Professional Development Plan Each of the categories below depicts my commitment to professional growth during the next three

to five years. As a student nearing completion of a School Library Media program, the following will be used to guide me in my endeavors to remain current in the field of educational media and educational technology. My primary goals for what I hope are the beginning years of a career as a school library media specialist are: Continuous knowledge of educational media and educational technology practices that allow me to efficiently teach knowledge as well as applicable skills. Remain current and informed on new developments that serve to enhance or improve educational media and educational technology practices. Establish connections with colleagues, students, and the community to strengthen and promote the services provided by my library media center.

Membership in Library Associations I am a current member of the American Library Association (ALA), Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA), and Tennessee Association of School Libraries (TASL). Membership in these organizations is valuable and essential to my professional growth. The ALA is a wonderful resource for school librarians who wish to strengthen their understanding and practice of advocacy, intellectual freedom, networking, policies, and more. I chose to join YALSA based on my desire to work with young adults. Furthermore, my desire for equity in literacy guided my decision to be a member of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Round Table (GLBTRT), a division of ALA. TASL is committed to professional collaboration and the ability to strengthen media services within our state. It is my belief that these organizations will allow me to strengthen my commitment to library science by providing valuable resources, networking possibilities, and a community based on professionalism and support. Attendance at Professional Conferences Attendance at professional conferences is a wonderful opportunity for library media specialists to connect with others in the profession of education (fellow librarians, educators, and administrators). Professional conferences also allow school librarians to remain current on new developments in the field of library media as well as on best-practices for teaching, library media center services, and professional collaboration. Because I feel that I am one of few without classroom teaching experience, I plan to attend the New Teacher Conference held by Tennessee Education Association (TEA), an affiliate of National Education Association (NEA). Also, as a new school librarian I would attend TASLs 2014 conference (dates not yet listed). Reading of Professional Publications Professional publications are useful when selecting new materials and equipment for the library

media center. As a school library media specialist I will use to following publications to assist in collection development, remaining current on new technologies, best practices, professional collaboration, lesson planning, etc.: AASL Hotlinks Booklist Empowering Learners: Guidelines for School Library Programs The Horn Book Magazine Kirkus Reviews Knowledge Quest School Library Research School Library Journal Standards for the 21st Century Learner Teacher Librarian Voice of Youth Advocates (VOYA) Exploration of Professional Internet Resources As a school library media specialist I will be responsible for providing students, faculty, staff, administration, and parents with quality information and resources, either for learning or personal interest. To do so, I will research professional internet resources to maintain a current list of sites that may be useful as part of the librarys website. A list of possible professional internet resources include: CyberBee The Educators Reference Desk Internet Public Library School Library Journal Online Webpage Evaluation Checklist Provision of Professional Development Opportunities for Other Educators In effort to provide professional development opportunities for educators, I will commit to being available via email, phone, or in person communication. As a school librarian, I will take personal responsibility for offering demonstrations of new technologies that may be of use to classroom educators either in large group presentations, one-on-one assistance, or video recording that can be accessed anytime for the busy educator. I will also commit to creating presentations that will provide educators and administration with useful information during inservice training. Establishing Connections with Other Libraries Establishing connections with other libraries (public or school) can be beneficial to everyone involved with the library media center. Patrons will benefit from knowing that how to access resources beyond the school day hours. Educators will benefit from interlibrary loans as well as knowledge of local programs sponsored by the public library that may be used in classroom teaching. Furthermore, I will benefit from the community support of collaborating with local

librarians. I would recommend consistent communication with local librarians to encourage collaboration and cooperation among the communitys libraries. Participation and Collaboration As a Member of a Social and Intellectual Network of Learners As the role of school librarian continues to shift and evolve, I will commit to my role as a teacher and do everything possible to strengthen that aspect of my job. To do so, I believe a necessary component is professional collaboration to strengthen the learning of students as well as enhance the services of the library media center. Professional collaboration allows opportunities for students to get the greatest quality of education from both the classroom teacher and teacherlibrarian. Beyond collaboration with fellow educators, I plan to serve as an advocate to the goals and missions of not only my library media center, but my school by encouraging a working relationship with students and parents. To truly put myself in the position to serve as a member of a social and intellectual network of learner, I must create an atmosphere that encourages use of the library media center by faculty, staff, administration, parents, and students. I do not take this task lightly, but understand that with time and commitment to the needs of patrons it can be done. My short time in the field has shown me that there is still a great deal of work to be done to break down the notion of school librarians as keeper of the quiet zone that allows little to now social or intellectual learning. Another goal I have to achieve a continuous effort at being a member of a social and intellectual network of learners is allowing patrons to understand that we truly are in this together. Meaning, the evolution of libraries is happening in the moment. The emphasis is not on phasing out libraries and librarians, but our adaptation to meet the needs of our 21st Century patrons. This takes a great deal of commitment and understanding from both sides and will allow me to adopt a role of leader as I demonstrate to my patrons how they library is changing and why they should view it as an invaluable resource in their academic and personal pursuits. Practice and Modeling of Ethical Principles of the Profession As an advocate to the profession of school librarianship, I plan to practice and model the ethical principles in a variety of ways. Perhaps most notable is my determination to provide equity in literacy instruction and my desire to make intellectual freedom a school-wide affair by involving educators, administrations, parents, and students. I plan to remain current on laws and rulings that directly affect the short term and long term goals of my media center. I understand and fully support students right to privacy by pledging to keep their information stored properly and in a way that does not allow their rights to be infringed on. As a school library media specialist, I vow to defend my patrons rights and access to equitable information without discrimination. Use of Evidence-Based, Action Research to Collect Data to Use to Improve Practice I plan to use evidence-based, action research to collect data that allows me to reflect on my ability to serve as school library media specialist as well as the efficacy of my library media center. To do so, I plan to use surveys that allow students, parents, educators, and administration share their thoughts, experiences, and suggestions. Furthermore, I plan to use continuous assessment of testing scores to determine if students are meeting classroom standards as well as

AASL learning standards. I will make a continuous effort to self-analyze my practices using the library media specialist evaluation form employed by my district.