HOW THE WORKSHOP WORKS

QUESTIONS
Create a starting point for yourself. Answer the questions , reflect on your own practice. You may wish to jot down a few notes.

EXAMPLES
Click to the online examples.

DISCUSSIONS
Contribute your original ideas to the COMMENTS section, at the bottom of each section or respond to someone else's comments. Discuss your own way of doing things, or the online examples. Or ask Judith a question.

back to the workshop start

JOIN ANOTHER DISCUSSION,  BUT CHECK BACK HERE OCCASIONALLY TO SEE WHAT HAS BEEN ADDED.

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QUESTIONS: COMMUNICATION & COLLABORATION

1.    How do you communicate with teachers ?

  • In person: library, staff room, committees, meetings?

  • Online: E-mail, Wikis, Facebook, online workspaces, etc?


2.    What is most effective in terms of time, place?

3.    What is your process for developing collaborative lessons with colleagues?

4.    What are your various levels of collaborations? ( e.g. basic resources support - complete planning & co-teaching & evaluation).

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COLLABORATION PROCESS: EXAMPLE FROM DR. CHARLES BEST SECONDARY

IN BRIEF

1.    Someone has a good idea: Teacher-librarian contacts teacher or vice versa (briefly in person, or by e-mail - can take less than a few minutes). Teaching variables usually include: course content, grade, ability of students, curricular goals, time teacher has allocated, product to be evaluated and information literacy and media literacy goals.

2.    If teacher has an assignment in a Word document, she/he sends it to teacher-librarian by e-mail as an attachment. If no assignment, teacher-librarian may offer to write it.

3.   Teacher-librarian and teacher discuss edits, adaptations etc to the assignment.

4.    Teacher-librarian posts edited assignment in a blog, and adds links, images, and a narrative by the teacher-librarian.

5.    Teacher may teach lesson alone, or in combination with teacher-librarian.
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ADVANTAGES

Time saved

  • Once the assignment is in digital form, easily moved anywhere

  • E-mail etiquette makes it easy to get right to the point

  • Communication takes place instantly through school walls, without schedules appointments - easy to fit in
  • Once published online, can be easily seen and edited

Assignment can be projected in classroom.

Students can work anywhere. Once assignment is published, with embedded resources, homework can be done at any online computer.

Teacher-librarian integral. If students need support, or have missed the class where assignment was given out, they can see the teacher-librarian  ( whose schedule is more open than classroom teacher).

Adaptation & Open Access. Once posted,  assignments are easily used again, or adapted for other teachers & students ( anywhere in world)

Advocacy tool. This lesson is now transparent (to parents, administration, trustees).

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EXAMPLES OF ONLINE COLLABORATION

WORKSHOP DELIVERY MODEL
(As modelled by this workshop), site is created, used in a live workshop, and then remains online for reference.

  • Open sesame 2.0 : Helping students experience the treasures of the web resourcefully, creatively & critically

LESSONS

* NOTE: THESE COLLABORATIVE LESSONS VARY IN DEPTH AND COMPLEXITY, DEPENDING ON THE NEEDS AND REQUESTS OF THE TEACHER AND CLASS. (MORE ON THIS TOPIC).

1. Complex co-planning, researching & teaching

2. Set up site for teacher, with some resources - still to be filled

3. Set up site for teacher, searched for and posted resources, RSS feed

4. Provided print & online resources & some one-on-one with students helping them identify plants

5.  Resources found online & posted ( also print) - worked with students in library

6. Complex lesson co-planned, written, modelled

7. Complex lesson, co-planned - t-l found text, primary sources, archives, video resources; created fill in sheets. Co-taught in library, debates also.

8. Whole lesson co-planned, T-L researched issues, wrote copy with links.

9. Teacher-librarian resource support - pulling together resources for role-playing assignment

10. Exam prep -list of topics provided by teacher  - teacher-librarian found video clips



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Collaboration graphics - how can we improve out collaboration opportunities?

thanks to source

Figure 1. Information on the table summarizes levels in the taxonomies by Loertscher (1988): The Library Media Specialist Taxonomy and The Teacher’s Taxonomy of Resource-Based Teaching and Learning. These levels were combined in 2000 version.

figure 1: loertscher's taxonomy

Figure 2. Four models that evolve from the literature reviewed and Loertscher’s (1982, 1988, 2000) Taxonomy.

figure 2: models of librarian and teacher working relationships

Figure 3. Coordination requires one person to manage events, activities, schedules. In this model teachers and librarian work together to ensure efficiency and order. Either the teacher or librarian can become coordinators of events, activities, and schedules for students. Scheduling may help students feel a sense of order but it is unlikely there is a relationship between coordinated events and student academic gains.

figure 3: model a: coordination

Figure 4. Cooperation/ Partnerships. Teachers and librarian work together but do not have to be involved in joint planning, thinking or evaluation although that would be a natural extension of cooperation. When teachers and librarian engage in joint planning, thinking, and evaluation it improves the learning experience for students. They may share objectives but do not necessarily have to create the learning opportunity jointly. Often cooperation involves dividing the work among participants.

figure 4: model b: cooperation/partnerships

Figure 5. Model C: Integrated Instruction involves teacher and librarian in shared thinking, planning, and evaluation. As collaborators they come together as colleagues to create a learning experience for the students that will facilitate their learning. They are aware of factors such as individual differences, developmental level, and prior knowledge that might affect the sequencing of material taught. Each collaborator brings to the process their expertise in the subject content, knowledge of standards to be included in instruction, methodology, research process, writing process, etc. The librarian and teacher are able to create a more powerful learning experience together than they could not create individually.

figure 5: model c: integrated instruction

Figure 6. Model D: Integrated Curriculum involves all the elements of collaboration that occurs in Model C. However, collaboration affects the entire curriculum. Teachers and librarian work to integrated subject content and information literacy in all grade levels. A key factor in ensuring collaboration throughout the school between librarian and teachers is the principal. The principal understands the impact collaboration can have on student academic achievement, encourages collaboration between classroom and library faculty, supports collaboration with resources and schedules designed to accommodate teacher and librarian time needs, provides professional development for faculty on collaboration, and establishes norms for shared thinking, shared planning and shared integrated instruction. To accomplish the enormous task of integrating instruction throughout the curriculum, librarian and teachers are creative in their use of time and resources through such innovation as integrated lessons planning and cross-age instruction. This model has the most potential for improving student learning because it supports conceptual development at al levels of the curriculum, creates a synergy among collaborators that transcends grade level and subject content, and provides multiple perspectives in designing and delivery of curriculum. [ Back to Article]

figure 6: model d: integrated curriculum

Figure 7. Attributes, activities, and attitude generated from the literature reflect a progression from Model A where the fewer attributes are necessary to Model D where the most attributes are present. There is some overlap among all models depending on personality, previous experience working together, commitment to the event, project, lesson/unit, and so on. [ Back to Article]

figure 7: attributes of collaboration

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