School library media candidates model and promote collaborative planning with classroom teachers in order to teach concepts and skills of information processes integrated with classroom content. They partner with other education professionals to develop and deliver an integrated information skills curriculum. Candidates design and implement instruction that engages the student’s interests, passions, and needs which drive their learning.

Project:  Collaborative Unit:   http://www.arches.uga.edu/%7Estrawhat/multicultural_project.html  

Summary:  I developed and implemented a multi-cultural exchange project in collaboration with a 6th grade Social Studies teacher.

Justification:  This email pen pal project was designed to enhance the 6th grade Social Studies Caribbean unit, by providing the students with the opportunity to correspond directly with students in Puerto Rico.  By surveying the students beforehand, I learned what they knew about Puerto Rico, and what they were interested in learning (Knowledge of Learners and Learning).   I partnered with the Technology Coordinator to register the students in think.com, a secure web-site that the students could log onto with their own passwords and post their emails.  Each student had a web-page, too, which provided opportunities to work on computer skills.  Although we were ultimately unable to establish contact with students in Puerto Rico, the 6th grade students connected with students in many other countries, and developed their web-pages with images, interactive activities and articles during lab sessions taught by me.    A post-project survey indicated that the students enjoyed accessing think.com, and wanted to do it again.  Their favorite activites on think.com were the interactive ones.  The teacher also expressed a strong interest in attempting a similar project next year, as did other teachers in her pod.  (Student learning experiences are created, implemented and evaluated in partnership with teachers and other educators.)

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Project:  EDIT 6150:  WebQuest

Summary:  This WebQuest was produced in collaboration with three other School Library Media candidates:  Diane Brackman, Karen Willingham and Marilyn Johnson.   It  was designed to compliment the 8th grade Civil War unit. 

Justification:   This WebQuest was designed as a opportunity to collaborate with 8th grade Social Studies teachers.  It directly addresses several Civil War QCC's (Quality Core Curriculum), and it includes a literature link, which addresses two literature QCC's.  This activity is designed to help the student  

• develop better computer skills by completing a hands on activity using the computer
• develop Internet skills by learning to search a selected series of activities covering the Civil War
• improve cooperative and sharing skills by working in groups
• develop better communication skills by sharing information with each other.

Although I have not yet had the chance to implement this Webquest, several teachers reviewed it for me.  They indicated that it is a good instructional method  for engaging students' interests and involvement in the unit of study.  (Information Literacy Curriculum: Candidates employ strategies to integrate the information literacy curriculum with content curriculum.  Candidates incorporate technology to promote efficient and equitable access to information beyond print resources.)

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Project:  I-Search: 

Summary:  The I-Search is an approach to the research process that includes a learner-chosen topic and culminates in a project the learner can use to express the information that she has uncovered through the analysis, synthesis, and evaluation of research materials.

Justification:  The I-Search is an ideal instructional method to engage the student’s interests, passions, and needs which drive their learning.   Additionally, it is an ideal instructional method to integrate the information literacy curriculum with content curriculum.  I learned a great deal during my I-Search about researching and evaluating web-sites, organizing and evaluating information, and improved my computer skills throughout the process.   These skills will enhance my ability to teach information literacy skills to students. 

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