I’ll admit that when I was an English teacher, I saw the school librarian as that person being in that physical space called the library, which I associated more with print resources or books than with computers, technology, and the information highway. Previously, I saw the school librarian as someone who prepared books and other media for circulation, who updated and kept up cataloging records, and managed a clerical aid, who assisted with the shelving of books and the checking out and checking in of books to students and who was sometimes mistaken by students as the librarian.
When I changed school districts, I looked dubiously at my principal during my job interview because he said he would rather hire me as the school librarian than as an English teacher. It was my oddest interview, for instead of me pitching myself to him, he was promoting the librarian job to me. He explained how I would enjoy the benefits of teaching without the burden of correcting papers and exclaimed that he was sure I would have no problem learning the Big 6. After I was hired, “Library Media Specialist” was the title suggested to me when that principal’s secretary asked me for information to put on my business card, but really I never understood the word “media” in that job title as books were still the main format carried in the library, more so than audiovisual resources.
Also as an English teacher, I assumed when the school librarian haughtily informed me she was a professional that she had a master’s, not knowing that the state I work in also requires that school librarians also hold a teaching credential.
I’ve a colleague, who got her MLIS in Tennessee and had to do additional coursework to get the Library Media Specialist credential when she moved here to California and seems to have a disposition to defend and quarrel because the library has always been her classroom whereas the other librarians in our school district entered after having taught either their own class at the elementary level or a subject at the high school level. I like the title, “Teacher-librarian” better than “Library Media Specialist” as it’s a job title that denotes a position equivalent to the other teachers in my building—integral parts of the teaching and learning processes in the school. I’m not terribly disappointed that AASL has reverted to calling its professionals school librarians as it is the job title I reply to people who ask me what I do for a living (http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6715763.html?desc=topstory). However, when explaining my vocation or what I’m passionate about, then I’ll say I’m an educator, more specifically a teacher-librarian because it seems to connote an intense involvement in teaching and learning and entails an explanation of the curriculum in the library, which is information literacy. The teacher-librarian title also encompasses the other roles I play as reading specialist, technology expert, and educational leader. And so I would also have to agree with Cathy Nelson, a library media specialist in Spartanburg, South Carolina, who states, “The moniker ‘teacher librarian’ would have moved us over to the essential core group in school instead of under the list of non-essentials, who are considered accessories in the school. I will continue to refer to myself as a teacher librarian despite this move by AASL for clarifying purposes.”
When I listened to the webinar (http://tlvirtualcafe.wikispaces.com/WhatsinaName_Main), I was not terribly pleased with Michael Eisenberg’s job titles of “Chief Information Officer” or “iTeacher” or “Infoteacher.” Rather than see those titles as better describing our responsibilities, I think they sound as pretentious and confusing as “Library Media Specialist,” to our audience of students, parents, teachers, administrators, and local citizens. The definition of “school” has evolved in the 21st century, and people know this and can likewise assume that the word “library” too will mean something different in 2010. I really don’t want to get into a discussion with people over what the terms “information specialist” or “learning commons” mean. I’d rather tell them what happens differently in the school library to prepare children for a more digital future. The title of “School Librarian” may sound antiquated or like a job title hearkening to a time before knowledge capital or information literacy, but I do believe it’s my job to better describe my total responsibilities today and now and to highlight the important contributions of the school library to student learning. Really I care more about what I do and how I do it than what my title is. Just the simple title, teacher conveys so much to the public despite all the negative press devoted these days to educators. I meet so many parents and people who are so appreciative of the teachers they knew or who are teaching their children, and I’m also really lucky in that I have a principal who makes me feel valued and proud of what I do. Teacher-librarian more accurately reflects the mission I’ve been charged with and is the title that is on my business card.
