| From the President: Lynn Gordon |
|
Welcome Spring! I know that the past few weeks have been quite mild, but I am ready for the season to turn the corner and things to turn green. One of the events that recently brought a breath of fresh air to our profession was the MAME Leadership Conference. The workshop took place on March 20 at the U of M School of Information, and based on the buzz in the room and on the listserv following, a great experience for all.
The day was kicked off with a warm welcome from Martha Pollack from U of M. MAME's own immediate Past-President, Kathleen McBroom, then shared information regarding places to get help when you need it in any conceivable situation. One of her key points was that WE are typically the people that staff members and others come to for help; WE are the people who provide assistance. We need to remember that it is okay to ask for help when we need it, it is too important to try to go it alone. The "Advocacy Toolkit" link on the MAME website can provide many of the resources that you may need.
Attendees had the pleasure of hearing from the three major award winners that we've had recently in Michigan. Nancy Schultz-Speck from Garden City High School shared her experience of applying for and winning the 2009 Michigan State Librarian's Citation of Excellence, the first school library to do so.
Gigi Lincoln from Lakeview School District and Carolyn Wheeler from Bloomfield Hills Public Schools both shared their roads to winning the NY Times/Carnegie Corp. I Love My Librarian award. Gigi won the award in 2008 and Carolyn in 2009. Their stories were very inspirational and had common themes: they were collaborative, there was community involvement, and they included community service. Which award will YOU apply for this year?
Thomas Booth, Ed.D, clinical psychologist (husband of member Maureen Booth!), shared a definition of stress as well as ways to recognize and reduce it. In these trying times, it is important for us to take care of ourselves, we only do ourselves harm if we do not.
Annette Haley and colleagues from Wyandotte shared their triumphant story of facing down a book challenge. It was a painful time for their team, yet there were many lessons learned that they shared with us. One important message is that we all should have a current book selection and challenge policy that is accepted by our boards of education.
Finally, this information-filled day was capped off by Kristin Fontichiaro. Kristin shared another instructional model that can help to re-focus the way that you approach research and learning. Stripling's Inquiry model is another method of approaching instruction: Connect, Wonder, Investigate, Construct, Express and Reflect. Kristin also warned against chiding colleagues for formulating tired research units without giving them options for research, such as scenarios, project-based learning, problem-based learning, and real-world solutions. To learn more about Stripling's Inquiry model, Kristin references School Library Monthly 4/07 and 9/09. I'm sure that we'll be seeing more of this in the future!
Hats off to organizers Judy Hauser, Kathleen McBroom and Kristin Fontichiaro for this fantastic day. Attendees walked away with a wealth of varied inspirational information that they could apply on Monday and in the future.
Best to you,
Lynn Gordon
Lucky Leadership Conference Door Prize Winners:
Arlene Schoenherr Sarah Savage
Gwenn Marchesano Nancy Waters
Valerie Ayotte Kim McLean
Kathy Lewis Judy Shemwell
Susan Solo Tina Entwistle
Sue Hornbach Talle Jolliffe
Rachel Markel Tom Stream
Julie Harris
|
| Urban Schools must Carpe Diem! |
by Dr. Kafi Kumasi, Wayne State University
The effect of recent budget cutbacks on school libraries in urban districts deserves special attention given the massive school reforms that are taking place in cities like Detroit. The Detroit Public Schools (DPS) is in a unique position to help define a new leadership role for school librarians, which can be directly tied to the district's academic reform goals and objectives. A recent communication I had with Robert Bobb, the Emergency Financial Manager of DPS, leads me to believe that school library professionals will indeed have a seat at the table when important decisions are being made about how to transform the district into a top-notch school system.
Three primary areas where school library professionals can provide leadership to Bobb's reform team include: technology, reading, and information literacy. With regard to technology, school library professionals can help set the parameters of the discussion around what kind of cyber infrastructure the district may want to invest in so that librarians will have the appropriate bandwidth to provide students with access to digital content through the school library's online catalog. School librarians may also serve as point persons for cataloging and circulating the e-textbooks that the district has recently adopted. With their background in web design, school librarians can also help the district develop websites for each school that are used widely by faculty, students, and staff to locate and share information. School librarians can also provide leadership in the area of reading because many have learned during their professional preparation how to collaborate with classroom teachers to design evidence-based units that document concrete student learning outcomes. Last but not least, school librarians can lead the charge in helping students learn how to critically and responsibly use the various information technologies and social media that are available in our 21st century society. Each of these areas is critical to the vitality of any school district, but the time is ripe for urban schools undergoing massive reforms to carpe diem-or seize the moment!
It is often said that when Wall Street is in a recession, Main Street is in a depression. This analogy can be extrapolated onto urban and suburban school libraries in the sense that the former are in a marginalized position to begin with in terms of the resources and staffing they are allocated. If there is a silver lining to school reform in urban districts such as Detroit for school library professionals, it is that perhaps the current leadership in DPS, under the direction of Mr. Bobb, will truly listen to a broad constituency of people to help advise his reform team based on their varied experiences and professional areas of expertise. I look forward to helping seize this important moment on behalf of urban students who often get left behind.
|
| MeL's Learning Express Library |
by Deb Biggs Thomas
LearningExpress Library (LEX) in the Michigan eLibrary is a resource that's packed with a wide variety of tests and tutorials, ebooks and job search information. Many MAME members no doubt know that LEX includes the GED, ACT, SAT, AP and CLEP practice tests. Students can create their own free account to take tests at their convenience whether during a class period or at home, and their parents can benefit by not having to pay for expensive test-prep courses or books!
In addition to the college entrance exams, LEX also has many vocational practice tests such as the ASVAB, EMS, Electrician, Plumber, Law Enforcement, and Nursing/Allied Health. Plus LEX includes hundreds of test prep ebooks to supplement and enrich content. Your students can also prepare for the work world by using the Job & Workplace Skills Learning Center in LEX. They will find tutorials and courses on business writing which include grammar, and vocab practice as well as the components of the job search process--creating resumes and cover letters, networking, interviewing and success on the job.
Here are some creative ways to use or promote the resources in MeL's Learning Express Library: Share with the civics or government teachers that LEX has the U.S. Citizenship test; suggest that their students take the test as a pre or post test to the class. Share with your guidance counselors that LEX has college entrance practice tests and encourage them to promote LEX to parents. Did you know that LEX's high school entrance exams in the Middle School Learning Center can be used for skills building in preparation for high school success? Share with your Spanish teachers that LEX has Spanish language tests that their students might use for language skills building. Career and Tech Ed. teachers will want to know about LEX resources for their students and elementary school teacher's students will benefit from the tutorials in LEX's Elementary School Learning Center where math and reading skills improvement is found.
Thank you for using and promoting this terrifically useful resource from the Michigan eLibrary. You can find LEX right on the MeL homepage; it's the button underneath the MeL logo that says "Tests and Tutorials".
Deb Biggs Thomas MA, AMLS
Michigan eLibrary Coordinator
Michigan Department of Education
Library of Michigan
|
| Tools of the Trade:
Readability: A Web Tool of Interest
|
from Judy Hauser, Oakland Schools
If you read many articles online, you need Readability. Readability is a Web tool that is easy to install, easy to use and makes the online reading experience much easier on the eyes.
Go to the Readability website and follow the two, yes two, steps! Step one, select your settings: style, size of font and margin. Step two, drag the Readability badge to your toolbar.
When you select an online article to read click the Readability badge on your toolbar and the article is now transformed using your settings. The other advantage is that the ads and other information on the sidebars disappear giving you a much cleaner version of the article. Readability only works with articles. It will not "clean up" a website.
This tool is something you should pass on to other school staff. Many people read articles from online newspapers and databases and Readability will only enhance the reading experience.
http://lab.arc90.com/experiments/readability/
|
| Your Opportunity to Share! |
|
Support collaboration and sharing amongst our profession -
Present at this fall's annual MAME Conference!
MAME 37 - Dare to Dream @ Dearborn Hyatt, October 27-29th, 2010.
Have any of the following information to share?
· Book reviews, booktalks, author information
· Collaborative units with subject-area teachers
· Research and inquiry projects
· Favorite web 2.0 tools
· Tech-integrated projects
· Authentic learning examples
· Assessment of 21st century skills
· Integration of literacy skills in subject-area curriculum
· Grant ideas, creative funding examples, doing more with less
· Promotional and marketing ideas
· Innovative collection development ideas
· Successful workshops you've presented to your staff
· Policies or procedures that work well for you
Good instructional strategies you've incorporated into your
teaching
· Creative time management ideas
· Anything relevant to other media specialists!
MAME wants you! Be a part of MAME 37-Dare to Dream and share what works for you. No expertise necessary, just a willingness to talk to others about what you know! Although the conference is not until October, the planning stages have begun!
| |
| Media Matters! Editors
Dr. Kafi Kumasi and Joanne Steckling
Database Manager
| |
|
|
|
| If you're a member of ALA, don't forget to vote online by April 23rd.
|
|
| Earning SB-CEU's?
Important Info! |
|
There are some changes in the ways we will handle SBCEUs. Below are the highlights.
There is a new State Central Registry, which allows you access to your own professional development history online.
Here is the process:
1. Attend the event. Sign in and out! MUST ARRIVE ON TIME!
2. I send in the roster of attendees to the state website. An email is automatically generated outlining your responsibilities.
a. You will create an account, or access your account
b. You MUST complete the online evaluation within 30 days after the event
c. After May 1, there will be a minimal cost.
Once MAME determines how to handle costs, we will let you know the details.
If you do not follow these guidelines in the email, your SBCEUs will not be awarded. I have been told, I do not have the authority to intervene in your behalf. Currently there are still some issues with the new system. The deadline for evaluations has been extended to 45 days for the MAME Leadership event.
If you have questions, please email:Sue Taylor, MAME VP of Continuing Education |
|
|
| April is
School Library Month |
 |
School Library Month began in 1985, and is held in conjunction with National Library Week (April 12 - 18).
YA Author Laurie Halse Anderson is serving as the 2010 spokesperson for School Library Month.
This year AASL is encouraging school librarians to use their social media channels (ALA blogs, Facebook, Twitter, Flickr and YouTube) to share information and activities to promote school media programs.
Download flyer from the AASL website for 30 days of activities to promote your school library media program. |
| Feedback Needed! |
|
Feedback is needed on AASL/NCATE standards.
AASL welcomes comments from school librarians, educators, and LIS students on the draft revised Standards for Initial Programs for School Librarian Preparation
Review the draft revised standards and submit comments via survey by August 1. The National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education has a seven-year review cycle for program standards. As part of the revision process, the AASL/NCATE Coordinating Committee seeks feedback from a wide range of constituents....AASL, Mar. 30 |
| Behind the scenes...MAME 37 Fall Conference |
|
The Program Committee is working diligently
...to encourage MAME members to submit program proposals. Too often members believe that they don't do or have anything to share. That is not true. All members are also working diligently to provide support, engage the teachers in their schools to collaborate, and to make a difference.
Many times we hear that members are not sure of their status for the upcoming year, or if they will be allowed to attend. It is very true that administrators are very often prone to be influenced by those who bring recognition to their districts or schools. Presenting may not save your job, but to be able to say to your administrator THIS year, " I am presenting at the October conference", (and name your presentation) can bring extra consideration for your need for a sub. Market yourself early. It could make a difference.
This conference is a conference of member volunteers. We learn from each other. This is your GOLDEN opportunity to share your knowledge and help others DARE to DREAM!
|
|
Karen Becknell, Program Co-Chair |
| Have you registered yet? |
Michigan Joint Education Conference (MIJEC.org)
June 23, 2010
Thurston High School
Redford Twp MI.
Registration deadline is
June 4, 2010 |
Cost for the one-day workshop is $49. After June 4, registration will be $69.
Register Now! |
| Upcoming Events |
|
|
June 23, 2010
Thurston High School
Redford Twp., Mi.
June 24-29, 2010
Washington Convention Center, Washington, DC
June 27-30, 2010
Colorado Convention Center, Denver
Oct 27 - 29, 2010
Hyatt Regency, Dearborn |
| What's on your Mind? |
|
What great things are going on in your media center?
Has a journal article or book recently inspired you?
Found a shortcut, great website, new and improved techie tool?
...Or just have a funny story to share?
We love to hear from our readers! |
|
Send your newsletter contributions to
Dr. Kafi Kumasi
| |
|
