Case+Study+Matrix

Partners: Ballinger and Kirkland

 * ===STUDENTS === || ===TEACHERS === || ===LIBRARIANS === || ===ADMINISTRATORS === ||
 * === "more individualized attention, ===

|| === "allowed me to do more planning, more ideas because we feed off each other" (Peg, Kinder teacher) === || === "The librarian is one of the most important people in the school because there is no other single person who impacts the academic achievement of every single student in the school" (Paula, principal) === || === "The librarian works with teachers to help with curriculum, works with students in small groups effectively, ﻿only person other than the principal with a global perspective of the school" (Paula, principal) === ||
 * === "students begin to notice art techniques in books they read, they notice the illustrations, and can relate what they are learning to books they have read" (Tracy, elementary art) === || === "philosophy of authentic learning, allows kids to find the answers to their own questions, important for her ﻿, but more important for her students, to take state's superficial curriculum and go deeper" " (Judy P., 3rd teacher) === || === "The librarian has a global perspective of the school" (Paula, principal) === ||  ||
 * || === "expanded my instruction" (Tracy, elementary art teacher) === || === "research done with librarian helped in art class" (Tracy, elem. Art teacher) === ||  ||


 * === Students === || === Teachers === || === Librarians === || === Administrators === ||
 * === "library very welcoming and kids see the library as a place for learning" ===

(Mary Ann, 7th grade ELA)
|| === "Had never done power point before so with the librarians collaboration, ===

I learned right along with my students" (Pat, 7th grade, Social Studies)
|| === "Guided myself and my students, modeled, provided notes, and how to put ===

all of the pieces of learning together, team teaching" (Karen, 8th, ELA)
||  ||
 * === "students could carry it on into other classes and have common strands of thought with verbage that travels across the curriculum" (Karen, 8th, ELA) === || === I was able to use words that ===

opening the doors and planning ahead each month" (Karen, 8th ELA)
|| === "Opening the doors and planning ahead each month." (Karen, 8th, ELA) === ||  ||
 * === rubric... ===

the self-evaluation portion has really helped me and my students" (Diane, HS Art teacher)
|| === "helped me more fully integrate the research and writing process and rubric... ===

the self-evaluation portion has really helped me and my students" (Diane, HS Art teacher)
|| === "helped me more fully integrate the research and writing process and rubric... ===

the self-evaluation portion has really helped me and my students" (Diane, HS Art teacher)
||  ||
 * === "reading, research, and presentation are all tied together for the students" (Mary Ann, 7th ELA) === || === "guided me as the district enforced a writing across the curriculum plan" (Diane, HS, Art) === || === "The librarian questions, "what else can we do?" in order to make learning valuable" (Karen, 8th Grade, ELA) === ||  ||
 * === "helps students grasp the changes in information" (Judy, 3rd Grade) === ||  ||   ||   ||
 * === "21st Century, Information Age and change in information children learn how to find answers to their questions" (Judy, 3rd Grade) === ||  ||   ||   ||

and Sandra Hughes-Hassell. Westport, CT: Libraries Unlimited, 2003. 199-219. Print.
==="They have established an understanding among their staff members and they work as partners in many different ways, building upon past successes and reflecting on precious collaborative experiences to effect improvement" (McGregor, 199). === ==="When trying to implement changes, it is important to step back and look at change and the larger organization as a while. No individual in a school environment exists or operates in a vacuum. No change occurs withoutaffecting other seemingly unrelated elements" (McGregor, 200). === ==="By collaborating, teachers and teacher librarian provide learning experiences that respond to learning needs, provide resources at point of need, give teachers a working partner, and promote academic achievement" (McGregor, 201). === ==="The teacher librarian interested in creating a climate in which collaboration takes place must be prepared to take the lead, since anecdotal evidence shows that the teacher librarian who waits for someone else to lead is not included in most collaborations" (McGregor, 202). ===

"Successful leaders combine leading and learning" (Binney and Williams 1997, 7).
==="Responsive work with instead of against the participants, standing up for what they really believe but also learning what others care about by listening, by trying to understand the situation from the other person's point of view. Fullan suggests that the most lasting school reform efforts result when the idea is not only supported externally (as top-down initiatives) but also driven by grassroots motivations (1994, 2000)" (McGregor, 204). ===

"Change is a journey not a blueprint" (1993, 21).
=== "Thus, the librarian who is in terested in leading the school's learning community through change can be reassured that there is no right or wrong way to make things happen in his or her particular situation. Attending to the specific needs of the staff and students in that school allows the change to be appropriate. There are no rules for creating a collaborative environment" (McGregor, 204). === === "In corporating information literacy throughout the curriculum provides an integrated and coherent way to focus on student learning. Teaching through inquiry and reflection enables students to learn about and relate to the world outside the school in a meaningful way, a crucial aspect of information literacy. Until the entire school community is engaged in this goal, the results of collaborative attempts will tend to be scattered, inconsistent, and inequitable" (McGregor, 205). ===

==="With an overall view, the teacher librarian is able to see how learning develops from year to year and how subject areas intertwine. This knowledge makes it possible for the teachers libraian to imagine collaborations across subject areas and see points of need at various levels where information literacy elements can be appropriately introduced" (McGregor, 209). === ==="Knowledge of the curriculum is an important aspect of the job of demonstrating to teachers that the teacher librarian can be trusted to teach collaboratively in the subject area" (McGregor, 209). === ===<span style="color: #800080; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">"Teacher librarians can observe the overall needs of the school community and identify areas where problems might be solved by working together" (McGregor, 210). === === "An <span style="font-family: times new roman,times;">ability to see the big picture is another important factor in leading collaborations. Teacher librarians can observe the overall needs of the school community and identify areas where problems might be solved by working together. Not many staff members are in a position to do this, because most people's views are limited primarily to what happens in their immediate classrooms" (McGregor, 210). === ==="<span style="color: #800080; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">The leadership skills and qualities mentioned for teacher librarian leadership are: patients, an ability to notice when encouragement and support are needed, empathy, and emotional intelligence" (McGregor, 211). === ===<span style="color: #800080; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">"Teacher and administrative concerns about time management, curriculum change, student learning difficulties---all these can open doors to collaborative opportunities for the creative teacher librarian...Creating opportunities for conversations" (McGregor, 212). === ===<span style="color: #800080; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">"It is important to acknowledge that each person in a collaborative relationship has his or her own personal agenda" (McGregor, 213). === ===<span style="color: #800080; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">"The teacher librarian needs to assess how prepared the teacher is to collaborate fully and might need to be willing to adjust expectations to first time or two, until the teacher is comfortable in the collaborative environment" (McGregor, 213). ===

<span style="color: #800080; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">"Learning goals and objectives should guide the collaborative planning" (McGregor, 214).
=== <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">" Leaders establish priorities as they approach tasks and bring other people on board. So, too, does the teacher librarian, in terms of what might be gained in each collaborative experience. He or she may have many goals and objectives related to collaboration, but not all can be achieved at once" (McGregor, 214). === ===<span style="color: #800080; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">"Dukewits and Gowin (1996) present five key components crucial for the success of collaborative teams in an educational setting: establishing trust, developing common beliefs and attitudes, empowering team members, effectively managing meetings, and providing feedback about team fuctioning" (McGregor, 215). === === <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">" Over time, the teacher librarian matures as a leader in collaboration. As this maturity develops, the amount of team participation in decision making increases. Sharing leadership in these situations evolves naturally, providing the opportunity for other team members to develop leadership abilities" (McGregor, 217). === ===<span style="color: #800080; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">"As the teacher librarian becomes increasingly integral to the leadership of the school through collaboration with a diverse range of teachers, the possibility of being a formal member of the leadership team may emerge" (McGregor, 218). ===

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Harada. Westport, CT: Libraries Unlimited, 2008. 23 – 43. Print.
==== ﻿" Learning specialists in a school play a central role in the continuous effort to improve the achievement of all students through the design, instruction, and evaluation of student learning" (Harada and Zmuda, 24). ====

"One characteristic that distinguishes the learning specialist from the classroom teacher is that the former usually has no official, full assignment of students" (Harada and Zmuda, 24).
==== "...job descriptions for learning specialists...(1) assessment and instructional work with students; (2) curriculum, assessment, and instruction development with staff; (3) program development, leadership, and management" (Harada and Zmuda, 24). ==== ==== "Another reason for thinking of the library media specialist as a learning specialist is to create an additional layer ofleadership within the school with a new set of natural partners" (Harada and Zmuda, 24). ====

"For learning specialists to play a picotal role in student achievement, they must be meaningfully build into the "architecture" of leadership" (Harada and Zmuda, 26).
==== "Learning specialists typically are expected to perform duties in the area of curriculum, assessment and instruction, program oversight, and staff development. The scope and balance of these individual areas give insight into what the real priorities are for the position" (Harada and Zmuda, 26). ==== ==== "The work of learning specialists is critically adffected by the degree to which the following elements are evident in a school's culture: Collective accountablility for learning results, collegiality amoung staff, and leadership structures that support learning specialists" (Harada and Zmuda, 27). ====

"As partners in teaching, learning specialists must work with teachers to provide collective evidence of the learning that results from their combined instruction" (Harada and Zmuda, 29).
==== "The goal is //<span style="font-family: times new roman,times;">not //to increase collaboration but to improve student performance. The goal is //<span style="font-family: times new roman,times;">not //to force staff to attend professional development; the goal is for them to improve their practice in order to improve student performance. The goal is //<span style="font-family: times new roman,times;">not //to garner more respect for the learning specialists; the goal is for the interactions between learning specialists and staffto help the system improve its overall performance" (Harada and Zmuda, 31). ==== ===<span style="color: #00ff00; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">"**Collaborative plans blend important finite short-term tasks with the bigger picture so that one concrete effort** leads into a myriad of related systemic work. This blend of //<span style="font-family: times new roman,times;">right now //and //<span style="font-family: times new roman,times;">forward-thinking //tasks motivates current and future professional learning experiences" (Harada and Zmuda, 33). === === "Learning specialists must possess deep knoledge of their areas of specialization as well as be able to translate their disciplinary knowledge into curriculum, assessment, and instruction efforts" (Harada and Zmuda, 33). ===

"...learning specialists must be able to evaluate the effectiveness of other pedagogies and areas of discipline outside of their own specific repertoire" (Harada and Zmuda, 33).
===<span style="color: #00ff00; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">"To develop and grow a dynamic program, library media specialists must serve as program administrators, information specialists, and teachers, who are willing ===

<span style="color: #00ff00; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">to collaborate and lead" (Harada and Zmuda, 35).
===<span style="color: #00ff00; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">" As <span style="font-family: times new roman,times;">teachers and instructional partners, library media specialists can integrate "information literacy skills into all subject areas of school curriculum. They serve as the bridge to help teachers make the connections between inquiry-based learning and information-literacy skills throughout the curriculum at all levels" (Morris, 2004, 35). === ===<span style="color: #00ff00; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">"Repositioning oneself as a collegial leader requires that library media specialists examine the value of partnerships from the standpoint of the //<span style="font-family: times new roman,times;">other //partners. In other words, why should busy classroom teachers want to participate" (Harada and Zmuda, 38). === === "...partnerships might have the following benefits (Harada and Yoshina 2004): access to a range of resources beyond what the classroom teachers can provide for both themselves and their students, support in using various technologies for accessing information, organizing data, techaring concepts, and creating products, and opportunities for creative synergy and cooperative problem solving" (Harada and Zmuda, 38). === ===<span style="color: #00ff00; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">"As <span style="font-family: times new roman,times;">learning specialists, library media specialists help to forge partnerships that include all stakeholders in the educational process, including principals, teachers, and students. They are "strategically positioned to foster alliances at all levels" (Harada and Zmuda, 39). === ===<span style="color: #00ff00; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: times new roman,times;">" While learning specialists may have highly specialized roles, the common characteristics that shape their jobs make them natural partners in the work of formal leadership to raise student achievement" (Harada and Zmuda, 43). === ===<span style="color: #00ff00; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">"As learning specialists, they can increase the expertise of the teaching staff through the collaborative tasks they complete together, from the staff-development workshops they design, and from the modeling they do in the library-classroom" (Harada and Zmuda, 43). === = = =**Notes for: //Empowering Learners//**= AASL: American Association of School Librarians. __Empowering Learners.__ Chicago: American Library Association, 2009. **//"//As an instructional partner the school librarian assists teachers in developing inquiry-driven curricular units that effectively teach content and research skills to studetns of all learning styles" (AASL, 20).** **"The school librarian works with administrators to actively promote, support, and implement collaboration//"// (AASL, 20).** **"In today's learning environment, th eline between teacher and student has blurred. All members of the learning community now share the roles of teacher, learner, and collaborative partner" (AASL, 20).**