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August 1, 1997
Indiana's Media Specialist Technology Leadership Training
by Terri Whitehead, Education Consultant
Indiana Department of Education
Many school media specialists have experienced the uncertainty of their emerging role created by the increase of information technologies available to public and private schools. Most have felt an overwhelming need to learn everything about hardware and software, networking and infrastructure, and information access in a very short time. Being current and effective, yet remaining true to the library roots is becoming increasingly difficult for these professionals.
Consultants in the Indiana Department of Education's Office of Learning Resources, www.doe.state.in.us/olr, saw the need and responded to it by creating the Media Specialists' Technology Leadership Training at the Technology Learning Center (TLC) on the Butler University Campus. These consultants at the Indiana Department of Education (IDOE) believed library media specialists in most schools should be leaders in both technology and curriculum issues and have worked hard to see that opportunities exist to help further this vision.
For the past two years, library media specialists, nominated by their principal, have been eligible for the technology leadership training. Thirty-six library media specialists participated in the inaugural session with 54 in the second. Each participant received a $500 grant to defray expenses including mileage, lodging and meals. If these expenses were covered by each individual school, then the money could be used to purchase hardware or software. The fact that the majority of the participants have purchased software speaks loudly to the recognition throughout the state of this as a viable professional development experience.
The training model is a five day workshop that begins in the fall. Participants meet for two consecutive days at the Training Center. An outside consultant and other staff are contracted to lead participants through the training. Presentation and discussion of what is believed to be the new role of the library media specialist in a technology age is the beginning of day one and two. Library media specialists receive hands-on instruction with software which can enhance their daily jobs. They learn how spread sheets, word processing programs and the Internet can be added successfully to library media programs. They are exposed to some of the newest technologies including digital cameras, scanners, two-way audio/video systems and projection devices. In addition, during days one and two, the library media specialists are asked to fill out a goal action plan which will eventually result in a technology project benefiting their library program.
The intent in the first two days is to introduce the possibilities to library media specialists, not make them proficient in any one piece of software. Day three of the experience has the library media specialist registering for a full day workshop in a software application. These workshops are help at the Butler University Technology Learning Center (TLC). Workshops in multi-media, spreadsheets, the Internet, and word processing are just a few offered. Day three is scheduled according to the TLC training schedule and the individual's calendar.
Workshops at TLC are only one option for completing day three. Participants may attend full-day workshops offered at other universities, at educational service centers or within their own school district. If this type of workshop is chosen, participants must send a complete description of the class and learned outcomes to the Office of Learning Resources.
Participants are asked to visit recommended schools on day four to see how technology is being implemented successfully. Many have elected to participate in day four as a group, although this is not a requirement. Library media specialists continually comment that the personal networking and discussion with colleagues is as beneficial as the visit itself.
On day five, held sometime in the spring, participants share their efforts and this final project with others in small groups. Here the goal action plan or GAP begins to come to fruition. The day is constructed around these small groups. Only nine to ten share at one time, while others attend special presentations. Each participates in one sharing group and three special sessions.
The special sessions on day five highlight a number of successful library media practices. One husband and wife pair, a library media specialist and a fourth grade teacher, demonstrate the multi-media projects they have cooperatively integrated into their programs. Another team of a high school English teacher and a library media specialist demonstrate multi-media projects completed by high school students, such as a Hyperstudio project on the novel, Lord of the Flies. Other topics include information databases, Internet search strategies, and information literacy skills. Participants are rewarded for their work at the end of day five with a certificate of completion. Celebratory remarks are made and each library media specialists receives a Technology Leadership Training coffee mug.
Media Specialists' Technology Leadership Training alumni frequently report the beginning of changes within their program and school. They become leaders who are willing to take a risk to learn and stay current with good practices in technology integration. They begin to cooperate and plan more with classroom teachers; and they are willing to train others. The new role of the library media specialist may seem daunting to some, but with discussion and training, it is an attainable goal with which Indiana has had success.
Email: Terri Whitehead
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