I think there are many states that allow individuals to become library media
specialists / librarians before they are fully certified only because the
need is critical or there are shortages in personnel to fill the positions.
I also think that there is a misconception among many at the top levels that
"anyone can do the job" so how difficult can it be? Those of us who are in
these positions and have been allowed to become librarians before coursework
was completed, understand fully all of the repercussions of those decisions.
I was given a "provisional certification" in library science in 1984 after
receiving my teaching certification, only because the state (Oklahoma) had
implemented the requirements of each school having at least a half-time
certified librarian. With library grants available to schools at that time,
many principals were scrambling to get people into those positions in order
to build their libraries. Looking back now, I cringe at the serious mistakes
that I made only because I did not have a full understanding of some of the
basic philosophies and ethics of librarianship. In addition, the value of
the profession among administrators was seriously undermined (things don't
change much), as I was paid $13,000 a year to be a K-12 librarian (who was
also a certified teacher at the time) while my colleagues in the classroom
were paid the average state teachers' salary (which was around $21,000 at
that time). Luckily, I had a great library mentor from the State Department
of Education who guided me through my first four years. Her instruction and
wisdom as an MLS-degreed professional helped me to not only build the
library at the school, but also showed me how to build-up my salary through
grant writing---she showed me how to include my salary as a part of the
first grant that I wrote. By doing this, I was able to write a $50K grant
for my library that included an $8K salary increase for me during my second
year! (I still have my first teaching contract as a librarian showing "where
I started" in this long process!)
I believe the key to success in this type of situation is definitely having
a professional mentor that will stay with the librarian throughout the
certification-process AND even a couple of years afterwards. While this is
a wild dream for many in schools where library positions have been cut and
district librarians are not available to help, I believe that this type of
program helps to gently guide and provide on-the-job-training for those who
are inexperienced. Luckily, now many library schools provide mentors who
volunteer their time to help students while they receive certification. My
situation allowed me to work with people at the state-level of library
development and understand the "who's who" within the system. I had a
better understanding of where I was within the realm of the library
profession and the resources that were available to me. The mentoring
process with the state library coordinators also allowed me to "take on"
many issues within my own school(s) because I knew the individuals (mentors)
who knew the laws / requirements. If something was necessary / required
within my program, I would advocate for it (after discussing the situation
with my mentor). I also had the extreme pleasure of having my mentors
"cover my back" during difficult meetings with superintendents and school
board members. While I provided the evidence to support my programs to my
school administrators, these individuals were always there at those meetings
providing me with support and counsel. The support was overwhelming and it
encouraged me to offer the same type of support to others throughout my
profession (especially now that I have my MLS and have "grown into" the
profession). Because of the support that I was given, I feel that it is
imperative that inexperienced librarians have mentors that support and guide
them through their first several years. Unfortunately, those mentors are
difficult to find and time is short.
I know that there are good people out there working in libraries without
certification (taking classes, etc.) and the situations that they are in
make it more difficult for not only themselves but others. I believe the
problems that the profession has in making others understand our "worth"
comes from the fact that we have inexperienced individuals filling the gaps.
(Don't flame me on this one....because I was one of those individuals...and
sometimes feel like I am still one!)
When we talk about advocacy and working toward building our professional
"worth" within a school, we have to remember that we have several who just
aren't able to take on the administrative-public-relations aspect that we
need. Asking an inexperienced, uncertified (yet to be certified) librarian
to go into her principal's office to discuss information literacy and the
impact that school libraries have on student achievement just won't happen
with 90% of those who are just happy to have the position while they're
getting their certification unless they have support, guidance, and help
from a mentor. Applying pressure to create strong school libraries will
take a long time for many inexperienced librarians as they gain their
professional voice to advocate for change. If they find that their position
is considered supplementary or interchangeable with any "warm blooded
individual" who walks through the door, then it becomes even more
difficult....thus the reason why mentors are needed to be the voice behind
those who are in these situations.
That being said, I also know that there are thousands of great
librarians-to-be working in schools and achieving great things; however, it
seems strange (and ironic) that teaching / librarianship is one of the few
professional "degreed" fields where "anyone" can become the "professional"
within the field without receiving all of the training required of other
professionals --- doctors and lawyers aren't allowed to work with public
without passing all tests and receiving their degrees, plus they are given
guidance (mentored) when they start to work with the public --- even hair
stylists have to be certified / licensed in order to make mistakes that will
"grow back!"
Shonda Brisco, MLIS
US / Technology Librarian
Fort Worth Country Day School
Fort Worth, TX
sbrisco021@charter.net
"It can take a master carpenter to build a barn, but any jackass can kick it
down....."
~Lyndon B. Johnson
----- Original Message -----
From: "Suzanne Helms" <ssh819@BELLSOUTH.NET>
To: <LM_NET@LISTSERV.SYR.EDU>
Sent: Tuesday, July 12, 2005 2:22 PM
Subject: [LM_NET] Should media specialists be hired for media center jobs
before getting certified?
>I am currently a graduate student in Media at the University of West
> Georgia. We are having a debate next week on various topics concerning
> media specialists. My group has been asked to discuss the pros and cons
> of
> obtaining a media specialists job without being a certified media
> specialists. Many of the folks in my class are already in media centers
> though they have not completed their master's programs or been certified
> as
> a media specialist. In Georgia, media specialists are "required" to have
> a
> master's degree in Media and pass a certification test, as well as having
> teacher certification, but obviously there are ways around it. I just
> wanted to get everyone's opinions on the topic so I can discuss it more
> knowledgably in the debate.
>
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