ACCESS - Current Edition - Editorial

This issue of ACCESS has been prepared from Sydney in lockdown, where beautiful green, blue, gold and cold winter days lessen the impact of a city at a standstill. It’s been diverting to work on ACCESS, as well as teaching 93 new TL students in the foundation subject in the Charles Sturt University's MEd(TL) degree, where it is really good to see quite a large number of ACT students in the subject. This is a direct result of lobbying from Students Need School Libraries (SNSL) campaign.

Many of the student TLs from around Australia are already working in school libraries, and it’s refreshing and rewarding to see their enthusiasm for getting their heads around our essential role in schools.

Stimulating reading is promised in this issue of ACCESS. It begins with Judy Thompson’s article, Boldly moving forward about ASLA’s PL opportunities and advocacy initiatives. Next follows Margo Pickworth’s report on Tim Harris’ virtual visit to schools along the Murray/Darling area, courtesy of the grant to ASLA from the Copyright Agency Cultural Fund. Then follows Part 2 of Spotlight on SNSL, this time focusing on the films which identify the heart of teacher librarianship, through articulate and passionate ACT TLs. Then there is Storytelling with data: Evidence-based advocacy, a special article from Dr. Kay Oddone. The article is a refresher in data literacy, providing guidance on evidence-based practice, emphasising that vital final step of communicating it and ensuring that the data story is told. Next, in the Inquiry learning series, I’ve written an article on Inquiry learning and the TL – You can’t have one without the other, like love and marriage! Then, there’s an excellent practitioner article from Trisha Templeton, from Daramalan College in ACT, on using graphic organisers to shape and assess student learning in Guided Inquiry.

Literature-based articles this issue include:

• “Man up!”: The representation of masculinity in a selection of award-winning Australian young

adult literature – written by Dr. Kasey Garrison, Dr. Mary Carroll and Liz Derouet of School of

Information Studies, Charles Sturt University. It proposes a framework for discussing masculinity

in Young Adult fiction which can be employed usefully in schools.

• Writing the landscape – written by Karen Yager, who is this year’s recipient of the Reading

Australia Fellowship for Teachers of English and Literacy. Karen’s article is a profound exploration of the link between reading and enhanced creativity in writing. Karen provides a foretaste of the resources she is creating to link Australian writers for young people and the development of micro-lessons for students in creative and engaged writing.

Lastly, in a series of articles on TL bloggers, I’ve an interview with Jackie Child, whose blog Tinkering Child will provide you with answers to many questions you might have about Makerspaces.

My thanks to Deb Wilkes whose creative desktop publishing of ACCESS continues, and to the ASLA Board for its support and guidance. Please enjoy this issue, and I hope life is back to normal soon.   

Become a member to read more.

Current and past issues are available for members here.