Whilst scanning the job vacancies this weekend (it doesn't hurt to look!) I came across a job title that I had not heard of before: An Information Architect. I did some googling and came up with this expalnantion, "effective information architecture enables people to step logically through a system confident they are getting closer to the information they require". So I figured that the "architect" is the person responsible for establishing and maintaining the system i.e website, intranet containing the information. No easy feat I'm sure!
Whilst it seemed amusing at first to imagine a diligent architect sitting at a desk designing a building made entirely of sources of information, it later proved to be more relevant to me than I had first thought. In a sense you could say that a teacher-librarian also fulfils some of the same roles of an "information architect". After all, a TL works in a co-operative partnership with classroom teachers so that all parties are "confident they are getting closer to the information they require".
From the Topic 1 readings Herring's report stated that the school library needed to be seen as a "centre for learning first, [and a] centre for resources second" and that students need to be taught how to apply their information skills "irrespective of what technology they are using". With this (and the image of a leaning tower of books strapped together with computer cables) in mind, I would hope that when my colleagues see our TL at the staff briefing tomorrow morning they will come to appreciate that she is more than just the lady in the library who re-stocks the shelves.
Hello fellow student!
ReplyDeleteInformation Architect. I like it! What a great interpretation you have of what I'm also beginning to understand what the teacher librarian role is to be. I think we really do 'build' the learning community. We oversea it. We don't just maintain it. Great picture!