Welcome to the Advocacy Class

 

Learning Objectives

Use the following objectives to check your learning as you proceed through the class:

  • Understand the meaning of advocacy.
  • Identify resources to build advocacy for your school library.
  • Recognize the importance of building relationships in your community.
  • Locate organizations and associations which offer opportunities for support and build relationships with library peers.
  • Understand how to use newsletters and social media to communicate with the community.
  • Consider tools to build an online presence to promote your school library. 
  • Understand how to represent the usage and value of your school library by using reports and infographics.

 

In this class, you will work through several lessons to learn about advocacy, promoting your library, and ways to share the value of your school library. Below is a description of each lesson and an estimate of the amount of time it may take to complete each one.

To enhance your participation in the class:

  • Click links to access additional resources.
  • Download exercise files from the Exercise Files tab on the main page of the class or from the bottom of individual lessons.
  • Click images to make them bigger.
Getting Started
  • Pre-test: Take a quiz to find out what you know or need to know about advocacy and sharing the value of your school library. 5 minutes
  • Welcome to the Advocacy Class: Review the course objectives and the course overview. 5 minutes
  • Using Open Space Groups:  Join the INFOhio School Library Basics group in Open Space. In this group, discuss and reflect on the integration of this resource into the library and classroom with like-minded educators. 5 minutes
What is Advocacy?
  • Understanding Advocacy: Learn what advocacy is and about advocacy resources, including the AASL advocacy site. 20 minutes
  • Building Relationships: Learn about professional organizations such as OELMA and AASL and supporting organizations like EveryLibrary and INFOhio Advocacy as well as the importance of building relationships. 20 minutes
How to Promote Your Library
  • Building Your First Line of Support: Learn the importance of using newsletters and social media to promote your library. 15 minutes
  • Online Presence to Connect Your Community: Learn how to develop a website and add content to support your library community. 15 minutes
  • Your Library by the Numbers: Learn about reports to use to represent the usage and value of your library. 20 minutes 
Checking your Learning
  • Self-Assessments: Answer questions to reflect on what you learned. 15 minutes
  • Contact Hours Quiz and Certificate: Take a quiz to earn a certificate for 2 contact hours. 5 minutes

If you need any help while you complete the course, please contact us at support.infohio.org.

Exercise files for this lesson

Use this workbook to help create an action plan for library advocacy.
The trainer guide provides an overview of the class including lessons, reflection opportunities and optional face-to-face activities.
Use this document to keep track of learning while completing each lesson.
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