School media specialists must be teachers, leaders, and advocates for reading, inquiry, and learning. Partnering with classroom teachers, they must design and implement curriculum and instruction that prepare young citizens for a life that requires thinking, inquiry, problem-solving and ethical behavior. These experiences provide the foundation…

School library media specialists wear many hats within their school libraries, classrooms, and districts. Whether these roles are formally acknowledged or not, library media specialists (LMSs) are functioning as co-teachers, curriculum designers, website managers, technology troubleshooters, administrators, and in-service staff development…

The American Association for School Librarians suggests an important mission for school librarians is to ensure personal growth through ongoing exposure to conferences, journal articles, webinars, presentations, and membership in professional organizations. As professional educators, School Librarians should exemplify the vision for being…

The most successful school library media specialists are those who collaborate with teachers as full partners in the instructional process. Without assertive action by the school library media specialist, however, school administrators and teachers are likely to be more aware of the media specialist's administrative role than the roles of teacher,…

The information age has given library media specialists an unprecedented opportunity to play a leading role in helping teachers, administrators, and especially students access and use information intelligently. As the school's premier information specialist; the library media specialist has a unique role to play in helping everyone in the school…

This column lists and defines several sets of selected terms that may better help any educator communicate with the digital-savvy student clientele. Terms were gathered from the sources listed in "Further Reading" and confirmed among three online professors at Indiana University/Purdue University at Indianapolis. The sample terms are clustered by…

This review of sections of copyright laws most relevant to media librarians covers requirements of authors, sole rights of copyright owners, fair use and other exceptions to sole rights, the Board of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES) case, the Sony case, exempt public performances, and computer software. Twenty-nine references are provided.…

Reports the results of a survey that examined educational media usage and preference by teachers. Reasons for the increasing use of computers and videotape cassette recorders over traditional media are identified, and the need for media courses in teacher education curricula is discussed. (CLB)

Reviews research findings and briefly outlines several strategies for encouraging teachers to utilize available educational media and the expertise of the school media specialist. (6 references) (CLB)

Describes common problems with signs used in school libraries and offers suggestions for improving their effectiveness. Techniques to be considered in designing legible signs are discussed, as well as developing a system of signs by evaluating their function in terms of instructional objectives. A list of suggested readings is provided. (CLB)

Seven articles explore and suggest means of publicizing school library services to students, teachers, administrators, and the general community. (CLB)

Describes technological services provided by regional media centers, which generally serve more than one school district--reservation systems, reference, interactive video, computer-related uses, earth stations, microwave and slow-scan television, audio and video duplication, slide and film reproduction, printing, inspection of films and…

Discusses the need to develop more efficient information retrieval skills by the use of new technology. Lists four stages used in automating the media center. Describes North Carolina's pilot programs. Proposes benefits and looks at the media center's future. (MVL)

Presents design objectives to consider when planning library/media facilities for elementary schools which will also incorporate computer technology. Highlights include providing for future growth and the development of new technologies; collection development plans; professional growth and staff support; scheduling considerations; and…