“Developing your Roles as a School Library Media Specialist”
A Workshop Developed by Elizabeth Friese for Practicing Media Specialists
Workshop Plan:
Two weeks before workshop:
Send out survey to participants.
One week before workshop:
Arrange for workshop room to be equipped appropriately with computer, viewing
equipment, multiple tables and chairs.
Morning of workshop:
Set up room.
Bring food and beverages.
Get presentation ready.
Workshop Begins
8:30 – 9:00 a.m. – Arrival and Light Breakfast
9:00 a.m. – Introductions - Presenters will share basic biographical information, work
history, etc. Each participant will also share basic information such as name, where they
work, and their history as an educator.
9:30 a.m. – Presenters will host a brief presentation providing an overview of the events
of the workshop and the overarching topic. (See attached PowerPoint for this
presentation.) A large group discussion about the four roles of the Media Specialist, as
proscribed in Information Power (1998) will be included in this presentation.
10:15 a.m. – Break
10:30 a.m. – Upon returning from their break, each participant will be given a small strip
of paper that describes an activity that would be performed by a Media Specialist. (Many
of these may come from the roles discussion during the earlier presentation.) Each
participant will have to determine which of the four roles their activity falls under. They
will then form four small groups based on the role they decide the activity belongs to.
This selection method will hopefully provide some randomness to the grouping,
encouraging participants to share ideas and experiences with new people.
10:40 a.m. – The members of each small group will take time to share a more detailed
picture of their present work situation. They may pass around their surveys and share
that way, or they may each take a few minutes to discuss their current jobs and the goals
they have for developing a better relationship with those in the school community. This
is intended to give group members a framework for asking questions and giving
suggestions as strategies are discussed.
11:15 a.m. – Rotations begin. Four tables will be set up, each with a different set of
materials for participants to review. Groups will read and discuss the materials at each
table, taking time to consider how each set of strategies could be effectively adapted for
their current situation. Approximately 30 minutes will be provided for each rotation,
with a 30 minute break for lunch between the second and third rotations.
Each group will be discussing a separate set of strategies at each rotation table. This will
hopefully encourage participants to think through each set of strategies independently and
focus on developing ideas to apply each strategy to a specific school situation. (Plus,
getting up and changing tables periodically will hopefully break up some of the
monotony of sitting in a chair all day!)
During the rotations, facilitators will circulate among the groups, listening and asking
questions or providing clarifications when necessary. If appropriate, facilitators can
provide specific examples from the literature as a way to clarify or extend ideas.
12:15 p.m. – Lunch
12:45 p.m. – Rotations continue
1:45 p.m. – Break
2:00 p.m. – Summation and Closing – In a large group discussion, participants will be
encouraged to share some of the ways they think they will apply the strategies presented.
The facilitators can also share some of the items that were discussed in the small group
strategy sessions.
Participants will be asked how they would like to monitor progress in the future. Based
on suggestions from participants, an Internet list or group of some sort will be developed.
Participants will be asked to share their progress (what worked as well as what didn’t
work) on a monthly basis, or more often if appropriate. Participants will receive a
handout with resources for further reading. Participants will then fill out a personal
information card, as well as an anonymous workshop assessment.
2:30 p.m. – Workshop Ends
In the weeks and months following the workshop, facilitators will follow-up with
participants and moderate online discussions on a regular basis. They will collect data
from the workshop and follow-up activities and develop a paper or resource to be shared
with other professionals providing information about the workshop and its results.
Pre-Workshop Survey
“Developing Your Roles as a School Library Media Specialist”
Name: ___________________________________________________________
School: ___________________________________________________________
Number of Years In Profession: ________________________________________
Number of Years at this School: ________________________________________
Estimate the Percentage of Time You Spend In a Typical Day Acting As:
Program Administrator: ___________________%
Teacher: ______________________%
Information Specialist: ______________________%
Instructional Partner: ______________________%
What are some of the main ways you fulfill each role?
Program Administrator:
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
Teacher:
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
Information Specialist:
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
Instructional Partner:
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
Rank each of these roles in terms of importance, with 1 being the most important, 4 being
the least important.
Program Administrator: ________
Teacher: _______
Information Specialist: ________
Instructional Partner: ________
If possible, have your clerk or a volunteer observe you for a day, breaking down your
activities and time spent based on the activities in each role. Or, if this is not possible,
keep a personal journal of a “typical” day in your job. Try to keep records of the amount
of time you spend engaging in each of the four roles.
How would you describe your relationship with your administrators? (Include such
things as how often you communicate, what the communication is usually about, what
kind of support you receive from the administration, what kind of support you give them,
etc.) What do they think your job is? What do they think it should be? How do you
know?
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
How would you describe your relationship with the teachers at your school? Reflect on
the same areas as the above prompts about administrators.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
Please bring this survey to the workshop. We are looking forward to seeing you there!
This survey was based on ideas from:
Gwatney, M. C. (2001). Reality Versus the Ideal: A Case Study of Three Elementary School Library Media Specialists Performing
Their Jobs. Knowledge Quest, 29 (5), 36-40.
Strategies, Set 1
Read and discuss the following strategies for changing your administrator’s perception of
the media specialist. Discuss in your group how the strategies might apply to your own
situation. Make a plan for implementing them in the coming year. Compile some ideas
to share with other groups.
One of the major themes in the literature about this topic is the emphasis on regular
communication between the media specialist and the administration. This regular
communication can take many forms, including the following:
A monthly newsletter, which may also be sent to faculty or parents.
A monthly or quarterly meeting with administrators.
An annual or semi annual report.
Weekly or monthly emails or memos.
Think about your administrator. What is their preferred mode of communication? Do
they prefer seeing things in writing or meeting face-to-face? If you create a newsletter,
what would it include? How would you structure an annual report? Be as detailed as
possible.
Another important strategy to consider is getting the administrators in to the Media
Center regularly to showcase your activities as a teacher and instructional partner. Do
you currently have occasions that would be appropriate to share? If not, can you create
some? Make a list. Be creative! While it may be uncomfortable for some people,
showcasing your contributions to student success is an important factor in overcoming
the “invisibility problem” mentioned in the earlier presentation.
To be sure that administrators see you in a positive light (and not as a potential legal
problem), do a quick mental check to be sure your program is running properly. Do you
have all the proper documentation in place, such as a materials selection policy, a gift
policy, and an acceptable use policy? How often does your media committee meet?
Discuss with others how these items are implemented and maintained in your program.
This ensures that when the topic of the media program comes up with administrators, it is
for a positive reason.
Strategies, Set 2
Read and discuss the following strategies for changing your administrator’s perception of
the media specialist. Discuss in your group how the strategies might apply to your own
situation. Make a plan for implementing them in the coming year. Compile some ideas
to share with other groups.
One of the barriers that many media specialists face is isolation. Reaching out to other
members of the learning community is integral to becoming a successful instructional
partner. One way to do this is to show administrators and teachers that your interests lie
beyond the walls of the Media Center. The literature suggests joining committees that
have no direct relation to the Media Center. How is this outreach possible in your own
situation? Can you see opportunities to expand your influence?
This outreach can also benefit you by adding to your overall picture of the school. This
“big picture” approach to decision making and planning is a distinct similarity between
administrators and the media specialist. Emphasizing such similarities can be a way to
open up a dialogue with administrators. What other things do these jobs have in
common? How can seeing these similarities change the way you communicate with your
administrator?
Is your media center mission statement aligned with the mission of the school? This is an
easy way to show support for the goals of the school at large.
A final strategy for reaching out to administrators involves research. Certainly, we are
viewed as the “experts” in research in our learning communities. Use your expertise to
reach out to others. If you know your administrator is dealing with a specific issue or
will be discussing a certain topic at an upcoming meeting, provide them with research
about that topic well in advance. Research on the importance of effective Media Centers
is also helpful. This is available from the American Library Association as well as
numerous articles by Keith Curry Lance, etc. Are there issues that your school is facing
that you could assist your administrator in preparing for? What are they? What
resources could you share with the administrators?
Strategies, Set 3
Read and discuss the following strategies for developing a collaborative partnership with
teachers. Discuss in your group how the strategies might apply to your own situation.
Make a plan for implementing them in the coming year. Compile some ideas to share
with other groups.
The first step in developing a collaborative culture is getting the administration on board.
Provide administrators with information about the benefits of collaboration. This could
be done using research, or by sharing success stories about partnerships you have
implemented in the past. What would be the best methods for convincing your
administrator that collaboration is necessary and beneficial?
Another important step creating a collaborative culture is starting small. Take a few
teachers and work hard to develop curricular units rich in content and information
literacy. When teachers see what you can do, they become “indirect advocates” for your
program, spreading the word about their experience. Think of your faculty. Who would
be good advocates for your program? Are there some that are already out there? How
can these advocates be created and encouraged?
One of the main obstacles to successful collaboration is the lack of time teachers and
media specialists have to plan. In order for a true collaborative culture to take hold, the
administrator must show support for it by providing time for planning to occur. Think
about your school’s situation. Where could this time be found? Be creative!
Strategies, Set 4
Read and discuss the following strategies for developing a collaborative partnership with
teachers. Discuss in your group how the strategies might apply to your own situation.
Make a plan for implementing them in the coming year. Compile some ideas to share
with other groups.
Most of the collaborative planning that media specialists do happens in brief discussions
in hallways or offices. In order to increase the impact of a collaborative partnership, the
media specialist should be prepared to take the lead in taking the partnership to the next
level. What are some ways of doing this? Think about your most successful
collaborative experiences. What made that relationship work? Can it be replicated?
How and with whom? Make a list of the people you would like to increase your level of
collaboration with.
While it would be nice, it is not practical to think we can fully implement a collaborative
partnership with every teacher in the building. Instead of thinking of the challenge as that
of reaching every teacher, think of reaching every student with information literacy skills.
What are some strategies for reaching every student? If you consider focusing on certain
grade levels or departments, which would they be? Why? Who would you approach to
start the process? Are there grade level meetings you can plan to attend? Make a plan
now to start collaborating on a regular basis.
Materials for Further Reading
Abilock, D. (2003). Put Yourself In Your Administrator’s Shoes. Knowledge Quest,
33 (2), 6-9.
-This article emphasizes many of the similarities in the job of the administrator and the
job of the media specialist. Suggestions are given for using these similarities as a way to
improve communication and relationships.
American Association of School Librarians, & Association for Educational
Communications and Technology. (1998). Information Power: Building
Partnerships for Learning. Chicago: American Library Association.
-A thorough review of the roles of the media specialist, as well as ways to apply them,
are in this essential guidebook for our profession.
Brisco, S. Ten Powerhouse Strategies for Educating Administrators. Knowledge Quest,
32 (2), 37-38.
-This article describes helpful, easily implemented steps for developing better
communication with administrators.
Kearney, C. A. (2000). Curriculum partner: Redefining the role of the library media
specialist. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood.
-This is an excellent resource for developing the instructional partner role.
Hughes-Hassell, S. (2001). Implementing Change: What School Library Media
Specialists Should Know. Knowledge Quest, 29 (2), 11-15.
-This article focuses on the idea of becoming an agent of change in the learning
community.
Jones, P. A. The Executive Briefing: A Management Tool for Improving
Communication Between School Library Media Specialists and Their Principals.
Knowledge Quest, 32 (2), 30-34.
-The executive briefing is a structured report that can be sued as a way to communicate
goals and objectives for the media program.
Kachel, D. (2003). Partners for Success: A School Library Advocacy Training Program
for Principals. Knowledge Quest, 32 (2), 17-19.
-This article describes a pilot program for principals, attempting to educate them about
the power of an effective media program.
Lance, K. C. (2002). What Research Tells Us About the Importance of School Libraries.
Institute of Museums and Library Services – White House Conference on School
Libraries. Accessed October 5, 2005,
http://www.imls.gov/pubs/whitehouse0602/keithlance.htm
-This speech gives a brief overview of the extensive research Keith Curry Lance and his
partners have done on the impact of school library media centers on student success.
Loertscher, D. (2000). Taxonomies of the school library media program. San Jose,
California, Hi Willow.
-This is one of several structured approaches to collaboration between teachers and media
specialists. This is an easy way to see how to increase the level of a collaborative
relationship.
Montiel-Overall, P. (2005). Toward a Theory of Collaboration for Teachers and
Librarians. School Library Media Research, 8.
-This article describes the characteristics of an effective collaborative partnership.
References
Abilock, D. (2003). Put Yourself In Your Administrator’s Shoes. Knowledge Quest,
33 (2), 6-9.
Alexander, L. B., Smith, R. C. & Carey, J. O. (2003). Education Reform and the School
Library Media Specialist: Perceptions of Principals. Knowledge Quest, 32 (2), 10-
13.
American Association of School Librarians, & Association for Educational
Communications and Technology. (1998). Information Power: Building
Partnerships for Learning. Chicago: American Library Association.
Bishop, K. (2003). Connecting Libraries with Classrooms: The Curricular Roles of the
Media Specialist. Worthington, Ohio: Linworth.
Brisco, S. Ten Powerhouse Strategies for Educating Administrators. Knowledge Quest,
32 (2), 37-38.
Chesky, P. & Meyer, M. A. (2004). Creating Partnerships: A Grant-Funded
Collaborative Information Literacy Project. Knowledge Quest, 33 (1), 20-21.
Gwatney, M. C. (2001). Reality Versus the Ideal: A Case Study of Three Elementary
School Library Media Specialists Performing Their Jobs. Knowledge Quest,
29 (5), 36-40.
Kearney, C. A. (2000). Curriculum partner: Redefining the role of the library media
specialist. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood.
Hartzell, G. (2002). What’s It Take? Institute of Museums and Library Services – White
House Conference on School Libraries. Accessed October 5, 2005,
http://www.imls.gov/pubs/whitehouse0602/garyhartzell.htm.
Hughes-Hassell, S. (2001). Implementing Change: What School Library Media
Specialists Should Know. Knowledge Quest, 29 (2), 11-15.
Jones, P. A. The Executive Briefing: A Management Tool for Improving
Communication Between School Library Media Specialists and Their Principals.
Knowledge Quest, 32 (2), 30-34.
Kachel, D. (2003). Partners for Success: A School Library Advocacy Training Program
for Principals. Knowledge Quest, 32 (2), 17-19.
Lance, K. C. (2002). What Research Tells Us About the Importance of School Libraries.
Institute of Museums and Library Services – White House Conference on School
Libraries. Accessed October 5, 2005,
http://www.imls.gov/pubs/whitehouse0602/keithlance.htm
Loertscher, D. (2000). Taxonomies of the school library media program. San Jose,
California, Hi Willow.
McCracken, A. (2001). School Library Media Specialists’ Perceptions of Practice and
Importance of Roles Described in Information Power. School Library Media
Research, 4.
Montiel-Overall, P. (2005). Toward a Theory of Collaboration for Teachers and
Librarians. School Library Media Research, 8.
O’Neal, A. J. (2004). Administrators’, Teachers’, and Media Specialists’ Perceptions of
the Roles of Media Specialists in the Schools’ Instructional Programs:
Implications for Instructional Administration. Journal of Education for Library
and Information Science, 45 (4), 286-306.
Roys, N. K., & Brown, M. E. (2004). The Ideal Candidate for School Library Media
Specialist: Views from School Administrators, Library School Faculty, and MLS
Students. School Library Media Research, 7.
Zsiray, S. W. Leadership and Library Media: A Grass-Roots Approach. Knowledge
Quest, 32 (2), 14-16.