Week 11: Observing Middle and High School Media Centers

 

Title: Observing Middle and High School Media Centers
Grade Level: 6-8, 9-12
Duration: 16 hours (two 8-hour days)

Summary:

Over the past two weeks, I had the opportunity to spend a day at two fantastic schools, Union Grove Middle School and Tri-Cities High School.

At Union Grove Middle School, I immediately noticed a big difference from elementary schools in my district. The media specialist is not responsible for teaching classes. Instead, students came in throughout the day to check out books for pleasure. The book selection was very diverse in both genre and representation. A unique system they had in place was color-coding certain books with a bright orange sticker to indicate mature content. Students were not restricted from checking out these books, but they needed parental permission via a form on the media center website. I really liked this approach because it allowed access while still involving parents in the decision.

Another standout feature was the media center ambassadors, students who actually worked in the media center! Throughout the day, they put on aprons and shelved books, checked out materials, and helped keep the space organized. The media specialist had even created badges for them that served as hall passes and included barcodes for signing in. She started her day with a meeting where the ambassadors brainstormed ways to increase foot traffic in the media center, and they came up with some great ideas.

I also took this time to conduct my interviews.

Reflection:
I was so inspired by this experience! When I start working in a media center, I will definitely implement a student ambassador program, on a smaller scale at first, but it will happen. Ms. Roberts is an amazing media specialist, and I learned a lot from observing how she runs her space!

The next school I went to was Tri-Cities High School. In talking with Ms. Jackson, a big part of her role is creating programs to keep the media center relevant. She has a makerspace room in the media center where teachers and she plan and teach lessons with either a research focus or an instructional tech focus. She also has a work-based learning program where students spend time in the media center checking students in and out, assisting with makerspace lessons, and helping with the distribution of devices.

She works closely with the visual arts department. They work together to display student art exhibits, and she pairs their exhibits with great books. She was actually preparing for a spring art showcase the day I came.

Finally, she works with the student support department and created a Zen Room. This room is filled with warm lighting and relaxing music, so students have a calm space to study, complete homework, or get a much-needed break. She explained that this was created because of the rising number of students dealing with anxiety. She also has her work-based learning students assist with this space.

Reflection:
Overall, I was amazed at this experience. Tri-Cities High School even has a bodega where students can shop for essentials and a clothing pantry for those in need. Seeing all of this firsthand was truly inspiring, and I hope to incorporate some of these ideas into my own future media center.  The school has really created programs to support the whole child. I was truly inspired by Ms. Jackson.

Ms. Jackson and Ms. Roberts are doing phenomenal work!