Improving the School Library's Educational Value with AASL National Standards

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If we don't evolve, we die. Gone are the days of old in school libraries where students only went to check out books. Along with the rise in technology in schools and Google search, the position of the school librarian has evolved into information specialist and teacher librarian. Our school libraries are now places where all ideas and imagination are welcome to be explored and thrive. The AASL National Standards for libraries are helping to encourage that growth and give students a chance to take part of their education into their own hands. As was mentioned in the May/June 2019 issue of Knowledge Quest, not only does it encourage student-led learning, it also helps librarians to hold themselves accountable for quality individual and collaborative lesson planning.

I really enjoyed reading a lot of the lesson ideas that were given by Freedman and Robinson (2019) regarding the Explore foundation. It really helps to demonstrate how these standards can be applied to solo library lessons and projects and also to collaborative lesson plans as they can be used across curriculum areas. I was able to experience this first hand last semester as I wrote and taught my collaborative unit plan with a science teacher colleague of mine. Allowing students time to work with their peers helps them to develop communication skills they will use for the rest of their life. Students also tend to make stronger connections when they see how it applies to real life problems. Also, as a creative myself, I really appreciate how the standards and the use of a makerspace in the library can help students to learn in a hands-on way to construct, reflect, and re-evaluate. (Freedman and Robinson, 2019, p. 14). Some of the most valuable lessons we learn in life, we learn from doing firsthand and all of these standards have the students actively engaged.

Working in a school with a very active library program has given me a chance to see all the benefits that these standards have provided to our students and faculty alike. I appreciate how it serves all students equally whether we are preparing them for future college plans or the workforce as our main goal is to create successful adults with a healthy understanding of the world around them.

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References:

Freedman, J.L. and Robinson, A. (2019). School Librarians Level Up. Knowledge Quest, 47(5), 10-15.