The Ultimate Partnership for Student Achievement: Library Media Specialist Contributions

It is alarming to realize the number of educators who are unaware of the power that good, strong collaboration between teachers and school library media specialists can provide. The professional library media specialist (LMS) is prepared to assist teachers in providing appropriate materials and collaborative instruction for students at all levels. Research studies in at least 18 states have shown that students tend to perform better on achievement tests where library media specialists are provided time for collaboration with teachers on the design and delivery of instruction (Francis, Lance, Lietzau, 2010). The full impact that the library media specialist can have on assisting learners is oftentimes not realized due to the limited opportunity for meaningful interaction with teachers. When collaboration occurs between teachers and LMS (who are trained on best practices for information literacy instruction), an environment results where all students benefit and achieve! An instrument was developed by the Georgia School Library Media Consortium during 2015 that clearly defines the roles of the LMS in every aspect of the position. This document, the Media Specialist Keys Effectiveness System (MKES), is built upon the American Association of School Librarians standards and provides an excellent explanation of what kinds of services the classroom teacher can expect from a strong library media program and specialist in order to impact student achievement! This session will present the MKES document as well as the many ways, through collaboration, that the LMS and teacher together can provide the best instruction possible for students