Candidates organize library facilities to enhance the use of information resources and services and to ensure equitable access to all resources for all users.
Reflection
“We read to know we are not alone.” - C.S. Lewis
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Artifacts
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If you walk into the RHS media center at 7:15 a.m. on a school day, you know you are not alone, for it is anything but quiet. That is because the RHS media specialists have created an environment where students want to be. They have created a safe hub within our school. As a media specialist, it is my job to create a space that reflects the diversity of the world around us. This can be a challenge when dealing with the needs generated by a diverse population. My students may speak different different languages, have different religious and cultural values, and come different, diverse home lives. It is up to me to ensure equitable services amongst my facilities and information resources for all of these students.
The Facilities Design Assignment integrates research on best practices as defined by the Maryland State Department of Education and my own knowledge as an experienced teacher. It creates a media environment that enhances the use of information resources and services, and ensures access to all students. I found inspiration for this plan from the RHS Media Center and its success.
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When you look at the diagram of the space, you can see that provisions have been made for different physical needs like wheelchair accessibility, different learning styles, and different student purposes. The design also gives each section of the room a defined purpose, and the information resources that may be used for each purpose are located nearby. I plan to use this diagram as a place to start when adapting my own media space. The plan made me think about the importance of visibility, space arrangement, and student use...all things that I will need to think about in my future media space. I know that I will not always be able to control the physical layout of my future library, but I am able to control how I organize the materials inside of those walls. I must ensure that students can get the information they need so that some day my library is the packed room first thing in the morning.
The design of a library is supposed to enhance the use of information resources and services and to ensure equitable access to all resources for all users. The RHS Media Center does this with great visibility, a variety of seating options, and easy availability of resources. I know that when I have my own space I will keep the community feeling of the RHS Media Center in mind as I prepare my library for students and success.
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