The National Center on Accessible Educational Materials for Learning (National AEM Center) at CAST is a technical assistance (TA) center funded by the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP). The purpose of the Center is to improve educational and employment opportunities for individuals with disabilities through…

In the information-rich, rapidly changing 21st-century, educators are faced with unprecedented challenges. While new technologies have brought the people of the planet closer together, they have also brought them into contact with an overwhelming array of information sources. The Library of Congress is positioned to help educators respond to these…

How are AASL's (American Association of School Librarians) new learning standards, the "Standards for the 21st-Century Learner," incorporated into the school library media program? This publication from AASL takes an in-depth look at the strands of the "Standards for the 21st-Century Learner" and the indicators within those strands. It also…

The most successful school library media specialists are those who collaborate with teachers as full partners in the instructional process. Without assertive action by the school library media specialist, however, school administrators and teachers are likely to be more aware of the media specialist's administrative role than the roles of teacher,…

This document presents a list of general skills for a school library skills curriculum. It is recommended that the skills be adapted for individual schools, age groups, and skill levels as are deemed appropriate by teachers and media personnel when planning and instituting a library skills curriculum. Skills and activities/objectives are reported…

This book defines and clarifies the role of the school library media specialist in a technology enhanced school, and provides relevant examples and advice on such topics as budgeting, facilities design, planning, and public relations and staff development. Each chapter includes anecdotes, examples, and quotations from various sources. The book…

This book brings together relevant doctoral research related to the instructional effectiveness of the elementary and secondary school librarian and school library. The research is distilled from supervised research studies conducted at North American universities. In the opening section, the book describes what works, based on findings about…

This questionnaire is designed to assess teachers' needs for school library media center services. General areas covered are: (1) services provided by the library media center which might be useful; (2) curriculum development and long-term planning; and (3) media center collection and selection. (MES)

This document presents a curriculum framework for Elmira City School District library media programs. Its intent is that library media specialists and teachers in all areas of instruction (Pre-K to 12) work collaboratively under the supervision of the principal to design and implement their own site-based version of this curriculum plan. This…

These guidelines provide basic information to administrators, teachers, library media specialists and the general public for the evaluation of library media programs at the school and district level. They can also be used as a resource for establishing, developing and improving programs as well as for setting goals and objectives for the program…

This column describes a new teaching tool, BrainPOP, which is a database that blurs the distinction between classroom and library media center. This collection of more than 300 short, concept-based, animated movies is intended primarily for use by teachers in classroom instruction. It is reminiscent of the single-concept film cartridges that used…

Students' backpacks bulge not just with oversize textbooks, but with paperbacks, graphic novels, street lit, and electronics such as iPods and handheld video games. This book is about unpacking those texts to explore previously unexamined assumptions regarding their usefulness to classroom learning. With a strong theoretical grounding and many…

The school library media specialist is encountering unprecedented change from educational reform, social change, and technology advances. This book offers practical ways to meet the everyday challenges of managing a library efficiently. It provides discussion of management skills, media center atmosphere, curriculum support, and professional and…

Curriculum reform across Canada resulted in a new commitment to resource-based learning. Not only is the provision of resources important but also the development and implementation of resource-based programs, which are initiated by teacher-librarians and planned cooperatively with classroom teachers. This study addresses the relationship between…

Describes how theories of instructional involvement of school media centers were applied at 49 schools in Pulaski County Special School District, Arkansas. Practical approaches for cooperation among media specialists, teachers, and administrators in library decision making and promotion of its role to enhance student learning are discussed. (CDD)