When I was making the decision to undertake my masters as a teacher librarian (TL) I researched just what a TL does. I want to be the TL who works alongside other teachers. That I’m not just there for the students, I’m there for the teachers as well. Collaborating with teaching staff, providing them with professional development opportunities and team teaching alongside them are all goals I aspire to. This week I have been reading about collaboration and I realise that it won’t be just a matter of me learning the skills but also convincing the teaching staff and leadership that this is something a TL does. Bishop (2011, pp.1-2) highlights the importance of establishing good relationships with colleagues, as it’s through this relationship that the teachers will overcome any perceptions they have about the role of a TL. The TL needs to show intrinsic interest in what the teachers are teaching and know the curriculum inside and out (Bishop, 2011). On top of this I’ll need a good overview of the preferred inquiry methods the school uses and I’ll need to finish my degree.
So, I started to consider all the obstacles in my way of convincing my colleagues they should be open to collaboration with me.
- The current Ls don’t presently have opportunities to do this
- The school culture tends to isolate faculties
- Everyone has very tight schedules
- My own lack of knowledge about collaboration
- The school undervalues the TL
- Many staff don’t realise that the TL holds a duel degree
Some of these things are easier than others to conquer, my own lack of knowledge for one. This is just a matter of me completing my degree and undertaking appropriate professional development until I am confident. Others will be more difficult. Deringer (2013) suggests four ways for a TL to encourage collaboration that I think are worth mentioning.
- Start small
- Respect the teachers and their schedules
- Don’t be afraid to say something.
- Say “Thank you” to those who do collaborate (Deringer, 2013).
Deringer (2013) goes further to break open just what start small means. She suggests taking baby steps such as mini-lessons about a piece of technology, which got me thinking. We are starting to roll out Vivi at our school. If I master it I can help other teachers learn to use it. I also realise I’ve started doing taking baby steps already, two days ago I offered to assist a colleague with teaching her how to use her projector with more ease. I also love the suggestion of a Pinterest board that the teacher could access (Deringer, 2013). I’ve set up a school Pinterest board and added my first dedicated board on an area of year 10 curriuclum at our school – World War 2, check it out!
Lot’s to learn and lots to get my head around if I’m going to be the sort of TL I want to be, best I keep reading, ohh and playing on Pinterest.
References
Bishop, K. (2011). Connecting libraries with classrooms. Retrieved from https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/csuau/reader.action?docID=664534&ppg=18
Deringer, S. (2013). Inspire collaboration: A quick and easy guide for super busy school librarians. INALJ. Retrieved from http://inalj.com/?p=40373
My Teacher Librarian life 