Like other assignments that I have been able to use immediately in my teaching practice, I like the authenticity of this assignment. This time, however, "reflection" was not part of the assignment, but I wanted to talk about it, so have found the blog venue a good option (I think, really, for the first time). I found it very challenging to reduce the assignment to 1200 words -- I wanted to explain more about of the reasons for and the anticipated effects of changes I suggested, and the many permutations that the plan went through before being reduced to its final form.
Planning for a library reconfiguration was fun. I had my floor plan and little coloured pieces of paper representing stacks, tables, chairs and 'played' for hours! How could the library be re-organized to more effectively accommodate students and teaching activities. Although I'm not the TL, I have been dissatisfied with the layout -- frustrated that I cannot communicate with my whole class without yelling across the library to get their attention, and often craved a more cohesive instructional area. Considering the elements of good library organization and design that I have learned in this and other classes as well as spending time observing students in the space, I sat down to work on my "puzzle".
I liked the methodical criteria in the "Standards for school library facilities" section of Achieving Information Literacy really helpful, and returned to it repeatedly to consider each element of an exemplary library. I also tried to image using the library from a TL's, teacher's and students perspective. That caused me to rework the design several times. Costs also gave me concern, as I wondered if the requests were realistic if expenditures would be $20,000. That really made me consider the goals and what value to the school community these changes would have. I spoke with a designer about some of the technical aspects of changes and costs, but certainly more consultation would be necessary if this were to actually move forward (I'm not a designer!). I also listened to what others said about the space, and accommodating more students/classes was part of the "wish list" both in terms of booking the space and access to a full class component of computers. That reinforced the importance of dividing up the space for different activities and use for different groups concurrently. I think each area should be bookable, and this should be available to do online on the (to be created) webpage.
I would love to take on an even bigger renovation that would involve blowing out walls to increase student space, reducing under-used storage space and making the small group work area visibly open with a glass wall, purchasing lower stacks to give the space a more open feel, but I did restrain myself. I began thinking of this as part one of a bigger project, ensuring that changes in next phase would not necessitate un-doing or re-doing changes made in this one.
I knew technology changes were necessary, but had the traditional TL's concern about the de-emphasis on print when reducing the number and arrangement of the stacks. Through this and other courses I've taken, I have experienced the convenience, become aware of the extent of available on-line resources, and have realized the increased research and exploration that results from availability of on-line resources. I still believe in the value of vetted print resources (and everything is NOT on-line, as many would like to believe) but I increasingly value the on-line resources. The use of e-books are another element I can see growing greatly. Although I resisted recommending iPads as part of this project plan (I am skeptical of tech fads), when I began researching options and actually using one, I thought they would be the best option: cheaper, mobile, compact, and getting close to the efficiency of laptops in terms of word processing, too. I remain somewhat concerned about having mixed platforms (PC and Mac) in the library, but this would be less of a concern for students than it would for teachers. Either way, some ProD training regarding the iPad could be combined with information literacy skills. Increasingly, I can see students using their smart phones to access information, not only for social reasons, but as a tool for academic research, too. What will that do to our no cell phone policy in school? :)
I really should stop now, as I think this is turning into what my final assignment for this course will be!
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