Tag Archives: CMLE

Academic, Check this out:, General, Public, School Media Specialist

2013: Where Have the Media Specialists Gone?

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Some rights reserved by Taber Andrew
Some rights reserved by Taber Andrew

This is the third year I have been pulling the Minnesota Department of Education data and studying the slow decline of school library media specialists in our twelve county region. I have no answers for fixing this problem, but sharing the data is my attempt to engage people in helping me think of solutions. If there is inadequate media specialist staffing in high schools, are students going to be prepared with the skills they need to be successful in college? Will middle schoolers be prepared to do high school work, and when students have no library program at school, are they simply going to the public library for assistance? Are the public libraries funded or staffed to absorb this work on a large scale? Everyone is stretched for resources, so we all need to do our part. So, without further ado, here is data for Aitkin, Benton, Chisago, Isanti, Kanabec, Mille Lacs, Morrison, Pine, Sherburne, Stearns, Todd and Wright counties. Please use the comment field in this post as needed.

  • 53 individual schools (28 percent) in Central MN have no licensed media specialist (compared to 48 last year)
  • 25 schools (47 percent) percent of the 53 schools are middle, secondary or high schools
  • 28 elementary schools have no media specialist, yet we are hell bent on demonstrating reading proficiency by 3rd grade!
  • Fourteen of our school districts have no media specialist in any school in the district at all (compared to nine last year)
  • The great news is that 32 percent of our schools have a full time media specialist. Let’s applaud those school administrators for understanding the value of maintaining a professionally staffed media center.

CMLE will use this data in its advocacy work, in targeting its programming, and in working statewide to bring attention to this growing problem. We all need to think about how we can change this trend so that all students have the benefit of a well-maintained, relevant, and properly staffed school media center.

Academic, Check this out:, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

Retirements or Staffing Changes?

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Some rights reserved by ferasdelaing

This is the time of year we ask for your help in identifying retirements or staffing changes that will happen at the end of this academic year. Unfortunately, if we are not made aware of these changes, we often  have no way of telling that we need to make contact with  new recruits in the Fall. Sometimes locations simply fall off of our radar as a result of these communication breakdowns.  Needless to say, we also want to  give recognition to  proud retirees too! They have worked hard and deserve some recognition before the end of the year. Thanks in advance for any information you can provide about changes in your setting or in other settings. Once you give us the tip, we are happy to track down the details! Send email to cmle@stcloudstate.edu and use subject line Staffing Changes.

P.S. We would be happy to shine the light on other staff accomplishments too, so don’t be shy about sharing those too. Did someone get promoted or receive a special award?  Use the same email address, use subject line Staff Accomplishments. We will compile and share through our communication streams soon.

Academic, Check this out:, General, Public, Special

HSLM Workshop and Annual Meeting 2013

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Jonathan Koffel, Clinical Information Librarian at the UMN Bio-Medical Library, will be presenting a workshop on Evidence Based Practice: A Refresher for Librarians, Friday, May 31st, 2013.

The goal of the session is to help librarians solidify and expand their own evidence based practice skills. It will cover 1) Why evidence based practice is important, 2) How to interpret core statistical measures and figures and 3) How to critically appraise cohort studies, randomized controlled trials, and systematic reviews. Attendees will have the chance to work in small groups to critically appraise example articles and practice what they have learned.

Registration: This event is co-sponsored by Health Sciences Libraries of Minnesota (HSLM) and Metropolitan State University’s Library and Information Service. Free to members or $25 to join! Click here for more information or including registration.

  •  The HSLM Annual Meeting will be held in the afternoon. Beverages, a light continental breakfast and lunch will be provided.

Location: Metropolitan State University Library & Learning Center Ecolab Room (Library 302), St. Paul Campus, 645 East Seventh Street St. Paul, MN 55106

Academic, Check this out:, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

Quick Question Polls are Happening!

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Some rights reserved by
psychicdevelopmentgroup

Recently, CMLE posed three quick question polls to better inform programming and to assist in providing better networking opportunities in the region. All library staff in Aitkin, Benton, Chisago, Isanti, Kanabec, Mille Lacs, Morrison, Pine, Sherburne, Stearns, Todd and Wright counties in Minnesota received an email containing the link to the 2-3 question polls, as they are the people CMLE is funded to serve. The polls have  different goals, but they all have a few things in common. One very quick poll per week, requiring only two to three minutes to complete,  within one week. In May,  if participants include their name while completing the poll, they are entered into a drawing for a $50 Amazon gift card. The polls we have done so far include:

  • Summer Engagement and How You Use CMLE Communication Streams
  • One-to-One Initiative Plans in Central Minnesota
  • Your Professional Development Needs

We highly encourage all staff in Central Minnesota libraries to participate in the polls, as we will be making decisions on programming based in large part on data from the polls. Please make your voice heard, get your needs met, and get your name in the drawing too!  There is no fee to be a CMLE member, and almost all of our services are available at no charge. If you work in a library or media center in any of the mentioned counties, consider yourself a CMLE member!

Academic, Check this out:, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

Are High School Seniors Ready for College?

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Some rights reserved by       Univers Beldbank

The ACT National Curriculum Survey is a nationwide survey of educational practices and expectations. Conducted every three to five years by ACT, the survey collects data about what entering college students should know and be able to do to be ready for college-level coursework in English, math, reading, and science. The 2012 ACT National Curriculum Policy report found that high school teachers think their students are ready for college, but college professors beg to differ. In fact, data showed that 89 percent of high school teachers report their students are “well” or “very well” prepared for college-level work in the subject they teach, while just 26 percent of college instructors say incoming students are “well” or “very well” prepared for entry-level courses. This discrepancy in perception has remained consistent to the 2009 survey results. An interesting dilemma for educators in both high schools and colleges! CMLE staff have noticed  a similar experience through our Bridging Information Literacy Across Libraries initiative work. We know that many high school media specialists teach information literacy skills, but somehow, some of the teachings don’t “stick” and students experience difficulty doing research, writing, and citing sources in college. Talking across library types can be a powerful beginning  to better understand this issue. CMLE will continue to act as a bridge for this conversation to happen between high school media specialists and college librarians. We also hope to include public librarians in future “Bridging” work too. We welcome your ideas for future programming in this area.