embracing the serendipity of learning -...

Volume 33 Number 4 December 2009Newsletter

What’s InsIde

Leadership For Diversity ........... 3Educational Technology ............ 4Web Pathways ........................... 5Bookends: Junior ...................... 6Bookends: Senior ...................... 7California Department of

Education ........................... 7Legislative Liaison ..................... 8Public Relations ...................... 10Northern Notes ...................... 11Southern Snippets ................... 11Calendar ................................. 13

Continued on page 2

embracing the serendipity of Learning “Conference is over, yet the warm and wonderful glow of being in the company of California School Librarians is still with me.” CSLA VP Communications, Jackie Siminitis said. Thank you for express-ing the feeling of many of us, Jackie. And thank you to the entire CSLA Conference Committee that went above and beyond to create the best conference possible. Conference Chair, Jane Lofton lived and breathed “CSLA Conference” even though she is teaching in an English classroom, instead of the school library, due to budget cuts. Plus, the CSLA staff did outstanding work on every aspect of the

conference. Finally, thank you to everyone who attended the conference.

The keynote speakers were inspirational and informative. Ellen Siminoff in her presentation “The Great Online, Where Young Minds Roam Freely,” spoke about being one of the founders of www.yahoo.com and successfully adapting to the ever-changing demands of the Internet industry. Her latest entrepreneurial venture is www.shmoop.com, which her husband developed to help their daughter and middle and high school students study and write about literary classics. Linda Bailey, this year’s California Young Reader Medal Award Winner, described how she developed the lovable title character in Stanley’s Wild Ride! And Bruce Hale delighted us with “Serendipity Doo-Dah: Embracing the Unexpected in Writing and in Life,” stories of his efforts to evolve as circumstances in his life required.

It has been a difficult year and news about the state budget is not good. Nevertheless, we must not remain silent as the contributions of school libraries, and library professionals and parapro-fessionals are being undervalued. Now is the time for action! We need to advocate for California school libraries at every opportunity.

One of the most exciting opportunities is the California Department of Education standards for school libraries. On October 29, 2009, Jack O’Connell, State Superintendent of Public Instruction, announced that the draft Model School Library Standards for California Public Schools is now available for review and public comment. “I encourage everyone to review the new, rigorous School Library Standards that are designed to help students prepare for success in the hypercompetitive global economy that is powered by information and knowledge,” O’Connell said. Barbara Jeffus and Susan Martimo are reading ideas and comments submitted online at http://www.cde.ca.gov/ci/cr/lb. Act now, the public review ends December 18!

http://www.yahoo.com/http://www.shmoop.com/http://www.cde.ca.gov/ci/cr/lb

2CSLA Newsletter, December 2009

California School Library

Association950 Glenn Drive, Suite 150

Folsom, CA 95630(916) 447-2684 | (916) 447-2695 Fax

[email protected] | www.csla.net

We have provided general staff respon-sibilities to assist you when contacting the office. If you are uncertain who on staff should address your question, please contact Deidre.Deidre BryantExecutive [email protected]

Office operations and •administrationExecutive Board liaison•Northern and Southern Sections •Board liaisonMembership development•Staff management•Staff liaison to Vice Presidents •and their respective committeesOversee Web site content •in conjunction with various committees

Carolyn Tienken CMPConference and Exhibits [email protected]

Conference program logistics •coordinationExhibits coordination•Conference Committee liaison•

Teri BeardenMembership Services [email protected]

Membership processing, new •and renewMembership database management•Conference registration•Journal advertising coordination•Administration support•Job Hotline coordination•Conference registration support•

Please update your records accordingly and forward to any departments for database and billing purposes.

A wonderful advocacy opportunity is the Best Sellers campaign! We need non-librarians to speak up for school libraries. Take the “Best Sellers” tutorial on Jackie Siminitis’ blog to learn how to create an effective public relations campaign. Stephen Krashen and Yvette Cabrera received the first two Advocate for School Libraries Awards, but we need a grassroots effort as well. Remember, “Schools that support the library program recognize that: Students deserve equitable access to school library resources; Library standards provide blueprints for strong school libraries; and Strong school libraries build strong students and life-long learners.” Dr. Doug Achterman’s research showed that “California public schools with strong school library programs outperform

those without such programs on the state’s STAR tests.” It’s on the CSLA Web site. Read and subscribe to http://caschoolli-

braries.pbworks.com/. And join the wiki to submit stories about what you do to improve student achievement.

CSLA membership benefits all of us. Invite library colleagues to: become members, volunteer for leadership positions, share innovative ideas, apply for CSLA awards, and take advantage of LISTA, the Library, Information, Science and Technology Abstracts database, the newest CSLA member benefit. Register for the free School Library Learning 2.0 at: http://schoollibrarylearning2.csla.net to learn to use Web 2.0 technology tools to engage students in learning. Invite classroom teachers to take a similar free Web 2.0 course, Classroom Learning 2.0. Volunteer to become a campus Web 2.0 coach and cheer along colleagues. And, keep checking www.csla.net for more ways to support California’s School Libraries.

Big hits at the conference were: the Book Cart Drill Team competition, in which every participant was a winner; the Library Follies, written and directed by John Mc Ginnis including outstanding performances by CSLA members and Hamilton HS Academy of Music students, Arianna Neikrug, Sean Eads and vocal jazz teacher, John Hamilton; and LAYApalooza, a game show orchestrated by the Los Angeles Young Adult Authors! Visit the CSLA Conference wiki, enthusiastically created and managed by social networking geek, Marie Slim, to read and write about the conference, post videos and photos, and see CSLA member blogs, tweets, and social networking pages. Use what you learned in the professional concurrent sessions, and embrace the serendipity of learning how to promote school libraries for the benefit of students, teachers, parents, and the school community.

Rosemarie Bernier CSLA State President

PresIdent’s Message

Continued from page 1

mailto:[email protected]://www.csla.netmailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]://bestsellers4schoollibraries.csla.net/http://caschoollibraries.pbworks.com/http://caschoollibraries.pbworks.com/http://schoollibrarylearning2.csla.net/http://www.csla.net/res/pdf/CL20Invite.pdfhttp://www.csla.net/http://csla2009.wikispaces.com/


LeadershIP FOr dIVersItY

LFd Was there!- By Grace R. Hernández

The Leadership for Diversity Committee was an important presence at the recent CSLA Conference. We were seen working hard at the Silent Auction, learning from our presenters at our concurrent session, “Diversity in Action,” and presenting scholarships and an award at the General Session.

Once the Silent Auction tables were relocated, it was encouraging to see our supporters starting bidding wars on some of our 125 plus items. Again you came through for us with your generosity either donating items for the auction or bidding on them. We extend our sincere gratitude to you for making the Silent Auction a fun and worthwhile endeavor helping us to continue funding our scholarships and award.

Saturday morning Merle Froshman and Susan Dubin made moving and unforgettable presentations at our “Diversity in Action!” concurrent session. Merle’s Power Point presentation took

us through planning and preparing for a trip to a school in Laos, which she says the natives call, “Lao.” We saw photos of her extremely warm welcoming by the villagers. The children danced for her and their parents included her in their daily chores and activities. Ordinary mundane things took on a very different twist. She shared books with paintings by her students expressing aspects of life in Santa Cruz. She also took necessary items and books to them that are in very short supply. Merle encourages travelers to consider a collaborative venture like hers. It was mutually beneficial on many levels. Look for her handouts at www.csla.net. Susan Dubin pointed out that Jewish American literature for children includes genres beyond Hanukkah and Holocaust books. She enticed us with a variety of genres from past to present. Her handouts are also available on the CSLA Web site. You will be amazed!

The CSLA LFD. Scholarships were presented to three worthy recipients, Kathryn Olson, Lily Moayeri, and Penelope Valdez. The CSLA-LFD Award for collaboration between a Teacher Librarian and classroom teacher/s went to Amanda Carter. All will be writing articles in the LFD column. We look forward to reading them and hope you do too!

We were there and we’d like for you to join in the fun next year.

Left to right: Sara Kelly Johns (past AASL president and honorary Californian), Marco

Torres, California Teacher of the Year, Jo Ellen Misakian, Sandy Schuckett, Ellie Goldstein-

Erickson, Mary Ann Harlan, and Crystal Miranda.

aasL in Charlotte, nC

http://www.csla.net


edUCatIOnaL teChnOLOgY

Cyberbullying: action v. reaction- By Seanean Shanahan, Technology Committee

When discussing the topic of cyberbullying, many tend to pass it off as “kids just being kids.” And in a way they are right. When we were in school, getting called a name was not unusual. Crude drawings with rude sayings were passed around the room, or even the school. People were hit or pushed, often for no other reason than because a bully wanted to do it. However, today there is a significant difference: technology.

Imagine being called a name online through emails, chats, IMs, texts, blogs, etc… and having that forwarded to you again and again and again. What about a picture that’s posted and morphed with programs like Photoshop that put your face on a dog’s body, or even worse, a picture of a naked body from a porn site, and then having that picture posted or forwarded around to friends, parents, teachers, and complete strangers. And then there are those fights that can be found so easily on sites like YouTube, where the bully hits or pushes you while friends film it and then upload it for all to see. This is the reality of our students today. This is even the reality of teachers, administrators, and community members today. This is the true danger of cyberbullying. Handling the issue of cyberbullying is really a question of action versus reaction. So far, most people have reacted to news articles and reacted to issues as they appear.

Now it’s time take action. It’s time to find out at least the basic capabilities of current and future technologies. It’s time to get an account at a social networking site, if only to find out how they work. It’s time to follow blogs and then create one of your own to model acceptable behavior for students. Teaching netiquette is important, but teaching empathy is essential. Since one of the reasons people cyberbully is because of the anonymity the Internet offers, it’s vital that we teach students that the person they are talking about or writing to is a person with feelings. The Golden Rule is even more valuable a lesson to teach than ever.

The National Crime Prevention Council (www.ncpc.org), in conjunction with the Ad Council (www.adcouncil.org), has created a series of PSAs and resources that can be downloaded and shared to teach about cyberbullying. Their tag line of “If you wouldn’t say it in person, why say it online?” speaks to the heart of the issue. Children are often “accidental cyberbullies” simply because they type or forward things that they would never say in a face-to-face encounter. If we can teach children about cyberbullying, how it works, how to stop it, and what to do if they become a victim, then we can empower them to negotiate technology safely and focus on all the positives that the Internet has to offer.

reCOMMended tItLes FOr sChOOL LIbrarIesAnderson, L. H. (2008). Twisted. New York, NY: Speak. Tyler has spent the summer paying for his tagging crime, but no one believes him when a nude picture of the girl he’s had a crush on gets forwarded around school and he’s been blamed.

Butcher, K. (2006). Chat Room. Victoria, BC: Orca Book Publishers. A modern Cyrano de Bergerac teaches that who you chat with online may not be who you think they are in the real world.

Myracle, L. (2004). Ttyl. New York, NY: Amulet Books. Told entirely in chat, one girl finds out the hard way what happens when you get a little out of control at a party after a picture of her dancing topless gets forwarded in emails to everyone at school.

Noël, A. (2007). Kiss & Blog. New York, NY: St. Martin. Two social outcast friends try to make it to the popular clique. One gets in and leaves the other behind and that girl creates a blog to spill all her former friend’s secrets.

Norris, S. (2008). Something to Blog About. New York, NY: Amulet Books. Libby Fawcett sets up a private blog as her personal journal, but there are consequences when her school nemesis finds it.

Ruby, L. (2009). Bad Apple. New York, NY: HarperTeen. No one believes Tola when she says that nothing happened with her art

teacher. But pictures never lie, right?

Ruby, L. (2006). Good Girls. New York, NY: HarperTeen. Audrey has goals of being at the top of her class during her senior year, but that all falls apart when a compromising picture of her gets forwarded around school. (Recommended for high school only.)

Wilhelm, D. (2003). The Revealers. New York, NY: Farrar, Straus and Giroux. When three victims come together to share their stories online of being bullied, there are some very surprising results. This is a book that shows the good things that technology can accomplish when used correctly.

Wishinsky, F. (2005). Queen of the Toilet Bowl. Victoria, BC: Orca Book Publishers. Renata’s mom is a cleaning woman, which has never been much of an issue for her until a picture of her mom titled “Queen of the Toilet Bowl” gets circulated around school.

http://www.ncpc.orghttp://www.adcouncil.org


Web PathWaYs

Cyberbullying Web sites- By Lesley Farmer, Technology Committee

Several Web sites offer tutorials or curriculum guidance about cyberbullying:

Digital Citizenship http://csla2008.pbworks.com/ - CSLA members’ repository of information, legislation, and lessons

How School Library Media Specialists Can Assist You: Internet Safety and Filtering Resources for parents from AASL http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/aasl/aboutaasl/aaslcommunity/quicklinks/el/elinternet.cfm

CTAP 4 Cybersafety Project http://www.ctap4.net/projects/cybersafety.html - Good descriptions of related issues as well as links to relevant sources

Cyber Safety Lesson http://www.coolcybersafetylessons.wikispaces.com - Fullerton UHSD presentations, videos, lessons, and rubrics

Cyber Safety for Children http://www.cybersafety.ca.gov/ California government site

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services http://mentalhealth.samhsa.gov/15plus/aboutbullying.asp - Focuses on communication between parents, caregivers, and children; includes PSAs, publications, and links

Federal Trade Commission Social Networking Sites http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/tech/tec14.htm - Tips on safely networking online

Cyberbullying and Civic Participation http://www.media-awareness.ca/english/resources/educational/lessons/secondary/cyber_bullying/cyberbullying_civic.cfm Canada’s Media Awareness Network lessons

Digizen Cyberbullying http://digizen.org/cyberbullying/ - This British Web site includes resources and guidance

CyberSmart http://www.cybersmartcurriculum.org/cyberbullying/ - A suite of K12 lessons for schools and the community

Center for Safe and Responsible Internet Use http://www.csriu.org - Provides research and outreach services to address issues of the safe and responsible use of the Internet; Nancy Willard is a national expert in the field

Wired Safety http:// www.wiredsafety.org/ - “The world’s largest Internet safety, help, and education resource”

I-Safe http:// www.isafe.org - “Non-profit foundation dedicated to protecting the online experiences of youth everywhere”

Internet Safety for Teens http://www.safeteens.com - Blog structure of resources

The following sites are kid-friendly:

National Center for Missing & Exploited Children http://www.NetSmartz.org and http://www.nsteens.org (for teens) - Resources targeted to stakeholders

That’s Not Cool http://www.thatsnotcool.com - Good animated scenarios

National Crime Prevention Council http://www.mcgruffspo.com/cybersafetysat.html - Dog Detective McGruff helps kids keep safe

Stop Bullying Now Campaign http://www.stopbullyingnow.hrsa.gov - Cartoon characters guide youngsters in safe behavior (includes adult area)

Teen Angels (part of Wired Safety) http://teenangels.org - A group of thirteen to eighteen year old volunteers that have been specially trained in all aspects of online safety, privacy, and security

Let Me Know http://lmk.girlscouts.org (the site for girls) and http://letmeknow.girlscouts.org (for adults) Girl Scouts of the U.S.A. offers useful facts and guidance

http://csla2008.pbworks.com/http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/aasl/aboutaasl/aaslcommunity/quicklinks/el/elinternet.cfmhttp://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/aasl/aboutaasl/aaslcommunity/quicklinks/el/elinternet.cfmhttp://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/aasl/aboutaasl/aaslcommunity/quicklinks/el/elinternet.cfmhttp://www.ctap4.net/projects/cybersafety.htmlhttp://www.ctap4.net/projects/cybersafety.htmlhttp://www.coolcybersafetylessons.wikispaces.comhttp://www.coolcybersafetylessons.wikispaces.comhttp://www.cybersafety.ca.gov/http://mentalhealth.samhsa.gov/15plus/aboutbullying.asphttp://mentalhealth.samhsa.gov/15plus/aboutbullying.asphttp://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/tech/tec14.htmhttp://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/tech/tec14.htmhttp://www.media-awareness.ca/english/resources/educational/lessons/secondary/cyber_bullying/cyberbullying_civic.cfmhttp://www.media-awareness.ca/english/resources/educational/lessons/secondary/cyber_bullying/cyberbullying_civic.cfmhttp://www.media-awareness.ca/english/resources/educational/lessons/secondary/cyber_bullying/cyberbullying_civic.cfmhttp://digizen.org/cyberbullying/http://www.cybersmartcurriculum.org/cyberbullying/http://www.cybersmartcurriculum.org/cyberbullying/http://www.csriu.orghttp://www.csriu.orghttp://www.wiredsafety.org/http://www.isafe.orghttp://www.safeteens.comhttp://www.nsteens.orghttp://www.thatsnotcool.comhttp://www.mcgruffspo.com/cybersafetysat.htmlhttp://www.mcgruffspo.com/cybersafetysat.htmlhttp://www.stopbullyingnow.hrsa.govhttp://www.stopbullyingnow.hrsa.govhttp://teenangels.orghttp://lmk.girlscouts.org/http://letmeknow.girlscouts.org/


bOOKends: JUnIOr

reaching beyond the Library Walls- By Claire Scott, Emerson School, Berkeley Unified School District

Like many new school librarians I inherited a library that had been run by the same dedicated librarian for decades. She had fostered a love of reading in our students at each grade level. The library was a self-contained bubble of lovely books, a space where every student enjoyed coming for fifteen minutes of storytime and fifteen minutes of check-out each week. Students, teachers, and parents perceived library time as a quiet, gentle opportunity to hear a good story, an oasis in the busy day.

An institution like that is a tough act to follow, especially for a young tattooed librarian in her first elementary library position. Like many recent MLIS grads, my concepts of libraries’ responsi-bilities were miles away from my predecessor’s. I needed to come up with ways to convince administrators, teachers, and parents that the library was not only a pleasant space but a vital place where both teachers and students could find information.

As I explored ways to expand the role of the library within the school community it became clear that many public library best practices—especially around outreach—were equally relevant to school libraries. The key part in changing community perceptions of my school library was building strong relationships beyond the library’s walls. I soon learned that the outreach that began changing our community’s perceptions of the library didn’t take much time, wasn’t too onerous, had big payoff, and received great feedback.

The first step was making useful connections with teachers so that I could address their information needs. I asked to attend the staff retreat, staff meetings, and grade-level team meetings, and made sure that my lunch break was staggered throughout the week so that I could spend social time with teachers from each grade level. I started the year with surveys about what three pathfinders each teachers would find most useful in the first semester. I went to each classroom to make sure that the library catalogue was bookmarked on each teacher’s computer. The principal agreed to send me copies of the grade level lesson scopes so that library lessons and read-alouds could use the scaffolding that teachers were building in the classroom. It turned out that all my enthusiastic Web 2.0 ideas, like a wiki with booklists, had a lower payoff than simply spending time going to classrooms and talking to teachers about how the library could make their lives easier and their lessons stronger, and taking it from there. Two years later, teacher perceptions of the library have shifted dramatically: circulation is up significantly, teachers are willing to innovate and collaborate with me in the library and the classroom, and perhaps most importantly, they view the library and librarian as a primary place to go for supporting their curriculum and building strong and enthusiastic readers.

Shifting the culture of the library meant shifting the way teachers think about the library, but also shifting the way families think about the library. I wanted to start the year by building strong relationships with parents. I made sure the library presence was everywhere: talking about raising lifelong readers at the new parent breakfast; booktalking and answering questions at the first PTA meeting; attending Back-To-School night; and talking about books and readers with every parent who was willing to take a few minutes. A simple one-page quarterly newsletter was an easy way to communicate the exciting things happening in our little school library.

Thanks to a library presence at that first PTA meeting, parents approached me about helping out in the library. I spread the word among teachers that the library would be happy to take any volunteer that they wanted out of the classroom, no matter how difficult. Volunteers can be a lot of work, but the benefits to my library have been huge.With helpful hands processing books in-house I am able to accept donations and stretch my budget with inexpensive used books that strengthen our collection. The time that I’m not shelving frees me up to leave the library and assist in classroom research projects, or to build booklists for use around the district. The library offers endless volunteer opportunities that can be personalized for anybody’s skill set, from shelf-reading to checking out books. By welcoming parents as volunteers, we increased the parents’ sense of ownership in the library.

Family library cards seemed like a natural progression in increasing students’ access to books by welcoming families into the library. The setup was relatively painless and the payoff has been wonder-ful; families who cannot regularly access the public library are able to share more books than ever before, including with younger siblings and cousins. Parents and grandparents can check out books in the school library when they drop off or pick up their child, or can send an email or a note asking for books that I can then send home with their child. Two months after creating a family library card policy, more than 25% of families signed up for school library cards. While many of these are families who go to the public library regularly, more than half are families who can’t get to a library nearby because of hours or access.

These outreach efforts have changed the way that our school community views the library. Teachers see the library as an information resource, not simply a place where students can hear a good story. Families feel like the school library is their family’s library, a space where they feel comfortable and welcomed. Students know that the library is exciting and different, a place to find information and graphic novels alongside their old favorites. I love working in a school library because of the deep relationships that grow with students; the luckiest thing I’ve done as a new school librarian was to break down the library’s walls to make those connections as strong and diverse as our school community.


bOOKends: senIOr

how Can You help?-By Linda Birtler, Teacher Librarian Retired/Library Consultant

When I entered the field of school library media, I began in a private school system in Ontario. There I provided library services for less than 300 students at the high school, and regularly visited and assisted the skilled and caring library paraprofessionals who served the elementary and middle school campus. That was more than 30 years ago, and my career in serving students, staff, and community both in the private and public setting was filled with fantastic opportunities, seemingly overwhelming challenges, and the chance to meet and make friends with some of the best people in education—my fellow teacher librarians and library paraprofessionals!

When I was asked to run for office on the CSLA (CMLEA) southern section board, I was honoured and horrified at the same time. I had two children still active in middle school, and I was their main chauffeur. How could I find the time to participate in this remarkable organization? I don’t know for sure what made me say yes to the opportunity, but I do know that this experience steered my career and my ability to serve my colleagues and students to impressive new levels. Serving on the CSLA board with more experienced colleagues helped me to develop new ways of viewing the challenges of our profession. It gave me an inside track on what was happening at the state level. I became part of the decision making concerning the most important issues at the state level. What a thrill to see some of the ideas suggested by our section become policy for the organization. What a challenge to try to represent the interests of our members and their students and staffs. What a blessing to meet and get to know other library folks across the state who passionately fought to make California school libraries the best in the nation. The friends I met continue to bring great joy to my life both professionally and personally. These are the folks that make me smile, expand my thinking and help me reach to be the best that I can be.

Why do I write about these past experiences? Foremost, I want to thank all of you who shared your time, expertise, and friendship with me througout the years, but mostly, I want to encourage all of you who are still impacting the lives of our young people to become more involved in CSLA leadership. Serve on the section board, or on a state committee, or even as a state officer. You may think that you cannot possibly find the time, but I assure you that you cannot possibly overlook the opportunity! Check the Web site today to see how you can help. In this time of dismal funding our strength comes from the pooling of great ideas and the synergy that we can generate when we school library folks get focused on making California school libraries the place where learning happens!

CaLIFOrnIa dePartMent OF edUCatIOn

Progress report on school Library standards - By Barbara Jeffus, CDE Liaison

The draft Model School Library Standards are available for public comment through December 18. If you would like to weigh in on concepts great or small, please go to http://www.cde.ca.gov/ci/cr/lb/ for the draft and the official response form. You will note that the latter is a Word document that can grow to accommodate as many suggestions you care to share.

Susan Martimo and I want to thank the November focus group participants in Sacramento and in Costa Mesa for their time, travel, and thoughtful ideas! We are starting the process of reviewing the suggestions from these two groups as well as those submitted using the form.

At this stage, the most frequently asked questions include:

nIt says in the draft that the standards are statutorily required. Does this mean they are mandatory? No. Having library standards approved by the State Board of Education is required as specified in Education Code 18101. That is what is statutorily required. It does not say schools are required to adopt them.

nWhy are they “model” standards? They are suggested rather than mandatory. While none of the California content standards are required, assessment and textbook adoption make it prudent to address them. When the library standards are correlated with the core content standards, it should make a compelling case for integrating them into instruction.

nWill schools get funding for libraries when the standards are approved by the State Board of Education? At this point, no. However, having SBE-approved standards can lead to legislation that in turn can lead to improved funding for school libraries.

nWhy isn’t there more information in the draft about how to teach, how to collaborate, or how to implement the standards at each grade? Every group consulted about the standards made it clear they want the library standards to look like those in other subjects. Strategies and examples for using the standards traditionally come in a second docu-ment, the framework. The standards delineate what students should know and be able to do at each grade level or grade span. Each student is expected to successfully achieve these standards by the end of each grade level or grade span.

Help us improve the document by submitting your suggestions now and keeping a good thought about an enthusiastic SBE approval in March 2010.

http://www.cde.ca.gov/ci/cr/lb/http://www.cde.ca.gov/ci/cr/lb/


LegIsLatIVe LIaIsOn

race to the top; a never-ending race? - By Jeff Frost, Legislative Liaison

FederaL raCe tO the tOP eFFOrts heat UP In CaLIFOrnIa

As a part of the federal American Recover and Reinvestment Act stimulus program implemented by the Obama Administration in 2009, there is a segment called the Race to the Top (RTTT) program. This program, which contains $4.3 billion in one-time competitive grant funds, is designed to spur states toward making progress on four specific reforms areas: 1) Development of high-quality standards and assessments, 2) Implementation of data systems that support instruction, 3) Expansion of programs to improve the effectiveness of teachers and principals, and 4) expanding support for each state’s lowest performing schools.

gOVernOr taKes Lead In eFFOrts tO WIn a rttt grant

On August 20, 2009, Governor Schwarzenegger officially an-nounced a fifth extraordinary legislative session to ensure that “California meets the Obama Administration’s eligibility require-ments to be highly competitive for Race to the Top funding.” As a part of this effort, the Governor is sponsoring SB x5 1, which is being authored by Senators Romero (D-Los Angeles) and Huff (R-Diamond Bar).

senate aPPrOVes bILL On narrOW VOte

In November 2009, the Senate approved SB 5x 1 on a vote of 21 to 12 and sent the bill on to the Assembly. All Republican members supported the bill along with Democratic members Steinberg, Romero, Simitian, Alquist, Cedillo, Florez, Price, and Kehoe. All other Democratic members either voted no or abstained from voting. Part of the reason for the narrow vote was the level of controversial issues in the bill. As it was presented in the Senate, the bill contained language that allows the use of student test data for purposes of teacher evaluation, a provision for expanding the number of charter schools and an open enrollment policy for all students. These provisions generated opposition from the Califor-nia Teachers Association, Association of California School Admin-istrators, and the California School Boards Association.

The Governor issued the following statement of approval of the Senate’s action: “The Senate’s action takes us one step closer toward a historic victory for California’s schools. I called this special legislative session and proposed this package because as elected leaders we must do everything in our power to improve our schools and secure additional funding from President Obama’s multi-bil-lion dollar national education funding competition. I urge the state Assembly to immediately pass this historic education reform package to unlock hundreds of millions of federal education dollars for our children.”

COntent OF senate VersIOn

SB 5X 1, as amended on November 3, does all of the following:

1) Use of Test Data - Repeals existing law that prohibits the use of data in the state’s teacher database (CALTIDES), alone or with data on pupil achievement from another state database (CALPADS), for the purposes of employ-ment decisions or evaluation of teachers. This data can only be used in accordance with the collective bargaining procedures. The language in the bill that specifically tied the use of data to the Education Code sections on the teacher evaluation process or the section establishing compensation have been removed.

2) Charter Schools - Repeals a statutory limit on the number of charter schools in the state and requires the Superinten-dent of Public Instruction to convene a working group to make recommendations to the Legislature on existing processes for authorization, revocation, and renewal of charter schools and the extent to which the state provides facilities for charter schools.

3) Open Enrollment - Establishes an open enrollment option to allow pupils in low performing schools to transfer to public schools in other districts based on a specific priority list and subject to specified restrictions. Low performing schools are defined as being in decile 1 to 3 and identified in the 2008-09 school year as being eligible for the High Priority Grant Program pursuant to Section 52055.605.

4) Lowest Performing Schools - Provides for identification of the persistently lowest performing 5% of schools in the state, requires parent and employee notification and requires the SPI and SBE to direct each identified low performing school to take at least one of three actions: a) reopen the school as a public charter school, b) replace all or most of the school staff, or c) enter into a contract with an entity with a demonstrated record of effectiveness to operate the school.

5) Requires the Fiscal Crisis Management and Assistance Team to convene a task force to develop and submit recommendations to the Legislature for a standardized process for reporting of financial and accounting data and for providing annual independent financial and compli-ance audits for charter schools on or before December 1, 2010, as specified.

asseMbLY IntrOdUCes Its OWn VersIOn OF rttt

New Race to the Top legislation was introduced in the Assembly on December 3, and it is clearly a proposal to give voice to the many concerns expressed by the major education groups and others regarding what California’s participation in RTTT should look like.


AB 5x 8 (Brownley) is an alternative to the administration’s proposal embodied in Senate Bill 5x 1 (Romero). The school community and many in the Legislature were especially concerned with the proposals in SB 5x 1 dealing with required open enroll-ment for decile 1 - 3 schools, the definition of and sanctions to be imposed on “persistently low-performing” schools, and the lack of additional accountability requirements on charter schools.

In response to some of these concerns, the Assembly has now introduced its own version of what they think the state’s RTTT plan should look like, and it goes in some very interesting and controversial directions. It contains significant new charter school accountability provisions, very prescriptive requirements as to how persistently low-performing schools should be identified, support-ed, and funded, and it includes a detailed, but relatively broad, set of parameters governing how recipient districts could spend the funds. The Assembly bill also takes on the State Board of Educa-tion, including language that would remove its authority to amend the content standards developed by the state superintendent, requiring the Board to adopt them as presented. This bill was scheduled to be heard in the Assembly Education Committee on December 9 and based on the outcome negotiations on a final version will take place between legislative leaders and the Governor.

rttt gUIdeLInes set – the raCe begIns

The U.S Department of Education has finalized the guidelines for Race to the Top and established criteria and a point system to determine the value of each state’s application. For the first round, each state’s application is due on January 19, 2010, and funding awards for Phase I will be announced during April 2010. Each state submitting an application will be judged on criteria that will total 500 points. The criteria will include the following areas and each segment will have a point value: 1) Standards and assessment including the development of common core standards and assessments; 2) Data systems to support instruction including fully implementing a statewide longitudinal data system and using data to improve instruction; 3) Effective teachers and leaders who will include improving teacher and principal effectiveness and provid-ing high-quality pathways and improving the effectiveness of teacher and principal preparation programs; 4) Turning around lowest-performing schools including intervening in lowest perform-ing schools; 5) Charter school expansion and innovation; and 6) Implementing science, technology, engineering, and mathematics programs. In the end, what is not known is how many grants will be approved.

rttt grant FUndIng & sUstaInabILItY OF reFOrMs

It is too early to know how many states will win grants that will total $4.3 billion. The funding for each state receiving a grant will be predicated on the number of school districts that have signed a memorandum of understanding with the state promising to participate in the reforms outlined in the state’s application. The larger the number of districts participating, the larger the grant will be for that state. The estimate by the state’s legislative analyst is that

California is likely to receive somewhere around $700 million if it is successful. Additionally, the goals of the California application can be funded with School Improvement Grant funds and federal data and assessment grant funds. However, because the funds are one-time in nature, there are concerns in the school community that ongoing multi-year reforms will not be able to be sustained in this time of fiscal austerity.

Is rttt a LOOK at the FUtUre?

Finally, the Race to the Top program is likely to mirror the ongoing approach that will be used by the Obama administration as it seeks to reauthorize the No Child Left Behind Act and Elementary and Secondary Education Act. The President and Secretary Duncan are focused on the fundamental objectives of high standards, data systems that support instruction, developing quality teachers and principals, and fully supporting low performing schools. So, while RTTT is actually a modestly funded, one-time program, it probably shows the road to the future. California’s policymakers ignore these priorities at its peril if they do not pursue Race to the Top funds aggressively.


PUbLIC reLatIOns

California school Library standards – building dynamic Public relations!- By Glenn Warren, Public Relations Committee

For the past several years California has worked to establish digital literacy and cyber citizenship standards in some kind of official capacity—with frustrating results. The current process of writing the California School Library Standards holds out hope that these essential aspects of 21st century information literacy will at last find an academic home this year! School districts in California have struggled to answer the questions: “What should our kids know?” and “When should they know it?” Could it be that the new California School Library Standards could answer these questions? YES! The hope is that our new School Library Standards will provide standards that support the use of social networking, personal learning networks (PLN), digital file sharing, reputation management, cyber safety, ethical use of information, and much more. This will provide us with very positive public relations opportunities.

At the time this article was written, we have confirmation that the California State PTA and the Computer Using Educators (CUE) will be assisting in the Focus Group work in Sacramento and Costa Mesa this month. The PTA has joined the effort because of their shared interest in cyber citizenship, and CUE has joined the effort because of their shared commitment to the advancement of clear digital literacy standards for California.

Could it be that the school library standards are having a shared ownership effect on educational leadership? YES! Let us work so that as more groups outside of librarianship understand the essential nature of the these library standards and share ownership with us, more will join us in the conviction that it is essential for all students to be taught using the California School Library Standards!

What CYber dIFFerenCe dO teaCher LIbrarIans MaKe? – PLentY!It is very exciting to report just a few examples of how CSLA Southern Section Teacher Librarians are making a difference in the K12 cyber citizenship world. Within the past few months we have witnessed Teacher Librarians working together with the FBI SOS program (http://www.fbi-sos.org/) to create a brand new program call the Smart AUP (http://aup.fbi-sos.org/), a national online assessment that helps move the standard district acceptable use policy from being just a signed piece of paper to something that provides valuable data for the individual school about the level of each student’s AUP comprehension.

CSLA Southern Section Teacher Librarians also conceived a new program called Cyber Hero that will have a pilot launch in December 2009. Cyber Hero was created by Teacher Librarians collaborating with Woogi World (http://www.woogiworld.com/), a kindergarten to third grader Web 2.0 virtual world that is parent/child centric. Cyber Hero concept limits Woggi World to only the

Cyber Citizenship lessons where the young student teaches his/her woogi how to stay out of trouble and be a good citizen in the cyber world. Cyber Hero is teacher/student centric and provides valuable data to the teacher/administrator on the progress on each of their youngest students’ cyber citizenship progress and learning.

One last example of how our Southern Section Teacher Librarians are making a cyber difference is the amazing K12 program call Cyber Smart Week. This one week program, which is easy to implement and adjusts the content for the age group learning, was created primarily by Teacher Librarians in the Santa Ana Unified School District. Originally called Cyber Safety Week, the revised program was created by the Orange County Department of Education for free use by any school or district that would like to use the material. Newport Mesa Unified School District has generalized the original documents so that any school can adapt it for their own use. View the generalized Cyber Smart Week materials at http://web.nmusd.us/cybersmartweek.

These examples illustrate how Teacher Librarians are essential for 21st Century Learning, digital literacy, and cyber citizenship mastery. If you know of other outstanding ways Teacher Librarians are taking the cyber lead, please contact the Public Relations Committee Chair at [email protected].

http://www.fbi-sos.org/http://aup.fbi-sos.org/http://www.woogiworld.com/http://web.nmusd.us/cybersmartweekmailto:[email protected]


SOUTHERN SNIPPETS

- By Melody Hubbard, Southern Section Editor

southern section board goes Virtual

While Southern Section is planning some great live events this year, we are also going “virtual.” We held our first-ever virtual board meeting using Elluminate software on October 3. And, in January, we will host our first-ever Webinar, with acclaimed Teacher Librarian and Web 2.0 guru, Joyce Valenza, presenting “Top 10 Web 2.0 Tools for Learning.” The Webinar, running from 10 AM to 12 Noon on January 23, will be available to all CSLA members as a free event. We will provide details about how to sign in or attend from a “satellite” location. The Webinar is being coordinated by our Region 4 Reps, Marie Slim and Joy Millam.

Other upcoming events include our All-Region Workshop on March 27. This all-day event will be held this year at Palms Middle School, 10860 Woodbine Street, in Los Angeles. Palms is conve-niently located right near the 405 and 10 freeways.

Region 6 held a great event at Barnes & Noble in Redlands on October 10. Each of the other regions has events planned for after the New Year. Please feel free to contact your region reps or any of the Southern Section Board members with questions or comments. We look forward to hearing from you!

NORTHERN NOTES

-By Donnine Davis, Northern Section Editor

Workshops are beginning in the North. We also now have a Google site available to check for future workshop dates etcetera at http://sites.google.com/site/cslanorthernsection/.

Announcing a Webinar with Joyce Valenza: January 23, Anywhere! Joyce Valenza on “Top 10 Web 2.0 Tools for Learning”—This is an unusual opportunity interact directly with Dr. Joyce Valenza, the inspirational Teacher Librarian who has a great blog on the School Library Journal Web site called NeverEndingSearch. Currently your Region reps are working on locations for members to meet to share this conference. Can’t make it to a regional site? In the San Ramon Valley Unified School District, Dougherty Valley High School will be hosting the librarians in our district for this fantastic opportu-nity to share and collaborate. Start planning now with the librar-ians in your district for your own event.

If you were unable to attend this year’s CSLA conference you missed a great one. The sessions were inspiring and very informa-tive. Inspiring sessions I attended were presented by Tom Nixon on Moodle, George Pilling on the serendipity of writing, Sandra Yoon on grant writing, and Glenn Warren on Interactive white boards and video conferencing. Another favorite, that I missed, was the wonderful and talented Winner twins. If you missed one or all of the sessions, many of the sessions have handouts that are posted on the CSLA Web site.

Although the outlook for California’s budget for the next few years is bleak many “free” tools were featured at the conference as part of Web 2.0. Plus don’t forget to take advantage of other opportunities presented in your area. Besides regional workshops, many county education offices offer free or reduced seminars find a list at your county office of education’s Web site.

PresIdentJane [email protected]

Past PresIdentPam [email protected]

PresIdent eLeCtJanice [email protected]

seCretarYKathie [email protected]

treasUrerSandy [email protected]

regIOn 1 rePsMark [email protected] Hartsell [email protected]

regIOn 2 rePsLaurel Bullock [email protected] [email protected]

regIOn 3 rePsBarbara [email protected] [email protected]

regIOn 4 rePsJoy [email protected] [email protected]

regIOn 5 rePsDora [email protected] [email protected]

regIOn 6 rePsMark [email protected] St. [email protected]

http://sites.google.com/site/cslanorthernsection/http://sites.google.com/site/cslanorthernsection/http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/blog/1340000334.html?nid=3714mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]


CsLa Introduces the “best sellers” Campaign for strong school Libraries21st CentUrY sChOOL LIbrarIes bUILd 21st CentUrY Learnershttp://bestsellers4schoollibraries.csla.net/

A robust school library program encourages and sustains 21st Century learners. Schools that support the library program recognize that:

Students deserve equitable access• to school library resources.Library standards• provide blueprints for strong school libraries.Strong school libraries build strong students• and life-long learners.

The “Best Sellers” tutorial provides a template for developing a vibrant public awareness campaign. It infuses non-librarian spokespersons or “Best Sellers” with the knowledge and tools to promote strong school libraries. This is a grassroots strategy* designed to assist you in promoting your own local school and/or other libraries, using common messages and vocabulary, thus promoting strong school libraries for all students. Keep reading!

Strong school libraries don’t happen overnight. They are built by teaching literacy skills, year after year. Vital programs are numerous and visible to the school community. Activities that enhance student learning are marketed in a variety of ways to multiple audiences.

A strong school library program is the cornerstone of a healthy school. School libraries require buy-in from administrators, programs based on state standards, enactment of state and national literacy standards, high visibility, and strong, commit-ted advocates. This tutorial provides a blueprint for teacher librarians to develop “Best Sellers” for their own library program and for the profession.

OVerVIeW

“Best Sellers” Campaign for Strong School Libraries - Q&AWhy School Libraries? Top 5 ReasonsWhat is a Strong School Library - spell it out!

IdentIFYIng and InVItIng “best seLLers”

Who do you know?How do you invite? Thank-you HANDOUT and more!Sharing the good news. Register your advocates.

FOLLOW-UPKeep your “Best Sellers” informed.Stay on Message * grassroots = CSLA members

Membership Participation:that Means YOU!

“Grassroots” refers to lots of local actions, leading to larger results. CSLA members are urged to do one or more (preferably all!) of the following:

1. Use and repeat (3) key messages.

Students deserve• equitable access to libraries.School Library• Standards provide blueprints for strong school libraries.Strong school libraries build strong students and •lifelong learners.

2. Identify and invite 1-3 individuals to be an official “Best Seller” for strong school libraries. Take the SHORT tutorial, then take action! REGISTER your “Best Sellers” – it is so easy and fun! Yet oh-so-important to develop an informed pool of advocates. TUTORIAL = http://www.csla.net/bestsellers

3. Start an Athletes as Readers and Leaders program in your district. Share link with your athletic director, etc. We have created a “how-to” tutorial, complete with a high-energy music video by Napa’s Kate MacMillan. The program is a win-win-win one, especially for our students. TUTORIAL = http://athletereadersleaders.csla.net/

4. CSLA engaged storyteller Joe McHugh to create an Audio Journal—a collection of audio stories of how a school library or librarian made a difference in your life or the life of a student or adult. Joe interviewed numerous individuals before and during the CSLA conference. If you have a story to tell or wish to invite Joe McHugh to your school, please work directly with Joe McHugh. See http://www.joem-chugh.info/

5. Register for and Promote CSLA professional develop-ment tutorials. In addition to helping your school embrace 21st Century teaching tools, they increase the visibility of you and your professional organization.

School Library Learning 2.• 0 = http://www.schoolli-brarylearning2.csla.net/

Classroom Learning 2.• 0 = http://www.classroomlearn-ing2.csla.net/ and http://www.csla.net/pdf/CL20Youare-invited2009.pdf (flyer)

Discovering Assistive Technolog• y = http://www.discoveringat.csla.net/ and http://www.csla.net/pdf/DiscoveringAssistiveTechnology.pdf (flyer)

http://bestsellers4schoollibraries.csla.net/http://bestsellers4schoollibraries.csla.net/http://bestsellers4schoollibraries.blogspot.com/2008/03/best-sellers-campaign-for-strong-school.htmlhttp://bestsellers4schoollibraries.blogspot.com/2008/03/why-strong-school-libraries.htmlhttp://bestsellers4schoollibraries.blogspot.com/2008/03/what-is-strong-school-library.htmlhttp://bestsellers4schoollibraries.blogspot.com/2009/08/identifying-best-sellers.htmlhttp://bestsellers4schoollibraries.blogspot.com/2009/08/inviting-best-sellers.htmlhttp://www.csla.net/bestsellers/BestSellersCampaignFlyer2009.pdfhttp://bestsellers4schoollibraries.blogspot.com/2009/08/welcome.htmlhttp://cholla.forest.net/schoollibrary/bestsellers/FMPro?-db=bestsellers.fp5&-lay=Web&-format=new.htm&-viewhttp://bestsellers4schoollibraries.blogspot.com/2008/05/strengths-academic-libraries.htmlhttp://bestsellers4schoollibraries.blogspot.com/2009/08/message.htmlhttp://www.csla.net/bestsellershttp://www.csla.net/bestsellershttp://athletereadersleaders.csla.net/http://www.joemchugh.info/http://www.joemchugh.info/http://schoollibrarylearning2.blogspot.com/http://www.schoollibrarylearning2.csla.net/http://www.schoollibrarylearning2.csla.net/http://classroomlearning2.blogspot.com /http://www.classroomlearning2.csla.net/http://www.classroomlearning2.csla.net/http://www.csla.net/pdf/CL20Youareinvited2009.pdfhttp://www.csla.net/pdf/CL20Youareinvited2009.pdfhttp://discoveringat.blogspot.com/http://www.discoveringat.csla.net/http://www.discoveringat.csla.net/http://www.csla.net/pdf/DiscoveringAssistiveTechnology.pdfhttp://www.csla.net/pdf/DiscoveringAssistiveTechnology.pdf


950 Glenn Drive, Suite 150Folsom, CA 95630(916) 447-2684

Calendar Click here to visit CSLA’s online calendar page >>>

InformationCalifornia School Library Association Newsletter, the official publication of the California School Library Association, is published ten times a year and sent to all members.

MembershipProfessional ($100), Associate ($45), Paraprofessional ($45), Students ($45), Commercial ($100), Institutional ($125), Sustaining ($500).

address correspondence toCSLA Newsletter, 950 Glenn Drive, Suite 150, Folsom CA 95630 (916) 447-2684

deadlineAll material for the next issue of the CSLA Newsletter is due to: Susan Maass ([email protected]) by December 15, 2009.

NewsletterEditors:Susan MaassState [email protected]

Donnine DavisNorthern Section [email protected]

Melody HubbardSouthern Section Editor [email protected]

Column Contributors:Grace HernandezLeadership for Diversity [email protected]

Pam OehlmanLegislation [email protected]

Barbara JeffusLiaison, [email protected]

Sandy SchuckettLiaison, [email protected]

Glen WarrenPublic Relations [email protected]

Lesley FarmerTechnology [email protected]

editorial board

Office:Deidre BryantExecutive [email protected]

Teri BeardenMembership Services [email protected]

Tracy BrownDirector of Creative Services and Web [email protected]

Carolyn Tienken CMPConference & Exhibits [email protected]

Dawn WoodStaff [email protected]

CSLA Web site addresswww.csla.net

Volume 33 Number 4 | December 2009

December 12, 2009 Northern Section Workshop | Contemporary Jewish Museum

January 9, 2010 Southern Section | Board Meeting

January 23, 2010 Northern Section | Webinar featuring Joyce Valenza, “Top 10 Web 2.0 Tools for Learning” 10:00 am-12:00 noon

January 23, 2010 Southern Section | Webinar, coordinated by Region 4 - featuring Joyce Valenza, “Top 10 Web 2.0 Tools for Learning” 10:00 am-12:00 noon

http://www.csla.net/calendarmailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]://www.csla.net

LEADERSHIP FOR DIVERSITYEDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGYWEB PATHWAYSBOOKENDS: JUNIORBOOKENDS: SENIORCalifornia Department of EducationLEGISLATIVE LIAISONPUBLIC RELATIONSNORTHERN NOTESSOUTHERN SNIPPETSCalendarClick here to visit CSLA’s online calendar page >>>

embracing the serendipity of learning -...

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