All things to all people…hints and tips for the up and coming TL
Written by Lori Korodaj, Teacher Librarian, Lake Tuggeranong College
I am so excited to be coming back to the National Education Summit in 2022! In person conferences – hooray! The Summit is also a most excellent opportunity to mentor my friend and colleague, Kathy Talbot, as she dips her toe in the water of presenting at her first national conference and sharing her blog posts with the world (make sure you look for her post on the NES blog too – coming soon!).
It's really a small example of our presentation, On the shoulders of giants: Empower, enact, impact. The simple act of co-presenting with Kathy has meant that she will now be able to go forth and feel empowered to present on her own at future conferences. I look forward to attending her sessions and seeing her impact the practice of others in the future!
Blog posts themselves are very powerful and I use them to assist in the mentoring and development of those new to the profession in my lecturing for the Master of Education (Teacher Librarianship) for Charles Sturt University. A blog post each week or each fortnight is a quick and easy way of me translating theory to practice for my students, with real world examples from my TL practice, and another avenue to interact with them outside of our subject site and email (I deliver via distance ed only).
The following is one of my posts from my own blog, Lori’s eMusings, that I’ve tweaked for the NES blog, and while providing hints and tips to new TLs, also demonstrates how easy it is for you to guide others with your words. You may notice a slight pop culture theme, with references to movies, comics and TV series throughout.
(Attribution: Photo by Juan Pablo Arrenas on Pexels.com)
As a new TL, we are sparking with new ideas, wanting to change our library services "in a single bound" (thanks, Superman).
(Attribution: Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com)
To "boldly go where no TL has gone before" (with apologies to Star Trek)!
You want to change the world all at once, and yet when you're a new TL, it can seem to become an insurmountable task. But - never fear! Hints and tips await below to see you through this shiny new time in your professional career!
With our dual qualifications, we are uniquely positioned to exercise both the teaching and librarianship roles to ensure positive student outcomes.
A couple of different perspectives on aspects of the TL role are seen in the Teachers + Teacher Librarians = Better Learning and Teacher? Librarian? Teacher Librarian? videos created by the Students Need School Libraries national campaign (shout out to my ACT TL colleagues Sue, Holly, Olivia, Amy, and Emily, and my wonderful principal, Julie, who feature in these films!). Take some time to look through them (they're only around 2-3 mins long) to explore definitions from actual practitioners, teachers and students in schools.
I have recently mentored two new local TLs (we are all at different schools) who are now around 3-4 years into their new specialist roles as TLs. We meet once a term and discuss the wins, the not so good times, and how to find that elusive "middle path of awesomeness" (which I still struggle to find some days - and that's after almost 30 years as a TL!). This is formalised with each of us writing this mentoring process into our Professional Pathways planning for the year. It happens over cake and coffee (because...cake) and we enjoy the collegial support that comes from sharing practice with like-minded educators.
Let me tell you a secret that I am sharing with them constantly - focus on 1 new goal per term and look to "converting" 1-2 new teaching colleagues per term in a school where there may be reluctance to utilise your specialist skills.
We cannot change the world overnight. "Build it and they will come" is a great way to think about the work we do (thanks, Field of Dreams, with apologies for the slight misquote).
The three of us have also talked about 3 main goals I have in my TL practice:
Making the invisible visible
If you don't get out there and talk to your colleagues, the students, pop up at Open Night and Parent Teacher Night, help out at the athletics carnival, and show up to morning tea occasionally, no-one knows you are there.
Write a regular piece in your school newsletter/school blog that shows your depth of practice relevant to school happenings. Advertise your services on the TV screens around school, via flyers in teacher pigeonholes, at morning announcements. Share hints and tips at staff meetings, get yourself on a PL or curriculum committee. Make some noise that contributes to teaching and learning in the right spaces, and before you know it, you will be inundated!
Communication is key – especially your PLN (professional learning network)
You experience "infowhelm" as you undertake TL studies, and you regularly catch up for study sessions or in discussion forums with like-minded students, but what happens after all this is over? You're in a specialist position that usually sees you on your own without a TL colleague to bounce ideas with, so how do you make those connections?
Connect and communicate! Find your local TL or school library network, join OZTL_Net while you're a student and leverage expert tips from TL practioners in the know, join Twitter and follow TL practitioners, ed tech gurus, and school leaders to explore best practice through their work. Set up that PLN and open your eyes!
Dr Kay Oddone is now a lecturer in teacher librarianship at Charles Sturt University whose doctoral studies focused on how teachers experience professional learning through personal learning networks. She has developed a simple, four step infographic to help you set up your own PLN and get you started. Kay is speaking, with Madison Dearnaley, as part of the National Education Summit's Capacity Building School Libraries conference in Brisbane August 2022 - register here if you're keen to hear more!
It’s OK to say no sometimes – quality over quantity
"But if I say no, they won't come back!"
Not true! At some point, you'll get really busy. If you're the only TL in your school, you can only stretch yourself so thinly. Even if you have an awesome team around you and a fellow TL to share the load, sometimes there just aren't enough hours in the day to accommodate the many resourcing requests, co-operative planning sessions, and teaching sessions you'll be asked to be part of each day.
You could try to do it all - but it won't be your best work, and this could lead to teachers and students saying "what's so great about the library?" and never coming back.
Or you could say "I'd love to help you, but I would like to do the best job I can. Can we negotiate to deliver this session this time next week instead? I've got some great ideas!".
It's OK to say no - you've just got to know the right way to say it. :)
We juggle so many aspects of our role - information specialist, information manager, curriculum leader, supporting the staff (teaching and leadership) and students to reduce their workload, and even needing to dry eyes and provide a sympathetic ear to those who need that "cone of silence" after a tough day. It takes time to learn how to balance this, so be kind to yourself.
More hints and tips coming your way on mentoring, being mentored, and the power of TL leadership in my session with Kathy Talbot, On the shoulders of giants: Empower, enact, impact, at the National Education Summits in Melbourne and Brisbane. Hope to see you there – come and say hi!
