One small step towards connecting...

I made a promise to you to let you know how some of my ideas from reading "The School Librarians's Career Planner" panned out. One idea in particular was very timely! I proctor college courses at the high school where I teach. For some reason, my college students never seem to think that I can help them with the databases their professors want them to use in college. So, rather than ask for help, they flounder or fail assignments for using the "wrong resources". This semester, I reached out to the college's head librarian. She and I made quick work of deciding what my students need to know to be successful in their courses. (I am only proctoring 4 different courses but have students enrolled throughout the school day in each course.) I then invited her to come speak with all of our college course enrolled students at one time. This required me to touch base with every single student's teacher to receive permission to pull them from class that day. My high school teachers were AMAZING about this - having students test either before or after that day, excusing them from the period entirely, communicating about attendance. It was a beautiful thing. Every single student affected had the opportunity to be at this meeting. Most of them showed up! The college librarian was very helpful with handouts and answering questions. She also showed my students the college library's ability to provide assistance via chat, which they were really excited about. When she left, the students were in agreement that their time had been well spent with her and they felt more prepared for the research portions of the classes they were taking. 

Now, could I have done a similar presentation? Yes.

Having a guest speaker was fun, not only for me, but for the students too. She had personally spoken with each professor and gave tips for each course that you would only know if you were sitting in that room. Her connections and experience were completely worthwhile, and I enjoyed having her visit. Librarianship can be such an island. For one hour, we were both occupying the same island, working towards the same goal, and it felt really good.

An added bonus is the support this provided to my students as they finished their courses from home due to COVID-19. We were pulled out of school in mid-March and did not return. Yet, none of my college course students are having trouble keeping up. They had a support network and a couple of months using their resources with support before being cast out alone. I am so proud of them for their hard work in a time when it was hard to work.