This content reflects work done as part of the Indigenous Perspectives in School Librarianship (IPSL) grant funded by IMLS (RE-246303-OLS-20). Actual assignments may vary.

Modules Objectives

  • Locate and evaluate your school’s Internet use policies.
  • Identify strategies you can use to increase access to your school library, particularly for underserved populations.

Think

  • American Library Association. (2021). Access to library resources and services. In M. Garnar (ed.), Intellectual Freedom Manual (pp. 61-84). Chicago, IL: ALA Editions.
  • American Library Association. (2021). Censorship, challenged resources, and Internet filtering. In M. Garnar (ed.), Intellectual Freedom Manual (pp. 85-124). Chicago, IL: ALA Editions.
  • American Library Association. (2021). Creating policy for your library – Internet use. In M. Garnar (ed.), Intellectual Freedom Manual (pp. 40-41). Chicago, IL: ALA Editions.
  • Magi, T. (2015). I’m being required to filter. What should I do? Knowledge Quest, 44(1), 63.
  • McNicol, S. (2016). Responding to concerns about online radicalization in U.K. schools through a radicalization critical digital literacy approach. Computers in the Schools, 33:4, 227-23.

Create

Choose one item from the “What Can School Librarians Do?” section on page 123 of the Intellectual Freedom Manual. Answer the following questions (based on the “Goals and Objectives Worksheet” from the Frontline Advocacy for School Libraries toolkit), then submit your assignment.

  • Which item did you select from the “What can School Librarians Do?” list?
  • Why is this important to your community?
  • If this goal is not achieved, what would the negative consequences be?
  • Who should you talk to about this goal?
  • Why will this person / group care?
  • How would you persuade them? Make a list of strategies.

Share

Part I: In the #module2 channel, address the following, then respond to at least two of your classmates:

  • Locate your school district’s Internet use policy. It may be in your school board regulations (which hopefully are searchable online). Alternatively, your district librarian, tech director, and/or site administrator should know where it is. Then, evaluate the policy based on the checklist on Pages 40-41 in the Intellectual Freedom Manual. Consider how the policy aligns with the values of the community, and library ethical principles.
  • How does Internet filtering affect equity and access? Assuming there are heavy filters in your school, what could the librarian do to ensure learners can find the information they need? What strategies can you use to reach the underserved populations in your community?
  • What other potential access issues do you see for school libraries (e.g., type of number of books learners can check out, book labelling, Internet filtering, fees or fines that prevent students from checking out new books, limited library hours)?

Part II: Select at least one of the scenarios in the #access channel and add to the conversation for that discussion thread:

  • A student is checking out books outside of their reading level. I’ve tried to steer them to other books, but they don’t seem to have any interest. What should I do?
  • Our students are trying to do research for health class but the information they are looking for is blocked by our firewall. Topics include breast and testicular cancer, drugs, vaping, alcohol abuse, and social media. How can I support these students?
  • One of the teachers in my school refuses to let students check out graphic novels. The teacher states these items are of no educational value. What can I do to convince them otherwise?
  • My elementary school just started a club for LGBTQIA students. The teacher who leads the club wants materials added to the library to support this club. As the librarian, I am afraid to add these books to the library, we are a very conservative community. What should I do? Can I label these books? Store them behind the desk? Or perhaps require permission slips to use them?
  • Our students have free use of the library computers during lunch. Lately, I’ve noticed that some of them are using the computers to read websites with racist and white supremacist views. What should I do?

Grow

Write a reflection on the module. Use the following questions as inspiration. What did you learn this week? What made you wonder? How do you feel about the module’s content and process? How will what you learned this week make you a better librarian? How do you feel about your progress in the course? What questions do you have?