Professional Resources

2013 Legislative Action Links

This special section contains information specific to the 2013 Minnesota Legislative session. The remainder of our resources can be found below in alphabetical order by category. 

• MEMO_MLA Legislative Briefing.2013.03.05.mp3 by MEMO/MLA lobbyist Elaine Keefe, shown at left (volume low; turn it up!)
• 2013 Legislative Platform Bills.pdf
• 2013 Legislative Platform Overview.pdf
• MEMO Legislator Letter 2013.pdf
• School Library Letter to Legislators.docx (to personalize and send)
• Homework Help Overview.pdf
• ELM Talking Points.pdf
• Minitex and MNLink Overview.pdf
• Broadband Access Overview.pdf
• Who are my representatives?
• View the full text versions of the bills

To suggest additional resources for us to include here, please submit suggestions to the wiki page created for that purpose. 

AASL Essential Links
This site contains a wealth of resources for media professionals.

Academic Standards - See "Curriculum"

Advocacy

• AASL Advocacy Tool Kit
  Has links to other web pages of info for school library advocacy
• AASL Crisis Tool Kit
  AASL prepared this site for advocacy planning during a crisis.
• Act for School Libraries
  A national coalition of school librarians, library school faculty, and others with a passion for students and great library programs sharing resources and ideas.
• Advocacy Downloads from Kansas Association of School Libraries
  Collection of pdf files, although specific to Kansas can be used as examples for your own pamphlets.
• Advocacy Guru
  Stephanie Vance was the speaker at the 2009 ISLMA Conference Awards Banquet.  She has lots of info on her site in regards to working with Congress but the basic advice is for all types of advocacy.
• ALA. Add It Up: Libraries Make the Difference in Youth Development and Education
  Presents research and statistics on the impact of libraries grouped by the stages (preschool, kindergarten-middle school, and teens) of child development and education.
• ALA. Advocacy University
  A great collection of resources, online courses and tools for developing your local advocacy plan.
• ALA. Legislative Action Center
  This is a good site to respond to “hot” issues, find your legislator, and other library advocacy items.
• American School Board Journal Archives
  The archives are accessible with a subscription or individual articles can be purchased.  Highly recommend “The Future of Libraries” from the January, 2010 issue.  If your school board members are also members of the American School Board Association, they receive this publication. This may also be accessed via online periodical databases.  Good article emphasizing the need for good school library programs and certificated staff.
• “Budgeting for Mean, Lean Times”
  From Doug Johnson’s Blue Skunk Blog. This is the first of series of blog postings on budgeting that has tips on how to use the budget process in advocacy.
• California School Library Association. Campaign for Strong School Libraries
  Campaign is new in 2011 and is an excellent resource for ideas for local advocacy.
• Congressional Information Portal
  This is the site for all things pertaining to the U.S. Congress. Official websites for the members of congress, the committees, bills, resolutions, it’s all here. Site also includes information for classroom teachers so share this with them.
• Digital Wish advocacy videos for technology and mobile devices
  
  • The Importance of Technology in American Schools
    If you are arguing for computers in the classroom, this is a great introductory video to show the need.
    http://youtu.be/UgBwl_JrC50
    
  • The Need for a Shift to Mobile
    If you are making a case for tablets / mobile devices in the classroom, Digital Wish remade the same video - but with a tablet twist.
    http://youtu.be/JbwTzGzPTUM
• Full-Time School Librarians Linked to Higher Student Reading Scores
  School Library Journal article, March 6, 2012, by Lauren Barack
  
• Informational Brief: Impact of School Libraries on Student Achievement, by the  New York Comprehensive Center, October, 2011.
• “Is Your Job on the Line and What You Can Do About It”
  From Doug Johnson’s Blue Skunk Blog. Be sure to read the comments and use the links provided to previous posts by Doug.
• Learning and Leading
  An Animoto video made by Wendy Larson to show to the School Board of Minnesota ISD#192 on March 12, 2012. Recommended for showing to administrators to show the importance of strong media programs.
  

• "Librarian Required" by Debra E. Kachel and Keith Curry Lance. Appeared in School Library Journal, March 2013.

• Minnesota State Legislature
  Your go to site for all things pertaining to the state legislature. Find bills and state statutes, schedules for both House and Senate, bios and contact information for members of both chambers, even links to audio and video of the day’s actions when they are convened.
• Minnesota Library Association Library Advocacy
  This page is an overview of the advocacy process for all types of libraries.
• Primer for Minnesota Library Advocacy
  Provide a one-stop spot for information about what is going on in the current legislative session, an overview of how Minnesota libraries and systems work together to meet the needs of all Minnesotans, how to participate in Library Legislative Day, and an "Advocacy 101" introduction to those who may be new to advocacy.
• Sample letter to the legislature to advocate for school libraries
• School Library Impact Studies from Library Research Service.
  This is the go-to place for the information on the school library studies by Keith Curry Lance and associates.
  • School Libraries & Student Achievement info-graphic (2013)
• School Libraries Work! 2008 ed.
  This is a good summary of the school library studies that emphasize the value of school libraries and certified librarians in student learning.
• SLMS Crisis Toolkit
  From the New York Library Association. Lists even more sites with advocacy ideas
• Survive and Thrive! An Advocacy Toolkit for School Librarians.
  A robust resource from the Colorado Association of School Librarians.
• Why You Need Your School Librarian
  By Kimberly Shearer, Kentucky Teacher of the Year 2011-12. July 2012.
  

Assessment

Kramer, Pamela K. and Linda Diekman, "Evidence Assessment Advocacy," Teacher Librarian,   37:3. February 2010.

Book Challenges/Intellectual Freedom

Organizations to contact for support:

• Your regional library system
• MEMO Leadership
• Minnesota Library Association's Intellectual Freedom Committee
• American Library Association's Office for Intellectual Freedom
• Conducting a Challenge Hearing
• Intellectual Freedom Statements and Policies
• Coping with Challenges: Kids and Libraries
• Copying with Challenges: Strategies and Tips for Dealing with Challenges to Library Materials
• Dealing with Concerns about Library Resources
• Workbook for Selection Policy Writing

 

Certification

Minnesota Universities with Library and Information Science Programs

            St. Catherine University

            St. Cloud State University

            Mankato State University

Sample Goals for Recertification - from the Illinois School Library Media Association

Sample Activities for Recertification - from the Illinois School Library Media Association

Activity Planning Worksheet for Recertification (rtf)

Test Framework

The National Board of Professional Teaching Standards Site

The National Board of Professional Teaching Standards Library Media Standards for teachers of students ages 3-18+ (pdf)

 

Citation Resources

OWL at Purdue

MLA Online

APA Style

NoodleBib - an online bibliography maker

Easy Bib

Landmarks Son of Citation Machine

Knight Cite

21st Century Information Fluency Project

 

Classroom Volunteers

Virtual Volunteer area at Digital Wish. Digital Wish connects classroom teachers with "expert" volunteers by video conference. To access this free service, just login and post your project.

 

Collection Development

• School Library Collection Development Links
• Recommended Reference Sources for High Schools – From The Metropolitan Library System
  High School Recommended Reference Sources (pdf)
  High School Recommended Resources
  
• Recommended Reference Sources for Elementary - From The Metropolitan Library System
  Grades K-8 Recommended Reference Sources (pdf)
  Elementary Recommended Resources
  

 

Copyright Information:

• The Copyright Site
• The Copyright Website
• US Copyright Office
• Crash Course in Copyright
• Creative Commons
• Student Copyright Quizzes
  link 1 | link 2 | link 3

 

Curriculum, Lesson Plans, Standards, etc.

     Curriculum Mapping

Buzzo, Toni. "Using Communication to Solve Roadblocks to Collaboration." Teacher Librarian (June 2004) 31.5

Jacobs, Heidi Hayes. "Upgrading the K-12 Journey through Curriculum Mapping: A Technology Tool for Classroom Teachers, Media Specialists, and Administrators." Knowledge Quest (November/December 2000) 29:2.

Johnson, Peggy. Fundamentals of Collection Development and Management.  Chicago: American Library Association, 2009.

Loertscher, David V. and May Lein Ho. Collection Mapping in the LMC. San Jose, CA: Hi Willow Research and Publishing, 1996.

     Lesson Plans
AASL's Lesson Plan Database

AASL's Planning Guide for Empowering Learners with School Library Program Assessment Rubric is an online program assessment and planning module for school libraries. This interactive tool saves and converts user entries into worksheets, charts and graphs, saving librarians time while delivering data to schools and districts. Subscribers ($40/year) can login to the module at http://aasl.eb.com.

HippoCampus offers free multimedia lessons and course materials to help with instruction, homework, and studies. "Teaching the power of digital media."

Minnesota Digital Library  Online guides written by teachers across the state using primary sources from the Minnesota Digital Library.

Minnesota Learning Commons, a collaboration of the University of minnesota, Minnesota State Colleges and Universities, and the Minnesota Department of Education, this is a comprehensive collection of high-quality resources for K-12 educators to create online course content.

The Minnesota Learning Loop Teacher Classroom Resources, created by TIES, is a database of online resources linked to the Minnesota Academic Standards. The standards, and a program overview.

Best Prep Technology Lesson Library

     Standards

AASL Standards for the 21st Century Learner

ELM for K-12 Standards This resource includes the 2010 Common Core Standards, Language Arts, Science, and History & Social Studies Standards. The site shows how the free Electronic Libraries for Minnesota database resources align with the standards.

Learning4Life A plan for implementing the AASL Standards

MEMO Information and Technology Literacy Standards

Minnesota Academic Standards on the Minnesota Learning Loop 

Minnesota_Standards for Effective School Library Media_Programs (pdf)

Minnesota Department of Education Academic Standards, K-12

 

Digital Literacy

Digital Learn Free learning tools to help make technology work for people.

DigitalLiteracy.gov is provided by The U.S. Department of Commerce, a gateway to materials, research, online learning tools and more to help librarians and educators access and share materials to use when training learners of all ages on topics such as information literacy, computer skills, digital literacy and more. The Dept. of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) created the portal in partnership with nine federal agencies to provide librarians, teachers, workforce trainers and others a central location to share digital literacy content and practices.  Individuals are welcome to visit the site to find resources, upload their own and/or connect with others who are offering training on these topics.

Digital Passport by Common Sense Media

Common Sense Media has released Digital Passport, a free, web-based tool to help educators prepare students from grades 3 to 5 to use online and mobile technologies. Based on lessons from Common Sense Media's K-12 Digital Literacy and Citizenship Curriculum, the tool addresses issues kids face online -- safety and security, cyberbullying, privacy, responsible cell phone use, and respecting creative work -- and leverages a blended-learning model of classroom instruction with online videos and games extensively tested in implementation sites in seven regions across the country. Additionally, Digital Passport's modules align to the ISTE NETS standards and Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts. Public schools in Chicago, Denver, New York City, and Omaha, as well as schools in Maine and California, have committed to using Digital Passport this academic year.
Read more: http://tinyurl.com/blwqmyz

Evaluation of Web Sites

• Kathy Schrock's Guide for Critical Evaluation of Information
• Evaluating Internet Resources - Southern California College
• RADCAB Mnemonic Acronym for Information Evaluation

 

Facilities Planning

• Baule, S. M. (2007). Facilities Planning for School Library Media and Technology Centers, Linworth Publishing.
• Bolan, K. (2009). Teen Spaces: The Step-by-Step Library Makeover. 2nd ed. ALA Editions.
• Design Share: Designing for the future of learning
• Erikson, R. & Harkuson, C. (2007). Designing a School Library Media Center for the Future. ALA Editions.
• “Facilities: Designing school library media centers” on Mary Alice Anderson’s blog.
  http://wp.me/P9FeO-8t
• Haggans, M. (1998). 14 Ways to Get Better Performance from Your Architect. School Planning & Management, 37 (3), 24-27. (Dated but excellent source for those new to the process)
• Hart, T. L. (2006). Top Ten List of Library Facility Technology Issues. Library Media Connection 24 (4): 46-47.
• Johnson D. (2009) Some Design Considerations. 
• National Clearinghouse for Educational Facilities

Information Literacy

• American Association of School Librarians (AASL) Standards for the 21st Century Learner
• ACRL Institute for Information Literacy
• Big6 Skills to Information Problem Solving
• 21st Century Information Fluency Project
• S.O.S. for Information Literacy
• I-SAIL - Illinois Standards Aligned Instruction for Libraries
• I-SAIL Wiki
• TRAILS, Tools for Real-time Assessment of Information Literacy Skills
• U.S. Institute for Library & Information Literacy Education

Internet Safety

Bell, Mary Ann. 2007. The Elephant in the Room: School Districts Nationwide Are Voluntarily Filtering the Filters- And No One Is Talking about It. School Library Journal 53, no.1 (January), 40-42.

Harris, Frances Jacobson. 2009. Ethics from Web 1.0 to Web 2.0: Standing Outside the Box. Knowledge Quest 37, no. 3 (January/February), 56-61.

Magid, Larry. 2009, July 9. Should Schools End Internet Safety Nights?  SafeKids.com.

Online Predators: The Media Show

Smokescreen: A Game About Life Online

 

Job Vacancies:

These are some places to look but the listings are probably not totally inclusive. Each Regional Office of Education and Illinois Library System has its own policy and responsibility for the job postings.

Minnesota Libraries Jobline by Metronet

Minnesota Teacher Recruitment Job Bank

Minnesota Regional Offices of Education

Minnesota Regional Library Systems

Librarian Job Postings for the Midwest

 

Legislation:

Developing a Relationship with Your Legislator

     State Legislation:

Minnesota State Legislature

Minnesota State Senate - find your senator

Minnesota Library Association

     Federal Legislation:

Congress

ALAWON - ALA Washington Office Electronic Newsline; find out the latest on legislation being discussed in Congress.

CIPA - The Children's Internet Protection Act - ALA's website deals with current laws and restrictions.

     Contacting your representatives:

How to contact Congress about federal issues

How to contact your representative in the  Minnesota House of Representatives

 

Library Media Specialist Links

Leadership Continuum Checklist

Online Resources for School Librarians

21st Century Information Fluency Project (Illinois Math and Science Academy)

School Libraries on the Web - Peter Milbury's site

YALSA Academy: Online Instructional Videos for YA Librarians

YALSA Academy is a free online educational video initiative. It is a YouTube channel that offers free training videos on popular professional development topics for school and YA services librarians. Videos include such topics as: providing customer service to teens; connecting teens and ereaders; conducting a mock Printz program; and ideas for building a YA collection.

YALSA members and nonmembers are eligible to submit videos. The intended audiences of the videos are young adult librarians, school librarians, library support staff, teachers, administrators, technology staff working with teens and educators and any literacy-focused professional who works directly with teens and tweens. FFI: www.ala.org/yalsa/academy

Mentoring

Creighton, Peggy Milam.  (2007) Mentoring a New Library Media Specialist: a Model Relationship.  School Library Media Activities Monthly, 24(4), 25-28.

Meloni, Christine. (2006) Mentoring the Next Generation of Library Media Specialists.  Library Media Connection, 24(4), 32-33.

Minnesota Education Sites

Saint Paul Public Schools
Minneapolis Public Schools
Minnesota Department of Education
Minnesota Department of Education K-12 Academic Standards
Minnesota Senate Education Committee

Minnesota History & Culture

Minnesota History Center Library

Minnesota Reflections  A project of the Minnesota Digital Library. The collection brings you more than 80,000 images, maps and documents from more than 125 of the state's cultural heritage organizations.

 

Online Journals and Discussion Groups

• LM_NET
• eSchool News Online
• Newspapers in Education
• School Library Media Research Online
• Teacher Magazine
• 4Teachers
• Education Week
• School Library Info Tech Programs: Tapestry of Effective Practice
• THE Journal
• Tech and Learning

 

Professional Organizations

   Library/Technology
American Library Association
American Association of School Librarians (ALA)
Association for Library Service to Children (ALA)
Young Adult Library Services Association (ALA)
Minnesota Library Association
Children's Book Council
Children's Book Guild of Washington, D.C.
Association for Educational Communications and Technology (AECT)
International Society for Technology in Education
International Reading Association (IRA)
21st Century Information Fluency Project

   Teacher Organizations
National Education Association
American Federation of Teachers
Minnesota Education Association
Minnesota Federation of Teachers

Quantitative Guidelines for School Libraries
Utah School Library Media Programs --standards from Utah State Office of Ed.

Pennsylvania Guidelines for School Library Programs  (scroll down to School Library Resources) 

Resources for School Librarians - a mega site with state and national guidelines and standards from many states. This site is maintained by Linda Bertland, retired school librarian. 

Ohio Department of Education-Library Guidelines

 

Research on School Library Media Programs

The Library Research Service provides a one-stop resource to connect with school library research

Powerful Libraries Make Powerful Learners: The Illinois Study

Student Learning Through Wisconsin School Library Media Centers

Idaho School Library Impact Study

Minnesota School Library Media Census 2002 and 2004, by Metronet.

School Libraries Work! is a research foundation paper that collects position statements and research findings on the impact that school libraries and school library information specialists have on student achievement. This booklet, in PDF format, is an easy-to-read and understand summary of the research.

Stephen D. Krashen, author of The Power of Reading: Insights from the Research, includes information in his books and website on the importance of providing students with a print-rich environment.

 

Resources for Keeping Up

   From library people:

• WebTools4U2Use
  Donna Baumbach's amazing wiki for school library media specialists is a place "to learn about cool new web tools, see how they can be used in school library media programs, and share ideas and success stories."
• Joyce Valenza's Never Ending Search
• The Blue Skunk Blog, from Doug Johnson
• TeacherLibrarianNing An online community for school librarians.
• Library Research Service - School Library Impact Studies 
• TL Virtual Café – a monthly online webinar committed to creating conversations about teacher-librarians, educational technology, and collaborative connections.
• #TLChat on Twitter

    From other folks:

• NetFamilyNews.org: Kid-tech News for Parents
• SafeKids.com: Internet Safety and Civility
• The ReadWriteWeb
• Mashable: The Social Media Guide
• Classroom 2.0 Ning A social network for those interested in Web 2.0 and social media in education.

School Library Websites: Examples of Effective Practice

• Home: includes many additional valuable links
• Elementary Examples
• Middle School Examples
• High School Examples
• LibGuides

Standards - see "Curriculum"

Web 2.0 in Education

Hargittai, E. 2010. Digital Na(t)ives? Variation in Internet Skills and Uses among Members of the "Net Generation." Sociological Inquiry. 80 (1): 92-113. The take-home message from this study is that young people don't actually know everything about the digital world. They need our guidance to learn literacy in this realm as well.

Ito, Mizuko, et al. 2008. Digital Youth Research: Kids' Informal Learning With Digital Media, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. A synthesis of the findings of 22 different case studies revealing how young people learn, create, and collaborate online.

Lenhart, Amanda, May 13, 2009. Cyberbullying: What the Research Is Telling Us... Presentation at the National Association of Attorneys General Year of the Child Conference, Pew Internet and American Life Project. Keep an eye on anything produced by the Pew Internet and American Life Project!

National School Boards Association, 2007. Creating & Connecting: Research and Guidelines on Online Social - and Educational - Networking. In its conclusion, this study urges educators to reexamine policies regarding social network tools and find ways to harness their value for educational purposes.

Wolak, Janet, David Finkelhor, Kimberley J. Mitchell, and Michelle L. Ybarra, February 18, 2008. Online "Predators" and Their Victims: Myths, Realities, and Implications for Prevention and Treatment. American Psychologist, 63 (2): 111-128.