During my years as a classroom teacher, the curriculum standards were always at the tip of my fingers. And, even though they changed over the years, I considered myself to be well versed in them. After all, these state standards dictated what I was required to teach. They were my guiding path. However, when I transitioned into my current role as an elementary school librarian, I felt a bit lost. I knew about the National Standards put out by the American Association of School Librarians (AASL), but struggled to understand the format and was quickly intimidated. As my first year progressed and I attempted to dig deeper into these standards, my email inbox began to fill up with information from the International Society of Technology in Education (ISTE). Each new email invited me to conferences or seminars to learn how to use their standards with my students. Was I supposed to implement both sets of standards? To say I was overwhelmed was an understatement!
In reading Courtney Lewis' article, "Collaborating to Communicate: Librarian Reading Groups and Understanding Standards", I began to realize that it wasn't just me that was feeling this way. While she collaborated with other librarians in her area to break down and better understand the AASL standards (Lewis, pg. 38), I think it would be helpful to do the same with the ISTE standards. Having a deeper understanding of both sets of standards, would help me, to better correlate and implement them. While the AASL standards provide a path for librarians to follow when planning instruction, the ISTE standards focus specifically on implementing and utilizing technology.
As I further explored the various articles and resources, I found the Crosswalk for the AASL and ISTE standards to be very helpful in my quest to understand both. Because there is a big push in education to implement technology, it only seems natural to use the Crosswalk to help align and implement both sets of standards. This document would also be helpful to share and discuss with my fellow teachers (who don't seem to understand that librarians still have standards to follow) as well as administrators. As Lewis points out, "Comparing one or two areas of the Shared Foundations in a discussion with your administrator shows how aligned the ISTE/AASL standards are under “Inquire” and emphasizes the importance of inquiry throughout the curriculum. The number of empty boxes on the ISTE side of the crosswalk under “Include” can demonstrate school librarians’ emphasis on issues of diversity and inclusivity in our work (Lewis, pg. 42)".
Resources
AASL. (2018a). Introducing the AASL Standards framework for learners. https://standards.aasl.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/AASL-Standards-Framework-for-Learners-pamphlet.pdf
AASL. (2018b). National School Library Standards crosswalk with ISTE Standards for students and educators. https://standards.aasl.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/180828-aasl-standards-crosswalk-iste.pdf
Elementary Librarian. (2018, July 13). Breaking down the AASL National School Library Standards. https://elementarylibrarian.com/breaking-down-the-aasl-national-school-library-standards/
ISTE. (n.d.). The ISTE Standards. https://www.iste.org/iste-standards
Lewis, C. L. (2019). Collaborating to communicate: Librarian reading groups and understanding standards. Knowledge Quest, 47(5), 36–43.
PA Farrington Associates. (2019, January 3). Thing 23: New AASL Standards. Cool Tools for School. https://cooltoolsforschool.net/new-aasl-standards-2/
Yes! I think correlating the standards to provide ease of use is a great idea when there are already so many different factors to consider. Thank you for suggesting the websites!
ReplyDeleteCheryl, I think your words - intimidated and overwhelmed describe my feelings exactly. With a year under my belt I understand the standards a little better, but to be honest I did not understand them upon my first few examinations last year. The crosswalk is a great document and was most approachable in my effort to not only compare the two, but to even begin to understand the AASL. It gave me the GIST and I was able to make more meaning from that!
ReplyDeleteIn writing my own blog this week, I sat down an compared the two sets of standards and felt like I was able to make some connections between the two sets, but imagining lessons and activities that neatly incorporate learning goals from both proved to be much more difficult, and I often second-guessed what I determined to be compatibility between the two sets of standards. Using a published crosswalk like the one in Knowledge Quest and like the additional sources you posted (thank you!) certainly will help take the guesswork out of the process when I do it as a professional.
ReplyDeleteHi Cheryl! This is my second year as a media specialist. I completely agree with you. In the beginning it was extremely difficult to navigate the AASL standards. I did not know how incorporate all of these standards into my lessons. After studying the AASL standards, I have a better understanding of how they can be used to guide instruction. I plan to use the Crosswalk document as well. This will help me integrate ISTE standards in my plans and lessons.
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