IFLA School Library Guidelines

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The International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) is the leading international body representing the interests of library and information services and their users. It is the global voice of the library and information profession. To this end, it is important that school library professionals acquaint themselves with the recently published IFLA School Library Guidelines (2nd ed).

In recent years many school libraries have come under the spotlight as principals balance the budget of cost against return. In some instances qualified library trained personnel have been taken from the library and redeployed elsewhere in the school, while other school libraries have continued to expand and grow.  One of the keys to this change has been the ability of library staff to innovate and adapt to the changing nature of schooling, learning and resources.

In producing these guidelines, IFLA provides recommendations that can guide the discussion about your school library. As they state:

“These guidelines have been developed to assist school library professionals and educational decision-makers in their efforts to ensure that all students and teachers have access to effective school library programs and services, delivered by qualified school library personnel.”

IFLA make a number of recommendations that warrant close reading. Two of these resonate loudly as core programs and the collaborative partnerships required to achieve them, namely:

Recommendation 13. The core instructional activities of a school librarian should be focused on: literacy and reading promotion; media and information literacy instruction; inquiry-based teaching; technology integration; and professional development of teachers. [5.2-5.7]

Recommendation 14. The services and programs provided through the school library should be developed collaboratively by a professional school librarian working in concert with the principal, with curriculum leaders, with teaching colleagues, with members of other library groups, and with members of cultural, linguistic, indigenous, and other unique populations to contribute to the achievement of the academic, cultural, and social goals of the school. [3.5, 3.5.4, 5.1-5.8]

The positive impact of a well functioning school library on student achievement has been extensively studied over the years.  We need to be in a constant state of review and self-appraisal if our school libraries are to adapt to changing needs in schools.  It’s not easy, but these guideline are a useful tool to support that process.

#SLAVConf – It’s a Digital World

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Last Friday, 7 August, 180 delegates met at the Etihad Stadium in Melbourne for the School Library Association of Victoria (SLAV) conference –  It’s a digital world.  Conferences such as these are exceptionally important for the school library community as they are showcases of the change that is actively happening in many dynamic school libraries.  Perspectives of the James Merlino MP, Minister for Education and Deputy Premier and Principal,  Marco Di Cesare, Caroline Chisholm Catholic College who was SLAV School Leader of the Year 2014, were particularly relevant.
This Storify captures some of the Twitter conversations from presentations and workshops.  Not all, because not all sessions were tweeted out by delegates, however, this collection offers an overview of links and ideas on the day.
Presentations and notes from the conference will be available via the members area of the SLAV website soon.

 

 

VCE English: Encountering Conflict

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ABC Radio is renowned for its podcasts, with most ABC broadcasting now available for anywhere/anytime listening.  The full list of programs and listening option can be found on the ABC podcasting page.

For a number of years, local Melbourne ABC 774 broadcaster Libbi Gorr has presented a gem of a program on Sundays appropriately entitled Sunday School.  It’s a must for VCE English students, as Libbi joins with English teachers in discussion and commentary on texts, exam preparation support and topics relating to the subject.

In this sample broadcast of Sunday School: Encountering Conflict, Christine Lambrianidis, English Learning Leader at Point Cook Senior Secondary College, joined Libbi to discuss ‘how human trafficking and slavery can affect Australians through the food we eat, clothing we wear and the services we engage.’

Christine related these key issues back to the VCE theme ‘Encountering Conflict’ and also extracted examples from the film ‘A Separation’ directed by Asghar Farhadi which is one of the optional VCE English texts.

This embedded file is from Soundcloud, however, it can just as easily be downloaded via iTunes.  Check with your VCE students to ensure they’re not missing out on this supportive resource.

https://soundcloud.com/774-abc-melbourne/sunday-school-encountering-conflict-theme