From Fixed to Flexible Scheduling

1. From Fixed to Flexible Scheduling An Action Plan By Brenda Cheshire, Beth Friese Melissa Howell and Emily Hunter EDIT 6300 Fall 2004

2. The Problem • According to Information Power, “The library media program requires flexible and equitable access to information, ideas, and resources for learning.” (American Association of School Librarians, 1998, 89). • Many media programs remain on a fixed schedule, meaning classes come at a regular time to the Media Center, usually weekly, regardless of curricular needs.

3. The Problem (Part 2) • In order for the goals of collaborative planning, teaching information literacy within the curriculum, and open accessibility to be attained, a change from fixed to flexible scheduling must occur. • All of this sounds pretty simple so far, right? So where is the problem?

4. More Concerns Making the change from fixed scheduling to a flexible format is a problem in itself. There may be many objections to the change from a variety of groups. • If teachers rely on fixed Media Center time as their planning time, they may object to having that taken away. • Parents may be concerned that their child will not be coming home with new books on a regular basis. • Administrators may believe you are trying to get away with doing less. • Everyone may be resistant to the change overall, simply because it is change.

5. Where to Start • In light of all these obstacles, you may wonder if all this is worth the struggle. It is! • Educating yourself is the first step in the process of establishing a flexible schedule. In order to address all these concerns, you must have the facts and research to share with people in order to convince them that this is a change worth making.

6. What the Literature Says • Flexible Scheduling is in line with current educational “best practices.” Some of these include resource-based learning, encouragement of critical thinking and reality-based projects. • Flexible scheduling leads to teaching information literacy skills within the curriculum. When these skills are taught in a curricular context, they are utilized and retained at a higher rate, leading in turn to improved standardized test scores.

7. In Addition To Research… • Visit and talk with other Media Specialists who have made the transition. Ask lots of questions and take notes! • Become knowledgeable about successfully implemented Information Literacy programs that are taught within the curriculum. Look for examples on the Internet, ask your Media Center colleagues if they know of any success stories, or contact your district Media Coordinator for leads.

8. Assess Your Own Media Center • You should also research the current state of your Media Center. Gather data on how the Media Center is being used in terms of circulation and how the collection lines up with the curriculum being taught. (A curriculum map would be very handy at this point!) • Keep track of how you spend your time in terms of teaching, clerical duties and other activities. Use a journal or calendar so that you can show this to the administration.

9. Ask the Patrons! • Begin asking teachers and students about informational needs that are not being met by the Media Center. Take surveys. Ask them what resources they are looking for that aren’t currently provided. • In order for the advantages of flexible scheduling to be fully realized, the collection must reflect and meet the needs of the school community and the curriculum taught within it. Since flexible scheduling goes hand in hand with teaching information skills within the curriculum, an abundance of resources for all major curricular units must be available.

10. The Next Step • After research and data are in hand, approach the administration with your ideas and your proposal. • Explain how you spend your time currently, how your time could be better spent, and how flexible scheduling is the key to using your time effectively. • Bring in the research. Talk test scores. Use examples. Speak to them in terms they understand!

11. A Success Story The Appoquinimink School District (Delaware) is an example of a school system where administrative backing made a big difference. After reading a summary of Keith Curry Lance’s work on the subject, the superintendent became convinced that quality Media Centers lead to higher standardized test scores. Flexible scheduling was recognized as an essential aspect of a quality Media Center, and was mandated in every school. He then called for $110,000 to fund school library collections and supplies. That district now has the state’s highest average test scores in the Delaware Student Testing Program (Minkel, 2004).

12. More Administration Ideas • Provide examples of collaborative lessons teaching information literacy skills within the curriculum. You can either use self-created examples from your curriculum that haven’t been used yet, or find some willing teachers and students to be “guinea pigs” and show the administration your results. • Do whatever it takes to get your administration to understand and support this change. The support of your administration is absolutely essential to a successful transition. Nearly every article we read emphasized this.

13. Talk to the Teachers After the administration is on board, it is time to take your plans to the teachers. The following are some ideas to highlight when explaining the coming change. • Define flexible scheduling and explain how it works. • Address the research and test scores. • Make it clear how it will benefit their students. • Bring cookies or other treats, or anything that will hold their attention and make it a positive atmosphere. Your new relationship with teachers begins here! Start off on the right foot!

14. “But What’s In It For Me?” Even with the research on your side, it may still be difficult to get teachers behind the switch, due to a number of worries. • Flexible scheduling many take away their current planning time. • They may be concerned that regular book exchange will fall by the wayside. • They may not want to deal with the scheduling conflicts that are bound to arise. • The lack of a regular story time may be a concern. • Finding time to collaboratively plan with Media Specialist, in addition to everything else they already have to do, may seem like too much to ask.

15. Teachers, Take Heart! • This is where administrative support comes in. If planning time is in jeopardy, the administration may need to step in and make concessions and adjustments to make up for it. (For example, they can adjust the schedule to extend lunch, or conduct regular student assemblies so teachers can plan.) • Book exchange will take place in smaller groups, when students have finished the book instead of only when the class goes to the Media Center. (This creates another instance of students using the library when the need arises, which is an overall goal of this change.) • Assure teachers that there will be a process in place to deal with scheduling conflicts in using the Media Center. Teachers should take the “flexible” terminology to heart and make adjustments when they can.

16. More Thoughts for Teachers • Story time will continue to take place, but perhaps not at same time every week. Still, make it clear to the faculty that story time is essential, especially for younger grades, and remains a priority for the Media Specialist. (Also, suggest Mystery Readers or other alternatives than can fill in any gaps that may occur.) • Collaborative planning will be a lengthy process, but the rewards will be worthwhile. Remind teachers that the end result of this is a collaborative partner in their Media Specialist, which will lighten their load in the long run. Also, meeting in teams or grade level groups is more successful in the collaborative process than individual meetings (Van Deusen, 1994).

17. Take the Plunge! Once the administration and teaching staff are aware of the coming change, it is time to begin to implement the flexible schedule. There are many ways to go about this. • Start by using a flexible schedule on certain days of the week, keeping a fixed schedule on other days, or alternate mornings and afternoons. • Choose a certain department or grade level to begin the process. • No matter how you start, get feedback constantly, self-assess and adjust as you go. • Flexible flexible flexible…do what works! When things aren’t going well, remind yourself of your goal!

18. Mixing It Up • Depending on the culture of your school, it may turn out to be a better decision to have a “mixed” schedule. • There are numerous variations which blend fixed and flexible schedules. This could be anything from alternating days of the week between fixed and flexible, to having a few classes that keep a fixed schedule while the rest of the school operates flexibly.

19. Mixing It Up (Part 2) • For example, after you make the switch, you may find that younger grades can’t seem to make it in regularly to story time, and a fixed arrangement works better for them. Plan blocks of time to accommodate them. • Research has shown that mixed schedules which include a significant amount of flexibility are similar in benefits to flexible schedules, and are possibly even more beneficial than a fully flexible schedule in teaching information skills lessons (Van Deusen, 1994).

20. It won’t happen overnight! • Most research says it will take at least threeyears to successfully transform a fixed schedule Media Center to a functioning flexible schedule Media Center. Here is an example of a rough time table, reiterating some of the key points in the process. In many cases, it takes even more time than this! • 1st year: Do your research and approach administration toward end of the year. Be ready with stories and statistics from successful implementations as well as data from your own Media Center.

21. Years Two and Three • 2nd year: Gather support of teachers just as you did with administration. Start collaborative planning with certain groups of teachers. • 3rd year: Begin to implement the flexible schedule. (Hint: Don’t try to start this in the middle of a school year!) • Try a mixed schedule and gradually move towards fully flexible. • Get feedback from teachers about what is working and not working. • Be flexible in making changes to your schedule if needed.

22. In Conclusion • It is up to you to recognize and accommodate the unique needs of your school population. • And remember, behind every flexible schedule, there’s a flexible Media Specialist!

23. References • American Association of School Librarians, & Association for Educational Communications and Technology. (1998). Information power: Building partnerships for learning. Chicago: American Library Association. • Bradburn, F. (1999). Crunch time. School Library Journal, 45(11), 42-47. • Flexible scheduling. (n.d.). retrieved Oct 13, 2004 from Flexible scheduling of the library media center: Why is it critical to the entire instructional program? http://nema.k12.ne.us/CheckIt/flex.html. • Fox, C. J. J. (2001). Designing a flexible schedule for an elementary school library media center, Library Talk, 14(1), 10-13. • Graziano, A. (2002). Moving to flexible scheduling. MSLMA Media Forum.  Retrieved October 25, 2004 from http://www.mslma.org/MediaForum.Nov2002.flexsched.html

24. References • Lankford, M. (1994). Flexible access. School Library Journal, 40(8), 21-23. • Mills, M. L. (1991). Cooperative program planning and flexible scheduling: What do principals really think? Emergency Librarian, 19(1), 25-28. • Minkel, W. (January 2004). Delaware School District gets flexible. School Library Journal, 50(1), 20. http://search.epnet.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=cookie,ip,url,uid&db=aph&an=11933077 • Ohlrich, K.B. (May 1992). Flexible scheduling. School Library Journal, 38(5), 35-38. http://search.epnet.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=cookie,ip,url,uid&db=aph&an=9206012243 • Needham, J. (2003). From fixed to flexible: Making the journey. Teacher Librarian, 30(5), 8-13.

25. References • Riedling, A. (April 2003). Convincing others of what you can do. Teacher Librarian, 30(4), 55-57. http://search.epnet.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=cookie,ip,l,uid&db=aph&an=9460795 • Shannon, D. M. (Spring 1996). Tracking the transition to a flexible access library program in two Library Power elementary schools. School Library Media Quarterly,24(3), 155, 158-63. • Toor, R. (November 1987). Make your point: (In)flexible scheduling. School Library Journal. 46. • Van Deusen, J. D. and Julie I. Tallman. (Fall 1994). The impact of scheduling on curriculum consultation and information skills instruction, part 1. School LibraryMedia Quarterly, 23(1), 17-25. • Van Deusen, J. D. (1995). Prerequisites to flexible planning. Emergency Librarian, 23(1), 16-19. Graphics and template provided by www.animationfactory.com

26. A Recommended Source for Further Reading Needham, J. (2003). From fixed to flexible: Making the journey. Teacher Librarian, 30(5), 8-13. This article is a thorough review of the topic that gives a number of reasons to “make the journey from fixed to flexible scheduling. A step-by-step action guide is included, highlighting the nature of the changes made and the changing perception of teacher-librarians that goes with it. It gives a personal account of the process and includes a helpful planning guide.