Course Syllabus
for EDCI 650:
Administration
of
School
Library Media Centers
ASSIGNMENTS
ON THIS SYLLABUS MAY BE CHANGED
OR
UPDATED PRIOR TO THE START OF CLASS
Our
classroom is in Meriam Library (MLIB 226)
|
|
|
The
Library Media Teacher Services Credential program at CSU, Chico
places a high value on the Administrative Leadership role of the LMT
due to our belief that the library media program is an integral part
of teaching and learning in the school. The school library media teacher,
in order to be effective, must translate the mission, goals, objectives,
policies and procedures of the school library media program into action
through effective leadership, planning, and evaluation. EDCI 650
Administration of School Media Centers is the class in which LMT
candidates most directly address the skills related to administrative
leadership.
Course Objectives,
Activities, and Goals:
In this course you will have
opportunities to:
- learn and practice how to plan
and develop the philosophy/goals of the library media program;
- develop flexible policies for
use of resources to ensure maximum and equal access;
- develop user's knowledge and skills
needed to use all types of resources effectively, including emerging
technologies;
- provide assistance to students
and staff in locating information;
- plan and teach information skills
to assist users in developing a systematic mode of inquiry in
locating and using information and ideas;
- collaborate with teachers for
instructional development, and observe a variety of school library
media centers with respect to this role;
- read and discuss articles about
current and accepted practices, meet and interview successful
LMT and administrative practitioners,
- engage in role playing and problem
based learning situations and scenarios,
- create library budgets and proposals,
- post messages to professional
online conferences and discussion groups related to administrative
leadership roles and services;
- work effectively with students
and teachers, including those who are different from the candidate
in ethnicity, culture, gender, and language, or socio-economic
background;
- understand, appreciate and be
sensitive to the cultural heritage, community values and individual
aspirations of the diverse school community;
- use techniques of group dynamics
to encourage individuals to work together effectively.
This may all seem a bit overwhelming,
but with careful use of your time and through classroom and school
site experiences, by the completion of the course you specifically
will have learned the appropriate skills and knowledge to effectively
carry out these and other related skills which are outlined in the
LMT
Services Credential Program Brief Checklist.
Course Texts
Required. Please be
certain to bring these with you to class:
Standards and Guidelines
for School Libraries. Abilock, Debbie, ed. California School Library
Association. Sacramento, CA 95816
This text was created by our professional
association, and reflects the needs and aspirations of California
schools.
As
a convenience, you may click here to order directly from the publisher:
CSLA.
The School Library Media Manager
3rd ed. Woolls, Blanche. 2004. Englewood, CO: Libraries Unlimited.
The Woolls text outlines
the "essence" of how to create and administer a comprehensive school
library media program. As is the situation in any profession the
requirements, opportunities and challenges are constantly changing.
For that reason we must consider Web resources, both for the identification
of the problems and solutions of LMC management; and also for the
information needed for daily activities related to supplies, materials
and curriculum. That is why Web based resources have been included
on this page, and it is why you will need to develop your own collection
of Web resources in this class and throughout the program.
As
a convenience, you may click here to order directly from the publisher:
Libraries Unlimited.
Suggested Additional Text:
AASL/AECT. Information Power;
Building Partnerships for Learning. American Library Association,
1998.
Go back
to top of this page
CLASS PROJECTS
AND ASSIGNMENTS:
Synopsis: There will be a number of
writing projects. These writings will reflect an in-depth examination
of a theme or concern in school library administration. In addition you
will react in writing to school library site visits and interviews of
teacher-librarians. Three online projects will allow you to focus on common
problems related to library services at particular grade levels. For each
of the projects please plan to give a brief oral report to the class.
You will also need to attend class and participate regularly, and maintain
a portfolio which reflects your growth during this class. The details
of these requirements are described immediately below.
A. Writing From Readings
Projects (50% of Grade):
There are four "writing
from readings" projects These will be:
a) A collection
of your reactions to each chapter in the reading assignments (200+
words each) 10%;
b) Two thematic
papers (750 words each) based on readings in your textbooks and
other articles 15% each.
These two papers should try to include reflections on your field
visits to school libraries, as well as interviews or conversations
with school librarians. They should include, as appropriate, a
discussion of the policies and guidelines that would need to be
included in K-12 school library programs. Projects are selected
from two of the following themes:
1) Information
Literacy and the teaching of library skills
2) Teacher-Librarian collaboration
and curriculum development
3) Budgeting and ordering procedures
and policies
c) One paper written to be included
in your library manual outling the philosophy and goals. 10%
|
B. Online Projects: Checking
Out LMTs In Cyberspace (20% of Grade, as follows):
There are
two online projects (10% each):
1) LM_NET Discussion
and Observations (10% of Grade)
Document and react to messages posted
to LM_NET, the online discussion group for LMTs,worldwide. It
is expected that you will subscribe to LM_NET before or during
the second week of class. Three moderately brief written reports
on issues and problems for each type of library are required (2
pages each, approximately), resulting from your daily readings
of LM_NET messages. It is very effective to review recent discussions
in the LM_NET
Archives. Here is one recent posting that started a brief
thread: "An
interesting trend..."
2) Library Web Site Visits
(10% of Grade)
Make "virtual" visits to school
library Web sites of the three school library types: Elementary,
Middle, and High School. Explore them for what they have to
offer, and then write a three page report on your visits. Observations
should be made of elementary, middle school and high school
libraries. You should go to at least 15 different sites, visiting
a minimum or four of each type of school library. Also, gather
information and curriculum resources as you make virtual visits
to the school library Web pages for the Bookmarking Project,
immediately below. Here is a
comprehensive site that links to many school library Web
pages.
|
C. School Library Site Visits
(10% of Grade)
You should visit several
(three or more) school libraries which are staffed by credentialed
teacher librarians. Your visits to these school library sites
should be for 60 minutes or longer. Each visit should be documented
by a typed, one-page or longer report which briefly explains your
observations and reflections on your visit. In your report,including
references and comparisons to your text readings, class discussions,
and other information sources. Ideally, you should visit
one of each library type: Elementary, Middle, and
High School. In the event that it is impossible for you to visit
a certain type of library, telephone interviews of school librarians
may be substituted with permission of the instructor. Please
note: A school library in a county office of education counts
as an elementary or middle school library.
|
D. Final, Attendance
and Participation In Class (10% of Grade)
Final Presentation: Your
final class session will incorporate a a demonstration lesson
of one information literacy skill. The focus of this lesson
must be presented as if to the target age group, not members
of the class. The informational literacy lesson must be determined
in collaboration with the the instructor.
Good attendance and class
participation are essential in order to gain an understanding
of the various aspects of school library administration. Students
are expected to attend all class sessions unless prior arrangements
are made with the instructor.
Portfolio
Requirement:
As is the
case for all courses required for the LMT Services Credential
Program, please maintain
a portfolio of your work, as well as the forms, documents
and materials obtained and used during the course and its experiences.
This will be especially useful when you enroll in EDCI 655:
Supervised Experience in School Library Media Centers. Please
see this
LMT Services Credential Program page for the specific requirements
and areas of coverage.
|
GRADING BREAKDOWN
OF CLASS ASSIGNMENTS AND WORK:
| Percent |
Assignment |
Points Possible |
| 40% |
Written Papers |
200
|
| 10% |
Written Projects Based On Text
Readings |
50
|
| 20% |
Online Projects: LM_NET, Web
Visits and Bookmarks |
100
|
| 10% |
Library Site Visit/Interview
Reports |
50
|
| 20% |
Final and Classroom Participation |
100
|
|
|
500
Total possible
|
LETTER GRADE SCALE:
| A+ = 98% = 490 |
A = 96% = 480 |
A- = 92% = 460 |
| B+ = 88% = 440 |
B = 86% = 430 |
B- = 84% = 420 |
| C+ = 80% = 400 |
C = 78% = 390 |
|
GRADING CRITERIA:
CSU, Chico Standards for Graduate
Level Courses:
A -- Superior Work: A level
of achievement so outstanding that it is normally attained by
relatively few students.
B -- Adequate Work: A level of achievement
indicating adequate competence in the subject matter/skill. This
level will usually be met by a majority of students in the class.
C -- Minimally Acceptable Work: A
level of achievement which meets the minimum requirements of the
course.
F -- Unacceptable Work: A level of
achievement which fails to meet the minimum requirements of the
course. Not passing. Because a C is the minimal acceptable grade
for a graduate-level course, a D grade in not allowed.
|
Go back to
top of this page
Page updated 5/3/2009 by Linda
Elliott
Copyright 2006 by Peter
Milbury
|
