AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF SCHOOL LIBRARIANS Standards Survival Kit … and Seven Things School Library Media Specialists Can Do in their Communities to Build

AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF SCHOOL LIBRARIANS

Standards Survival Kit …and Seven Things School Library Media Specialists Can Do in their Communities to Build Awareness and Develop Support for AASL’s Standards for the 21st-Century Learner

Susan Ballard for the AASL Standards and Guidelines

Implementation Task Force


The American Association of School Librarians (AASL) has launched a national initiative to support states, school systems and individual schools in implementing the Standards for the 21st-Century Learner and the soon-to-be completed Guidelines for the School Library Media Program


This Plan is entitled Learning4Life (L4L) and is now available online at http://www.ala.org/aasl/learning4life.

The Standards for the 21st-Century Learner can be downloaded at http://www.ala.org/aasl/standards.


The Implementation Plan:

• Identifies Guiding Principles and an Overarching Position/Branding Statement

• Identifies Target Audiences (internal and external)• Identifies Training Opportunities and Resources• Provides a Communication Plan • Provides a Plan for Continuous Feedback, Evaluation and

Sustainability• Provides a Plan for Endorsements and Support • Provides Supporting Documents


• One Size Does Not Fit All

• Common Vocabulary and Message is Mission Critical

Guiding Principles


• AASL• State Affiliates• SLMS Educators-ELMSS section• District Coordinators - SPV Section• Building-level SLMS

Responsibilities


• Strategies and Activities – who, what when where and how

• Resources and Training • Communications • Evaluation

Eighteen Objectives


• Introduce and build awareness

• Create understanding of the standards/guideline and commitment

• Develop a “shared” vision

What are we aiming to achieve?


…and Seven Pictures say it all

Why is it important to achieve it?


How will we know if we have succeeded?

At the completion of the initiative, AASL envisions school library media programs that prepare learners to thrive in a complex information society, seek diverse perspectives, gather and use information ethically and use social tools responsibly and safely.


What Can You Do Now?


“Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls, and looks like work.”

Thomas Edison

#1 Recognize the opportunity


• Download the standards from http://www.ala.org/ala/aasl/aaslproftools/learningstandards/standards.cfm

• Take a deep breath. The new standards were designed to build on and further develop the values and goals set out in the Information Literacy Standards for Student Learning, published in 1998 http://www.ala.org/ala/aasl/aaslproftools/informationpower/InformationLiteracyStandards_final.pdf


“Success is neither magical or mysterious. Success is the natural consequence of consistently applying the fundamentals.”

Jim Rohn

#2 Start laying the groundwork


• Start by reading the Common Beliefs statements on pages 2 and 3. These are the beliefs upon which the new standards were built.

• Consider convening a book club or discussion group to

explore the standards more deeply.


“Ah, mastery ... what a profoundly satisfying feeling when one finally gets on top of a new set of skills ... and then sees the light under the new door those skills can open, even as another door is closing.”

Gail Sheehy

#3 Scaffold and Build


• If your district already has school library media learning standards, correlate them with the Standards for the 21st Century Learner. Identify areas for professional development.

• If your district does not yet have school library media learning standards, consider using these standards as a starting point.


“It is not enough to be busy, so are the ants. The question is, 'What are we busy about?”

Henry David Thoreau

#4 Create a Flexible Framework


• Prioritize which areas of the standards you will address first if full implementation is not feasible at this point in time. For example, you might start by addressing the skills only.


“A doctor can bury his mistakes but an architect can only advise his clients to plant vines.”

Frank Lloyd Wright

#5 Pay attention to details


• Assess where you are and what needs to be done in your community to begin to ensure that all those responsible for student learning are aware of the new standards and look for points of alignment with school goals and objectives, current school initiatives and curriculum


“Practice, which some regard as a chore, should be approached as just about the most pleasant recreation ever devised.”

Babe Didrikson Zaharias

#6 Use the best tools to inform best practice


• Check in frequently at the AASL website http://www.ala.org/ala/aasl/aaslwhere strategies and tips will be provided, updated and refreshed regularly as the Implementation plan is rolled out.


“Energy and persistence conquer all things. ”

Benjamin Franklin

#7 Have Persistence of Vision


Feedback/evaluation/sustainability

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