Leigh Ann Withrow Media Specialist

1
Leigh Ann WithrowMedia Specialist

• Professional Portfolio

Biography/Résumé
Philosophy
Standards
2
Biography

• I have lived my entire life in Sylvania, Georgia.
  I am currently an 8th grade Science teacher at
  Screven County Middle School. I received my B.S.
  in Chemistry Education from Georgia Southern
  University, graduating Summa Cum Laude, following
  the Spring 2004 school term. I hope to earn my
  M.Ed in Instructional Technology following the
  Summer 2007 school term.

Click here for my formal Résumé
3
Philosophy

• I decided at the beginning of my college career
  I wanted to have an impact on society as a whole,
  but most importantly the community of which I
  would be a part. In my opinion, the easiest way
  to have an impact is to make a difference in the
  lives of those around you, and I feel that being
  a media specialist provides me with the best
  opportunity to do so. Media specialists have a
  great privilege, and also a great responsibility
  to educate tomorrows leaders, and it is that
  challenge that I hope to meet as a media
  specialist. I will have the responsibility to
  help students become life long learners. I know
  that every student will not be a success story,
  but I do believe that each student can be
  successful in his or her own way, and as a media
  specialist, it will be my responsibility to equip
  the student to achieve on his or her own level.
  In order to equip students, it is vital that the
  students have access to all types of information.
  This means as a media specialist, I must provide
  resources of all types without bias due to race,
  religion, socio-economic status, or personal
  values.

4
AASL/NSATE Standards

• Standard 1 Use of Information and Ideas
• Standard 2 Teaching and Learning
• Standard 3 Collaboration and Leadership
• Standard 4 Program Administration

5
Use of Information and Ideas
Standard 1 Sub-Standards

• Efficient and Ethical Information Seeking
  Behavior
• Literacy and Reading
• Access to Information
• Stimulating Learning Environment

Standard 1 Supporting Artifacts

• Reading Enrichment Unit
• WebQuest
• Facilities Plan

STANDARDS
6
Teaching and Learning
Standard 2 Sub-Standards

• Knowledge of Learners and Learning
• Effective and Knowledgeable Teacher
• Information Literacy Curriculum

Standard 2 Supporting Artifacts

• Information Literacy Lesson Plan and Pathfinder
• Still Image Sound Production

STANDARDS
7
Collaboration and Leadership
Standard 3 Sub-Standards

• Connection with the Library Community
• Instructional Partner
• Educational Leader

Standard 3 Supporting Artifacts

• Field Experience Chart
• Collaboration Unit
• Staff Development Unit

STANDARDS
8
Program Administration
Standard 4 Sub-Standards

• Managing Information Resources
• Managing Program Resources
• Comprehensive and Collaborative Strategic
  Planning and Assessment

Standard 4 Supporting Artifacts

• Collection Development Plan
• Budget
• Administrative Policy

STANDARDS
9
Reading Enrichment Unit

• The reading enrichment unit allowed me to
  encourage and create a stimulating learning
  environment for the students while at the same
  time promoting reading. The strategy of creating
  a unit that is enjoyable for the students allowed
  them to explore the novel they were reading and
  connect the experiences of the characters in
  nature with concepts they had learned in other
  classes.

STANDARD 1
Artifact
10
WebQuest

• The WebQuest fostered a stimulating learning
  environment by allowing the students the
  opportunity to use technology to access and learn
  new concepts. The assignment promoted reading
  and also allowed students to efficiently and
  ethically seek information about the water cycle
  by navigating through the entire WebQuest.

STANDARD 1
Artifact
11
Facilities Plan

• The facilities plan that was created for the
  Screven County Middle School Media Center was
  created to best serve the needs of all members of
  the learning community. Its design promotes
  reading and more importantly, enhances the
  ability of both students and faculty to
  physically access all resources. The design
  makes the media center available to students both
  before and after school, as well as being
  available for both structured and unstructured
  time during the school day.

STANDARD 1
Artifact
12
Information Literacy Plan and Pathfinder

• The Information Literacy Plan allowed me to
  collaborate with a teacher to not only teach part
  of the information literacy curriculum but also
  to become knowledgeable of a group of learners
  and then design a unit that tailored to their
  needs. The use of different teaching strategies
  such as the use of a movie to hook the learners,
  use of powerpoint, playing games, working in
  groups, and providing a pathfinder demonstrate an
  effective and knowledgeable teacher.

STANDARD 2
Artifact 1
Artifact 2
13
Still Image Sound Production

• The still image sound production was produced for
  high school students learning lab safety rules.
  This assignment required collaboration with a
  high school science teacher to produce a product
  that would capture the students attention based
  on a learner analysis and help them to remember
  important lab procedures. This production
  allowed me to teach the students without being
  physically present.

STANDARD 2
Artifact
14
Field Experience Chart

• Throughout my field experience, I have worked
  with different age level students. I have spent
  time in the high school, the elementary school
  and the middle school. By being connected with
  the different media centers, it has made me see
  that even though the focus may be different, the
  goal is the same. The overall goal is to make
  the media center a place that provides resources
  to students allowing them to become life long
  learners.

STANDARD 3
Artifact
15
Collaboration Unit

• I collaborated with a seventh grade social
  studies teacher to teach students how to read and
  create bar graphs. The collaboration unit
  allowed me to take the role of an instructional
  partner sharing with the teacher the backward
  design lesson plan template and different
  teaching strategies such as using the computer
  lab to allow the students to use technology as a
  learning tool.

STANDARD 3
Artifact
16
Staff Development Unit

• The staff development unit focuses on teachers
  integrating unitedstreaming as an instructional
  strategy. This unit demonstrates the ability of
  the media specialist to be an educational leader
  by sharing new technologies with the faculty and
  staff to meet their needs.

STANDARD 3
Artifact
17
Collection Development Plan

• The collection development plan allowed me to
  take on the role of being a program
  administrator. For this assignment I analyzed
  the learning community and then made the decision
  as to what resources needed to be added to the
  collection to support the change of the science
  curriculum as well as choosing the resources that
  best fit the learning community. This assignment
  allowed me to manage information resources with
  respect to selecting, organizing, and using.

STANDARD 4
Artifact
18
Budget

• The budget assignment gave me the opportunity to
  manage program resources. Being given a budget
  made me make tough decisions regarding equipment
  purchases that would help the media center reach
  its goals and stay on track to focus on its
  mission.

STANDARD 4
Artifact
19
Administrative Policy

• The administrative policy assignment gave me the
  opportunity to see how the school system
  currently runs with respect to policies and what
  should be improved based on todays standards.
  The assignment showed me that for program
  administration there must be collaborative and
  comprehensive strategic planning in order for the
  media center program to grow and mature into what
  it needs to be for the life long learner.

STANDARD 4
Artifact