INLS 242: Syllabus for Curriculum Issues

INLS 242: CURRICULUM ISSUES FOR
SCHOOL LIBRARY MEDIA SPECIALISTS

SYLLABUS Spring 2003

Goals and Objectives ... Textbooks ... Assignments ... Honor Code ... Blackboard and Conduct of the Class

"The new vision for the school library resource center is grounded in the partnership among the classroom teacher, the teacher-librarian, and the student, as well as the integration of resources in information-processing skills into the school curriculum."
-- Ray Doiron and Judy Davies. Partners in Learning. 1998.
"Students must be taught to solve problems, think critically, and get along with others. ... quality learning will take place only where classroom teachers and library media specialists collaboratively plan units of work. In a school where reform is really happening, the library will be the most favored and the busiest place in the school."
-- Faye Kimsey-Pharr, Principal, 1999 (quoted in Curriculum Partner).
"... almost everything I really need to know about designing a library media program, I have learned from first graders. ...
I learned the importance of putting students in charge of their own learning ...
I also learned the importance of the connection between the classroom and the library ...
I also learned that reading is the foundation of learning ... "
-- Barbara Stripling, 1999.

Essential Questions

How do teachers and media specialists work together to accomplish the learning objectives found in North Carolina's Standard Course of Study?
How does the media specialist prepare each students to be a self-directed learner, a complex thinker, a quality producer, a collaborative worker and a community contributor?
How does the media specialist encourage students to love and appreciate reading?
How does questioning enhance learning?

Goals and Objectives of the Course

The overall goal of the course is to prepare you to be a leader in your school's instructional program through collaborative planning with teachers and the integration of technology in the curriculum.
Specific Objectives: Upon completion of the course, you will be able to:

Relate current ideas in curriculum planning and explain the process of curriculum development and implementation.
Articulate the responsibilities of the media specialist’s instructional consultant role to show how collaborative planning between the teacher and media specialist is facilitated.
Demonstrate skill in instructional design and knowledge of instructional methodologies.
State some learning characteristics about students for each grade from Kindergarten to Grade 12 and be familiar with the NC curriculum requirements for each grade and subject.
Design a library and information science curriculum reflecting the information problem-solving process and using inquiry learning.
Plan ways to integrate information skills instruction into subject learning using a collaborative approach.
Demonstrate appropriate evaluation and assessment technques for school library media services and instructional activities.
Generate a plan for a staff development activitiy for classroom teachers and aides.

Textbooks

"Curriculum provides the framework for continuity at all levels of education.
It is the center of the educational process ...
Curriculum relates to the specifics of what is taught, in what order, by what methods, with what materials and resources, and how it is evaluated. ...
Library media specialists are becoming increasingly involved in all phases of curriculum -- development, support, consultation, and implementation."
-- Michael Eisenberg. Curriculum Initiative, 1988.

There are two textboooks for the course as follows:

Pappas, Marjorie L. and Anne E. Tepe. Pathways to Knowledge and Inquiry Learning. Greenwood Village, CO: Libraries Unlimited, 2002. ISBN: 1-56308-843-6 (paper).
Information Power; Building Partnerships for Learning. Prepared by the American Association of School Librarians and the Association of Educational Communications and Technology. Chicago: American Library Association, 1998. This is the standard for school library media specialists. We use it for both EDUC 241 and 242. For this course, we will be primarily iterested in chapter 2, 3, 4 and 7 plus appendices D and E.

Three resource documents that we will use heavily are found on the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction website (www.ncpublicschools.org). These are:

IMPACT; Guidelines for Media and Technology Programs. Public Schools of North Carolina, September 2000. This is available at http://www.ncwiseowl.org/impact.htm. A companion document for administrators focusing on program evaluation and effectiveness is also available there at http://www.ncwiseowl.org/admin/adminimpact.htm. While you're there, you may want to check out the WiseOwl site (www.ncwiseowl.org). It has many useful resources for school library media specialist.
Information Skills Integration Strategies Elementary Grades. North Carolina Department of Public Instruction, March 2001. This is available in pdf format (75 pages) at http://www.ncpublicschools.org/curriculum/information/strategies/k-5.pdf. The document can be purchased by calling DPI at 1-800-663-1250. Cost is $6 and publication number is EM153. Note: We will use this document and the one following as our source for NC's Standard Course of Study objectives for Library Media.
Information Skills Integration Strategies Grades 6-8. North Carolina Department of Public Instruction, n.d. (presumably March 2001 as well). This is available in pdf format (46 pages) at http://www.ncpublicschools.org/curriculum/information/strategies.middle.pdf. This document may also be purchased by calling number above. Cost is also $6 and pub number is EM154.

Note: One other useful document is the North Carolina Standard Course of Study (SCOS)(e.g., curriculum requirements for all K-12 grades and subjects). This is available at http://www.ncpublicschools.org/curriculum. We will use this for objectives for all the subjects except library media. For this we will use the two documents above.

You will also want to check out Learn NC; the North Carolina teachers' network. This website "offers a wide array of quality resources for K-12 classroom instruction and teacher professional development, all tied to the North Carolina Standard Course of Study." Take time to check out this resource.

Another website that is more national is The Big 6; Information Literacy for the Information Age. Check out the Comparison of Information Skills Process Models found under Research. Compare these process models to the Pathways model. Follow the instructions under the Electronic Discussion Group (found under Resources) and subscribe to the Big 6 listserv for at least a month. Check out the archives as well.

Course Requirements and Assignments

"Students who score higher on tests tend to come from schools that have more resource staff and more books, periodicals, and videos and where the instructional role of the teacher-librarian and involvement in cooperative program planning and teaching is more prominent."
-- Lance Curry. The Impact of School Library Media Centers on Academic Achievement, 1993.

A variety of individual and group (or team) activities are planned. Written assignments for five graded assignments are briefly described below. A more complete written description for each one will be provided on Blackboard.

Readings and Web Exploration. Provide five postings on relevant readings relating to five different topics from five different sources. Post a summary and comment for each one on an appropriate discussion forum.
Lesson Plan. (Note: I encourage you to do this as a team assignment). Select a curriculum area for study (science, social science, language arts, literature, math) and a grade level. Investigate the area via textbooks and guides and summarize the results. For an October topic find a leson plan. Critique the lesson plan using criteria questions provided. Select one information skills objective from the SCOS and redesign the lesson plan to integrate the information objective with the content objective. Work out a schedule showing how the media specialist and the classroom teacher could collaborate on the revised lesson plan.
Collaborative Unit. Working with an adopted school select one of the classroom teachers and invite him/her to collaborate on a unit. Observe the teacher and students for at least one class period. With the teacher, develop a 2-4 week lesson plan for a unit to be taught in March. Using the Pathways model and the Heroes Planning Guide (Appendix B) as an example, develop the unit plan showing the curriculum objectives for the content area and for the information area. Include one or two essential questions and an overview of the instructional strategies to be used. Describe the assessment criteria and the day by day schedule. Post diary summaries of your collaborative activies and your reactions three times (beginning, middle and end). Videotape one of the student learning sessions (with permission).
Reading Appreciation. (Note: This assignment may be done as a team or individually). For a selected grade level, plan an activity that encourages reading (e.g., pre-reading activity, book talk, book web, author visit, storytelling session, or ...). Consider not only what you will be doing but what the students will be doing as well. Develop a method to show what effect the reading appreciation activity might have and consider how you might use the data for public relations. Summarize your work as a paper or a web page or a poster.
Teacher Development Workshop (Note: This assignment may be done as a team or individually). Design a workshop for teachers that addresses one of the seven target indicators of change (see last chapter of your textbook). The format for the workshop may follow a more behavioral instructional design format (rather than inquiry). Present your workshop plan using a standard lesson plan format. Include methods of evaluation.

In addition, there will be some ungraded assignments -- some done in class (for example, an overview of learner characteristics); others will involve postings on the discussion forum following a prompt of some kind. The ungraded assignments will contribute to the class participation grade. The points for the assignments (100 points in all) are as follows:

10 points - Class participation
25 points - Readings and/or Website Explorations -- individual assignment
20 points - Lesson Plan -- individual or team
25 points - Collaborative Unit -- individual student working with a classroom teacher
10 points - Reading Appreciation -- individual or team
10 points - Teacher Workshop -- individual or team

Note: For any assignment done as a team, both students will receive the same grade unless there is overwhelming evidence why it should be otherwise.

For extra credit - Attend a full day's session at a relevant state conference and write (and/or present) a brief report.

Incompletes: A grade of incomplete may be taken only because of illness or special circumstances and only with the permission of the instructor.

Honor Code

"The library media professional has an agenda for developing information literacy ... That agenda can only be effectively accomplished when it is integrated into the curriculum. Such integration requires collaboration between the library media professional and the teaching staff."
-- Jean Donham. Enhancing Teaching and Learning." 1998.

As you know, UNC-CH has a student-administered honor system that encourages and promotes the individual's adherence to the ethics of academia. Essentially, the honor code means that information taken from the work of other is always attributed and that work that you submit is your own (or your team's in the case of group work). In this class, collaboration, discussion, and the use of assistance from other class members is encouraged and is not inconsistent with the honor code.

Conduct of the Class - Blackboard

"The key element in a successful learning environment is student engagement."
-- Diane Oberg, 1999.

Class will use the course management system, Blackboard, and will require twice weekly checking of the Blackboard course site and regular postings to various discussion forum. In addition, the class will meet face to face four times during the semester in a workshop format on the following Saturdays: January 11, Febuary 15, March 22 and April 19. Sessions will be held in Room 304 Manning. The first session will be 9 to 4; subsequent Saturday sessions will be from 10 to 2. A more detailed schedule of activities and assignments will be available on Blackboard. Please use your onyen and password to access the course.

Email Evelyn Daniel if you have any questions or comments.
Last revised January 3, 2003.