Assistant Professor of Middle and Adolescent Social Studies Education Kent State University
A longtime school librarian and Social Studies colleague reflect on successful collaborative projects leading to transformation of libraries from simple collectors of information to a space driving cross-discipline collaboration; educational technological advancement; and inquiry-based instructional engagement. This collaboration began with participation in the Library of Congress American Memory Fellows Program and progressed to co-teaching online and even to virtual instruction on an international level. The pair of educators will share strategies for developing and promoting community connections beyond the library walls to both the past and future. National traveling exhibitions such as those from the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum along with noted guest speakers (including survivors Gerda Weissmann Klein & Miriam Brysk ) were brought to the local community over the years. Finally, the teacher/librarian duo will offer options for the library to engage in issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion as both a leader and institutional ally in a school’s DEI goals. For example, educational support activities were developed for an exhibit from the Jim Crow Museum of Racist Memorabilia and students created their own “Never A Bystander” projects in response to a presentation by Holocaust survivor Irene Butter. Such collaboration has served to make instruction vibrant, relevant and meaningful for students. Joint projects have opened doors to a world of knowledge and to experiences that otherwise would have remained closed.
Learning Objectives:
Identify multiple access points leading to the transformation of libraries from simple collectors of information to a space and force driving cross-discipline collaboration; educational technological advancement; and inquiry-based instructional engagement.
Examine strategies for developing and promoting community connections beyond the library walls to both the past and future.
Evaluate options for the library to engage in issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion as both a leader and institutional ally in a school’s DEI goals.