On March 16 SLAV held the “E-Literacy: Think differently, act differently, learn differently” conference at Etihad Stadium. The conference highlighted the importance of the school library and the positive influence librarians can have on the culture of a school. The presentations from the conference can now be found on the SLAV website.
The day began with a presentation by Dr Ross Todd from the Center for International Scholarship in School Libraries at Rutgers University. Dr. Todd spoke passionately about the positive influence that school librarians can have on teaching and learning. His work highlights the role of school librarians as innovative leaders of professional learning. His presentation contains results from studies into effective school libraries and contains many quotes from teachers about the importance of the school library.
Dr. David Howes from V.C.A.A. spoke about the Australian Curriculum and a new Extended investigation study for Unit 3/4 VCE in his presentation. With an emphasis on general capabilities and cross curricular priorities in the Australian Curriculum, the school library will continue to play a critical role as a hub of learning in the school. The importance of documenting this work was highlighted in Pru Mitchell’s presentation, which includes some great tips for keeping evidence of work relating to professional standards. Presentations were also given by three schools about the Web Elements Engaged project. You can find out more about this great project at the WEE project wiki.
Perhaps one quote from the day best sums up the importance of school libraries. Taken from Dr. Ross Todd’s presentation, it reads:
“Libraries are the verbs in the content standards. Wherever verbs such as read, research, analyse, explore, examine, compare, contrast, understand, interpret, investigate, and find appear in the standards, Teacher Librarians and library resources are involved.”(Oxnard Union High School District)
I have to agree with you SLVadmin, that this conference was a great mix of research reflecting current practice (Dr Ross Todd), future opportunities via the new Australian curriculum (David Howes) and professional standards (Pru Mitchell).
It also included examples of current practice and library design shared by fellow practitioners. The buzz around the conference on the day, and feedback since, was electric as delegates discussed the challenges presented by speakers who provided differing approaches to the changes that are evident in every school library.
The title of Dr Ross Todd’s presentation ‘Gen Next: Charting the future of libraries and learning in the wired village’ set the scene for the whole conference and in the plenary session he summed it up by providing direction for our vision stating that we need to:
‘Rethink the school library as the school’s physical and virtual information-to-knowledge commons where literacy, inquiry, thinking, imagination, discovery, and creativity are central to students’ learning in all curriculum areas.
Provide intellectual and social tools across these multiple environments to foster creativity, knowledge creation and production, both individual and collaborative, and to foster the intellectual, social and cultural growth of our young people.
24/7 environment vs the “place” paradigm – commons vs hub vs learning centre vs laboratory.’
The papers from this conference are worthy of time and reflection.
Thanks for your comments Camilla. As with other SLAV conferences I’ve attended, I always come away with the reinforced view that the school library and librarians play a crucial role in shaping the learning culture of a school. What I always notice amongst school librarians is the incredible level of collaboration and the willingness to share. All of the speakers touched on the great work that is being done, and I think we need advocates like this to promote the importance of school libraries.
Thanks for all of your work supporting, sharing and advocating for school libraries as well.
Cameron
Thanks for your kind words Cam. Just following my passion for learning but working with you guys at SLV certainly broadens the experience for all learners. Cheers