Author Archives

• Make Space for Socialization and Leisure

  By Mark Dzula on 08/20/2019 • ( 0 )

  New Year on the Horizon The opening of a new school year beckons. We are days away from filling the library with scholars, journalists, laughter, amateurs, independent study, and tomorrow’s game makers. My college preparatory boarding high school (say that… Read More ›

• Journalism Fosters Inclusiveness in the Library

  By Mark Dzula on 05/03/2019 • ( 0 )

  Staff writers, editors, and head editors flood the center of my library to produce the Webb Canyon Chronicle, the public record of student voice at The Webb Schools. Although I always valued student-centered and artful approaches to education, I never… Read More ›

• AASL Standards Spark Journalistic Inquiry

  By Mark Dzula on 01/25/2019 • ( 0 )

  I advise the journalism program at my school, which absolutely illuminates my work as a school librarian. Studying journalism promotes information literacy. It promotes digital citizenship. It promotes collaborative learning. The more that I thought about it over the past… Read More ›

• Research, information literacy, and independent study

  By Mark Dzula on 12/17/2018 • ( 2 )

  Independent study thrives in my school library, which situates us in the center of our schools’ goals. According to my schools’ strategic plan, we aim to: …foster a school environment and academic program that demands students join in the design… Read More ›

• AASL Standards and Multiple Literacies during Academic Flex Time

  By Mark Dzula on 09/26/2018 • ( 0 )

  My school library thrives during interstitial times; in-between moments are quickly filled. My programming and priorities invite large swaths of the student body to utilize the library space to do the social work of education. Like a circadian rhythm, we… Read More ›

• Something to buzz about: Implementing AASL Standards in my library

  By Mark Dzula on 07/19/2018 • ( 0 )

  This summer, my library is buzzing a little more than usual. The students have all gone, but we are seeing more teachers stopping by and our space is being used by several summer programs. The main space still boasts a… Read More ›

• Pedagogy, Collaboration, and Differentiated Instruction

  By Mark Dzula on 05/23/2018 • ( 1 )

  I am working with the world languages department and the administration at our school to help redesign the department’s curriculum. Our goals are to: increase opportunities for personalization nurture world language learners throughout all four years of their high school… Read More ›

• Cross-pollination: Inspiration from the 2018 CARL conference

  By Mark Dzula on 05/03/2018 • ( 0 )

  

  The plants around my home just burst into bloom. Thanks to some professional cross-pollination at the California Academic and Research Libraries (CARL) conference, “The Academic Library in Times of Change,” my library will be sure to be blooming, too. On… Read More ›

• Cabinet of Curiosity

  By Mark Dzula on 03/19/2018 • ( 0 )

  

  My fever dream of a Robot Arcade in the library has practically come true. During a special extra-curricular event called Unbounded Days, students recently put the finishing touches on our own video game cabinet. Now, students and teachers alike can… Read More ›

• Calling All Amateurs!

  By Mark Dzula on 01/24/2018 • ( 1 )

  The school library should house amateurs of every stripe. We seek to inspire curiosity, stoke the imagination, and nurture passionate study. Don’t sell the amateur short. In contrast to the professional and the expert, a mere amateur could be seen… Read More ›