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Standard 2:  Teaching & Learning
     One of the primary roles of the Library Media Specialist is that of Information Literacy Specialist.  Collaborating with teachers to assist students in becoming effective and responsible users of information the LMS utilizes various instructional strategies.  The needs of the learners and their unique learning styles are considered, as are their personal interests, in developing instruction.  It is this collaboration effort with teachers though that is the strength and foundation for promoting and implementing a solid knowledge base for students to become information literate.

Artifacts:

Information Literacy Project

     Effective school library media specialist practices, as supported by principles found in Information Power, promote the achievement of information literacy.   This can be accomplished through learning activities and experiences that encourage the effective retrieval, use and communication of information.  One of the projects I completed for my Applications of the Internet course, the creation of a website, supports the access of information to complete a comparison of the 1920’s and 1960’s, two decades of significant change.

Electronic Pathfinder
 
     This pathfinder was created to support a 10th grade Social Studies instructional unit on the Civil Rights Movement.  This was a project that I collaborated on with the teacher, with a major part of my role being the information resource specialist where I found and evaluated for validity and reliability web resources on the Civil Rights Movement.

Instructional Design

    
It is through the Instructional Design course that the detailed process and development of all the necessary elements in creating an effective course of instruction is scrutinized.  Evaluating and refining the course is an understandably critical aspect of this process as well. 
    In the school in which I work I’ve observed that there is a group of teachers who would like to integrate technology tools into the classroom, but have limited knowledge as to how to go about this process.  This observation led to my decision to create an instructional unit that focused on creating a Wiki and suggestions as to adapting an existing lesson plan to incorporate that collaborative technology tool.

Evaluating Media
 
     Selecting different types of media for classroom use requires evaluation of the media for it’s relevance, application and effectiveness of use.  Two of the items I reviewed for a project for my Selection and Utilization class, concerned children.  One was a webquest that concerned children in concentration camps the other, a book, studied children growing up in Hitler’s Germany.