By Dianne Oberg, PhD
Professor Emerita, University of Alberta
Theoretical Frameworks for Thinking about the Work Ahead
Abstract
Esteemed professor and school library leader Dianne Oberg discusses theoretical frameworks and strategies around cultural responsiveness in educational and library pedagogy. She provides keen insight into how educators and librarians in Canada, often from predominantly middle-class Caucasian background, must grow to understand culture and the role of cultural responsiveness within the dimensions of instruction and embrace creating culturally relevant communities of practice. A cultural competency chart is included for practitioner reflection and goal setting for the work ahead.
Dianne Oberg, PhD, is Professor Emerita in teacher-librarianship in the Faculty of Education at the University of Alberta in Canada. Her research focuses on teacher-librarianship education and on the implementation and evaluation of school library programs. Dianne co-authored with J. Branch the award-winning professional document, Focus on Inquiry: A Teacher’s Guide to Implementing Inquiry-based Learning (2004). She was an early adopter of online technology for graduate-level school library education. Dianne co-edited, with Luisa Marquardt, Global Perspectives on School Libraries: Projects and Practices (2011) and, with Barbara Schultz-Jones, the second edition of the IFLA School Library Guidelines (2015) and Global Action on School Library Guidelines (2015). Dianne was the founding editor of the peer-reviewed international journal, School Libraries Worldwide, which she edited for 15 years. She continues to contribute to the work of IASL and the IFLA School Libraries Section. Currently, she is working on a book on school library education and training.