This article considers the role of teaching and learning departments within academic libraries and how they may differ from reference and instruction departments. The author used website analysis to profile and compare the two types of departments across multiple institutions. Initial findings indicate that the two have several roles in common,…

According to the author, we are all creators and consumers of media. Technology has made it easy to copy, paste, and transfer anything educators might want to use in their classrooms. As educators, school librarians have an obligation to honor the law and be the role models that learners and other staff members need them to be. So many times the…

In the author's decade-long journey as a school library media specialist, they have witnessed an evolution in the role of education. In today's increasingly interconnected world, going beyond traditional literacy and nurturing informed, empathetic global citizens is becoming a fundamental aspect of our teaching and learning. The United Nations'…

Developing lifelong readers is integral to the role of the librarian. Facilitating, encouraging, and promoting reading is not an add-on to the job. Consider the role librarians play in developing readers in school. They know they are contributors; they must make sure the school community is aware of their valuable role in supporting the five…

This article is Part 3 of a three part summary of selected articles from the journals of the American Association of School Librarians (AASL) over a period of thirty-five years from 1972 to 2007. This three-part series in the April, May, and June (2009) issues of "School Library Media Activities Monthly" ("SLMAM") illustrate the evolution in…

This is Part 2 of a three-part summary of selected articles from the journals of the American Association of School Librarians (AASL) over a period of thirty-five years from 1972 to 2007. This three-part series in the April, May, and June (2009) issues of "School Library Media Activities Monthly" ("SLMAM") will illustrate the evolution in…

The recipient of the 1975 Distinguished Library Service Award for School Administrators defines quality media services and recommends a program for superintendent involvement in media programs. (Author)

A statewide survey of Nevada school librarians was conducted in the spring of 1988 to determine their perceptions of their roles as curriculum leaders in their schools. Their responses showed that Nevada school librarians see themselves as instructional leaders, and to a lesser extent perceive that their principals, teaching colleagues, and…

The editors of School Library Media Activities Monthly discuss the debate between advocates of a strong instructional development or design role for library media specialists and advocates of strong library media skills programs. They suggest that well-planned and interesting lessons can incorporate both library media and classroom objectives. (EM)

Discusses the role of the media specialist and offers ideas for library orientation. The concept of invitational education (i.e., education aimed at creating a total school environment that summons teachers and students to realize their potential and to make classrooms inviting) is considered and several related resources are suggested. (MES)

Future school library media specialists will serve as information consultants to students and teachers and as gatekeepers to new information technologies and resources. School information services will provide easy access to local, regional, and national collections. Two high schools in Maryland and suburban Chicago are experimenting with…

This discussion of the political implications of implementing programs that develop students' critical thinking skills uses the proposals developed by Mancall, Aaron, and Walker as a model. Highlights include marketing the model, extending it to include library instruction in literature, implementing it in teaching reference and research skills,…

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)

Discussion of several of the objectives in Information Power, the new American Association of School Librarians/Association for Educational Communications and Technology guidelines for library media specialists, considers such topics as access to information and the role of the media specialist. (eight references) (MES)

Argues that the school library media specialist's instructional consultation role can optimize the impact of information skills, and proposes that the choice of the information skills be dictated by (1) the cognitive requirements of the lesson; (2) the teacher's instructional design decisions; and (3) the learning characteristics of the students.…