Artifact 1

Name: Lisa Carlson

Course Number: LIS 524
Course Title: School Library Media Center Field Experience
Course Instructor: Dr. Anne Marie Perrault
Assignment Title: Module 14: Advocacy
LIS Program Objective(s): 1.5, 2.1, 4.2, 4.3
Artifact 2
Course Number: LIS 568
Course Title: Computer Applications in the School Library Media Center
Course Instructor: Susan Allen
Assignment Title: Professional Development Workshop
LIS Program Objective(s): 1.1, 1.6, 2.1, 3.2, 3.3, 3.4

An infographic from the American Association of School Librarians (see link at the end of
this reflection) displays more than a dozen quotes for scholarly papers and from leaders in the
field all testifying to the fact that strong school libraries are essential to student achievement.
The infographic has these statements and more:
"Teachers were three times more likely to rate literacy teaching excellent when they collaborated
with librarians."
"Student test scores were higher the more time librarians worked cooperatively with classroom
teachers, the more they taught information literacy independently, and the more they provided inservice training to teachers."
"Over 21 state studies confirm that school librarians and school libraries support students in
academic achievement, lifelong learning, 21st century skills, and reading."
When It came time to do a professional development presentation on the subject of advocacy,
I wanted this information to be presented. I had been in a school where I felt that the library was
under-utilized and under-valued, and thought that if I found myself working in a library with this
kind of culture, I would have to do something to excite the faculty and administration and do
something to prove that the library is important!
Ohio was one of the states in the "over 21 state studies" mentioned above. Dr. Ross Todd and
Dr. Carol Kuhlthau conducted a study in Ohio in collaboration with Leadership 4 School
Libraries, with a grant from the Federal Institute of Museum and Library Services, and their goal
was to research hw school libraries help students learn.

I wanted to create an eye-catching presentation, so I turned their study into a graphic

novel using the program Comic Life. I had never used Comic Life before; I purchased it
for this project and it was user friendly and easy to learn. In a report of findings written

by Drs. Ross and Kuhlthau, the word "agents" is repeatedly used to precede phrases like
"of literacy development" and "of knowledge construction." I found their study and their
findings powerfully persuasive, and I immediately thought about portraying the school
librarian as a superhero. My assignment was to construct a presentation that would
advocate for the library, and I thought I'd found the perfect documents to convey the truth
that strong libraries are connected to student achievement.
Standard 4: Advocacy and Leadership says: "Candidates advocate for dynamic
school library programs and positive learning environments that focus on student
learning and achievement by collaborating and connecting with teachers,
administrators, librarians, and the community." The study by Drs. Ross and
Kuhlthau gives proof that school librarians are agents of literacy development,
knowledge construction, academic achievement, independent reading and personal
development, technology literacy, and individualized learning. It shatters any idea
that the library is nothing more than a repository of books or that the librarian is
nothing more than a manager of resources. The standard goes on to say:
"Candidates provide leadership by articulating ways in which school libraries
contribute to student achievement," and I believe that this presentation is eyecatching, attention-keeping, and communicates the importance of the library in
promoting student achievement. What I've learned from producing it is: a new
technology, and a way of advocating for the library.
The second artifact in this section is a professional development workshop I
created about visual literacy. We students in the LIS program know that
information literacy in the 21st century includes multiple literacies including
digital, technological, media, and visual literacies. The AASL Standards for the
21st Century Learner mention visual literacy explicitly:
1.1.6 Read, view, and listen for information presented in any format (e.g., textual,
visual, media, digital) in order to make inferences and gather meaning.
2.1.6 Use the writing process, media and visual literacy, and technology skills to create
products that express new understandings.

The Common Core Learning Standards also addresses visual literacy:

Integration of Knowledge and Ideas
7. Integrate and evaluate content presented in diverse formats and media, including visually and
quantitatively, as well as in words.

The Common Core mentions visual literacy in other places too. The reason I
decided to this particular workshop, and the reason why I decided to use the

workshop to represent a portfolio standard about leadership, is that reading the

CCLS and AASL standards alone doesn't give educators a good idea of how to
meet the standard. I imagined teachers and librarians wondering: what does visual
literacy education look like in action? I had a lesson that I'd done with 9th graders
that I thought was successful, and I used the workshop format to demonstrate the
lesson and to explain what visual literacy is and why it's important.
I also have a media literacy unit that I'm rather proud of; I developed it in
undergrad school and taught it during student teaching for my ELA teaching
certificate. Because of my background in radio and television, I've been
particularly interested in media and visual literacy. I hope to keep building my
repertiore of lessons and units so that I can come to be seen in my school as a
leader in this area.