Standards:

1. School library media candidates encourage reading and lifelong learning by stimulating interests and fostering competencies in the effective use of ideas and information. They apply a variety of strategies to ensure access to resources and information in a variety of formats to all members of the learning community. Candidates promote efficient and ethical information seeking behavior as part of the school library media program and its services.

2.  School library media candidates model and promote collaborative planning with classroom teachers in order to teach concepts and skills of information processes integrated with classroom content. They partner with other education professionals to develop and deliver an integrated information skills curriculum. Candidates design and implement instruction that engages the students interests, passions, and needs which drive their learning.

Reflection:

The I-Search is a student-centered approach to the research process. It begins with students choosing a topic with some personal connection. Once a topic is chosen, the student analyzes, synthesizes and compiles resources regarding this topic. Upon completion of the research phase, students create an authentic product that best represents their findings.

While the I-Search process was a long and tedious one, I found it to be a good change from the traditional research process. Being able to choose my own topic was a definite plus as it made the research process more interesting. At the same time, it helped me to plan a family trip. The note-taking process involved with this process also helped me to note similarities and differences in information found across sources. I also enjoyed having the opportunity to create a final product of my own choosing instead of having to write a research paper. While I may not use all of the components of the I-Search process when teaching research to students in the future, I definitely will adopt pieces of it in hopes of making the research process an enjoyable one for my students.

Standards:

1. School library media candidates encourage reading and lifelong learning by stimulating interests and fostering competencies in the effective use of ideas and information. They apply a variety of strategies to ensure access to resources and information in a variety of formats to all members of the learning community. Candidates promote efficient and ethical information seeking behavior as part of the school library media program and its services.

4.  School library media candidates administer the library media program in order to support the mission of the school, and according to the principles of best practice in library science and program administration.

Reflection:

In partnership with two classmates, we created an order created around a need in my school for fiction and non-fiction related science books that tied to the newly adopted GPS standards. This project took us from the initial need research stage all the way through the presentation before the media committee phase.

From past experiences in the field, I felt that this assignment was extremely beneficial as placing orders for books is a task I will face annually. Completing this assignment has therefore given me a framework for which to follow in the future. I was particularly fond of being able to create wish lists on the various vendor sites. I will keep this in mind in the future as I feel it would greatly simplify the purchasing process.

Standards:

1. School library media candidates encourage reading and lifelong learning by stimulating interests and fostering competencies in the effective use of ideas and information. They apply a variety of strategies to ensure access to resources and information in a variety of formats to all members of the learning community. Candidates promote efficient and ethical information seeking behavior as part of the school library media program and its services.

3.  School library media candidates provide leadership and establish connections with the greater library and education community to create school library media programs that focus on students learning and achievement; encourage the personal and professional growth of teachers and other educators, and model the efficient and effective use of information and ideas.

4.  School library media candidates administer the library media program in order to support the mission of the school, and according to the principles of best practice in library science and program administration.

Reflection:

From creating the Program Development and Evaluation Plan (PDEP), I was able to gain insight into the inner workings of the Media Center. Not only did I gain awareness for things to include in the planning phases, but I also have increased awareness for how to maintain these planned policies.

Of the assignments completed in my program, I must say that I found this assignment to be the most challenging, yet at the same time, one of the most beneficial. I found it to be challenging from the aspect that it was a long process created on a fictional setting, which made developing a policy with no real audience in mind a challenge. Another challenging aspect was that at the time this assignment was completed, I had very little experience in the media program leading some aspects of the plan to be challenging to complete. If I were able to complete this assignment over, I think I would prefer to complete it later in my Masters program (especially once I had 1-2 field experiences) to avoid some of the uncertainties I experienced. While there were aspects I found challenging, I feel that overall this assignment was a very real and beneficial experience.

Standards:

2.  School library media candidates model and promote collaborative planning with classroom teachers in order to teach concepts and skills of information processes integrated with classroom content. They partner with other education professionals to develop and deliver an integrated information skills curriculum. Candidates design and implement instruction that engages the students interests, passions, and needs which drive their learning.

Reflection:

The collaborative unit project was a unit-building assignment completed with two practicing teachers. During the unit building process, I met with the teachers and brainstormed ideas for activities completed during various units. I also provided them with possible print and non-print sources found in the Media Center. Given the opportunity I, as the Media Specialist, would have more than likely assisted with the teaching of part or all of the unit though I was not able to in this particular experience.

While this assignment got me into the mindset of collaborating and helped me build expectations for future collaboration, I feel that the process was a bit longer and more tedious than the process a practicing Media Specialist would carry out in the interest of time and workload. Perhaps, these considerations could be taken into account in future assignments of this activity.

Standards:

3.  School library media candidates provide leadership and establish connections with the greater library and education community to create school library media programs that focus on students learning and achievement; encourage the personal and professional growth of teachers and other educators, and model the efficient and effective use of information and ideas.

Reflection:

While each of the major assignments completed in the program were very realistic, the internship was perhaps the most realistic of all. I was fortunate to have the opportunity to work with a very talented Media Specialist whose media center embodies many of the philosophies of the University of Georgia School Library Media program. I feel that through my participation in the internship, I was able to gain valuable hands-on experience and develop a rich resource file which I can apply in my future career as a Media Specialist.