the-side facilitating the acquisition of knowledge and skills.

Essential Knowledge

The teacher librarian must know

• the demographics of the clientele so that information, resources and services are
  • well situated in the particular landscape
  • valid, valuable and valued within the particular context
  • in a framework or format that is accessible by the clients
  • appropriate and effective for helping the clients meet their information needs

• the principles of educational and sociocultural information literacy.
• the range of resources available beyond the physical collection housed within the library’s walls and how to provide access to these
• how social networking enriches and enhances the library’s presence in the community
• the purpose, features and functionality of appropriate Web 2.0 tools to support conversation, collaboration, interactivity and user-centred content
• the issues involved in intellectual property, copyright and ethical use
• the mechanics of online privacy, safety and security
• the principles underpinning Library 2.0
• the role and responsibilities of the 21st century librarian within their organisation

Essential Skills

The teacher librarian must be able to

• demonstrate lifelong learning in practices and programs
• identify and implement policies, programs and practices based on consultation and collaboration
• understand the purposes of Web 2.0 applications and use their functionality to deliver user-centred services, information and resources
• know how to locate, access, and evaluate information., services and resources and assist clients in developing their own information literacy skills, including using digital technologies
• develop policies based on best practice to support programs, practices and priorities
• develop and implement a social media presence and other marketing strategies

Essential Attributes

The teacher librarian must have

• the ability to work in and contribute to a collaborative environment which acknowledges and values the strengths of its individuals and the synergy of the team
• a belief that collaboration and communication produce better outcomes for all
• the willingness and flexibility to seek new, more efficient and more effective ways to deliver resources and services and embrace change
• a desire to develop professional knowledge and improve professional practice, demonstrating personal lifelong learning
• a belief that colleagues and clients are all threads in the same tapestry and all have an equal value in and responsibility to its creation, maintenance and development.
• perseverance, patience and a willingness to “go the extra mile” to satisfy a client’s requests
• customer service skills which treat all clients with respect and dignity
• a desire to look beyond the immediate and seek out the opinions and needs of the “long tail’ – those who currently don’t use the library because they believe it has nothing to offer them
• a commitment to develop and learn from Personal Learning Network
• a commitment to principles underpinning Library 2.0

Drilling down to what I believe my role as a TL should be is becoming more complex than I first thought – it’s like peeling the layers of an onion.

Firstly, I thought I would find the answer by identifying my beliefs and philosophies about education, which I did in An Unexpected Party but I found that wasn’t sufficient. It certainly helped me clarify my thinking but it didn’t go far enough.

Then, in The Shape of the Head I thought that the role of the TL could be determined by the role of the school library which had to be determined by the school community, yet that still wasn’t enough.

And so I found myself delving even deeper, down to the core of the purpose of the school – the education of the students. I asked

• What is it that students have a right to within the school that is sacred regardless of who is at the helm?
• What should they expect to experience as the absolute intellectual, social, emotional, physical, cultural, ethical, pedagogical and environmental basics of their school experience?
• Should there be a Bill of Rights for Students?

If we believe education should be truly student-centred, then surely a formal statement that sets out students’ rights is appropriate.

Because each school is unique because its clientele is unique such a statement would have to be developed within each learning community, but there are some seminal documents which would need to be considered…

• The UN Rights of the Child
• The Melbourne Declaration on Educational Goals for Young Australians
• Any overarching policy set out by the school’s educational authority
• The school’s mission statement

Even though I am no longer in a school, I can’t challenge you to do something that I’m not prepared to try so I’ve developed a draft statement which might serve as an inspiration for you to start the conversation with your learning community. I have to stress that it has been created without input from anyone but me, which is its first fault, but I’m a great believer in not being able to edit a blank page so offer it in that spirit. You can find it as a separate page of this blog.

Perhaps now I’m in a position to consider just what it is the TL can contribute to the teaching and learning of the students in our care…

I called this blog 500 Hats because as TLs, that’s at least the number of hats we wear – sometimes all in one day! And this post was going to be about identifying some of those hats. But for a hat to be a good fit, it must match the shape of the head so perhaps it would be better to examine the head first. In other words, examine the purpose and role of the school library, and the one we work in, in particular.

Imagine you were asked to encapsulate your role as a TL in just six or seven words. What would you put? Here are some responses from a recent challenge posed on LM_NET…

• Inspiring students to read and learn
• Service Information  Reliability Convenience  Vision Strength
• Share literature and information seeking skills
• Reading builds success.  We build readers.
• 21st century transliteracy impacts academic achievement

The late Dr Laurel Anne Clyde wrote her thesis on the history of school libraries and there is a broad summary of the Australian situation available from The Hub. Even the most cursory glance at either of these will show that the purpose and role of the school library is continually changing to meet the needs and interests of its users. For most, the days of it being the vehicle for getting religious and didactic stories into the hands of the ‘unwashed masses’ so they could learn to live more wholesome lives have gone and if we still wore that sort of hat, if would be an uncomfortable fit for many.

If we don’t define what the purpose of our school library is and how it fits within the overall ethos and philosophy of our school then the hats we wear won’t fit well or be very flattering. Similarly, if we don’t have a vision for how the library will grow and change under out stewardship, it won’t be long before the current hat is tight and uncomfortable.

In 2009, some US librarians put together The Darien Statements on the Library and Librarians which identified the purpose and role of the library and the role of the librarian. Their beliefs were…

The Purpose of the Library

• The purpose of the Library is to preserve the integrity of civilization.
• The Library has a moral obligation to adhere to its purpose despite social, economic, environmental, or political influences. The purpose of the Library will never change.
• The Library is infinite in its capacity to contain, connect and disseminate knowledge; librarians are human and ephemeral, therefore we must work together to ensure the Library’s permanence.
• Individual libraries serve the mission of their parent institution or governing body, but the purpose of the Library overrides that mission when the two come into conflict.
• Why we do things will not change, but how we do them will.
• A clear understanding of the Library’s purpose, its role, and the role of librarians is essential to the preservation of the Library.

The Role of the Library

The Library:

• Provides the opportunity for personal enlightenment.
• Encourages the love of learning.
• Empowers people to fulfill their civic duty.
• Facilitates human connections.
• Preserves and provides materials.
• Expands capacity for creative expression.
• Inspires and perpetuates hope.

The Role of Librarians

Librarians:

• Are stewards of the Library.
• Connect people with accurate information.
• Assist people in the creation of their human and information networks.
• Select, organize and facilitate creation of content.
• Protect access to content and preserve freedom of information and expression.
• Anticipate, identify and meet the needs of the Library’s community.

These statements have also been encapsulated in a graphic by Stacey Taylor.

The Darien Statements

How do these compare with your beliefs about the purpose and role of your library in your school? Why not prepare your own Statement of Beliefs for presentation at a staff meeting? I believe that if the school library is to have its rightful place at the hub of the school, then its purpose and role has to be determined by the school community. There needs to be consensus about what we want our students to know do, understand, appreciate and value as a result of their school experience and the library’s role in supporting that.

Similarly, we need to share a vision for the future of the library. While in the past, deep educational and pedagogical change has taken years, perhaps a generation, the speed of technological developments has initiated significant societal changes and schools and must respond to those much faster than before.The library, with its technological-savvy TL is often the leader of that.

The concept of Library 2.0 is rapidly becoming reality as the prevalence and use of social media tools become the norm rather than the rare. No longer is the library confined to a physical building or its collection to print resources lined up on shelves. Rather than the transfer of information it presumed users wanted, the emphasis is now on the creation of information that users have indicated they need. Similarly, as well as catering for the needs, interests and abilities of those who use the services and resources, we must also consider the “long tail” – those whose needs and interests are not met by the common, the popular or the overtly-on-offer.

The role of the TL is shaped by the role of the library. Perhaps, as we in Australia head into a new school year, it is a great time to start forming and articulating the shape of the head on which we will hang our hat.

Although I may have been born to teach, every time I do, like Bilbo Baggins, I have an unexpected (but not unknown) party of guests who influence the design, development and delivery of all that I do.

Guests such as Jean Piaget, Jerome Bruner, David Krech, Mark Rosenzweig and Edward Bennett, Marion Diamond and Karl Fischer, Jesse Conel and Peter Huttenlocher, and Arnold Scheibel, Bob Sylwester, Robin Fogarty, John Joseph and Edward de Bono who have taught me so much about how children learn and think. Sylvia Ashton-Warner, Marie Clay, Brian Cambourne, Don Holdaway, Ken and Yetta Goodman, and John Holt who have taught me so much about the acquisition of language skills; William Glasser and Bill Rogers who showed me how to have a calm, settled class of learners, and Wiggins and McTighe who gave me a way to plan that would engage them and satisfy the results-collectors; Berkowitz, Eisenberg, Kuhlthau and those who developed and documented the information literacy process, and, of course, those at Charles Sturt University who introduced me to them.

Also there, are the lecturers at Christchurch Teachers College of the 70s who introduced me to the inquiry approach way back then (and insisted we use it for every aspect of the curriculum); the handful of visionary and valued principals I’ve worked with over 40 years; and a larger group of teaching colleagues from whom I have learned so much.

From all these people, and hundreds of others whom I’ve worked with, met, listened to and read, I’ve learned some profound truths that influence my practice …
I know

• The brain constantly grows and changes from conception to death.
• The brain develops over three decades with the sensory sectors being the most active in the first ten years, and those enabling deep and independent thinking developing over the second decade.
• Different ages have different needs and conditions for learning.
• We build new concepts on old understandings, and new information must be connected to a prior experience for it to make sense.
• Intelligence is not fixed – it is a combination of nature and nurture.
• An enriched environment with appropriate multi-sensory challenges and opportunities to explore it has a significant impact on learning.
• Boredom and threat diminish the brain as much as challenge enhances it.
• Learning is unique and is dependent on many factors, many of them internal and intrinsic to the individual.
• There are many ways to learn the same thing and we each have our own preferences and predilections to ensure success.
• There are two types of learning
  • Experience-expectant which are the basic survival skills, including speech, which will occur in a well-described order and in a well-defined timeframe provided the child has the opportunities to learn them
  • Experience-dependent learning of non-essential skills, including reading, which require explicit instruction, repetition, motivation and mental effort and which develop at different times and different rates for each individual.

So I ask…

• How does this knowledge impact on what I know and believe about child development?
• How does this knowledge impact on what I know and believe about learning?
• How does this knowledge impact on what I know and believe about teaching?
• What is the driving force behind my current teaching programs and practices?
• How does that align with what I know and believe about learning?
• How does what I currently do and how I do it impact on the learning of my students?
• What sorts of teaching programs and practices are the most appropriate for what and how I want my students to learn at this time?
• What do my students need to know and be able to do five years from now as a result of my current programs and practices?
• What do I need to develop, change or abandon to provide my students with what they need, not what I think they should have?
• What sorts of environments should I be providing for my students?
• What can I do to guide my students along the path of lifelong learning?

Therefore I believe…

Learning is easy when…

• it is real and natural
• it is whole
• it is sensible
• it is interesting
• it is relevant
• it is part of a real event
• it belongs to the learner
• it has social utility
• it has purpose for the learner
• the learner chooses to use it
• the learner has the power to use it

Adapted from ‘What’s Whole in Whole Language”, K.S. Goodman (1986, 2005)

So I have to consider…

• What knowledge, understandings, skills, attitudes, beliefs and values do I want my students to learn as a result of undertaking this task?
• How can I connect what I want them to know with what they already know?
• How can I demonstrate the purpose and relevance of this learning to their world?
• How can I determine that they have achieved what I intended?

Cambourne’s Model of Learning

Adapted from “The Whole Story: natural learning and the acquisition of literacy in the classroom” Cambourne, B. (1988) (Click to enlarge)

Cambourne contends that successful learning is dependent on the learner…

• having a need to learn
• being physically and mentally capable of doing so
• being immersed in or surrounded by examples of what is to be learned
• receiving many demonstrations of what is to be learned and how it can be used
• expecting to succeed and knowing those around him expect success
• takingresponsibility for what is learned, when and how it is learned
• having time and opportunities to practise and use their new skills in real-life situations
• being free to make mistakes and learn from these
• receiving relevant, timely, and non-threatening feedback from those who already know

In a nutshell, I believe that it is essential that the learner perceives that the learning is necessary to make sense of the world and therefore has real purpose and meaning. Cambourne terms this engagement and contends that the most effective learning happens when the learner can make an emotional connection to what is being learned.

The learner’s attitude to learning is critical. While Cambourne talks of engagement, Renate and Geoffrey Caine believe that emotions are critical to learning. “What we learn is influenced and organized by emotions and mindsets involving expectancy, personal biases and prejudices, self-esteem and the need for social interaction Emotions and thoughts literally shape each other and cannot be separated. Emotions color meaning … Moreover, the emotional impact of any lesson or life experience may continue to reverberate long after the specific event that triggers it. Hence an appropriate emotional climate is indispensable to sound education.” (Caine R. and Caine G. 1994. Making connections: Teaching and the human brain. Menlo Park,CA: Addison-Wesley

The essential elements that underpin learning. (Click to enlarge)

So I ask …

• Do my students come to school each day in anticipation, not anxiety?
• Is their learning over before it starts because they have already shut down, telling themselves there is no purpose and denying themselves any chance of success?
• Do I unconsciously confirm those beliefs through my own attitudes and actions towards them?
• What can I do to promote more positive attitudes for both learner and teacher?
• What is the role of the library in providing a safe and satisfying learning environment?
• What is happening in the rest of the school that means the library is the only safe haven for some students?
• What sorts of options and opportunities can we offer to encourage, excite and extend student learning?

Why such a long-winded, detailed examination of my beliefs?

Firstly, it gives an insight into who I am as a teacher librarian and provides this blog with some authority.

Secondly, learning comes through reflection and if we take the time to examine and articulate what shapes our knowledge, understandings, attitudes and values we build a solid platform on which to build our future. More and more often we are asked to identify our educational philosophy. Mine is summarised in this slideshow…

Barbara’s beliefs

This reflection has enabled me to develop a manifesto which explicitly states who I am as a teacher librarian and ensures that the steps I take are in alignment with both my beliefs and my goals. I have begun with the end in mind.

Perhaps it will inspire you to see who the guests are at your party and develop your own manifesto. Knowing what your core beliefs are, beliefs developed over time through experience and expertise, will enable you to better assess new philosophies, pedagogies, programs and practices and make informed choices about those you will adopt, those you will adapt and those you will discard.  No matter how attractive the hat, if it is a poor fit and doesn’t suit your style, you won’t wear it and it will languish in your wardrobe!

Barbara’s Manifesto

Why?

Why another blog from a teacher librarian in a world filled with blogs by teacher librarians?

“She began with the end in mind,” will be my epitaph. As Covey says in The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People if we begin with the end in mind all our steps will be in the right direction, so identifying the purpose of this blog is critical to its focus.

2012 wrapped up the end of my 40th year in education and over that time I’ve learned a few things, theoretical, practical and pragmatic that other TLs may find useful so this is an effort to give back to the profession and the professionals who have given me so much.

Who?

Who is this TL who presumes to know enough about the profession to write a blog that others may find useful?

I could boast and bore with a list of qualifications, publications and awards but more importantly…

I was born to learn I was one of those people called ‘swots’ or ‘nerds’ who enjoyed school and couldn’t get enough of learning. Teachers College in Christchurch,New Zealand and uni seemed my natural pathway. A colleague recently endorsed something official with “She has a habit of collecting masters degrees,” because in 2011 I walked across yet another stage, doffed my cap and collected my third masters degree – this one focusing on Children’s Services in public libraries because it was the perfect accompaniment to those I have in teacher librarianship.

I was born to teach – Teaching was my destiny and many of my earliest memories are of covering my plaster-rendered bedroom walls with chalk exercises for my dolls to complete and getting into strife for not getting them wiped before my mother came home from work. (Worse, was being seduced by the rich dark green walls of the lounge room and discovering, too late, that the chalk scratched glossy paint and left indelible, undeniable evidence.)

I was born to write – I remember writing some inane story about a lost cat, the plot of which escapes me after so long, but the praise from my teacher for starting a sentence with “Now…” has not. Neither has the memory of a tough, scary Year 6 teacher who understood my need to write a ‘biography’ of Robert Falcon Scott and indulged it by letting me write and write and write throughout the day, without insisting I interfere with the process by doing the formal grammar, spelling, maths and history lessons that the other students were subjected to. Strong foundations which led to having the covers of nine education books displayed on my wall and numerous articles and columns stashed in a folder in the filing cabinet.

I was born to have an opinion – As the child of two newspaper journalists I had no choice. I just had to learn when, where and how to express it and to whom, tactfully and respectfully – I’m still working on that, as well as learning to listen and value the opinions of others. “That’s b/s**t”, does not always endear me to my colleagues, even though it seemed to work for my dad.

What?

What will this blog have that might encourage the reader to return?

I believe that the TL has a vital role in the school particularly in supporting teachers to design, develop and deliver the curriculum in a way that will engage students so they are eager to learn. But I know that there are many of our peers, principals, parents and politicians whose perception of the TL is based on what they remember of their school experience; who still see us as the ‘keeper of the books’ and who have yet to experience all that a top-shelf TL can offer.

So this blog will offer ideas, information and insight that can be used by others to enrich and enhance teaching and learning in the school. Underpinning what is offered will be a solid basis of knowing how learners learn and the pedagogy that supports this.

As well as being a reflection of what I’ve come to know, understand, do, believe and value over 40 years, hopefully it will also give the reader cause to reflect on their practice and the philosophy, policies, programs and processes which underpin it. Some say, “If it’s not broken, don’t fix it” but I believe we must always be looking for stress fractures and cracks and seeking to improve the model. Perhaps some of the posts of 500 Hats will encourage others to do the same.

When?

Will this become a daily dose of professional development?

Probably not – my need to write is still being satisfied in other ways, but it is my intention to post regularly enough for people to use the blog as a regular source of PD, particularly those who, like me, live in a rural situation and who don’t have regular, easy access to face-to-face learning opportunities.

So stay tuned and join me on this journey. Make comments, agree and disagree, share your successes and suggestions, and we will all learn from each other.