8/7/2019 Teaching-Philosophy_Rose-Schreier

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/teaching-philosophyrose-schreier 1/2

Personal Librarianship PhilosophyBy Rose Schreier 

In today’s world of information overload, billions of bytes flash before our eyes. This number isonly going to increase exponentially, and as such the ability for today’s youth to properly filter andevaluate information as they navigate both the digital and non-digital realms is crucial.Librarianship has certainly come a long way from the Dewey Decimal days, and to deny theinfluence of technology is unwise, given its significant integration into nearly all aspects of modern life. And as our country’s Millennials proceed to college, there is—and will continue to be—a pressing need for sound information literacy skills, and I will make it my express goal toensure that this learning imperative is met.

Being a librarian requires assuming the role of reflective practitioner, and with that comes acommitment to a constant and consistent evaluation of the dynamic between the librarian andstudent—as well between students. I want my instruction to soar beyond “going through themotions,” instead reflecting my genuine love of learning, reading, and information literacy skills. Iwill go that critical extra mile to ensure that the effort I exert impacts students in a truly constructive and progressive way. Instruction does not exist in a bubble; it is my responsibility toinfuse static knowledge with life and relevancy. As much as I enjoy functioning as an information

intermediary, I will make it a long-term goal to impart skills to students so that they may act astheir own information intermediaries. In order to develop social awareness and responsibility,students need a strong undergirding problem-solving skill set, and smart, accurate informationgathering is a principal step in this process.

It is my ongoing goal to maintain the library’s relevancy and value. To achieve these means, I willadvocate continuous collaboration between library staff and faculty through initiatives such ascourse-integrated library and research instruction, tutoring labs, and instructional workshopstailored to the diverse student body of my school, providing multiple contacts with studentsthrough multiple avenues. As a Library Media Specialist, I will incorporate various computerprograms and social networking tools into the aim of engaging my students with the library’smany offerings. I will utilize Microsoft Access and Excel to organize budgets, create a mastercalendar, and efficiently coordinate the activities I want my library to provide. I will also redesign

the official LMC website to ensure it is a premiere portal for relevant instructional resources andLibGuides, as well as an appealing access point for pertinent announcements, activities andevents.

A library occupies that special “third space,” one that is neither home nor work. Sociologist Ray Oldenburg defines such as place as "central to local democracy and community vitality” [TheGreat Good Place, 1990], and a school library is certainly central to a school’s internal democracy as well as the school community’s vitality. I want to further the library's function as a third place. Iwill foster community through staging gatherings such as book clubs, lecture series, after-schoolreading groups, and other programs that draw diverse populations of students to the library. Iwant to instill a love of reading in young people, so that they may anticipate being life-longlearners.

Within my library, I want to implement instruction and collections that encompass authentic

situations and promote effective cognitive practices, so that students find relevancy in the thingsthey read and subsequently retain the skills they acquire. I want to assemble reading collectionsthat reflect not only a multicultural perspective that mirrors the diverse student body, but alsoones that reflect core values, goals and lifelong lessons important for all young people toencounter and embody. Oftentimes, the most valuable reading material we encounter we didn’teven know we were seeking.

I plan to incorporate a healthy, eclectic dose of student-centered, pragmatic applied learning inmy library as well. This may take the form of a scavenger hunt, in which students demonstrate

8/7/2019 Teaching-Philosophy_Rose-Schreier

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/teaching-philosophyrose-schreier 2/2

mastery of database and website searching by answering questions about various topics, facts, orarticles and then describing their search methodology. I want to cement in them a firm base of providing reliable sources and a thorough yet clear, non-patronizing explanation of their solutionstrategies. I want to instill in them that no question or request of theirs is too bizarre or simple orcomplex; each inquiry and exploration has merit and meaningfulness, and often the hunt forknowledge is just as enjoyable as the answer.

I aim to make librarianship my lifelong career, particularly for the flexibility and freedom to tailormy work to meet my students' broad array of needs and interests. I want to create and helm alibrary that is part information repository, part resource center and part interactive space thatmaintains that fine balance between the routine and the novel, which is a winning combinationfor the library’s young stakeholders.

I will conduct my library in a manner that I have deemed ideal, yet maintain a sense of flexibility and humility in regard to possibility that what worked one year may not work this year, or whatpractices deemed appropriate a decade ago are now obsolete. And given how rapidly the face of librarianship has transformed itself, that is no longer optional, but mandatory.