School Reform and the School Library Media Specialist

This third entry in the Principles and Practice series focuses on the role of the library media specialist as a "change agent" in the school. The purpose of this book is twofold: to provide insight into the role of the school librarian as change agent and to demonstrate strategies for being an effective change agent using a subset of current reform initiatives. The authors are educators, library media specialists, and researchers who share a common belief in the ability of classroom teachers, administrators, library media specialists, parents, and community members to work together to create schools that make a difference in the lives of students, and help produce citizens who have a capacity to cope with change in the future. Grades K-12.

Sandra Hughes-Hassell is associate professor, School of Library and Information Science, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. In her 20-year career, she has also been an elementary school teacher, a school library media specialist, and director of the Philadelphia Library Power Project. In her current research and teaching, she focuses on resources and services to youth and the instructional role of the information specialist.

Violet H. Harada is professor of library and information science at the University of Hawaii where she also coordinates the specialization for school library media preparation. In her 35-year career she has been a secondary English teacher, an elementary school library media specialist, a state level administrator, and a curriculum designer. In her current research and publications, she focuses on inquiry-based approaches to information seeking and use and on the dynamics of collaborative instruction. With Joan M. Yoshina, she is the co-author of Assessing Learning from Libraries Unlimited.