5.1 Continuing professional development for library staff

Development and training for all library staff is a joint responsibility between the school and the library staff themselves. Training and development plans should be an ongoing commitment by staff and priorities for training should be identified for each year so that library staff are able to keep up to date with changes in technology and library practice. Individual Professional Learning Plans should be developed each year in consultation with the school principal. Professional development may take many forms. Some activities include:

• Attending meetings - such as Australian School Library Association - Tasmania (ASLA-TAS), Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA), school staff meetings, Children's Book Council of Australia (CBCA), Women in Information Technology in Tasmania (WIITT), Australian Computer Society (ACS), Tasmanian Society for Information Technology in Information (TASITE).
• Attending conferences - For example, Information Online and On Disc, ALIA Annual conference, ALIA National Library Technicians Conference (Biennial), ASLA national conference (Biennial), Teacher Aide conference, Senior Secondary Teacher Librarian's Conference
• Networking with colleagues
• TALIS training by the Systems Support section at the State Library of Tasmania
• ALIA E-lists, listservs (such as Taslib-link and OZTL_NET) and discussion groups
• Professional reading
• Formal training
• Participating in Professional Learning opportunities
• Enrolling in a librarianship or teaching course to upgrade skills and qualifications

The professional development needs of school library staff are mainly determined by the individual's experience and training. Individual library staff may wish to develop a portfolio that includes evidence of the knowledge, skills and attributes that have been gained both on and off the job. The portfolio can then be used as a guide to identify areas for future development.

In particular, school library staff must be familiar with developments in curricula, teaching styles and current learning theories, as well as current and future developments in school library service. It is essential for school library staff to establish a professional relationship with teachers in the school so that the school library can meet the needs of the teaching areas. If a library technician, library aide or volunteer operates the school library, establishing a professional relationship with the teaching staff may be difficult.

Some ideas for establishing a good relationship with the teachers include:

• Attend staff meetings where possible
• Attend informal meetings at morning tea or lunch time
• Read and contribute to school newsletters
• Be proactive and diplomatic in ascertaining teacher's needs and in meeting those needs

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