Delany College teacher wins Australian Teacher Librarian of the Year
 |
Jan shares the award with members of her library teen advisory group |
 |
Jan receives her award from sponsors, Pledger Consulting |
On Saturday 1 November, the Australian School Library Association (ASLA) awarded Jan Radford, Delany College, Granville, as the winner of the 2008 Australian Teacher Librarian of the Year.
This national award recognises and honours an exceptional Australian teacher librarian in a school setting whose professional practice has a positive impact on student achievement and information literacy. Jan Radford is the first NSW teacher librarian to receive the national award, and said she was amazed when she received notification of her win.
‘As a teacher librarian I consider myself and my service a work in progress. There is nothing perfect about the library that I run, but it hums. It is active and staff and students are involved. I have a wonderful team to work with, so it is ironic that I am receiving this award alone – for me it is all about the team,’ Jan said.
Principal, Delany College, Peter Wade, attended the awards ceremony with Jan’s library staff and representatives from the library teen advisory group. Peter said the whole college was immensely proud of Jan, commenting that Jan’s work has a positive impact on every student.
‘Events such as Delany Reads! Week, and Jan’s work with students, involving and empowering the members of the teen advisory group is now starting to have effect across the whole student community,’ Peter said.
Award sponsors, Pledger Consulting, commended Jan for her innovative use of technology in the library setting: ‘We have never seen a librarian use the internet in such a creative and effective way,’ said Paul Pledger.
Jan has been developing a rich virtual space for a wide range of curriculum areas, and supporting literacy and recreational reading. Resources on her web page extend to include parents, (with brochures including tips to encourage reading skills and behaviour) and fellow professionals, with a drop-down menu linking to background information on programs. The website design combines HTML, access to system provided databases and access to a range of free Web 2.0 tools.
The award carries a $1,500 cash prize from Pledger Consulting and $500 worth of Weblinks-LinksPlus products.
« Return to news list