OEMA NEWSLETTER
Electronic Newsletter of The Oregon Educational Media Association
Available on the website at <http://www.oema.net>
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Volume 18 No.5 January, 2006
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CONTENTS:
FROM THE PRESIDENT
the "official" letter ----- Jim Tindall
FROM THE MEMBERSHIP
1. Books of interest recently added to the Professional Library, Portland Public Schools. ----- Edith Fuller
2. Connie Hull grant winners ----- Martha Decherd
3. Time Magazine recognizes Judy Cox ------ Sybilla Cook
4. OSLIS and EBSCO Tutorials ----- Patty Sorrensen
5. Region 2 Conference ----- Carol Dinges
6. 2006 Conference Plans ----- Kathy Jensen
7. Edith Fuller recognized - FINALLY! ----- Janet Setness
FROM THE STATE
1. Characteristics of U.S. 15-Year-Old Low Achievers in an International Context ----- Ann Reed
2. L-Net Update ----- Caleb Tucker-Raymond
3. 67 QEM libraries ----- Patty Sorensen
4. Library notes the State Superintendent's newsletter
FROM ALA, AASL and BEYOND
1. "65% solution" -- proposed legislation negatively impacting school libraries ----- Kathy Agarwal (AASL)
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FROM THE PRESIDENT --- Jim Tindall
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I hope it is indeed a happy new year for you, that you returned to work with verve, that you hit the ground running, that all is relatively well in your personal and professional lives. Maybe you made some resolutions or received cosmic messages or just sat by the fire with some good tea? I relearned to stop and smell the roses; the last day of my vacation both my chain saw and my hand saw broke (within about five minutes). I had to smile after a second or two of frustration. I treasured the partnership with silence.
Reflect on your partnering in 2005. Were your efforts gratifying? Did you make inroads for school libraries, or was there erosion? Did student learning increase in your work space, or did its importance diminish? For all the meetings you attended, are there now more classroom teachers looking over your shoulder wanting your time and attention, or is everyone just too busy with assessment to acknowledge how crucial you are to quality education?
Ponder new partnerships for 2006. Are you making contact with your supervisor regularly to report on the status of your school library? Do you continue to invite school board members to visit your facility? Has the newspaper staff been in recently to do a story on your literacy efforts? When was the last time you chatted with your counterpart at the public library? Is it time to invite your local author out for a coffee to discuss a school visit? Perhaps it's time for you to speak to the Rotary or the Kiwanas or the Lions. Maybe there's an irritating colleague who's just about gotten your goat; maybe it's time to breathe and try again at building bridges?
For me, partnering is an essential part of life. As president of OEMA I have attempted to keep all doors open and all bridges protected from the floodwaters. We have a healthy relationship with OLA, and a new growing one with ORA. In the past several years this organization has made progress demonstrating our value to state agencies, most notably the State Library and ODE. This practice continues. Two days ago in a meeting hosted by State Librarian Jim Scheppke, OEMA sat down with Inga Deckert, Director of Legislative and Public Affairs for the Oregon State Treasury and Michael Parker, Executive Director of the Oregon 529 College Savings Network. These two are seeking partners in developing a financial literacy program for Oregon elementary schools. Our organization is poised to advocate for quality innovations such as this one, and as the program develops, I am asking you to reflect on its possible importance to your school library.
Happy New Year! -- Jim
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FROM THE MEMBERSHIP
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1. Books of interest recently added to the Professional Library, Portland Public Schools. ----- Edith Fuller
Available for loan to OEMA members. Email Edith Fuller, efuller@pps.k12.or.us.
21st century mentor's handbook : creating a culture for learning / Paula Rutherford. Alexandria, VA Just ASK Publications, 2005.
Resources to help mentors promote the success and professional growth of new teachers.
Caught in the middle : nonstandard kids and a killing curriculum / Susan Ohanian. Portsmouth, NH : Heinemann, 2001.
"what schools are really like when nonstandard kids and a standardized curriculum collide in the classroom."
College knowledge : what it really takes for students to succeed and what we can do to get them ready / David T. Conley.San Francisco : Jossey-Bass, 2005.
Conley (educational policy and leadership, University of Oregon) confronts the disconnect between what high schools and colleges expect from students, and he proposes solutions useful for high school teachers, administrators, and parents
Design as a catalyst for learning / Meredith Davis, Peter Hawley, Bernard McMullen, Gertrude Spilka. Alexandria, VA : Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, c1997.
Using design as a problem-solving tool to integrate curriculum, teaching thinking and communication skills, and encourage students to apply academic concepts to authentic tasks.
Encountering children's literature : an arts approach / Jane M. Gangi. Boston : Pearson, 2004
Experiential, arts-based approach to teaching literature. Activities include narrative pantomime, choral reading, etc
The help! kit : a resource guide for secondary teachers of migrant English language learners / Pamela Wrigley. Oneonta, NY : ESCORT, 2001.
How to include, nurture, and instruct such students more effectively.
Help! they don't speak English starter kit : for primary teachers : a resource guide for educators of limited English proficient migrant students, grades Pre-K-6 / Eastern Stream Center on Resources and Training, Region IV Comprehensive Center at AEL, Region XIV Comprehensive Center/Center for Applied Linguistics. Oneonta, NY : ESCORT, 1998. 3rd ed.
How to include, nurture, and instruct such students more effectively.
Mainstreaming handbook : how to be an advocate for your special-needs students / Deborah Coughlin. Portsmouth, NH : Heinemann, 2000.
A book for regular classroom teachers with students who don't necessarily qualify for special services, but are in need of special help.
Mini-lessons for literature circles / Harvey Daniels, and Nancy Steineke. Portsmouth, NH : Heinemann, 2004.
Short, teacher-directed lessons that begin, guide and follow-up successful lit circle discussions.
Picture this! : using picture story books for character education in the classroom / Claire Gatrell Stephens. Westport, CT : Libraries Unlimited, 2004.
Picture books categorized by virtue, with supplemental resources, including lesson plans, student activities, and worksheets.
Solving the grading puzzle for students with disabilities /Dennis D. Munk. Whitefish Bay, WI : Knowledge by Design, 2003.
This book tackles the philosophical, ethical, and practical complexities associated with designing equitable, effective, and meaningful grading systems
Teaching the best practice way : methods that matter, K-12 / Harvey Daniels, Marilyn Bizar. Portland, ME : Stenhouse Publishers, 2005.
Six guiding principles of instruction are id entified, with practical suggestions about how those principles may be applied across several curriculum areas.
2. Connie Hull grant winners ----- Martha Decherd
**Lisa Foggia, La Grande Middle School, "Where in the world...," will use her grant to purchase a huge wall map of the world and new atlases. Weekly challenges that tie in current events, science and language arts will be created for students using the materials purchased with the grant.
**Kathy Yates, Willamette High School, "Bilingual explorations through literature," will use her grant to purchase up-to-date young adult literature in Spanish. Students will be involved in helping to select the books.
**Linda Campillo, Lane Middle School, "Reading around the world," will use her mini-grant to help support a multicultural literacy event with storytellers, poetry readings, multicultural crafts and other activities.
**Jann Tankersley, Dayton Grade School, "Literacy week," is planning a week-long literacy promotion to include author visits, readers' theater, an author visit in the evening with parents, and a family reading night.
**Diane Chaffee, Springfield Middle School, "Battle of the books," will use her mini-grant as seed money to start a Battle of the Books program at her school.
3. Time Magazine recognizes Judy Cox ------ Sybilla Cook
TIME magazine picked Don't Be Silly, Mrs. Millie! as one of the 10 Best Children's Books for 2005. The book is by Judy Cox, an elementary teacher in Ontario. Time's review is as follows:
What could be more gratifying to kindergartners than correcting their teacher's "mistakes"? When Mrs. Millie tells her charges to hang up their goats and get out their paper and penguins, they loudly and gleefully put her right, as little readers surely will too. ("We know what you mean," the kindergartners yell.) Half the fun comes from seeing Mrs. Millie's misnomers made literal in Mathieu's drawings. One depicts a perplexed primate who finds himself serving as filler in a "gorilla cheese sandwich"; another shows the indignant weasel on whom the kids happily daub their paintings. As the school day ends, the kids have a snack of parrot sticks and quackers, then say butterfly and get on the octopus to ride home. Cox, herself a kindergarten teacher, knows that more than contusion reigns when 4- and 5-year-olds are teased into sorting out sound-alike words. In fact, if you recognize how much verbal comprehension is conveyed by the jokes and see that Mrs. Millie is silly like a fox, go to the head of the glass.
Marshall Cavendish; $14.95
4. OSLIS and EBSCO Tutorials ----- Patty Srorensen
Wow, there are some incredible tutorials available to either help you learn about the OSLIS and EBSCO interfaces and advanced features OR to review what you knew before the break.
OSLIS: Be sure to check out the tutorials on the main OSLIS webpage. More were added in December at <http://www.oslis.org/>http://www.oslis.org then click on More Tutorials for four short ones on specific levels and topics of the interface. (You'll need Macromedia Flash installed on your machine to view these videos. There is a link for downloading at the top of the More Tutorials Page.)
EBSCO: What a huge set of resources EBSCO has created! Be sure to check them out by going to the main OSLIS page, clicking on the Site Help tab then on EBSCO and finally to Online Tutorials. They've updated them to include Kids Search and Student Research Center! (You'll need Macromedia Flash for these also. There is a link for downloading at the bottom of the tutorials' page if you need it.)
These would be superb to use at staff meetings, with students, for review, etc. You can even print each screen with the full text of their voice over, then do it live online with your staff using their directions. As you are viewing the video, simply right click on a PC and print each screen shown with the voice-over text at the bottom. On a Mac, hold the Control key down and right click to print screen. Another cool tool you might want to test out is the Zoom feature. You can zoom in on a screen then quickly zoom back out to enlarge an area that is being discussed.
The Kids Search Interface tutorial doesn't cover the lexile component but you can quickly point out the location of the box to enter scores as that does appear. In the Student Research Center Interface Tutorial for grades 5+ the lexile number in red shows up on the results screen but is also not mentioned. It would be easy to point out and then discuss after the tutorial plays.
For high schoolers who use the All EBSCO databases option or others who choose the "Search Other Databases" option within Kids Search or the SRC, the tutorial for Basic Searching for K-12 School Libraries goes over this interface.
They even have great tutorials for management pieces like How to Create Search and Journal Alerts and The My EBSCOhost personalization folder. With the structure of OSLIS, you don't have to worry about any of the features listed in the EBSCOadmin features.
For those advanced users who create or want to create webpages, check out the Page Composer tutorial. This would be a super resource when doing specific research topics or for teachers who want to students to access specific articles. In Page Composer there are some great webpage examples highlighted.
5. Region 2 Conference ----- Carol Dinges
The Region 2 Winter Conference on February 25 at Sprague High School in Salem will feature Oregon author David Michael Slater. Concurrent sessions on Intellectual Freedom, the Beverly Cleary Children's Choice and other regional awards, the new face of OSLIS, and lessons on making books will round out the day. Registration forms will be arriving at schools this month, and will also be available on the OEMA website at <http://www.oema.net>www.oema.net See you there!
6. 2006 Conference Plans ----- Kathy Jensen
The 2006 Fall OEMA Conference is under construction. Join us in Salem for "Capital Ideas for the 21st Century School Library" at the new Salem Conference Center - October 13 & 14. It will be your chance to renew, mingle, see authors and be inspired with new ideas. Tentatively, we have Steve Duin from the Oregonian as the keynote speaker and Eric Kimmel as the Dessert Speaker.
Look for more info in the newsletter, mail and on the OEMA website as the plans become firm. Start making your plans to attend.
7. Edith Fuller recognized - FINALLY! ----- Janet Setness
Edith Fuller, Portland Public Schools Professional Librarian, Dynix administrator, and de facto Library leader at the district was recognized and honored along with others for the Fanno Creek Clinic's Outstanding Public Employees Awards on Dec. 8, 2005. The ceremony took place at the Portland City Hall Council Chambers with Commissioner Dan Saltzman and Fanno Creek doctors as presenters. Edith's nomination referred to the number of different duties Edith handles continually and
with unfailing grace. Friends, coworkers, and husband enjoyed watching Edith receive such well-earned recognition.
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FROM THE STATE
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1. Characteristics of U.S. 15-Year-Old Low Achievers in an International Context ----- Ann Reed
This new report from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) report analyzes results of reading literacy among 15-year-olds based on the 2000 Program for International Student Assessment (PISA), sponsored by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and carried out in 32 countries, including the United States. It focuses on the characteristics of students who perform at the lowest levels of reading literacy. The report has two objectives:
first, to explore how the demographic and educational characteristics of low performing students compare to other students within the United States; second, to analyze if the United States differs from the other PISA countries in terms of the characteristics of its low performing students.
It describes the extent to which a particular characteristic is more or less likely to be observed among the low performers than on average.
To download, view and print the report as a pdf file, please visit: http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2006010
2. L-Net Update ----- Caleb Tucker-Raymond
Loree Hyde from the Oregon Institute of Technology answered the 20,000th question on L-net, our statewide virtual reference service. Loree deftly helped a 5th-grader in Beaverton, who needed to know, "i need to find iroquios cultur and transportation please." [sic]
L-net is hosting a virtual reference summit at the University of Oregon, January 27th, 2006 and are all welcome to attend. We will be offering new software training, discussing best practices and talking about the future of virtual reference in Oregon.
Visit at: www.oregonlibraries.net/summit
3. 67 QEM libraries ----- Patty Sorensen
New lowered QEM guidelines increased the "quality" libraries in Oregon. By reducing the suggested per pupil spending significantly (High School - $56 per student to $12 per student, Middle School - $39 per student to $10 per student, and Elementary - $31 per student to $10 per student) 67 schools now meet the criteria.
Below is the list of schools that met the new criteria. 37 of the schools have OEMA members, 30 do not
To read the list below: District Name School Name "x" if the school have OEMA members
High Schools That Met QEM Critia
ASTORIA SCH DIST 1 ASTORIA HIGH SCHOOL x
CENTENNIAL SCH DIST 28J CENTENNIAL HIGH SCHOOL x
COOS BAY SCH DIST 9 MARSHFIELD HIGH SCHOOL
EUGENE SCH DIST 4J NORTH EUGENE HIGH SCHOOL x
EUGENE SCH DIST 4J SOUTH EUGENE HIGH SCHOOL x
EUGENE SCH DIST 4J WINSTON CHURCHILL HIGH SCHOOL x
GRESHAM-BARLOW SCH DIST 10J SAM BARLOW HIGH SCHOOL x
KLAMATH FALLS CITY SCHOOLS KLAMATH UNION HIGH SCHOOL x
NORTH BEND SCH DIST 13 NORTH BEND HIGH SCHOOL x
ONTARIO SCH DIST 8 ONTARIO HIGH SCHOOL x
PORTLAND SCH DIST 1J MARSHALL HIGH SCHOOL x
REYNOLDS SCH DIST 7 REYNOLDS HIGH SCHOOL
WOODBURN SCH DIST 103 WOODBURN HIGH SCHOOL
Junior High Schools That Met QEM Criteria for Middle Schools
MEDFORD SCH DIST 549 MC LOUGHLIN JR HIGH SCHOOL
NORTH BEND SCH DIST 13 NORTH BEND JR HIGH SCHOOL x
Middle Schools That Met QEM Criteria
ASHLAND SCH DIST 5 ASHLAND MIDDLE SCHOOL x
BEAVERTON SCH DIST 48J CONESTOGA MIDDLE SCHOOL
PORTLAND SCH DIST 1J TUBMAN MIDDLE SCHOOL
PORTLAND SCH DIST 1J WEST SYLVAN MIDDLE SCHOOL x
REYNOLDS SCH DIST 7 HAUTON B LEE MIDDLE SCHOOL
WOODBURN SCH DIST 103 FRENCH PRAIRIE MIDDLE SCHOOL x
Elementary Schools That Met QEM Criteria
ASTORIA SCH DIST 1 ASTOR ELEM SCHOOL x
BEAVERTON SCH DIST 48J ELMONICA ELEM SCHOOL x
BEAVERTON SCH DIST 48J FIR GROVE ELEM SCHOOL x
BEAVERTON SCH DIST 48J MC KAY ELEM SCHOOL
BEAVERTON SCH DIST 48J MCKINLEY ELEM SCHOOL x
BEAVERTON SCH DIST 48J RALEIGH PARK ELEM SCHOOL x
BEAVERTON SCH DIST 48J TERRA LINDA ELEM SCHOOL x
BEAVERTON SCH DIST 48J WEST TUALATIN VIEW ELEM SCHOOL
BEND/LAPINE ADMIN SCH DIST 1 R E JEWELL ELEM SCHOOL
CENTENNIAL SCH DIST 28J BUTLER CREEK ELEM SCHOOL
CENTENNIAL SCH DIST 28J HAROLD OLIVER INTERMEDIATE
CENTENNIAL SCH DIST 28J LYNCH VIEW ELEM SCHOOL
CENTENNIAL SCH DIST 28J LYNCH WOOD ELEM SCHOOL
CENTENNIAL SCH DIST 28J PLEASANT VALLEY ELEM SCHOOL x
CENTRAL CURRY 1 RILEY CREEK ELEMENTARY
DAYTON SCH DIST 8 DAYTON GRADE SCHOOL x
ELGIN SCH DIST 23 STELLA MAYFIELD ELEM SCHOOL
GLENDALE SCH DIST 77 GLENDALE ELEM SCHOOL x
GREATER ALBANY SCH DIST 8J CLOVER RIDGE ELEM SCHOOL x
HARRISBURG SCH DIST 7J HARRISBURG ELEM SCHOOL x
HERMISTON SCH DIST 8 ROCKY HEIGHTS ELEM SCHOOL
LA GRANDE SCH DIST 1 ISLAND CITY ELEM SCHOOL
LA GRANDE SCH DIST 1 WILLOW ELEM SCHOOL x
MEDFORD SCH DIST 549 JACKSON ELEM SCHOOL
MEDFORD SCH DIST 549 WILSON ELEM SCHOOL
NEAH-KAH-NIE SCH DIST 56 GARIBALDI ELEM SCHOOL
NEAH-KAH-NIE SCH DIST 56 NEHALEM ELEM SCHOOL
NORTH CLACKAMAS SCH DIST 12 SETH LEWELLING ELEM SCHOOL
ONTARIO SCH DIST 8 ALAMEDA ELEM SCHOOL x
ONTARIO SCH DIST 8 GEORGE K AIKEN ELEM SCHOOL
ONTARIO SCH DIST 8 MAY ROBERTS ELEM SCHOOL
RAINIER SCH DIST 13 HUDSON PARK ELEM SCHOOL
RIVERDALE SCH DIST 51J RIVERDALE ELEM SCHOOL
SALEM/KEIZER SCH DIST 24J WASHINGTON ELEM SCHOOL x
SHERWOOD SCH DIST 88J J CLYDE HOPKINS ELEM SCHOOL x
SHERWOOD SCH DIST 88J MIDDLETON ELEM SCHOOL x
SILVER FALLS SCH DIST 4J EUGENE FIELD ELEM SCHOOL x
TIGARD SCH DIST 23J BRIDGEPORT ELEM SCHOOL x
TIGARD SCH DIST 23J CHARLES F. TIGARD ELEM SCHOOL
TIGARD SCH DIST 23J METZGER ELEM SCHOOL
TIGARD SCH DIST 23J TUALATIN ELEM SCHOOL x
WEST LINN SCH DIST 3J CEDAR OAK PARK ELEM SCHOOL x
WILLAMINA SCH DIST 30J WILLAMINA ELEM SCHOOL
WOODBURN SCH DIST 103 HERITAGE ELEMENTARY x
WOODBURN SCH DIST 103 NELLIE MUIR ELEM SCHOOL x
WOODBURN SCH DIST 103 WASHINGTON ELEM SCHOOL x
No Charter or K-12 School Met QEM Criteria
Total Number (#) of Schools Meeting the QEM Criteria For School Year 2003-04 using 2004 QEC Report = 67
Percent (%) of Public Schools who met the QEM For School Year 2003-04 using 2004 QEC Report Data = 18% (67 of 1220)
4. From the State Superintendent's newsletter
You probably got this information elsewhere earlier but it was nice to see libraries mentioned in the State Superintendent's newsletter.
"American Library Association & NEH"
The "We the People Bookshelf" program encourages young people to read and understand great literature while exploring themes in American history. Public and school (K-12) libraries are invited to apply to be among the 1,000 libraries selected to receive free books. Deadline: January 17, 2006
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FROM ALA, AASL and BEYOND
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1. "65% solution" -- proposed legislation negatively impacting school libraries ----- Kathy Agarwal (AASL)
On November 14, 2005, National Public Radio's (NPR) "Morning Edition," discussed an issue of school funding that may end up hurting school library media programs' piece of the funding pie. A group funded by Patrick Burn, the founder of Overstock.com, is proposing legislation, which they call "First Class Education," that would mandate 65% of all school spending be connected to the classroom. The group argues this would decrease administrative expenses and provide more money to directly benefit students and contribute to the quality of education. Critics of this proposal see it as hurtful to many necessary school services not delivered in the classroom, including school library media services. The proposed legislation uses definitions from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), which classify school library media programs and school library media specialists as "non-instructional" and thus excluding them from the 65% mandate.*
To learn more about the "65 percent proposal" see:
First Class Education
http://www.firstclasseducation.org/
Goal: "By the end of 2008, pass a law in all 50 States and the District of Columbia requiring every Schools District to spend at least 65% of its education operational budgets in classrooms for the benefit of teachers & kids."