Ledyard Public Schools

Library & Information Literacy Curriculum

Philosophy

The mission of the Library & Information Literacy Curriculum is to prepare Ledyard Public School students for a lIfetime of learning in an information rich society. Educators must teach students how to learn and to make use of Information resources. Students must be taught the skills to analyze, synthesize, evaluate and appreciate all forms of information. The combination of the library media center and computer lab will create an entirely new learning environment called the Library and Information Technology Center (LITC). The role of the Library & Information Technology Center, as an extension of the classroom, is the 'heart and soul' of the total instructional program. It provides print, non-print and technology resources and expert human resources to support existing curricula to maximize student learning. Library & Information Literacy instruction should reflect the collaboration between the Library & Information Technology Specialist and classroom teachers through flexible scheduling. The overall purpose of the Library & Information Literacy Program is to ensure that all Ledyard Public School students become independent, life-long learners and productive, well-informed citizens.

The current library media curriculum in Ledyard focuses on location and access skills taught in isolation from classroom curricula. Today, however, students must learn strategies to make meaning from the countless and complex array of information readily available through constantly growing number resources. As students learn to read, write, compute and master the content of other curricular areas, they need an information problem-solving process to support learning and the integration of knowledge from different disciplines. Literacy includes more than the ability to read, write, compute, locate and access. Information and technology literate students also need to know how to define tasks, create products, evaluate each step of the process and communicate information on a variety of concepts, problems or issues in a wide range of formats. To this end the Ledyard Public Schools has selected the Big6^tm information problem-solving approach as the foundation for this library & information Literacy Curriculum. The Big6^tm is a systematic process approach to information problem-solving developed by Michael B. Eisenberg and Robert E. Berkowitz. The Big6^tm direct1y parallels the Connecticut State Department of Education's 'Learning Resources and Information Technology Framework Standards' as can be seen in Table 1.

Through our research, we have learned the vital components of an effective integrated Library and Information Literacy Program. Flexible scheduling allows teachers to find time to plan and collaborate with Library & Information Technology Specialists. Flexible scheduling allows students to use the resources of the Library & Information Technology Centers based on needs and interests. Resource-based teaching and learning includes pre-planned learning experiences where students actively use appropriate print, non-print, technology and expert human resources to solve meaningful information problems. InformatIon problem-solving, specifically the The Big6^tm provides the structure through which all curricular areas can be addressed.

Collaboration between teachers and Library & Information Technology Specialists is the key to the successful implementation of this curriculum. Students will learn skills and processes to become effective users and producers of ideas and information through the integration of current and future technologies with information problem-solving techniques as well as resource-based teaching strategies, and reading incentive programs. Assessment of these skills must also be a collaborative effort between the classroom teachers and Library & Information Technology Specialist. It is crucial that each school in Ledyard be staffed with a full-time Library & Information Technology Specialist in order to provide the opportunity for collaboration which will determine full implementation of this curriculum.

Note: Ledyard Public Schools was granted permission by Dr. Eleanor Osborne, Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum & Instruction for New Haven Public Schools, to use the New Haven Public Schools Information Literacy Curriculum.