Teacher Librarians are chalkboard champions, too! These invaluable resource teachers are so important as support personnel for the classroom teacher’s instructional program.

Teacher Librarians support all curricular content areas, and work side-by-side with classroom teachers to collaboratively plan, teach, and assess subject area content. Teacher Librarians are instrumental in teaching information literacy skills, addressing state standards and frameworks, and developing lessons in resource-based learning. They help ensure that students become effective users of ideas and information.

The Teacher Librarian is also expected to teach students how to access information from a variety of sources, information literacy strategies, reading strategies, and best practices using information technologies to enhance learning. In addition, they teach both students and their colleagues the laws and guidelines related to the ethical, legal, and fair use of information. Teacher Librarians teach and advocate the principles of intellectual freedom, foster independent thinking, and collaborate with the learning community to foster a positive school climate.

As if all this wasn’t enough, Teacher Librarians also advocate for a strong library program and work with students, parents, and the community to develop an understanding of library goals, policies, and procedures.

Because of all these responsibilities, many states require a teacher to earn an additional credential authorizing service as a library media teacher. Kudos to our nation’s Teacher Librarians, for they are chalkboard champions, too!

Most educators would agree that school library programs are extremely valuable to students. But did you know that, according to recent studies, strong school libraries help to increase standardized test scores? Statistics show that public schools with strong school library programs outperform those without such programs on high-stakes standardized tests. This is true regardless of parent education, poverty levels, ethnicity, or the percentage of English language learners found in the population of the school. Increases in library program elements correspond to standardized test scores at all grade levels, including elementary, middle school, and high school.

Library elements that contribute to increased test scores include the total number of hours the library is open, the total amount of technology available in the library, the total services provided by trained library staff, the presence of a program of curriculum-integrated information with literacy instruction, the informal instruction of students in the use of resources, providing teachers with information about new resources, and providing reference assistance to both teachers and students.

A strong school library program is described as one that provides a full-time teacher/librarian, a full-time paraprofessional, a robust and up-to-date collection of digital, print, and media resources with a budget to support it, and abundant access to the library’s facilities, technology, and resources. How well does your school’s library program meet the criteria?

To learn more, read the report, Remodeling Literacy Learning: Making Room for What Works, which details key findings from a nationwide survey of more than 2,400 educators representing all grade levels and subject areas. The report investigates the connection between professional learning, educator collaboration, and student learning.