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OpenLearn

An introduction to school librarianship

via OpenLearn

Overview

The school library is an integral part of the school system that contributes towards literacy, research, and reading for pleasure. This free course is aimed at both librarians who are new to the field as well as those with experience who are looking to up-skill, and explores how you can enhance the library provision in your school. The video below introduces you to two school librarians, Sarah and Nick, who will guide you throughout the course and offer you advice on how to better yourself as a librarian.TranscriptEnrolling on the course will give you the opportunity to earn an Open University digital badge. Badges are not accredited by The Open University but they're a great way to demonstrate your interest in the subject and commitment to your career, and to provide evidence of continuing professional development.Once you are signed in, you can manage your digital badges online from My OpenLearn. In addition, you can download and print your OpenLearn statement of participation – which also displays your Open University badge.The Open University would really appreciate a few minutes of your time to tell us about yourself and your expectations for the course before you begin, in our optional start-of-course survey. Once you complete the course we would also value your feedback and suggestions for future improvement, in our optional end-of-course survey. Participation will be completely confidential and we will not pass on your details to others. This course is accredited by the CPD Standards Office. It can be used to provide evidence of continuing professional development and on successful completion of the course you will be awarded 24 CPD points. Evidence of your CPD achievement is provided on the free Statement of Participation awarded on completion.Anyone wishing to provide evidence of their enrolment on this course is able to do so by sharing their Activity Record on their OpenLearn Profile, which is available before completion of the course and earning of the Statement of Participation.

Syllabus

  • Introduction and guidance
  • Introduction and guidance
  • What is a badged course?
  • How to get a badge
  • Acknowledgements
  • Session1Session 1: A librarian’s role in the school
  • Introduction
  • 1 Supporting your school with a library development plan
  • 2 Legislation to be aware of
  • 3 Supporting teaching colleagues and the curriculum
  • 4 Identifying stakeholders and their needs
  • 5 This session’s quiz
  • 6 Summary of Session 1
  • Acknowledgements
  • Session2Session 2: Equality and diversity in your school
  • Introduction
  • 1 Designing a safe, accessible library
  • 2 Building your collection management
  • 3 Physical and digital resources
  • 4 This session’s quiz
  • 5 Summary of Session 2
  • References
  • Acknowledgements
  • Session3Session 3: The best use of technology
  • Introduction
  • 1 Library management systems and their many functions
  • 2 Managing digital resources
  • 3 Promoting libraries, literacy and reading on social media
  • 4 This session’s quiz
  • 5 Summary of Session 3
  • Acknowledgements
  • Session4Session 4: Creating a reading-rich culture
  • Introduction
  • 1 Promoting reading for pleasure
  • 2 Other strategies to encourage reading
  • 3 Elevating reading to a special status
  • 4 This session’s quiz
  • 5 Summary of Session 4
  • References
  • Acknowledgements
  • Session5Session 5: Embedding literacy in your school
  • Introduction
  • 1 Marketing your library’s offering to embed literacy
  • 2 Reading role models
  • 3 Promoting non-fiction and subject-specific reading
  • 4 This session’s quiz
  • 5 Summary of Session 5
  • References
  • Acknowledgements
  • Session6Session 6: Independent study and information literacy
  • Introduction
  • 1 Identifying and retrieving information
  • 2 Supporting independent learning
  • 3 Plagiarism and basic referencing techniques
  • 4 This session’s quiz
  • 5 Summary of Session 6
  • References
  • Acknowledgements
  • Session7Session 7: Championing the library
  • Introduction
  • 1 Raising your library’s profile
  • 2 Developing effective channels of communication
  • 3 Continuing professional development
  • 4 This session’s quiz
  • 5 Summary of Session 7
  • Acknowledgements
  • Session8Session 8: Reflection and review
  • Introduction
  • 1 Gathering and analysing evidence
  • 2 Using feedback from your stakeholders
  • 3 Reviewing your performance and that of your library
  • 4 This session’s quiz
  • 5 Summary of Session 8
  • Where next?
  • Tell us what you think
  • Acknowledgements

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