Exploring Pro-D: Building a Professional Network and the Value of Connection

My personal belief is that professional development is something that is organic and ongoing – we are always learning and evolving in our knowledge and our practice as educators!

Something I would initially like to work on is making connections with other (more experienced) Teacher-Librarians. When I am just getting started, it would be incredibly helpful to have a reliable source of information, as well as a sounding board for my ideas or plans. Our district’s librarians here in North Vancouver seems like an excellent starting point, as well as the BC Teacher-Librarians Association. (https://bctla.ca/)

Image source: BCTLA website 

I have previously used their suggestion of the Media Smarts website (https://mediasmarts.ca/) for videos and lessons, and even though it’s been used a million times for many years now, I still think the "house hippos" are brilliant! Here is a link to their newest version, House Hippos 2.0:

Video source: Break the Fake | MediaSmarts

I am sure our local Teacher Librarians would be very helpful in navigating all things NVSD and would be lovely to interact with (so far, all the ones I know are!), as well as convenient for a pop-in to view their SLLC layout, their physical resources, their signage, decor, and how they are managing their technology. What blogs do they like to read? Any great links to YouTube videos that have helped them adopt new tech? Are they planning to attend any pro-d conferences (either in-person or virtual) any time soon? The BCTLA would be an excellent resource for professional development opportunities, and once in-person workshops are running more frequently, a great way to network and meet TLs from other districts across British Columbia.

In terms of virtual professional development, I think Valenza’s Free Online PD for Teacher Librarians is an excellent collated series of slides that are conveniently assembled in one location: https://www.slideshare.net/joycevalenza/free-professional-development-for-school-librarians

Image source: Slideshare.net, Free Online PD for Teacher Librarians 

While I am not much of a blogger myself (I’m working on it, ok?😉), I do enjoy reading others educators’ blogs from around the world, and now that I’m on Twitter (working on that too…) I’m finding it’s a great resource to develop a personal learning network. As well, I think connecting with the Library Media Network (LM_Net: http://www.lm-net.info/) would be incredibly helpful. (I actually recently joined their Facebook group; there are some great resources on there!) 

Image Source: LM_Net.info

I think about what Johnson wrote when he was singing the praises of this longstanding learning community; “It's been a civilized, useful, supportive resource that has been the best professional development of my career.  A remarkable accomplishment since managing librarians is, as the saying goes, like herding cats. Unlike science teachers or kindergarten teachers, school librarians are usually the sole practitioner of their craft in their buildings. The virtual community built by LM_Net was a lifeline and sanity-keeper for lots of us.” (Happy 20th, LM_NET, np) Considering that I am a very social person, and I truly enjoy making connections, working collaboratively and being part of committees/a leadership team, seeking out like-minded TLs will be something I know I’ll gravitate towards early on.

I also resonate with the idea of the bridge built between school libraries and public libraries. They are invaluable centers of our community that provide so much more than just learning resources. Stripling discusses how, “Public librarians extend the work of school and academic librarians by providing homework help, literacy resources, and after-school and summer programming. Public librarians take up the mantle of support for lifelong learning by providing resources, services, and programs tailored to meet the needs, interests and aspirations of all of their community members. Under this view of a library ecosystem, all types of libraries work together to deliver learning opportunities for people of all ages.” (Our Library Ecosystem is Under Threat, np) I wholeheartedly agree with this description, and therefore want to ensure that my school will be intrinsically connected to our local public library system. North Vancouver District Public Library | North Vancouver District Public Library (nvdpl.ca)

I think there are great opportunities to be had in sharing technological resources and ideas - I hope to work in conjunction with the children’s and youth librarians to collaborate on virtual author visits, online YA book clubs, makerspace workshops, and reading programs! I know they’re not related to new media/technologies, but I absolutely love the reading programs established at our local libraries that encourage literacy by reading to dogs, or reading with seniors [pre-Covid, our public libraries had an excellent link with the nearby seniors’ center and assisted living facilities.]

Public librarians facilitate so much within our community and I think it’s incredibly important that our schools fit into that system – so I plan to respond to and connect with many of their outreach programs, and do some reaching out myself.

WORKS CITED:

Johnson, Doug. (2012). Happy 20th, LM_NET. Blue Skunk Blog.

Stripling, Barbara. (2014). Our Library Ecosystem is Under Threat. Huffington Post.

Valenza, Joyce. (2015). Free Professional Development for School Librarians. https://www.slideshare.net/joycevalenza/free-professional-development-for-school-librarians

WORKS CONSULTED:

Friedman, Jordan. 2020. Using Social Media for Teacher Professional Development. https://www.hmhco.com/blog/using-social-media-for-teacher-professional-development

Johnson, Doug. (2013). The Indispensable Librarian: Surviving and Thriving in School Libraries in the Information Age. 2nd edition. Santa Barbara, CA: Linworth.

Miller, S., & Bass, W. (2019). Leading from the Library: Help your School Community Thrive in the Digital Age. International Society for Technology in Education. 

Valenza, Joyce. (2014). Global TL: Librarians Without Borders. Global TL: Librarians without Borders (slideshare.net)