Though the areas of library and technology overlap, especially when it comes to information literacy, they also have very separate focuses and needs.

"Ultimately, information literate people are those who have learned how to learn. They know how to learn because they know how knowledge is organized, how to find information, and how to use information in such a way that others can learn from them. They are people prepared for lifelong learning..."

American Library Association, Report of the Presidential Committee on Information Literacy

Technology

Technology is a tool which enables us to better do what we do every day in education. We believe that technology should be a transparent backbone in the school. It must be easily accessible as well as up to date. Cutting edge technology offers the opportunity for students and teachers to be creative and innovative while being intellectually challenged. The integration of technology into our existing curriculum is essential.

Though students need to learn skills and specific software programs to use technology wisely and efficiently, we believe that teaching those skills as part of projects that are developmentally appropriate and at point of need (especially for the older students) makes the most sense. There are a few select areas that may require focused lessons. One of these areas is information literacy.

Information literacy is a critical skill in today's world. As technology has become ever so prevalent in gathering information, our technology and library departments have worked together to educate students to best use available resources. The meaning of literacy extends beyond merely locating information to learning how to analyze, evaluate, and communicate ideas effectively from a variety of resources. Students must question the integrity of their sources, especially when found on the Internet.

Top of Page

Library

The mission of the Elisabeth Morrow School Library is to ensure that students and staff are effective users of ideas and information. The librarian collaborates with the technology staff and teachers in an inquiry based environment to provide resources, strategies, and tools so students will have the necessary skills and knowledge in order to locate, evaluate, and integrate information. The library program provides an intellectually stimulating environment to help students master both subject area content and information literacy.

A library that supports an integrated curriculum, combined with a rich collection of both print and electronic formats directly contributes to high academic performance. To this end, the library supports and facilitates the integration of all disciplines by providing access to high quality resources in all subject areas. The school library functions as the information center of the entire school community.

"The library supports the concept that intellectual freedom and access to information are prerequisite to effective and responsible citizenship in a democracy." (American Library Association)

Top of Page

Middle School

The middle school years are characterized by the need to ask questions and to push boundaries. The library environment encourages dialogue and analytical thinking based on the values that we cherish at Elisabeth Morrow.