Library Science & Information Services 1
Program Report
For
Library Science & Information Services
Spring, 2009
Prepared by:
Patricia Antrim
Associate Professor, Educational Leadership & Human Development
660-543-8633
TABLE OF CONTENTS
DESCription of program 3
characteristics of program candidates 6
Table 1: Size of Program
Table 2: Demographics of Program
Table 3: Candidate Persistence
Certification program requirements 8
course list 9
Table 4: Course Offerings, Descriptions
matrices (including Course Competency Matrix) 13
Table 5: Matrix Showing Alignment between Courses and Standards
description of field experiences 15
Table 6: Summary of Field Experiences
diverse classroom 16
descripTion of program assessment system 18
Table 7: Key Assessments Aligned with MoSTEP Standards
Table 8: Description of Key Assessments
assessment data (following each assessment) 19
technology 63
faculty 64
program resources 70
APPENDICES:
Appendix A - Syllabi 71
Library Science & Information Services 1
Description of program
Department Home
The certification program for school library media is offered through the Department of Educational Leadership & Human Development in the College of Education. All course work leading to this certification—except for Content Area Literacy (the course that graduate students take on teaching reading at the secondary level)—is offered through this department.
DESE revised the course requirements for certification during the Fall 2008 semester. This report describes the program as it was aligned with the previous DESE requirements. The program is currently being revised through the UCM curriculum review process to align it with the new DESE requirements.
Type of Degree
Candidates earn certification through either of two degree programs, the MS in Library Science & Information Services or the Education Specialist in Human Services, Learning Resources. A very few candidates take only the course required for certification. Because we neither verify their course work leading to certification nor advise them as they take courses, we have no way of tracking their progress through the certification requirements; nor are we able to track the number who successfully accomplish certification through course work. In addition we are aware that some candidates may take some of our courses, but accomplish their certification through praxis and then choose to not complete our program.
Type of Program
This graduate program can lead to K-12 certification and is an advanced program. A few candidates, however, earn initial certification by taking the pedagogy courses required for the Master of Arts in Teaching in addition to the courses required for certification as school library media specialists.
Requirements and Length of Program
The MS in Library Science and Information Services is composed of the 30 hours required for certification as well as a research component and electives, for a minimum of 36 graduate hours. The EdS in Human Services, Learning Resources is composed of a minimum of 30 graduate hours. Candidates seeking certification complete all courses required for certification as well as a research component that satisfies the requirements for the EdS. Full time candidates may complete either program in as few as three semesters; however, most candidates are part time and take between three and eight years to complete their degree.
Size of Program
According to the 2008 UCM FactBook, the MS in Library Science & Information Services includes 121 active majors for 2007-2008. The EdS in Human Services, Learning Resources includes 28 active majors for 2007-2008. Our advising files, however, include more than 200 individual candidates who have been active within the last two years. Many of our candidates are employed full time and have young families. They progress through the program one course at a time, taking three or four courses per year.
History of Program
The library science program began at UCM in about 1947. It has always focused on providing the course work leading to certification for school library media rather than public, academic, or special librarianship. The program began as an undergraduate minor. In the mid 1990s the minor was done away with, and the program became a graduate-only advanced program. In 2002, in response to demand from prospective candidates, we implemented a plan for initial certification in school library media at the graduate level. Our typical candidates, however, are in-service teachers who are seeking a master’s degree and certification as school librarians. Some who already have a master’s degree select to earn an education specialist degree that includes the courses required for certification.
Alignment with Conceptual Framework
The Library Science and Information Services Program contributes to UCM’s role as a state leader in teacher education. Program faculty accept and fulfill this goal with a passion for and dedication to education that demonstrates high expectations for our candidates. Each course incorporates the premises of the belief statement, mission, and vision of the conceptual framework. They are included in course syllabi and they guide instruction in each course. Faculty strive to create a curriculum with excellent, standards-based content, using effective pedagogical strategies. They provide opportunities for field experiences. They also administer performance based discussions, assignments, activities, and assessments that assure our candidates leave the Library Science and Information Services Program with the professional and pedagogical knowledge, skills, and dispositions needed to succeed in their work with P-12 students. Since becoming a professional is developmental and ongoing, candidates are also taught skills and resources to be lifelong learners. Following the mission of the University's Teacher Education Program, graduates of the Library Science and Information Services Program are competent, caring, reflective practitioners committed to and promoting the premise that all can learn.
Professional Knowledge, Skills, and Dispositions
Each course in the program is aligned with the MoSTEP Standards for school library media, MoSTEP 1.5 (nearly identical to the national standards for school library media adopted by the American Association of School Librarians in 2003). Standards addressed in each course, are listed in course syllabi. Each course assignment is aligned with a selection of these standards, and key assessments throughout the program demonstrate that candidate performance reflects learning aligned with these standards. These standards are the basis for the practicum, the key field experience in this program. Candidates use the standards to plan the activities for their practicum in association with their supervisors and their performance in the practicum is assessed in relation to a checklist developed from the standards.
Authority to Provide Program
The school library media program at UCM was approved by the Coordinating Board of Higher Education. Coursework conforms to the standards established through DESE, standards based on those developed by the American Association of School Librarians in 2003. The faculty in this program work closely with library science faculty from institutions across the state and nation to ensure that the program reflects current best practices.
Advisory Council
In 2002 an Advisory Council was established to provide advice and feedback to the faculty of the library science program. Its membership has included DESE personnel, practicing library media specialists, current candidates, and alumni. The advisory council has met at least once a year since 2002 to review proposed curriculum changes, current key assessments, collected assessment data, and to discuss current challenges, trends, and practices in school libraries.
Recent Revisions to Program
Only minor program changes have occurred since 2002 until February of 2009. A new course, LIS 5850 Using Online Resources, was approved to satisfy the course requirement for instructional media; and the graduate course, LIS 5640 Library Materials for Children and Youth, became a required course in the MS in Library Science & Information Services to ensure that all candidates receive an introduction to the wide array of materials selected for school libraries across the preK-12 grade range. A set of 15 curriculum changes was recently approved in the university’s curriculum review process to bring the MS program into alignment with the certification requirements recently adopted by DESE. These changes include renaming courses to match DESE course names and renumbering courses so that courses to be taken early in the program have lower numbers than those that should be taken later. Also the requirement for a course about teaching instructional media will be eliminated. The program retains LIS 5850 Using Online Resources as a requirement; it emphasizes the role of instruction using information resources, a key component of the work of the school library media specialist. These changes will become effective at the beginning of the Fall 2009 semester.
National Recognition
The program received national recognition in 2002 and again in 2008. The program was submitted for national review February 1, 2008, and received notice of national recognition in July, 2008. Faculty have reviewed the findings from that report carefully and are currently addressing noted recommendations for improvement. For example, the reading promotion project (Assessment 2) was described as rather weak. During the Fall 2008 semester, the instructor revised that project to emphasize reading promotion to address that shortcoming.
CHARACTERISTICS OF PROGRAM CANDIDATES
Number of Candidates
Table 1. Size of Program
MS Library Science & Information Services
Year / # Admitted / # Completers / #Transfer / #All UCM2002-03 / 18 / 13 / 0 / 13
2003-04 / 24 / 27 / 0 / 17
2004-05 / 33 / 15 / 0 / 16
2005-06 / 36 / 26 / 0 / 24
2006-07 / 35 / 21 / 0 / 10
2007-08 / 46 / 10 / 0 / 10
EdS Human Services Learning Resources
Year / # Admitted / # Completers / #Transfer / #All UCM2002-03 / 2 / 2 / 0 / 2
2003-04 / 5 / 3 / 0 / 4
2004-05 / 5 / 2 / 0 / 3
2005-06 / 8 / 3 / 0 / 2
2006-07 / 13 / 1 / 0 / 1
2007-08 / 14 / 1 / 0 / 1
Diversity
Typically our candidates are recruited from the ranks of K-12 teachers. The vast majority of them are white females. Consequently, the candidate population reflects very little gender or racial diversity; however, candidates are diverse in other ways. They come to us from inner city, suburban, and rural school districts, from districts from across the state. Those with teaching experience come from subjects areas as diverse as music, art, foreign languages, social sciences, communication arts, math, and science. Even though our program is nearly altogether online, still we recruit most of our degree seekers from within 75 miles of campus.
Table 2. Demographics of Program
Year / Male / Female / White / Black / Hispanic / Asian / Other / TOTAL2002-03 / NA / NA / NA / NA / NA / NA / NA / NA
2003-04 / 2 / 105 / 106 / 1 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 107
2004-05 / 1 / 97 / 98 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 98
2005-06 / 0 / 95 / 95 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 95
2006-07 / 1 / 104 / 105 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 105
2007-08 / 2 / 119 / 118 / 3 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 121
Entrance GPA
Although the program has no entrance test score requirement, we require an undergraduate GPA of 2.75 for those seeking admission to the MS in Library Science and Information Services, and a graduate GPA of 3.5 for those seeking admission to the EdS in Human Services Learning Resources.
Other Entrance Requirements
Candidates must have completed a bachelor’s degree to pursue a Master’s degree, and must have an earned Master’s degree to apply to the Education Specialist program. They must complete an online application and submit all transcripts to the Graduate School. After an initial evaluation by the Graduate School, candidates may be admitted as a non-degree-seeking graduate students. Applicant files meeting the requirements for admission to graduate study will be forwarded to the department for consideration and recommendation. Although the program has no entrance test score requirement, we require an undergraduate GPA of 2.75 for those seeking admission to the MS in Library Science and Information Services, and a graduate GPA of 3.25 for those seeking admission to the EdS in Human Services Learning Resources. Applicants not meeting this requirement may be accepted as Provisional Candidates with the stipulation that they maintain a 3.0 graduate GPA during the first 12 hours of course work in the program. Additionally, all applicants are required to submit three letters of recommendation to the Library Science & Information Services Program Coordinator. After an interview with the Program Coordinator, the department will notify the student of action taken and admission status. For those admitted to the program, a program adviser--a faculty member in the Library Science & Information Services Program--will be assigned and will assist the candidate in formulating a program of study leading to school library media certification and a Master of Science in Library Science and Information Services or the Education Specialist in Human Services--Learning Resources. The candidate shall seek the advice of the program adviser about enrollment, program planning (including any program changes), admission to the practicum, research studies and the completion of a research paper or thesis, and eligibility for graduation.
Persistence to Graduation
The data represented in table 3 is likely not an accurate presentation of the number of candidates certified each year; rather it is the total number of candidates admitted and graduated. It is presumed that the number certified is the number who graduated each year. This is because they meet the qualifications necessary for LIS certification. It has not been possible to determine when or whether candidates receive certification from DESE. Some arrive at our program already certified as school library media specialists by taking the PRAXIS exam, and some never complete the program but receive certification after taking the courses required for certification. We do not submit paperwork to verify that candidates are ready for certification; therefore, we do not maintain statistics on this topic.
Table 3. Candidate Persistence
Year / # Admitted / # Graduated / # Certified2002-03 / 20 / 15 / 15
2003-04 / 29 / 30 / 30
2004-05 / 38 / 17 / 17
2005-06 / 44 / 29 / 29
2006-07 / 48 / 22 / 22
2007-08 / 60 / 11 / 11
CERTIFICATION PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS