LIBE 467 Blog Post #1: Can Anyone Find the Reference Section?

Well I had to start with a title that reflects where I was at when I was searching for the "Reference" section in my library!  This has already been a bit of an interesting journey, just in the past few weeks of reading and thinking about all of our topics to date. For those of you that I was in class with last term, you will know I always like to start off with a little humour!

This wouldn't happen at our school, as the reference section is nowhere to be found! 

There is no doubt, with the changes happening in my current library, as we begin the transition to a learning commons, and the professional development I am doing in terms of inquiry, that the discussions so far have given me a lot to think about. Our selection, at Kidston, is quite thin, and most of what is left is in the area of atlases and a few encyclopedias that some of our teachers still use or reference. In terms of some of my discussion posts, I have been referencing the non-fiction section at our school, when talking about reference like resources. I will definitely be making some reference to the atlases in our first assignment, but will likely focus on some resources in our non-fiction section, that are definitely out of date, and likely haven't been used in the last 5 years or more.

But, first and foremost, I needed to sit back and reflect on some of our readings. The first thing that stuck with me was "...the school librarian should possess three things: knowledge of the collection, effective communication skills, and competence in selecting, organizing, and evaluating resources" (Riedling, p. 15).

While I feel I have the communication aspect covered, the other two parts are definitely things I am working on. I have only been in the library at Kidston Elementary since September, and I'm still getting acquainted with the collection, in particular, the resources available to our teaching staff. At times I feel a little overwhelmed, but I am slowly getting to know my way around. It has also prompted me to make some changes to the system that was in place, in order to make it my own, and hopefully easier for our staff to navigate as well!

In terms of evaluating resources, I have leaned heavily on the teaching staff, admin, and the library clerk, to choose resources that are relevant, applicable to our students, and most importantly, that we think will be used on a regular basis. The weeding process has been interesting, and when the library clerk returns from a leave, we will be diving into the non-fiction section, which is by far the most out of date section in our library. Being able to spend money wisely, work within a budget, and offer the best possible resources for our K-7 population, has been a learning experience.

This is perhaps what made this weeks discussion, the one that I found to be the most relevant, and interesting for me so far. The links to the learning commons, and access to the web, is one that I find fascinating. We have so much information available, yet when we access the web, we often don't know where to start. I was drawn to the idea that "Accessing electronic information has two basic dimensions that distinguish it from print materials. The first is an almost unlimited storage capacity that continually expands. The second aspect is the ability to select from an enormous assemblage of data only what is needed." (Riedling, p. 109). When I think back to my years of school, and doing a report on the Stegosaurus in Grade 3, it was so easy to find a couple books, organize the information, and present my findings. Now, you can search through a multitude of websites and videos, but you have the task of figuring out what information is authentic and accurate. I have found in my own experience, that this task can be daunting for many students, and they become quickly overwhelmed with information. 

I think that my thoughts as to where I'm at, are best summed up by the following:

 "The role of the school librarian in a Learning Commons is transformed from "keeper of the books" to a a program director with specialized knowledge in information sources and services who coordinates the use of a dynamic space shared by all members of the learning community." (Riedling, p.116)

Our library has been used primarily as a place where students check out books, and not as much a space for community learning. In my last course, I really had the opportunity to evaluate where our library was at, and what was needed to make some big changes. This is everywhere from the physical layout, to where we are in this course, and evaluating and looking at our current reference section and right now, identifying what we have that works and supports our students, and what might need to be replaced. Over the next week, I look forward to identifying a few of the resources we have that need to replaced.

This will begin a process that I have been working towards for the past month. With many of our teaching staff asking for resources that are more grade appropriate, in terms of topics and units that have been shuffled around from intermediate to primary, and vice versa, it is time to begin the weeding process, and bring in some non-fiction resources, that match our current needs. As Riedling says on p. 26, the most important considerations we need to make are knowing your school and the student population, continuously collaborating with teachers and staff, and keeping track of research requests. These are all things I have focused on lately, as we look to spend some of our budget on new, non-fiction materials.

Below I've left you with a couple of fun videos. The first demonstrates how "dated" some of our reference resources have become. The second focuses on the reactions of teens to encyclopedias. By far one of my favourite videos, and it adds to our discussion about Wikipedia, and the use of the Web and crowd-sourced reference materials. Enjoy!

  

This video shows the dated nature of many of our reference sources!

This video is amazing, and adds further to our discussion about Wikipedia!

"That's what bugs me about books! You can't update em'!"

References: 

Breitsprecher, B. (2016). Your Library's Reference Section: The Reference Team[Video]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Do8DhIDjzHM

FBE. (2015). Teens React to Encyclopedias [Video]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X7aJ3xaDMuM

Quick Meme. (2019). Open Book Final [Image]. Retrieved from http://www.quickmeme.com/meme/35hqen

Riedling, Ann. (2013). Reference Skills for the School Librarian: Tools and Tips, 3rd Edition. ABC-CLIO. Kindle Edition.