2.+Reflections+NBPT+Stds.


 * Assignment 2 : Reflections on National Board Professional Teaching Standards for Library Media (40%)**

One measure of a librarian’s excellence is to go through the certification process from the National Board for Professional Teaching standards that nationally recognizes accomplished teachers. An overview of the entire process for school librarians is found at <[]>.

The process is not only a measure of individual excellence but it also provides for a time of profound reflection on an individual’s philosophical and practical commitment to the profession. AASL states on its Web site:

// National Board assessment measures what an accomplished school librarian should know and should do in the context of their daily work. AASL members are encouraged to pursue National Board certification as a way of demonstrating their accomplished practice and as a means of professional development. <[]>. //

As a jump start for your thinking about possible certification, the second intern assignment is to familiarize yourself and reflect on the ten (10) standards that are a requirement for becoming a Board-certified librarian <[]>.
 * Read through each standard
 * You will read two ancillary writings related to the topic of each standard
 * Write a reflection on each standard that incorporates the two other writings you have selected.
 * If your activities as a librarian do not reflect what the standard suggestions be sure to reflect on what changes would need to be made in your specific situation that would allow you to more closely model the standards.

As an alternative to reading journal articles you may use postings from library blogs address the topic of the standard as well. Begin a personal learning network by using Google Reader (or another RSS aggregator) and subscribe to a number of library blogs. You can use current or past postings as the supplementary reading material in lieu of the journal articles. Here are some professional blogs that I consult on a regular basis. They are not all by librarians but they deal with issues that are fundamental to librarianship. You may use these as a starting point:
 * Name of the blog || Author || URL ||
 * 025.432: The Dewey Blog ||  || [] ||
 * AASL Blog ||  || [] ||
 * ALA Tech Source ||  || [] ||
 * Bib 2.0 || Jeri Hurd || [] ||
 * CommonPlace.Net || Lukas Koster || [] ||
 * Free Technology for Teachers || Richard Byrne || [] ||
 * Doug Johnson’s Blue Skunk Blog || Doug Johnson || [] ||
 * iLibrarian || Elyssa Kroski || [] ||
 * K12 Online Conference – The conference that never ends ||  || [] ||
 * Kathy Schrock’s Kaffeeklatch || Kathy Schrock || [] ||
 * Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day || Larry Ferlazzo || [] ||
 * Libraries and Transliteracy || Bobbi Newman || [] ||
 * Library Stuff || Steven M. Cohen || [] ||
 * NeverEndingSearch || Joyce Valenza || [] ||
 * School Library Journal – Web 2.0 News ||  || [] ||
 * School Library Journal Breaking News ||  || [] ||
 * School Library Monthly || Kristin Fontichiaro || [] ||
 * Shelf Consumed || Leigh Ann Jones || [] ||
 * Tame the Web || Michael Stephens || [] ||
 * Technology Tidbits: Thoughts of a Cyber Hero || David Kapuler || [] ||
 * The Daring Librarian || Gwyneth Jones || [] ||
 * The Unquiet Librarian || Buffy Hamilton || [] ||

**Blackboard Reflection**
 * Select one the standards for each of your discussions. You can address the standards weekly or several at a time; however it works best for your schedule.
 * You need to make a separate posting for each reflection. I have created a separate forum for each standard. I have also created the ability to SUBSCRIBE to each of the forums. Please do so and you will be notified by e-mail when someone posts to the forum which will give you the opportunity to comment on each others' postings. It is important that you SUBSCRIBE to each forum since you will all be posting at different times throughout the semester.
 * You need to comment on the postings from the other students in the class.
 * Begin your reflection with a complete citation to the two readings you will be discussing.
 * Reflect on your own or observed practices as they relate to the standard and the readings you have done for the week.
 * The reflections will be graded based on
 * Length – a discussion is long enough to relate your activities to the readings
 * Significance – detailed references to the readings as well as your activities
 * Relevance – your discussion indicates that you have gained insight into how your and other librarians’ activities are elevated by your readings
 * The standards do not have to be discussed in any particular order – they just all need to be reflected on by the end of the semester.