reflective journal: the aasl's 9 common beliefs

Read the 9 Common Beliefs (AASL_Learning_Standards_2007.pdf). Do you agree with them? What concerns you? excites you? is interesting? What questions do you have? How do they relate to current educational paradigms, philosophies, and/or policies?

God bless the AASL. Here’s to the researchers, educators, and librarians who thoughtfully codified these nine beliefs and learning standards. (Incidentally, I’m curious to compare the AASL library standards with those adopted by the California Department of Education this week, to see where they overlap and where they don’t.)

So, yes. The short version is: I’m on board with these common beliefs.

Here’s the longer version:

The AASL’s Common Beliefs strike me as a very pragmatic, thoughtful, forward-thinking collection of tenets that would serve as a useful guide for school library professionals, particularly pre-service librarians. I started my first school library job last week and I am thrilled to have a guide like this as I begin my first foray into this profession.

I like that these beliefs address specific and important components of the LIS realm, but are broad enough to be applied in a variety of contexts. I’m amazed and baffled that while educators across disciplines echo the sentiments of these beliefs and consider them among best practices, our educational system is so focused on discrete skills, standards, and testing, testing, testing. Who’s got time for inquiry? Sheesh.

I was struck by the inclusion of “texts in all formats” in the first belief, Reading is a window to the world. Raising pictures and video to the level of print is appropriate, I think, but potentially controversial. I appreciated also the assertion that reading includes decoding and comprehension of texts, but extends into critical thinking skills too. I like the focus on creating independent learners. It seems to me that a main theme of this document is that today’s students must learn how to reliably and critically evaluate information for themselves. Cultivating an attitude of inquiry and curiosity aids in the development of information literacy, especially when coupled with the technical and technological skills to support that curiosity. The emphasis on equity is an important one, as is the call for teaching ethical behavior. That learning has a social context isn’t a new idea in the world of education, but it was interesting to see this belief reconceptualized and applied to the digital world.

I especially appreciated the last belief: School libraries are essential to the development of learning skills. To me, the breadth of the Common Beliefs is a positive and a potential negative at the same time. That these core ideas could be applied to all aspects of school curricula is a testament to their relevance and usefulness. Inquiry-based learning in a social context is a concept that educators across disciplines can get behind, as are equitable access, ethical behavior, and the development of information literacy and technology skills. It is crucial, though that we as LIS professionals continuously make the case that these types of learning and skill building happen potently in libraries, and we must make sure that they do. In other words, reading books in the classroom isn’t enough, nor is working toward equity in only non-library areas of the curriculum. It seems to me (if my wiki research is any indication), that school librarians must continuously justify their role. The AASL’s Common Beliefs seems like a good way to start.