Throughout this course we have explored what education could be - from Will Richardson's Why School to how organizations are using technology to provide education in developing countries we have looked at changes in thinking and teaching methods that will help to create communities where students are engaged and empowered to lead their own learning. I wondered about finding the balance between a complete orientation towards technology and the need for hands-on, place-based learning opportunities, finding that sweet spot for the pendulum to rest. As I've dug deeper into these ideas, I've found educators across the world doing amazing things, from inquiry to literacy, numeracy to empathy. What I've come to realize, however, is that no one person is doing it all; each is focused on their own personal passions, passions that change and grow as they do. And as students move through their classrooms and teachers move through their professional development sessions, they will connect with and learn something new from each one. So perhaps the goal isn't to have the pendulum settle in any one spot, but rather to encourage it to swing from person to person, spreading new ideas that will land where they need to land when they are most needed. Balance, it seems, can be found between people as much as it can be found within people.

So what does this mean for my vision of the future of education? Well, as I originally outlined in this blog post, I continue to believe that we need to focus on what is important to us - what keeps us grounded and sane, what we can confidently hold up as what we value for children. As Dr. Jody Carrington said - "Find your purpose. Relentlessly pursue what your believe to be true, and do it only because you believe, to the core of you, that you can change the world." The future of education is passionate people believing in kids and sharing their passions with those kids. Just as each of us is a different person with different likes and dislikes, so too are kids; we need to trust that what we share - whether that is the latest app, hands dirty from the garden or a quiet corner to read and reflect - will land with the kids that need it the most, providing them, individually, with the balance that they may be unable to find in a larger group. The world is changing and we do need to ensure that kids have the skills to meet the needs of this world but we also need to keep in mind that those skills are varied and every kid does not need to have them all to "successfully wield the abundance at their fingertips" (Will Richardson, Why School).

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, I chose to showcase my vision by highlighting educators who are truly living their passion and their purpose. Under the For Teachers tab on this website, you will now find 5 sections - Literate, Numerate, Curious, Kind and Healthy. In each of these sections I have created a post entitled 5-4-3-2-1. Borrowing from James Clear's 3-2-1 (which I learned about in Teachers These Days by Jody Carrington and Laurie McIntosh), I outline 5 educators to follow, 4 apps/websites to check out, 3 things to try, 2 quotes to consider and 1 question to ponder. My hope is that this will increase connection, inspire innovation and support teachers as they do the work of educating the next generation of citizens. 

Resources
​Carrington, J & McIntosh, L. Teachers These Days: Stories and strategies for reconnection. IMPress, 2021.
Richardson, W. Why School: How education must change when learning and information are everywhere. TED Conferences, 2012.
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Note: This is part of a series of reflective posts that form part of a university course that I am taking. I hope that you will find something valuable in my reflections as well. ​

There is no question that literacy is key to upward socioeconomic mobility and escaping poverty. According to the UN, "education helps reduce inequalities and reach gender equality and is crucial to fostering tolerance and more peaceful societies." While the global literacy rate for people over 15 is 86%, the literacy rate in Sub-Saharan Africa remains below 60%, with some countries below 30%.1 It is in these countries where access to education is desperately needed.
Libraries play a key role in providing access to education, especially literacy. Public libraries, however, are few and far between in developing countries (the reasons for this are complex - if you want the deep dive, I highly recommend you check out the paper by Young et al. linked below) and have been often overlooked as partners by development organizations.2 As a result, most efforts to improve literacy rates in developing countries tend to be through development organizations acting as libraries rather than state-sponsored public libraries. While this matters philosophically (public libraries uphold the values of political, social and intellectual freedom, while development agencies may not), the end result for users is the same regardless of who is providing the service - access to books and technology. 

Here are 3 NGOs working to increase literacy rates in creative ways:

Nal'ibali - based in South Africa, Nal'ibali focuses not just on reading for enjoyment, but on the power of language and cultural relevance. They acknowledge the importance of reading in the mother tongue and work to create a community of stories and storytellers across South Africa. This rich website includes storybooks, audiobooks and writing resources for all ages, not too mention the ability to access physical books, reading and writing clubs and more. Nal'ibali can be enjoyed on all major mobile networks in SA for free and without data (wow!) as well as on What'sApp, making it super accessible for just about anyone (95% of South Africans own a cell phone3).

Room to Read - Room to Read focuses on literacy and gender equality in low-income communities throughout Africa and Asia. They partner with community and government organizations to provide teacher training, quality reading materials in local languages, construction of classrooms and parent education programs. Their intent is to create sustainable literacy initiatives that will last long after Room to Read moves to a different community.

World Literacy Foundation - The WLF supports a number of different literacy initiatives across the globe, including the distribution of solar-powered tablets pre-loaded with books and educational games in Africa, an app in Australia that provides books in both English and local Indigenous languages, an Ambassador program for young adults and the provision of books to schools and community reading groups throughout Africa, South America and Asia.

1. Literacy Rate, 2015. Retrieved 07/29/2021 from www.ourworldindata.org/literacy.
​2. Young, J.C., Lynch, R., Boakye-Achampong, S., Jowaisas, C., Sam, J. (2021). Public libraries and development across Sub-Saharan Africa: Overcoming a problem of perception. Retrieved 07/28/2021 from https://www.degruyter.com/docwww.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/libri-2020-0096/htmlument/doi/10.1515/libri-2020-0096/html.
​3. McCrocklin, S. (2021). Mobile penetration in South Africa. Retrieved 07/29/2021 from https://www.geopoll.com/blog/mobile-penetration-south-africa/.

Note: This is part of a series of reflective posts that form part of a university course that I am taking. I hope that you will find something valuable in my reflections as well. ​

Here in BC we have, once again, been experiencing terrible wildfires. As I write, Kelowna is covered in a thick bank of smoke, so thick it makes the city feel like the set of an apocalyptic dystopian movie. The smoke has, unfortunately, become a normal part of summers here in the Okanagan; coming and going on the winds, it reveals beautiful blue skies for days only to descend like a pall suddenly and without warning.
Needless to say, forest fires dominate many a thought and conversation throughout the summer here. I often think about how ridiculously easy it is to start a forest fire, how one tiny little spark can grow so quickly into something that spreads so quickly. In this light, it's easy to see how the spark is often used as a metaphor in business or education; one tiny little idea that, when given fuel and oxygen, spreads rapidly from person to person, growing larger by the minute.
In the context of a school, there are often people who are seen as the sparks - the ones who always have new ideas, seem to be up on the latest and greatest innovations, who try new things and share them freely with others. There are positions that foster these skill sets as well - curricular leads, consultants, specialists, teacher-librarians. Sparks often move into these roles because their access to others grows exponentially in these positions; they are now sought out for their sparkiness, for their ability to share their ideas. And sparks, my friends, want to spread their fire. It's what they do best. 
As a result, people who find themselves in these roles, these hubs of information and innovation, if you will, need to figure out how to fan the flames and spread the word. And this is the hardest part of all. Leaving the fire metaphor behind for a moment, think about a time when you had a great idea, found a great resource or wanted to try something new - was it easy to get others on board? Where did you start? Who did you go to with your brilliant idea?
Interestingly, there is actually a theory that explains how ideas spread. Dubbed the Diffusion of Innovation Theory, it originated in 1962 and continues to be relevant today. The brainchild of a man named Everett Rogers, the theory outlines how an innovation is communicated over time amongst a social system. Understanding the basics of this theory can help us be more effective in ensuring that innovations we introduce in our schools don't just fizzle out. 

Ever heard the term "go with the goers"? At the heart of DIT (Diffusion of Innovation Theory), is the idea that amongst people there are different timelines for adopting a new innovation - first, the innovators, then the early adopters, early majority, late majority and finally, the laggards. If you have a new idea, the innovators are the ones who are going to adopt it first - they love all things new, shiny & trendy. They are more likely to be your tech-savvy teachers, your inquiry loving teachers, your learning community, cross-curricular teachers. Cultivate relationships with these teachers, as they will be the ones you can go to when you want to try new things. This, though, is a very small segment of the population so you may only have a couple of staff members who fall in this category. Your early adopters make up a much larger segment of the population and are your next target.
Let's say you want to try bringing inquiry into your library program. This hasn't been done before at your school and you sense that your whole staff isn't quite ready to dive in with you. So, you find that one teacher who keeps mentioning wanting to try inquiry in their classroom and you approach them with some ideas. The two of you build a great unit together, co-teach it and the kids love it! You decide to showcase some of the student work in the library and you and your co-teacher speak briefly about the unit at a staff meeting. Next thing you know, you have two new teachers (early adopters) wanting to try it out too. Yay! Now the trick is to keep the momentum going; to do this, we need to convince people that our idea, our teaching method, our tech tool, is better than what they are currently doing. That it will, in some way, serve their needs in a way that makes their job easier, more enjoyable or more effective. In education, we often need to convince people that what is good for kids will also be good (i.e. not more work) for teachers. This is why Dr. Michelle Mazur believes that the Diffusion of Innovation theory is actually a communication theory.
​In order to successfully get more teachers collaborating with you on inquiry units, you need to move from the innovators and early adopters to the late adopters and laggards, To do this, we need to communicate what Rogers calls the relative advantage, or how an inquiry approach is better than the way the teacher is already teaching the unit. You also need to communicate how your idea (inquiry) is compatible with their values, needs and experiences. This is going to be different for every teacher; in order to reach those late adopters and laggards you are going to have to build relationships that allow you to understand the teacher and their teaching style, while at the same time building trust so that when you do broach the idea, they are willing to step out of their comfort zone with you.
In the end, bringing new ideas, innovations and resources to a group of people as diverse as a school staff requires three main things:
1) Know your people. Who are the innovators? The early adopters? Who is going to require a bit more personalized attention in order to try this new thing?
2) Build relationships. Once you know your people, approach them all a little bit differently. Dive in with the innovators, share enthusiastically with the early adopters and be prepared to take the long road with the late adopters and laggards. While it might be tempting to try and sway the late adopters right away or abandon the laggards entirely, go slow to go fast. Take the time to gain the trust of these two groups and you will likely see more progress in the long term.
3) Communicate clearly and simply. When we are fully immersed in a new idea or teaching method, we tend to over-complicate our explanations of things. We forget that just a short while ago we only knew the bare bones of how to use it and we go too deep, too fast. As you  sell your idea, try to simplify your sharing; use examples and success stories and keep to the basics. Wherever possible, share student work publicly and have students share their experiences as well. Be willing to share your planning documents, process and resources with other staff members. 

School staffs are as unique as the individuals that make them up. There is no one best way to communicate new ideas, tools and resources - you have to know your people and figure out what works for them (a tech-savvy team may love a Google Drive folder for sharing, while a more traditional group may still be reliant on photocopied handouts). One staff may respond really well to "lunch and learn" opportunities, where they listen and eat, while another enjoys a more hands-on, try before you buy workshop approach; there is no right way to share ideas, just right ways for the group of people in front of you. Keeping the principles of Diffusion of Innovation Theory in mind (and this was just a surface skim of DIT, see below if you want to learn more) will help you target the distribution of ideas and communicate in ways that will help your new ideas and innovations spread. It might not be easy and it might not be fast but it will be effective! Go ahead and give it a shot...I'd love to hear how it goes.

Want to learn more? Check out the following:
Baer, Drake (2013, Jan 17). Harvard professor finds innovative ideas spread like the flu; here's how to catch them. Retrieved July 28, 2019 from https://www.fastcompany.com/3004829/harvard-professor-finds-innovative-ideas-spread-flu-heres-how-catch-them 
Mazur, Michelle. (2019, Nov 5). How new ideas spread and ultimately become accepted. Retrieved July 28, 2021, from https://drmichellemazur.com/2019/11/how-new-ideas-spread-ultimately-become-accepted.html.
Rogers, Everett (2003). Diffusion of Innovations, 5th Edition. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 978-0-7432-5823-4.
Wikipedia contributors. (2021, May 23). Diffusion of innovations. In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 17:54, July 29, 2021, from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Diffusion_of_innovations&oldid=1024582287

Note: This is part of a series of reflective posts that form part of a university course that I am taking. I hope that you will find something valuable in my reflections as well. ​

I love working with others. It's where I do my best thinking and idea generating. I also love working alone; alone, I will dig deep into topics, learning about the nuances and intricacies of the things that fascinate me, gathering links and resources that I think others may find useful. Both allow me to be connected to other educators and experts in their field, in very different ways, with very different requirements in order for me to feel successful. Being connected to other educators around the globe keeps your thinking fresh and your teaching alive; without it, we tend to repeat the same lessons and the same patterns, stagnating in our own little ponds without the benefit of an influx of new ideas that might challenge us to venture further afield.

What does being a connected educator look like? Let me break it down for you...

No one way of connecting and learning is right for everyone; nor, as I noted above, is one person necessarily going to prefer one over the other all the time. In her book "Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World that Can't Stop Talking" Susan Cain notes that introverts often do well learning and communicating online because the platform allows for more time to think and prepare one's thoughts than a live environment, where extroverts often dominate the conversation. Knowing your own learning style (or styles) helps you to decide which one works better for you when. For me, generating new ideas, planning lessons and debating educational topics is best done face to face with others, gathered comfortably with a tea and plenty of space to spread out; I prefer to dig deeply into topics, whether online or in a book, alone, where I can process my thoughts and begin to think about how to apply that learning to new situations. 

No matter how you choose to learn, connection has shown itself to be more important now than ever before. The pandemic has shown us how much we, as human beings, value connection and seek it out; while it has kept us from connecting in real life, it has opened up new ways of connecting that we never before imagined. Being able to attend a conference in India (TIES, hosted by Toddle) or Alberta (ReLit with Dr Jody Carrington) was once out of reach but is now completely accessible thanks to the power of the digital world and the human drive to connect. Keep seeking out these opportunities, as well as opportunities in real life, in order stay fresh and stay connected.

Note: This is part of a series of reflective posts that form part of a university course that I am taking. I hope that you will find something valuable in my reflections as well. ​

"...we teachers have an immense power when it comes to nurturing a love of reading or killing it. "
- Pernille Ripp

Kids these days have more activities vying for their attention than ever before - Netflix, Disney+, Hulu, video games, YouTube, SnapChat, Instagram, Tiktok, sports, extracurricular lessons and...reading? Are kids even reading these days?

According to book publisher Scholastic 50% of kids read books for fun 1-4 days a week and 34% read books for fun 6-7 days a week. So yes, despite all the demands on their time, kids are reading. In fact, frequent readers read an average of 43 books per year (in case you're wondering, infrequent readers read 7 books while moderately frequent readers read an average of 14 books)! That's a lot of books!

So what's driving this reading habit? The reading habits of young people correlate almost directly with the reading habits of their parents, with 45% of parents reading for fun 1-4 days a week and 32% reading for fun 6-7 days per week. Even more telling, 57% of parents who are frequent readers have children who are frequent readers, reminding us that children really do imitate their adults. And, for a good part of each day, we are their adults. If we want to create a culture of reading in our schools, we need to be modelling reading at every turn, whether that means reading a book ourselves during silent reading, actively reading and highlighting books that would appeal to our students or incorporating non-negotiable daily read aloud times. If we want our students to read, we need to demonstrate that we too are readers.

Actively displaying our own reading lives is always important, but even more so in schools that serve lower socioeconomic areas. A 2019 survey conducted by the Pew Research Centre found that 44% of adults in the U.S. with a high school diploma or less had not read a book in the last year and 36% of adults in households earning $30,000 or less also had not read a book in the last year. Kids coming from these homes are less likely to see reading happening in any form at home and therefore desperately need to see it modelled at school. 

But, I can hear you say, but... the days are so jam-packed already. But...I use silent reading time to organize my small groups/mark/plan/insert other very necessary teaching job here. But...my reading block is only 45 minutes long. But...I don't really like to read myself (gasp! It's true though, there are teachers out there who rarely read for pleasure, especially during the school year). But, but, but. I know, I get it. Teaching is a never-ending job and we can all find a good use for those quiet 15 minutes after lunch. That being said, where attention goes, energy flows (thanks, Tony Robbins. I think. That quote is attributed to about 10 different people). If we value reading and believe that it is an important, we need to focus on it. We need to actively work, as a whole staff, to create a culture of reading in our schools so that students see evidence of adults reading at every turn. To make it easier for you to begin to create a culture of reading in your school, here are
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​5 simple ways to create a culture of reading that you can implement tomorrow.

This simple strategy comes from Pernille Ripp, the reading culture guru herself, and it couldn't be easier to implement. Simply print up a sign that says "_____________is reading..." and post it somewhere everyone can see (mine is in the hall outside my classroom, a colleague posted her's in her classroom window. Whatever floats your boat as long as it's visible). If you want to get fancy, add a photo or your bitmoji to your sign and laminate it to use year after year. As you are reading, simply Google the cover image of the book, print it and post it on your sign. Once you've finished the book, move it to the wall around the sign. Easy peasy! Everyone will know you're a reader and will want to ask you about the books you've read.

This might be the lowest prep strategy on this list but that doesn't make it the easiest. Teachers are always looking for those extra few minutes in the day when the class is quiet and they can make a cup of tea, tidy their desk, sneak in a bit of marking or planning or meet with a small group or 1-1. This strategy requires you to fight the urge to be productive (in the conventional sense) and just read. Read whatever you want, although reading something your students might be interested in gives you the added bonus of being able to recommend it later (and get a jump on actually reading ALL the lit circle books this year!). In reality, while you will want to be diligent with this strategy in the beginning, you can probably move to conferencing with students once your students see you as a reader; read diligently every day for a month or two, then drop down to 2-3 days per week and use the other days to talk books with kids during this time.

Now that you've begun reading all these fabulous books, talk them up to kids like you are a multi-level marketer about to make the jump to the next tier. And while you're at it, talk them up to other teachers too. A whole school reading culture depends on people who are actively promoting books and reading every chance they get. Be that person.

If you ask me, read alouds are something we get rid of too quickly in schools. We have this impression that only little kids want to be read aloud to and so we stop reading aloud once kids are old enough to read to themselves (Scholastic's Kids and Family Reading Report Canadian Edition found that only 16% of kids are read aloud to at home after age 8). But if you've seen Dead Poets Society, then you've seen first-hand the power of a read aloud at any age. Beyond being great modelling of rhythm, cadence and expression, read alouds are enjoyable. They allow the mind to relax and enjoy the story in ways that it doesn't necessarily do when reading silently. Not sure what to read? Check out The Read Aloud Revival for great recommendations for all ages. Worried about tripping over your words or not reading with expression? Try an audiobook from Audible or Libro.fm (bonus - check out the free Advanced Listener Copies for educators).

Ok, so this may actually be the hardest strategy on this list (see aforementioned comment about teachers not reading, especially during the school year) but it IS doable. While the science and math teachers may not see the value in introducing a read-aloud to their class time, they may be willing to try it during homeroom, particularly if you provide them with an audiobook. Better yet, provide the whole school with the same audiobook and set aside 10 minutes each day for classes to listen to it. Just imagine the discussion in the hallways! Or perhaps they'd be willing to post what they read for pleasure outside their classroom door, even if it might not be their students' cup of tea. And don't forget the custodians, crossing guards, noon hour supervisors and any other adult in the building. Remember, the goal is to have students see adults reading, whatever that may look like.
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Creating a culture of reading in your school isn't as hard as it seems. A few simple steps will get you started off in the right direction, and that momentum will bring others on board pretty quickly. Soon enough, you will find that conversations about books are happening all over the school, from the office, to the library, to the classrooms, to the hallways; adults sharing with students, students sharing with adults, adults sharing with adults and students sharing with students. The more kids see and hear books being read and promoted, the more they will benefit. So, what are you waiting for? Choose a strategy and get started tomorrow!  

To learn more, check out the following:
The State of Kids & Reading in Canada (2017). Scholastic Canada.
Pernille Ripp - pernillesripp.com 
Who Doesn't Read Books in America (2019). Andrew Perrin, Pew Research Centre.
Sarah Mackenzie - The Read Aloud Revival
Libro.fm - ALCs for Educators

Note: This is part of a series of reflective posts that form part of a university course that I am taking. I hope that you will find something valuable in my reflections as well. ​

 Nature. Technology. Balance. Or maybe more appropriately - balance? Is it possible - or even necessary - to strike a balance in schools between technology use and time spent in the natural world?
As it turns out, to take a trip down this rabbit hole requires us to return to our earliest experiences with education, to go back to preschool and kindergarten. To remember what it was to learn as a young child, using all of your senses to move through the world, eyes wide open and filled with wonder, hands reaching and touching, feet leaping and running. Early childhood educators know that children need to immerse themselves in their world in order to learn fully, none more so than those trained in the Reggio Emilia method. But does following a nature- and play-based pedagogy preclude the use of technology? Linda M. Mitchell suggests not. In her article Using Technology in Reggio-Emilia Inspired Programs (2009), Mitchell explores how technology can be used to intentionally enhance a Reggio style program; in other words, how to find that elusive unicorn, balance. Similarly, Siskind et al. (2019) explore how striking a balance between outdoor learning and technology creates positive effects for young children, providing suggestions for educators on how to achieve this.

Further down the rabbit hole, we find David Sobel's beautiful website, dedicated to all things nature-based learning. The myriad articles and blog posts, as well as a short film, all point to the benefits of nature-based education, for kids and communities. And so the pendulum swings towards favoring teaching kids about, and in, nature.  

What about technology for older kids? What, if any, are it's benefits? It's downfalls? The OECD sets out to answer these questions in the working paper Impacts of technology use on children: Exploring literature on the brain, cognition and well-being (2019). Small et al (2020) also tackle the effects of technology on the brain, considering the positive and negative effects that technology can have. In the same vein, Children, wired - for better or for worse (Bavelier, Green & Dye, 2011), digs in to the complexities inherent in the digital world, focusing primarily on the fact that not all technology is created equal. While I won't say that this research decisively swings the pendulum back to technology, it definitely draws it back towards the centre.

From this initial research it seems like there are champions of both technology and nature-based learning but that balance is achievable if you are intentional about what you are trying to achieve. Perhaps this then is where we need to spend our energy - on intentionally planning our lessons to maximize the benefits of both technology and the natural world, rather than focusing on which is better than the other.

References
Daphne Bavelier,  et al. “Children, wired: for better and for worse.” Neuron vol. 67,5 (2010): 692-701. doi:10.1016/j.neuron.2010.08.035
David Sobel (2020) davidsobelauthor.com Accessed July 14, 2021.
Demi Siskind, Dana Conlin, Linda Hestenes, Sung-Ae Kim, Amanda Barnes & Dilara Yaya-Bryson (2020) Balancing technology and outdoor learning: Implications for early childhood teacher educators, Journal of Early Childhood Teacher Education, DOI: 10.1080/10901027.2020.1859024
Gary W Small et al. “Brain health consequences of digital technology use
.” Dialogues in clinical neuroscience vol. 22,2 (2020): 179-187. doi:10.31887/DCNS.2020.22.2/gsmall
Linda M. Mitchell (2007) Using Technology in Reggio Emilia-Inspired Programs, Theory Into Practice, 46:1, 32-39, DOI: 10.1080/00405840709336546 
Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, editor. IMPACTS OF TECHNOLOGY USE ON CHILDREN: EXPLORING LITERATURE ON THE BRAIN, COGNITION AND WELL-BEING. 2019. OECD.org, https://www.oecd.org/officialdocuments Accessed 14 July 2021.


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In September I will be moving to a brand-new school. As in, construction isn't even finished yet. As in, everything will be shiny, new and untouched. See also: glass everywhere, very open-concept and approximately zero storage. This, as far as the architects have decided, is the school of the future. 

It is gorgeous - light-filled, airy and welcoming. A far cry from the squat, cinder block rectangles I'm used to. Designed to facilitate collaboration, the classrooms are all connected with sliding walls and glass garage doors that open to common project spaces. We will be teaching in multi-grade learning communities with upwards of a hundred students in each community. Our teaching will be guided by the First Peoples Principles of Learning, the OECD 7+1 Framework and the Core Competencies of the BC curriculum. This, my friends, is what a 21st century school should be.

Or is it? Designed for a primarily digital learning environment, there is little storage space in the classrooms. Already, I am wondering what I will do with my beloved book collection, something that I have worked hard to build and feel is an invaluable tool in sparking and fostering a love of reading in my students (see here, from Pernille Ripp, about the value of classroom libraries). Where do teachers store the manipulatives that so many learners need to actually touch and feel as they move through their learning? How do we celebrate physical creations so that students who thrive working with their hands feel seen and valued?

These are just some of the questions that I'm sure will come up as we begin to welcome students into this beautiful new space. I trust that our staff will answer these questions as best we can, hopefully laughing as we learn. 

As I move into this new experience, I am wondering about the need for balance - between the digital and natural world, between collaboration and quiet reflection, between online connection and connection IRL. For the first time in a long time, the educational pendulum seems to be swinging in circles, veering from centering technology to centering land-based learning, emphasizing collaboration to recognizing the needs and value of the quieter kids. Perhaps this is representative of a larger societal struggle with these ideas, families wanting what's best for their kids but not really knowing what that is in this rapidly changing world. My hope is that I can learn enough to approach my own practice with intention and purpose, to be able to support students as they learn to "successfully wield the abundance at their fingertips" (from Why School: How Education must change when learning and information are every where by Will Richardson. Emphasis my own).

Charting the course of libraries throughout history is a fascinating exercise in resilience; at each turn, in the face of seemingly insurmountable threats to their very existence, libraries not only survive but manage to thrive. The library, as S.R. Ranganathan proposed, truly is a growing organism, changing to meet the needs of communities and clientele. School libraries, while somewhat sheltered from the storms, are no stranger to adapting to changing times. Once quiet bastions of story time and research help, school libraries are quickly transforming to meet the needs of 21st century learners. From makerspaces to media literacy, the modern school library learning commons embodies Ranganathan's fifth law; the five examples below make it clear that this isn't the hushed school library you grew up with.

The school library that I grew up with was always a place for quiet, independent work, often research, occasionally reading (after choosing your books for the week, of course). Not being particularly talented at the quiet or independent piece, I nonetheless loved the library because I loved books. When I think about the fact that school libraries are now being intentionally designed to create a more collaborative atmosphere, where students are encouraged to talk and work together, I'm pretty sure I've found my definition of heaven. Many organizations, including the OECD, have identified the need for students to be able to interact well in diverse groups in order to be successful in our rapidly changing society. Today's school library is helping to meet this need by creating spaces where students can work together to achieve common goals across a wide variety of skill and topic areas. Teacher-Librarians actively work with other school staff to co-plan and co-teach lessons that support the acquisition of these skills, modeling collaboration in real time.
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The library has always been a stronghold of intellectual freedom; when books are being banned and burned, librarians are there dousing the flames, ensuring that people continue to be able to "seek, receive and impart information and ideas" (CFLA-FCAB, 2019) freely. This means that the library has always been an advocate for social justice and equity. The change? Today's TL is more aware than ever of the need to ensure that the library is a safe space for everyone. The focus isn't just on books and media but on people; this includes being intentional about having a collection that reflects a diversity of cultures, backgrounds and lifestyles, supporting students who want to learn about and do something in their community and helping students understand and recognize bias when they see it. 
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At first glance, it may seem incongruous that teacher-librarians are often tasked with teaching coding in their schools. I mean, what does coding have to do with literacy? But, as Mary Moen outlines in this article, ​coding is a natural extension of literacy; it promotes critical thinking and problem-solving skills based on using information effectively, which is absolutely the purview of the TL. Inquiry and design thinking follow equally naturally when looked at from this perspective; teaching kids to identify problems, ask good questions and use research skills to solve those problems make perfect sense for the TL. In most schools, teaching inquiry and design thinking has become a major part of the teacher-librarian's every day.
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Kids these days are bombarded with so many different types of media, all the time. From social media, to TV news to Google it is an inescapable reality for us all; naively assuming that kids know how to navigate this multimodal text landscape is akin to ignoring a ticking box - it's going to explode at some point, you just don't know when. Students need to learn the skills for navigating this new landscape and who better to teach them than the school "text expert"? For years, librarians have helped students interpret the written word; now, this is being extended to include the visuals paired with the written word, visuals on their own, video, audio and more. TLs spend a considerable amount of time helping students understand the connections between written text and other forms of media, as well as helping them critically examine and analyze it. Just like Marshall McLuhan once said the medium really is the message...and TLs are here to help kids understand it.
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Literacy is not just the act of reading but is a person's ways of being in relation to language and text. As we read, we discover what we like and what we don't; what is just right and what is too hard; where and when we like to read, for how long and with whom. Our reading identity is a deep-dive into who we are as a reader and it morphs and changes over time. A good TL is our guide on this journey, making recommendations, listening carefully to our preferences and stretching us in new directions. 

With all of the ways that the school library has changed, the one thing that hasn't changed is the focus on high quality reading experiences. Even with the plethora of digital tools available, books still line the shelves of every school library, enticing students to come in and just sit with a book. Librarians still recommend books to reluctant readers, voracious readers and everyone in between. While the job may have changed and expanded in ways that Ranganathan could never have anticipated, his first four rules remain as true as the fifth; there is a book for every reader and a reader for every book, and the teacher-librarian will make sure that the two get matched up. At the outset of this course, I wondered about how relationships build a school library learning commons. The thoughts I've shared above are a quick look at the journey we took as this course unfolded, learning about the various facets and functions of the SLLC. As we've made our way through the course, I've come to realize that, at the heart of it, the TL is a relationship expert; they will match the reader to a book, the presenter to a presentation tool, the researcher to a database. They will help a curious young mind find a spark, a team player to find a team and a classroom teacher to find a partner for teaching creative, inspiring lessons. Teacher librarians truly are the hub of the school.

References:
Barner,K. (2011). The Library is a Growing Organism: Ranganathan's Fifth Law of Library Science and the Academic Library in the Digital Age. LIbrary Philosophy and Practice. Retrieved 04/05/2021.
OECD (2005). The Definition And Selection of Key Competencies. Retrieved 04/05/2021
​Canadian Federation of Library Associations. (2019). Statement on Intellectual Freedom & Libraries. Retrieved 04/05/2021
Moen, M. (2016). Computer Coding and Literacy: Librarians Lead the Connection. International Literacy Association. Retrieved 04/05/2021

A young boy walks into the library. Usually an enthusiastic reader of all sorts of science books, he steers clear of those today and heads for a bin of early readers. Each book in this bin has a matching coloured sticker on the front; the books in the bins on either side also have coloured stickers, albeit different colours. The boy flips half-heartedly through the books, clearly not enamoured with any of the choices. He glances longingly over at the display of books about space on top of the bookshelf, then turns his attention back to the bin. Eventually he chooses a couple of books and slowly makes his way to the circulation desk to sign them out, pausing to peek back at the space books once more before sighing and placing his books in front of the teacher-librarian. Curious, the TL asks about today's choices.

"My mom wants me to improve my reading so she only wants me to sign books out at my level."  he replies, tracing circles on the desk with his finger. He pushes the books toward the TL, as if to say "well, get on with it then."

This is a scenario that is happening throughout schools in North America (perhaps even worldwide). Students reluctantly choosing books because they're "at the right level". In the interests of making sure that kids can read, reading is being reduced to a clinical task, devoid of the joy and enthusiasm that reading should entail. Kids are tested, leveled and then assigned books that match their level. Once they show that they can read those books, they move up to the next level; if they can't, well, they sit at that level until they can. Practice makes perfect and all that.

All this in the name of developing good readers. A valuable goal, and an undeniably important foundation of the school system. But if readers don't want to read, how are they to become good readers? If the only books they ever see at a young age are written not to inspire but to meet a prescribed lexile level or reinforce a particular phonetic pattern, how will these kids ever know that there are books out there that open doors to new worlds, that can teach them things they never knew, that can transport them on adventures beyond their wildest imaginations?

Interestingly, the developers of one of North America's largest text levelling systems, Fountas and Pinnell, have publicly stated (see the blog post) that reading levels are "a valuable tool for teachers" but should not be used to label kids. They continue by saying "When children select books from a classroom library, they should be guided by interest and enjoyment, not by level." They acknowledge that students will encounter a wide variety of texts throughout the day and state that teachers should use their knowledge of the student's reading level to help "guide and support" that child's choices. ​

So how, then, did we get to the point where entire libraries have been overhauled and arranged by reading level? Where classrooms contain little reading material beyond leveled texts and parents know little about their child's reading identity beyond a number or letter? In a word, research. In more words, a lack of understanding of the research. Of what the levels actually tell us about text and what role they serve in developing children as readers. An alarmingly narrow interpretation of research showing that reading comprehension improves when children read texts at, or slightly above, their current reading level has led educators and parents to believe (erroneously) that children should be reading text at their level every moment of every day. 

Unfortunately, this interpretation fails to take in to consideration all of the other factors at play when it comes to a child's reading identity - their interests, their prior knowledge, their motivation. Children can be vastly different readers, even of text at the same level, when they are interested in reading it. We all can, really. But sometimes we forget that. Sometimes we are so concerned with ensuring that a child can read that we forget to be concerned with ensuring that they want to read.

Developing a positive reading identity - a belief that you are a reader and that reading is enjoyable - should be our main focus for our learners. I work with students every day who don't see themselves as readers, often because their early experiences were negative ones. Imagine being the kid stuck on level 6 while everyone else moves on to level 8 or 10 or 12; looking at a stack of books and being told you can only choose from that stack, even when the book you most want to read is sitting on the stack right next to it. By limiting our readers in this way, we are limiting their opportunities to choose text that is interesting, text that is challenging, text that may open the floodgates to a world of reading. 
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Now, don't get me wrong. Reading levels have their place. Used well, by teachers who understand their strengths and limitations, reading levels can help teachers support their students' growth as readers and allow them to identify readers who may need extra help. Some students thrive on the structure of leveled readers; some love the challenge of "leveling up". A good teacher should be able to use the levels, and what they know about their students, to continually help students grow as readers. Levels, however, should not be used to label books, or kids.

Getting back to our opening scene...where do teacher-librarians fit in? Should all or part of the school library be leveled? Should a TL support parents and teachers who request that their students sign out books only at "their level"? According to the American Library Association, the answer is no; school libraries should "promote free access for students and not..aid in restricting their library materials." This may mean that TLs find themselves in situations like the one described earlier - a parent or teacher has dictated what a student may sign out of the school library. While this may be an uncomfortable situation for the TL, it is also a teachable moment. Taking the time to help the student understand his reading identity ("I love books about science") and helping him find books that match both his interests and his mom's request will go a long way to ensuring that this young man continues on his journey to becoming a lifelong reader. The teachable moment may also extend to mom, with a simple email or phone call to explain the many ways that reading can be developed and encouraged, beyond simply choosing books by level.

In the end, it's important to realize that reading levels are simply one tool, among many. They serve to help guide instruction but should never be used to label students, or books. The ultimate goal is not just a child who can read right now but a child who wants to read 5, 10, 50 years from now. A child who cannot imagine life without reading, who takes pleasure in reading, who chooses it again and again and again.

If you want to learn more about reading identity, choice reading and leveled books, here are some great resources:
- On Easy Books - Again, Pernille Ripp, blog post
- Thinking Outside the Bin: Why labeling books by reading level disempowers young readers Kiera Parrot, School Library Journal
- A Note About Reading Levels, Fountas & Pinnell blog
​- Reading in the Wild by Donalyn Miller

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Note: This is the second in a series of reflective posts that form part of a university course that I am taking. I hope that you will find something valuable in my reflections as well. You can find the first post here.

The school library has changed significantly in recent years. Gone are the quiet, dusty stacks of books organized according to a system created by a man named Dewey. Gone is the librarian emphatically shushing groups of kids completing homework. Gone are the tomes of reference materials shelved in never ending alphabetized sets. Instead, shiny new computers and tablets sit ready for groups of students to work collaboratively, coding, creating a podcast or digging deeply in to complex topics that matter to them. Books are shelved according to genre, some with covers turned outward to highlight new releases, popular authors or meaningful themes. Rather than shush, librarians move from group to group, encouraging active communication, suggesting multimedia resources and enabling students to connect with the world around them in new and innovative ways.

But...how to get from there to here? What are the key components that make a library learning commons a true learning commons?

From designing the space to choosing materials, the number one focus should be the students. How will they use the space? What materials will be most interesting and useful to them? Where is it most efficient and meaningful for students to access those materials? The modern SLLC is a welcoming, student-centered space that invites collaboration, inquiry, creativity and community.

From teachers, to students, to community groups, the modern SLLC should be designed to promote collaboration. The physical space must be set up to enable large and small groups to work together to solve problems, create and innovate. The teacher-librarian must actively seek out opportunities to co-plan, co-teach and co-learn with other staff members, students and community partners. 

The teacher-librarian in a modern SLLC seeks to inspire others. Whether by suggesting the right book to the right student, providing just-in-time professional development that allows teachers to meet their students' diverse needs or connecting with community partners to bring the outside world in to the school, the TL is always seeking ways to inspire a love of reading and a love of learning.

Great books. A well-curated online collection. Collaborative spaces. Inquisitive minds. Creative apps. Community partners. Each and every aspect of the modern SLLC is intentionally and thoughtfully designed to create an innovative environment that fosters collaboration, inquiry, creativity and community.

Want to learn more? These resources were instrumental in the writing of this blog post.
Leading Learning - www.llsop.canadianschoollibraries.ca
Future Ready Librarians - https://futureready.org/librarians
Imagine the Possibilities - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A_QnbQxnNCI