Todd and Valenza discuss research

As we are looking at research and research questions - o thought maybe i'd share 2 library studies well known personalities discussing research...

YouTube: Ross Todd and Joyce Valenza discuss her research

eer500 begining

I have begun to delve into the world of educational research through EER. Research is something much touted for librarians by authors such as Todd, particularly in terms of evidence based research and how this can be utilised to promote and refine library practice.

The first assessment for this unit was due just on 2 weeks into the course - which was quite alarming given it usually takes me a few weeks to get into the swing of things. For this we had to locate a report about an issue then choose a research topic linking to the report, find some articles related to this and come up with research questions and statements on who these link and how the research would be of practical importance.

I began with an idea that I wanted to do something about either technology based library practices or about information literacy - both of which are of interest to me and are important facets of librarianship. I also wanted to pick something that might be of practical use to school librarians. In the end i chose information literacy and harking back to an earlier subject decided to look at the use of the ISP in info skills teaching. I think i spent far too long searching for the best articles I could find but one of them made me add to my research idea and that was to integrate the idea of project based learning with the teaching of information skills.

Here's hoping it goes well!


References

Todd, R.J. ‘Evidence based practice: the sustainable future for teacher-librarians’, Scan 21(1), 2002, pp 30-37.

Todd, R.J. ‘Evidence based practice II: getting into the action’, Scan 21(2), 2002, pp 34-41.

edition 16 - collaboration

Before getting to collaboration ....assignment 1.... although i did well, i wasn't entirely happy, and have been reading and digesting all the various forum discussions - and after looking carefully at my assignment again, i know now that i should have been more explicit about the TL role and strategies used to overcome the obstacle. Although i discussed strategies, they were more an academic reflection and probably should have been more practical and yes, fewer resources and reading and more focus on this area would have helped! Note to self for next assignment.

But to collaboration, ... the benefits for Ts and TLs, not to mention students are undeniable, but Todd (2008) pointed out a few things that i have thought for a while - namely that a lack of time is a major challenge, that collaborative teaching practice (CTP) is tested by the day-to-day pressures of school, and recognition of expertise is not enough to encourage collaboration and CTP has to be motivated by student outcomes not by a desire to increase the profile and perception of the library. It's also interesting that Todd concludes this CTP required meeting out of hours and a strong desire and commitment on the part of those involved - which i guess again leads back to the idea that flexible scheduling would be necessary to successfully create an ILSC or even to increase opportunities for collaboration.
CTP - hard - yes, beneficial - yes, practical - ?? depends on the school, willingness of those involved and the time and scheduling available, worthy - yes!

Todd, R. J. (2008).The dynamics of classroom teacher and teacher librarian instructional collaboration Scan, 27(2), 19-28