School Libraries and 21st Century Learning

Lisa Layera Brunkan is a Spokane mom and a co-founder of the Washington Coalition for School Libraries and Information Technology , an organization that advocates for funding of school libraries.

When budget cuts threatened to cut librarian hours at local elementary schools two years ago, Brunkan and two other moms started a grassroots campaign to keep funding for school libraries. They succeeded. Last year, the Washington Legislature included $4 million for school libraries in the state budget after the lobbying efforts of the Spokane moms. Librarians across the country have described the women as “heroes,” according to several media reports including this story from The Spokesman-Review . Earlier this year – thanks to the efforts of these moms – Gov. Chris Gregoire signed a bill that included teacher librarians and school library materials as part of the state’s definition of “basic education.”

This past weekend, Lisa delivered a keynote speech in Washington D.C. at the 2009 School Library Journal Leadership Summit , which focused on librarians as “leaders of 21 ^st century learning.”

In a recent e-mail exchange, Lisa shared her perspective on the topic of 21 ^st Century Learning:

At the highest levels of the rhetoric that informs education policy, a debate is raging as to whether or
not there are actually any new skills for the 21st century. The critics maintain that the really important skills are not new; they point to copious evidence that our kids’ ‘core skills’ (like reading and writing) are waning, and they wonder aloud if the ‘movement’ isn’t driven by software and tech companies looking to sell more stuff to young people and schools. On the other side of the debate are those who believe that preparing a student for work and life in this age requires an upgrade that
infuses our existing education paradigm with a focus on problem-solving, critical-thinking, collaboration, creativity and the media literacy that will more closely mirror what will be encountered on the other side of a diploma.  As a parent, I find myself wanting both for this generation of children— core knowledge and applied practice that emulates the world they will need to survive in (read: be employed)….

Whereas the 20th century gave people the tools for ‘ emotional intelligence ‘, the hope is that the 21st century leaves us with a ‘tech-intelligence’ that allows people to be effective users of information and technology. …

We see the school library as uniquely positioned to bridge the educational / technological / information gaps that exist between the 20th and 21st centuries.  At the very center of a school’s culture and curriculum, the school library can be transformed into a vital and vibrant 21st century learning commons. In their work with entire educational communities (students, teachers, parents, and administrators), teacher-librarians have the potential to be strong and effective educational leaders in the 21st century. Far from being obsolete we see the library as a bit of a panacea and librarians as guides for minding this digital gap.

Here are some of the questions that Lisa and the other Spokane moms have been asking parents from all over the country:

1. When you hear the term “ 21 ^st century learning” what comes to mind (with respect to your student)?
2. What do you believe should be added to education and what do you worry might be neglected?
3. Are there any new ways of learning and knowing that you believe your student will have to excel in, in order to flourish?
4. Your child is growing up in the demographic that has been dubbed “ digital natives .” What does this make you think about?
5. How do you see the school library in this context? How do you see the role of the librarian evolving?