Technical Training

     A school media center is, in my opinion the inner circle of the school as a whole, or at least it should be.  I am learning as I progress through this program that there are a lot of different disciplines that Librarians can teach to the faculty as a whole.  With the rapid production of technology the career of a media specialist is extremely vital in every school, I often wondered over the last 6 months how I would fit into a career filed such as this one, and if there was even a demand for it.  I can now see multiple avenues of opportunities, and I am excited to get started.
     I think a lot of people misunderstand what it takes to be a media specialist these days.  Media specialists have become a "jack of all trades" and unfortunately it is because they have been forced to take on extra responsibilities in order to justify their career field.  Now in saying this I certainly agree that the topic of technical training is what librarians are now geared and educated for.  I personally see technical training and support as being the backbone of a school system thus putting the librarian in that position as well.  Lets be honest the classrooms now days are technology driven, why would you higher a "tech company" to do the work of a legitimate teacher/librarian?  Although librarians are not fit for every networking advancement, they are certainly competent enough to work out daily problems and situations.
     Now on the subject of technical training, I see this being broken down into two important parts;  First, technical training or teaching others how to work with technology.  It is so important that librarians share their knowledge of different kinds of apps, software, LED projectors etc... Librarians and the teaching staff must work together to be efficient and productive in their teaching skills.  Jurkowski had a great quote when he said " Ongoing staff development is considered an essential component of the library media program"(Jurkowski, Chap 13).  This quote brings me to the second part which is ongoing development and what is in my opinion the most important.  It is one thing to be able to stand in front of teachers and teach them how to use different kinds of apps, software etc.. but it is something entirely different to keep them up to pace and give them support as they explore different ways to use this technology.  It will be necessary to help them update this technology and maintain it after they start using it.  As many of us know applications will have several different kinds of uses and it will also be important for teachers to further their understanding of these applications so that the may use it efficiently and correctly.  Jurkowski gives us multiple ways to motivate teachers to come to workshops but after all is said in done it is important that a librarian can convey the message of how technology can improve all facets of the classroom.  Continued development can be the difference in a teacher continuing to use the technology or slowly dropping it as a tool.  "There’s also a fear
of making mistakes with technology, breaking it, or simply not knowing
how to use it effectively"(Jurowski, Chap 13).  I would assume this is probably one of the biggest issues with teachers failing to use technology in the classroom, there is such a large difference in age and personalities in a school that it is important for librarians o be able to reach out to all of them and make sure they know how to pace the learning accordingly.
     There are so many responsibilities for media specialists these days that they really have come to be known as "the center of knowledge" being able to adapt and handle several different types of teaching with different age groups is what makes them the backbone of the school system.


 Jurkowski, O. L. (2010). Technology and the School Library. Professional Development, 161-167.