Case+Study+Brainstorming+Notes

These are Jandi's and Angela's  Brainstorming notes for the Case Study A. 1.4 Assignment It's been interesting viewing these videos. Everyone has their own unique way of looking at the teacher-librarian collaboration. I do see, though, that in each case it is important that all parties be equally involved. I see that no one says my kids or your kids, but they all have the attitude that all kids are our kids. I think that when the teaching responsibilities are shared each person reaps his or her own reward when student achievement is impacted. It was exciting to hear actual testimonies of projects and planning that actually worked. It is so hard to read things from a textbook because a lot of times these scenarios are in a perfect world. These interviews give me actual people who have incorporated the theory of collaboration and it has been proven successful. I really liked when Judy described her students as having "Authentic Learning". In my opinion, that is the learning that is going to be with them for the rest of their lives. When we can make it real for the students and show them how to apply it to their lives, that's when the learning becomes authentic. As with any new idea, when it is initially presented, I feel overwhelmed. After watching the videos of real teachers and hearing how the teacher librarian collaborated in various ways, I am a little more reassured. Collaboration between teachers and teacher librarians does not have to be an intimidating experience for those involved. If the collaborators have an open-mind, the exchange of ideas for presenting collaborative lessons will be a positive experience for all involved. The most profound statement for me from the readings this week was taken from the McGregor article, "By collaborating, teachers and teacher librarians provide learning experiences that respond to learning needs, provide resources at point of need, give teachers a working partner, and promote academic achievement" (McGregor, 2003, 201). As schools push more and more for the higher academic success of their students, teacher librarians have the opportunity to make an impact on every student in the school community.