Project 4: Collaboration Article Reviews

Erica Carrillo

Cohen, S. (2015). Coteaching. Teacher Librarian, 42(5), 8-11.

This article describes the success the author has experienced collaborating with teachers,

and even co-teaching that she defines as, “collaboration to a higher level.” To truly collaborate or

co-teach, all parties must meet and participate in the planning and organization of the unit. She

further states that it is important that all parties are clear on assignments and his or her

responsibilities. In both of her real-world examples she describes the importance of backward

design, and that everyone has an equal voice in the planning. At the initial meeting, all parties

must agree and set goals and design the Essential Questions that learners are expected to

accomplish upon completion of the assignment. The Media Specialist in both examples, not only,

provided access to diverse resources, including the introduction of peer reviewed journals and

sources, but she also ensured that students were using and evaluating information responsibly.

This included creating a data base and a virtual pathfinder for research where she provided

guiding questions. The teachers created collaborative student groups to complete the research

and share findings using a variety of platforms. In both cases, the author stated that all parties felt

the collaborative experience had a positive impact on student learning although in one example,

time to plan and collaborate was difficult and frustrating. She further emphatically expresses that

she feels that if asked all parties would conclude that it is well worth the time needed to connect,

communicate, and collaborate to design an activity with a diverse team to include the Media

Specialist.

This article describes what I believe to be an effective use of all resources in the

educational setting. As she alluded to in the article, it is opportune to have a variety of specialists

come together to design because of the different ideas and perspectives that would be presented.

Every time I collaborate with other team members, I learn about a new tool or strategy. This
Project 4: Collaboration Article Reviews
Erica Carrillo
expertise is so beneficial for student learning in that students have more resources and guidance

throughout the learning process. “The library media specialist cannot teach in a vacuum; the tech

integrator cannot teach in a vacuum,” resonated with me because often, especially in high school,

teachers stay in their area not really interacting outside the department. It is a very lonely world

of isolation, and it is a waste of valuable resources not collaborating. Although I have

collaborated with the Media Specialist at my school, I do agree with the teachers in the article

that time to collaborate is an issue. Often, meetings and professional development takes over our

schedules along with the many responsibilities assigned to the Media Specialist so it is difficult

to meet and plan an activity with her. After reading this article, however, I will make more effort

to collaborate with the Media Specialist because I feel that it is an opportunity to utilize a

valuable resource that often is ignored or undervalued.

Easley, M. (2017). Personalized Learning Environments and Effective School Library Programs.
Knowledge Quest, 45(4), 16.

This article explains personalized learning, and the role of the media specialist. This

involves collaborating with teachers, administrators, and stakeholders when designing the media

center and identifying its function in the personalized learning environment. Personalized

Learning allows school librarians a way to impact learning of students by allowing students to

engage in experiences that support their learning at their current level. Meeting students at their

level requires the librarian to curate digital resources that teachers can use to support learners.

She can also provide diverse reading material so that students can choose those appeal to their

individual preference, interests, and ability level. Providing equitable access to resources ensures

that all students have exposure and opportunity. Collaborating with teachers allows the librarian
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Erica Carrillo
to ensure that integration of digital content by curating and evaluating a variety of digital

resources that are aligned to standards and the needs and interests of individual students. The

school library programs must also foster instructional experiences that allow students to voice

what choices they would like to pursue in their learning. Collaborating with teachers to offer

instructional activities where students actively utilize technology to produce products to

demonstrate expertise or content is imperative. Collaborating with teachers to design just-in-time

instruction opportunities through software applications or by providing training either face-to-

face or creating step-by-step video tutorials for students and teachers is another way that the

library can support personalized learning. The author further describes the importance of the

physical design of the media center in providing a supportive library space. It is important the

librarian asks questions and determines the needs and best use of the space to support student

learning. Collaborating with teachers provides insight and feedback about the learning

environment provided in the Media Center. This will help in the development of makerspace or

STEM labs, mobile labs, and space for active use of technology such as coding and media

production, as well as, a comfortable space for just reading a book of choice. Because the

librarian is one of the few members of the school who interacts and develops relationships with

all learners at the school, it is critical collaboration exists to create an effective school library

program to support personalized learning environments.

This article provided me with a clearer explanation of the expectation or role of the media

specialist in a personalized learning school environment. The author and I are both Fulton

County employees so this article was very relevant to me. Personalized learning is the

expectation for teachers in Fulton County, and honestly, I never really thought about how the

media specialist could impact our ability to truly personalize learning. The media specialist is
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Erica Carrillo
responsible for curating digital resources, different mediums of content, choosing and purchasing

tools and programs that allow students to be innovative so it is imperative teachers collaborate

with the media specialist to provide ideas and feedback when decisions are made. This will

ensure needs are met for individual students in each content area. The media specialist is versed

in so many tools and strategies that support voice and choice, and just-in-time instruction so why

wouldn’t you collaborate and utilize that expertise to support learning? This article was very

informative and clearly explained how to create a library that supports students in the

personalized learning environment, as well as, identifying ways that collaboration with teachers

could naturally occur.