Reporting to parents and accreditation…via Barbara Braxton
| OZTL_NET ArchivesJune 3, 2013 At first glance, many teacher librarians feel that because they don’t write on individual student reports (although I know some are required to do so) they cannot meet the performance indicators relating to reporting to parents required in state and national accreditation processes. However, here is a sample of the way that this can be successfully and acceptably addressed that each of us can do … in this case, the teacher librarian sent the information to the person compiling the school’s newsletter but if you have direct access to it or a school blog that parents can access then so much the better… It has come to our attention that some Year 5 and 6 girls are accessing and using the social media site, Instagram. The teachers have informed the girls that the first item in the Instagram ‘Terms of use’ states: ‘You must be at least 13 years old to use the Service’. The girls have been instructed to comply with this regulation. In the interests of building and maintaining safe and supportive environments for our girls, all Stage 3 parents are asked to reiterate this with their daughters at home. Ms [Teacher Librarian] advises that this week is National Cyber Security Awareness Week. During this week ‘Project 13′ was launched. This is an initiative of school library associations to help keep children safe online. It recognises the role of school libraries as a place where students access and use information online, and the opportunity library staff have to promote effective digital citizenship behaviour and responsibility. The project complements other school initiatives to deal with cybersafety by positioning school library staff as having an important role in keeping students safe online. The Project 13 website can be found at http://www.esmart.org.au/project13/ Please follow this link to find helpful tips to share with your children regarding safety online. The Year 5 and 6 teachers will also share these tips with their classes over the next week as part of our cybersafety program: http://www.esmart.org.au/project13/Documents/Project%2013_Tip%20Sheet%202a_Under%2013%20v.3.1.pdf The following link contains excellent tips for parents: http://www.esmart.org.au/project13/Documents/Project%2013_Tip%20Sheet%203_Parents%20v.3.1.pdf As well, this teacher librarian also co-ordinates an ICT group so the following was included for parents’ information but also demonstrates the breadth of knowledge and expertise a teacher librarian has, and the purpose, scope and power of collaboration and informs both staff and parents about this … all great advocacy for the position. Junior School Tech Angels Our Junior School ‘tech angels’ have submitted entries for the University of Sydney Sleek Geeks Science Eureka Prize. The prize rewards excellence in the fields of scientific research and innovation, science leadership, school science and science communication, and is presented annually by the Australian Museum. The group met with [teacher librarian] and Ms ABC in the Library to choose a topic, plan their video by completing storyboards and call-sheets and organise a time to film. Mr DEF and Mrs GHI assisted with filming and editing where necessary but students in the main worked independently on their projects. Four primary team entries were submitted: … Judging will take place in the coming weeks and finalists will be announced on 2 August at australianmuseum.net.au/eureka. Prize winners will be announced at anaward dinner on 4 September at Sydney Town Hall. Best of luck girls! Reserve a regular place in the school’s newsletter so you can tell parents about what is happening in the library that contributes directly to their children’s learning, amplify it with links that might be explored at home or books that the children might like to read to increase their knowledge and understanding (works really well with historical fiction) and so forth and what seems an insurmountable performance indicator not only becomes very possible but also serves to build strong relationships with parent bodies and is a form of advocacy for those who vote. Barbara Braxton Teacher Librarian M.Ed.(TL), M.App.Sci.(TL), M.I.S. (Children’s Services) |