Finding Ways to Share Power with our Students [23:22]

Often, when school librarians think about collaboration, we focus on ways we can partner with classroom teachers or other adults to serve our students. In this conversation, however, we discuss the integral role students themselves can play as strong collaborative partners if we provide them with the opportunity. Peter Langella, librarian at Champlain Valley Union High School, and Meg Boisseau Allison, teacher librarian at U-32 Middle and High School, describe specific examples of how they share power with students.

To start, Peter introduces the "Social Justice Think Tank" course that he teaches and how he navigates his naturally shifting role during instruction. While coursework begins with him exposing students to new ideas and information, the power dynamic shifts over time with students taking the lead in decisions about what projects they will explore and lead.

Meg also talks about the unique opportunity that school libraries have to serve as "containers" for productive conversations with students, since "everything intersects through the school library." By keeping our library doors open to students and demonstrating curiosity about their perspectives, we can build their trust, ensuring that they not only come back to our libraries, but use the space to practice holding power in ways that enable them to take compassionate actions as engaged citizens.

On social media, follow Peter on Twitter at @PeterLangella and Meg on Twitter at @meg_allison and on Instagram at @u32 library. They also post using the hashtag #Libraries4Action, encouraging librarians to continually move our theoretical values to concrete action, and inspiring us all to help our students live out ideals of social justice in practice.