School Libraries in Finland

Finland is the new global standard for education, and teachers from every major country in the world are flocking there to observe how they do things. Major elements in the Finnish system that differ from America's educational model include delayed school start age, how early and often students are tested, avoidance of merit pay for teachers, the amount of job-embedded professional development time teachers are provided weekly, the honorable status of teachers within the Finnish society, and the limited number of students in each classroom.

Naturally, as librarians our curiosity is inclined to wonder about the role of school libraries in Finland. Though it is rumored that school libraries do not exist in Finland, this is not true. There is a major reliance upon the public library system, and a strong tie to school libraries strengthens the programs of each.

Below are a few resources including valuable information about the vitally essential school library programs in what is currently recognized as the strongest educational model in the world:

School Library Association in Finland

Observations about School Libraries in Finland from an American school librarian

Finland's Library Network

What aspirations do the Finnish librarians provide for our own instructional practices?

And the second winner is...

Pam Bullock is the proud new owner of Out of the Easy by Ruta Sepetys! Congratulations! You will receive it in the pony soon.

Comment on this post if you are interested in another giveaway of an advanced reader edition!

Winner Wednesday Book Giveaway!

Who needs a good book to read this spring? It's an Advance Uncorrected Galley and is Not for Sale! It's a giveaway! The novel is Out of the Easy by Ruta Sepetys.

You will not be disappointed by this novel set in New Orleans about a girl trying to figure out her life after being raised by ...herself! She lives in a good place, though, with plenty of reading material.

The winner will be announced in time to put in the pony on Friday!

Good luck!

And the winner is....

Carla Crews! Your book (along with another small happy or two) is going on the pony tomorrow. Congratulations and we hope you enjoy it!

Friday Fun Giveaway!

Just for fun, I am giving this away to one lucky LibraryVision reader! Just comment below, and I will draw names Monday at 8pm. The lucky winner will receive this copy of Isabel Allende's Island Beneath the Sea (a fabulous historical fiction piece about late 1700s slavery conditions in Haiti: brief review here) via the Pony.
Thanks for dropping by!

ASLA New Librarians Conference June 9th

Leadership for the 21st Century

ASLA New Librarians Conference

It’s back!  The Alabama School Library Association (ASLA) is offering a special professional development opportunity for school librarians who have been librarians for three years or less. This pre-conference is held in conjunction with ASLA’s Annual Simmer Conference. You will have an opportunity to meet other new librarians in Alabama, ASLA Board members, ASLA officers, “Library Girl” Jennifer LeGarde, and hopefully join networks in your area of the state affiliated with ASLA.  You will learn about what ASLA is, what we do, and how you can be an active part of the organization.

You must be new to the library profession, not just new to the position. 

This pre-conference on Sunday, June 9, 2013 will provide:

• All meals - Sunday lunch, Sunday dinner, Monday continental breakfast, and Monday lunch

• Lodging for Sunday night at the Hilton Garden Inn in Liberty Park

• Complimentary 2013-2014 ASLA membership

• Complimentary registration to the ASLA Summer Conference on Monday, June 10^th

• Opportunities to network with local and national school library leaders

• Information on professional organizations and potential leadership possibilities

Best of all, this experience is FREE!

This opportunity will be available to only 25 new school librarians, so act now!   For more information send your name and e-mail address to Jennifer Anders at janders@jefcoed.com or call 205- 379-5550

ASLA (Alabama School Library Association) is a professional organization dedicated to the improvement of instruction through the utilization of media and technology. It provides a forum for school librarians, administrators, curriculum specialists, teachers, school librarianship educators, graduate students, professional association leaders, and retired library media professionals to promote excellence in education in Alabama through effective school library programs.

ASLA is the state affiliate of the Association for Educational Communications and Technology, the American Association of School Librarians, and the Alabama Education Association. 

It's World Read Aloud Day! What are You Reading?

How will you reach across the world today to celebrate World Read Aloud Day? Skype is a great way to connect to other classrooms across town or farther and share reading aloud.

Authors have also volunteered their time to read with classes of students through Skype (a free software tool for video chats or phone calls and it's free as long as the other person also has Skype downloaded on their computer).

And it's not too late to participate today. The whole idea is to celebrate reading around the world and "pay it forward" according to the World Read Aloud Day website. We are celebrating that we can read and write and have that privilege to learn. What a wonder!