Evaluation of the Reference Collection
Analysis
 |
| photo was taken in Langley, B.C. (2023) |
 |
| photo taken in Langley, B.C (2023) |
 |
| Achieving Info Literacy, 2003 |
 |
| https://soraapp.com/home |
 |
| https://soraapp.com/home |
 |
| https://soraapp.com/home |
 |
| https://soraapp.com/home |
Rationale
 |
| Achieving Info Literacy |
 |
| Achieving Info Literacy |
According to CLA's Achieving Info Literacy, as an elementary school, Donna Gabriel is below standard in staffing, book collection size, and types of resources. Because the TLs and librarian techs are in a position to purchase materials this year, reaching acceptable standards is possible. The challenging piece falls under "intellectual accessibility" where an acceptable marker requires materials to be within students' ability. When a large population of the school are emergent readers and DGR continues to grow (The school has 120+ kindergarteners slotted for the 2023-2024 year), finding references that are accessible to all students can be a challenge.
 |
| Achieving Info Literacy |
There is a unique opportunity here to build a reference section from ground zero. According to the Microsoft Form, teachers do not have pressing requests except to know what is available to them both in the LC and online. Students are very clear with their interests and what kind of references they would like in the LC. There is space and a future budget to add more shelving for more space.
The Focused Education Digital Classroom Collection and Destiny Discover Collections are untapped reference sources that can satisfy what Riedling refers to as "compilations that refer to other sources containing information, merely indicating places in which information can be found (bibliographies and indexes)" (2013, p.18).
Many of the "compilations that furnish information directly (encyclopedias, dictionaries, almanacs, handbooks, yearbooks, biographical sources, directories, atlases) " are required to build the reference section of the LC (Riedling, 2013, p.18). Taking information from the student Microsoft Form will be valuable to the selection process:
Plan
Several considerations are important with regard to the selection of reference materials:
1) knowing about the school, the school community, and the student population
2) continuous collaboration with teachers and eliciting the expert advice of the school's faculty members and drawing on their experience and knowledge
3) keeping a record of questions asked or research requests
(Riedling, 2013, p.25)
1. In Term 1 week 1, the TLs will meet with the administrator to discuss the LC budget and if any changes will be made in the next three years. At the moment, the LC has a budget of $8,000 (very high) only because it is a brand-new space. This could change and affect purchasing dramatically. It was made very clear that PAC would not be fundraising for the LC this year, but could in the future. An estimated school year would also be very beneficial.
2. Have more than 75% of the school staff and students complete the Microsoft Form by the end of the week 3. One way to have staff complete the form is to use collaboration time or request administrators to provide time for teachers to step away from their classes to complete the form. Students are able to complete the form during prep times and older students can help K/1s through the process.
3. Week 4, create a committee of at least 1 primary teacher, 1 primary student, 1 intermediate teacher, 1 intermediate student, administrator, 1 resource teacher (ELL, LSS), any other stakeholders interested to help edit the district's evaluation process form to suit the needs of DGR.
 |
| Resource Evaluation Form SD35 |
 |
| Resource Evaluation Form Social Considerations SD35 |
4. Weeks 5 -8 (could take longer for purchases to come in) The staff form provided a space for suggestions of specific reference resources. Using data collected, Destiny to view other K-5 schools' collections, and input from both school TLs and librarian technician, by the end of Term 2, the LC staff can purchase current materials. Oftentimes, some atlas editions are not current for that year. Staff will also create a list of materials to purchase in future. Even staff members that completed the form were reluctant to use physical reference resources from the LC and would rather use digital materials, but students were interested in having the following:
- National Geographic's yearly almanac
- Guinness Book of World Records yearly
- world atlas, 3D Globe
- a handbook on chess, Minecraft, and Fortnite
- subject-specific encyclopedias especially on: space, animals, history, dinosaurs, and crystals
Below are some examples of potential selections:
 |
| Amazon $19 CAN |
 |
| Amazon TBA |
 |
| Kids Books $17 CAN |
 |
| ULS $20 CAN |
 |
| ULS $16.10 CAN |
5. Before end of Term 1, The LC staff will create a pricing list, and present to the staff so all are aware of new purchases. The LC staff will also present during a PAC meeting. Information included could be:
- average pricing to keep up and build the physical reference section
- checkouts from Destiny/Insignia to show evidence of use and interest in the reference section by students
6. By Term 3, the LC Reference Resources Committee will meet again to review the resources, reflect on the process to select and acquire materials, and moving forward, potential actions that support growth of the reference section. For example:
- Would purchasing World Book Encyclopedias (physical print), which is just under $1000 be something to add to the form?
- Should the committee reconsider purchasing English to French dictionaries if there is interest by Grade 5s, etc.?
- How can the form be edited for next year to increase its validity?
- Are materials chosen this year age-appropriate? Are there other resources that can support diverse learners?
Special Note:
Incorporating the use of digital resources seems vital for the staff at DGR. The TL will continue to promote collaboration in the LC by offering collaboration times that focus on the use of EBSCO Host and World Book Encyclopedias Online. The TL will continue to e-mail collections of interest from Destiny and send wishlists of materials available on SORA to provide more opportunities for teachers to explore and use the district's digital resources.
Closing Thoughts
Before the year's end, it would be beneficial to have a visual presentation for the administrator and PAC to see the process and progress of building the reference resource section of the LC and what further funding could do to help students' digital literacy skills. The plan could work as a yearly cycle until the reference resources are built up adequately until the plan needs to be revised for weeding purposes.
"It is critical that effective evaluation of reference resources occurs by the school library media specialist" (Riedling, 2013, p.25). Follow-up of the plan should keep in mind the LC's mission and reflect on how well the physical and digital reference resources collection supports diverse learners, providing only the best resources, and if they are fostering a love for learning.
 |
| LLSOP |
For the following school year, the TL can stretch their collaboration with community members and gather their insights regarding references in K-5. Experts from the public library, the TLs from neighbouring middle and high schools, and other TLs connected from personal learning networks. The TL can meet with district staff tech; gather support from instructional services to receive support related to challenges expressed from staff feedback.
When promoting collaboration in the LC, the TL can use aspects from the CBAM Model to research further into the use of digital resources available like World Books Kids and if DGR needs to look at finding more relevant digital resources for the school's needs. It is already evident that DGR staff is at nonuse for both physical and digital references. It is necessary to see a change in practice to see progress in student learning.
To further increase the use of the digital resources, the TL can create multimedia on Teams for classes to access and even include in the monthly digital newsletter sent to families:
- create a video for students to access digital resources
- create a video for students to access SORA
- create a K/1 2/3 4/5 template for other staff to use and put in Teams (escape room, scavenger hunt for exploration, use of a presentation app/paper template for research taking)
A big concern moving forward is the need for explicit teaching on the information-seeking process observed in the LC. Students often want to go to Safari and "google" questions. "Because their literacy skills are not well developed, children have trouble with tasks such as reading directions, spelling, and formulating appropriate words for keyword or phrase searching" (Riedling, 2013, p.13). Teachers are more willing to use non-vetted websites for research rather than those selected from the district and available to them on Destiny or from the district learning commons. This was evident from the Microsoft Forms that were completed. Students in Grade 2-4 required videos, physical examples of the different types of reference resources and modelling of completion in order to complete the form accurately.
As for using district-vetted online databases, CBAM's step of innovation configuration would need to be strongly used during potential collaboration efforts between the TL and teacher. Templates, instructional activities, assessments, re-teaching after assessments, and reflection are some processes required.
TLs need to continue to bridge the gap between their expectations, be it in their set-goals for the LC or mission statements, and where their users are coming from. Acquiring background information to understand their values, needs, and interests. Meet them where they are at.
References
Concerns based adoption model (CBAM) and Digital Learning. YouTube. (2013, February 15). Retrieved March 30, 2023, from https://youtu.be/4JovqU3SD7o
I really like how well laid out your mission statement is, and how your overall plan supports the mission statement. It is so clear and focused. I think it's also great how tuned in you are to the needs of your students and your staff. Are you surprised that only 10 out of 30 staff members responded to you? Sometimes I get so discouraged by low engagement of teachers... but yet I do recognize how overworked and overwhelmed everyone is.
ReplyDeleteI read recently that this generation of technology users for the first time will actually be weaker with tech skills overall than the generation before them. That's because kids now are mostly using using apps and are swiping left and right. I think kids sitting on computers (maybe this is more elementary kids) and formulating spread sheets and using digital references are becoming fewer and fewer. We definitely have to work hard as TLs to ensure students still have adequate technology skills beyond swiping left and right.
Hi Laura, I talked with another TL at a neighbouring middle school and she said she was not surprised by the low engagement. Her suggestion was to focus on just one teacher/one class a year (quality over quantity) and then word-of-mouth will spread. The comment regarding digital natives having weaker tech skills is not surprising. What I am also observing is that digital natives are coming into kindergarten with weaker know-how/common sense/basic problem-solving/behaviour/conduct skills than when I began my career. I feel like it's a sign that it's just too much for them to handle.
Delete