Ideas+for+Collaborating+with+Teachers

** Ideas for Collaborating with Teachers by Lisa Markham **

[|Webster's Online Dictionary] defines “collaboration” as “working jointly with others”, as well as “to cooperate with and willingly assist”. When it comes to media specialists and teachers, collaboration means that and so much more though. It’s a mindset of an interdependent partnership between the media specialist, teachers, administration, parents, and the community. When you see teachers and media specialists work, plan and evaluate students together, rather than teaching skills in isolation, you are witnessing collaboration. When collaboration works successfully, like a well oiled machine, all parties benefit, and students succeed. In the educational collaborative network, we all share a common goal; reaching our students and ensuring their success. Each piece of the collaborative network brings their unique expertise and perspective to the process, making the team better as a whole, versus individuals.
 * What is collaboration? **

** What does collaboration look like? ** The media specialist and teachers plan lessons and units together. When students come to the media center they learn the information literacy skills through authentic research and experiences in correlation with the standards and concepts they’re learning in their classroom. Students can therefore make connections from the learning they’ve experienced in the classroom and to what they’re learning in the media center. In this way, the information literacy skills the students learn become relevant and real. In addition to planning, the teacher and the media specialist both teach the lesson and work with the students in the media center.

The media specialist and teacher also plan with one another how to creatively and effectively evaluate the students using alternative non-traditional reports, rubrics, and performance evaluation. The media specialist promotes the media center to students, teachers, administration, parents, and the community. The media center is always a welcoming, alive place where students actively researching, looking for books, reading, and learning. Teachers and media specialists work hand in hand as a team.


 * What are some examples of //not// collaborating? **
 * Teachers teach skills in isolation, with no connection or communication with the media specialist whatsoever.
 * Teachers create their lesson plans and units without thinking about the resources of the media center, and the media specialist.
 * Teachers contact the media specialist only with a list of books and materials they would like to check out.

** Why is collaboration important and how will it impact the school and the media center? ** Research has proven that when teachers and media specialists collaborate, the standards that students learn in their classroom are integrated into their information literacy and research skills, making their learning in all areas authentic. More authentic, translates into more learning and more retention, which also means higher achievement.

** So now that you’re convinced, where do you begin? How do you get your teachers and administration on board? How do you promote collaboration? ** There are many ways to “get yourself out there” so to speak. You have to market and advertise your services to the teachers, parents, and the community. Also keep in mind that Rome wasn't built in a day, and you won't be able to collaborated with all the teachers and parents the first day you walk in your media center. For that matter, not even the first year! This is a process that requires foundational work and time to implement, one teacher and one parent at a time. Choose to focus on reaching a few teachers at a time and build relationships. Here are some suggestions that you may want to consider as you begin to collaborate:
 * 1. Collaborating with Teachers **
 * Create a flyer at the beginning of the school year introducing yourself to the staff and list some of the lessons that you are available to teach
 * Offer a tour to new teachers (and welcome returning teachers as well) in the beginning of the school year and show them the resources available in the media center. Be sure to provide refreshments!
 * Eat lunch in the teacher’s lounge. This is a great way to talk with teachers, hear what sort of things they’re teaching, get their feedback, and in a lighthearted casual manner, network yourself!
 * Attend grade level meetings and offer your services when you hear about topics the teachers are covering with their students and you’re aware of resources in the media center (or online) that would be helpful.

**2. Collaborating with Administrators **
 * Take an active role on your school’s leadership team. Attend meetings, share the benefits of collaboration, and volunteer for various promotions throughout your school.
 * Attend PTA, and SAC meetings after school to demonstrate to your principal the value you place on being involved in your school at all levels.
 * Meet with your principal on an annual basis for a formal meeting to discuss your goals and plans for the media center. If you are requesting additional funding to buy items you would like to have for your media program, be sure to write a formal plan of why you need the things you’re asking for. Your principal will value your professionalism, organization, and backing your wants up with facts and data.


 * 3. Collaborating with Parents **
 * Have an Open Media Center Night at school. Invite parents and community members to come visit your media center. This is your chance to shine! Show off some of your best resources and technologies.
 * Create and maintain a media center website. Include the basics about your media center that parents may need to know regarding book check out and hours of operation. Include a list of online resources, summer book lists, and links to the teachers’ email addresses.
 * Have a monthly or bi-monthly media center newsletter. This is a great way to inform parents about the latest fun things going on in your media center. You can showcase new releases, remind parents about upcoming book fair dates, and even showcase student book reviews.
 * Establish a Parent Resource Room. In our school we have a small room right next to my office that is used as our Parent Resource Room. Create a cozy environment here with several chairs and parenting magazines for parents to browse through. You can also offer a small parent library and a computer with internet access for parents to check their child’s grades online.


 * <span style="color: #008080; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 140%;">4. Collaborating with the Community **
 * When you hold a book fair, be sure to have a Family Night one evening out of the week and invite parents and community members to come and support your media center by buying books from the book fair. Be sure to advertise!
 * Work in connection with the librarian at your community public library. The public library has many resources available to you and he/she would be a great guest reader in your media center as well.

** Still interested in collaboration? Here are some additional links and sources of information. **

<span style="color: #008080; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">** Bibliography **

*Stephens, Claire Gatrell & Franklin, Patricia. (2007) //Library 101: A Handbook for the School Library Media Specialist//. Westport, CN: Libraries Unlimited.
 * [|The Association for Library Service to Children] promotes cooperation between school libraries and public libraries. This website shows examples of successful collaboration between elementary, middle, and high school media programs and public libraries. This is a wonderful place to get activities and ideas for how you (as the media specialist) can create a collaborative relationship between your school and the public library.


 * Here you will find [|more information about classroom and library collaboration], including the philosophy of collaboration and taxonomy, showing seven various levels of collaboration. This taxonomy was created by David Loertscher, who is currently a professor at the School of Library and Information Science at San Jose State University, and has also served as the president of the American Association of School Librarians.


 * This is a website from [|Sarasota Public Schools] in Sarasota, Florida. This website highlights more specifics of collaboration. Included is a chart that shows each member of the collaborative team and their various expertises. The website also provides some activities, PDF and Word based planning tools, and suggestions for how to use them.


 * This article from the [|American Association of School Librarians] examines the definition, role, and benefits of collaboration in the twenty-first century school media center. It further analyzes the theory behind collaboration, the concept, and various factors that can help or hinder collaboration.


 * Here is [|more proof of the benefits of collaboration]. In addition you will find sample lesson plans and unit designs that you can download and use or modify when you plan collaboratively.


 * Here is a link to the [|blog of Doug Johnson], the Director of Media and Technology for the Mankato Public School District in Mankato, Minnesota. In this particular entry, Mr. Johnson cleverly states that collaboration “is the Holy Grail of librarianship”. He goes on to give powerful, yet simple suggestions to improve collaboration.


 * Here is a first hand testimonial of the benefits of collaboration, from the viewpoint of a classroom teacher.

media type="youtube" key="CR_6wSMv4bQ" height="385" width="480" align="center"


 * This video focuses on the software automation system Destiny and the ways it can support your collaborative efforts.

media type="youtube" key="WNhZ4ZYNi7I" height="362" width="504" align="center"


 * [|When Teachers and Librarians Collaborate]: Are Two Heads Better Than One? Here is a step by step plan to conduct an action research project of your own to see if increased collaboration really does increase students’ achievement. See what happens, and then share your results with your administration.


 * [|Impact!] An impact is exactly what you will acheive if you use this software program. Administrators like (and need) facts, data, and documentation. Here is a great way to prove to them the benefits of increased collaboration with teachers. This program uses excel to track your collaboration efforts with various teachers, and keeps track of the students results over a time period of multiple collaborative lessons. Bright, colorful and eye catching charts, tables and graphs can then be presented to your administration as evidence of the beneficial impact of collaboration between the library media specialist and teachers.


 * [|What Makes Collaboration Successful?] This entry from a blog hosted by the Georgia Library Media Association attempts to answer just that. In this entry, Andy Plemmons a school librarian in Athens, Georgia, reflects on one successful collaborative project with a fourth grade gifted teacher, and more specifically why it was successful.


 * [|The Website of David V. Loertscher]


 * [|The School Library Media Specialist]


 * [|Collaborating to Meet Standards]