tandards of professional excellenceor teacher librarians

The Australian Library andInformation Association (ALIA)nd the Australian SchoolLibrary Association (ASLA)re pleased to endorse andpromote this statement oftandards of professionalexcellence for teacherlibrarians. This statementdescribes the professionalknowledge, skills andcommitment demonstratedby teacher librarians workingt a level of excellence.It represents the goals towhich all Australian teacherlibrarians should aspire,nd provides inspiration forquality teaching and ongoingprofessional practice.

Background

he document,

Stanars o rofessional excellence for teacher ibrarians

is built upon the professionalalues and standards of the twoprofessions to which teacher librarianswe their allegiance. It is informedtrongly by the standards movementin other Australian professionalssociations for educators, and islosely-related to activity in the librarynd information sector, in particularhe

ALIA core knowledge, skills and attributes and the ALIA core values

tatements at http://alia.org.au/policies/.

Why a standards document?

he major aim of the Standards projectis to achieve national consensus ontandards of excellence for teacherlibrarians in Australian schools inrder to improve teacher librarians’professional practice and enhancetudent learning outcomes. Involvementin ongoing national consultationoncerning generic standards foreachers convinced ASLA and ALIAf the importance of a standardsocument that identifies the distinctiveknowledge, skills and commitmentf excellent teacher librarians.For a relatively recent profession— the first tertiary-qualified teacherlibrarians graduated in the 1960s — atandards document also representsn opportunity to reinforce a uniformxpectation of the work of the teacherlibrarian in our schools.

What is a teacher librarian?

eacher librarians support andimplement the vision of their schoolommunities through advocatingnd building effective library andinformation services and programshat contribute to the development of lifelong learners. A teacher librarianholds recognised teaching qualificationsnd qualifications in librarianship,efined as eligibility for Associate(i.e. professional) membership for theustralian Library and Informationssociation [ALIA]. Within the broadelds of education and librarianship,eacher librarians are uniquely-ualified. This is valuable becauseurriculum knowledge and pedagogyre combined with library andinformation management knowledgend skills.

Who will use the standards?

hese standards describe experiencedpractitioners who hold the dualualiﬁcations that deﬁne the uniquequalities of the specialist teacherlibrarian. All references to ‘teacherlibrarian’ in these standards refer toexcellent, highly-accomplished teacherlibrarians. While this document mayprovide a useful framework for pre-service and in-service tertiary education,it is primarily intended for use byteacher librarians as a framework forongoing professional learning.

How are the standards structured?

Within the broad framework of professional knowledge, professionalpractice and professional commitmentthere are twelve standards whichattempt to encapsulate the complexwork of the teacher librarian. Nohierarchical arrangement of statementsis intended, rather it is recognisedthat experienced practitioners drawfrom a professional palette combiningknowledge, skills and attributesappropriate to their context. Structuralconsistency with existing professionalstandards documents has been apriority, and brevity was a deliberatepreference for this statement as anexpanded narrative discussion of thework of a teacher librarian is availablein

earning or te uture

Who has developed the standards?

The joint ALIA/ASLA Policy AdvisoryGroup has been responsible fordeveloping these national professionalstandards in conjunction with teacherlibrarians, administrators, policy-makersand academics from both the educationand librarianship sectors.

Further information

Further information is available fromASLA (asla@asla.org.au) or ALIA(enquiry@alia.org.au).

Australian Library and Information Association PO Box 6335 Kingston 2604ph 02 6215 8222 fx 6282 2249 enquiry@alia.org.au http://alia.org.auAustralian School Library Association PO Box 155 Zillmere 4034ph 07 3633 0510 fx 07 3633 0570 asla@asla.org.au http://asla.org.au

AUSTRALIANSCHOOLLIBRARYASSOCIATION

Professional knowledge

Excellent teacher librarians…

1.1understand theprinciples of lifelonglearning1.2now aout earningand teaching acrosscurriculum areas andeveopmenta eves1.3have a richunderstanding of thescoo community ancurriculum1.4have a specialistnowege oinformation, resources,technology and librarymanagement

1.1 Knowledge of the principles of lifelongearnng

Excellent teacher librarians:• are well-informed about information literacy theory and practice• thoroughly understand how all learners develop and applylifelong learning skills and strategies• have a sound understanding of how children and young adultsbecome independent readers• comprehensively understand the role of information andcommunication technologies (ICTs) in lifelong learning

1.2 Knowledge of learning and teaching

Excellent teacher librarians:• have a detailed knowledge of current educational pedagogy• are thoroughly familiar with the information literacy andinformation needs, skills and interests of learners• fully understand the need to cater for the social, culturaland developmental backgrounds of learners in programimplementation and curriculum resourcing

1.3 Knowledge of curriculum

Excellent teacher librarians:• have a comprehensive understanding of literacy, literature forchildren and young adults, curriculum and speciﬁc programs intheir schools• have a detailed knowledge of how to promote and foster reading• have a sound understanding of current assessment theory andprocesses

1.4 Knowledge of library and informationmanagement

Excellent teacher librarians:• understand that professionally managed and resourced schoollibraries are crucial to the achievements of the school community• have a rich professional knowledge of national standards forlibrary and information management• have a comprehensive understanding of national standards forinformation retrieval

AUSTRALIANSCHOOLLIBRARYASSOCIATION

2 Professional practice

Excellent teacher librarians…

2.1engage and challengelearners within asupportive, information-ric earningenvironment2.2collaboratively planan resource curricuumprograms whichincorporate transferableinformation literacy anditerature outcomes2.3provide exemplarylibrary and informationservices consistent witnational standards2.4evaluate studentearning an iraryprograms and serviceso inform professionalpractice

2.1 Learnng envronment

Excellent teacher librarians:• create and nurture an information-rich learning environmentwhich supports the needs of the school community• provide access to information resources through efﬁcient,effective and professionally-managed systems• foster an environment where learners are encouraged andempowered to read, view, listen and respond for understandingand enjoyment• appreciate the dynamic nature of ICTs and their role in education

2.2 Learning and teaching

Excellent teacher librarians:• collaborate with teachers to plan and implement informationliteracy and literature programs that result in positive studentlearning outcomes• ensure that their programs are responsive to the needs of learnersin the school community• support learning and teaching by providing equitable access toprofessionally-selected resources• assist individual learners to develop independence in theirlearning• teach the appropriate and relevant use of ICTs and informationresources

2.3 Library and information servicesmanagement

Excellent teacher librarians:• ensure that the library's policies and procedures implement theschool's mission• provide exemplary reference and information services to theschool community• strategically plan and budget for improvement in library andinformation services and programs• apply information management practices and systems that areconsistent with national standards

2.4 Evaluation

Excellent teacher librarians:• monitor teaching practice to ensure improved learning andteaching• evaluate student learning to provide evidence of progress ininformation literacy and reading• measure library resources, facilities, programs and services againstcurrent policies, standards documents and benchmarks• use evidence to inform programs and services