The Blue Skunk Blog: Mindset lists for teachers and librarians updated

Saturday, August 27, 2011 at 06:27AM



I've enjoyed the Beloit Mindset list (2015) and use parts of it in presentations for years. Bruce Krajewski writes a college faculty "mindset list." (via Stephens Lighthouse.)



Maybe it's time to dust off my librarian and teacher mindset lists and spruce them up a little...


The Mindset List for Librarians Entering the Field in 2011


Librarians entering the field today...
1.Have never had to type a catalog card.
2.Have never looked something up in the Readers Guide to Periodical Literature.
3.Have never maintained a vertical file.
4.Have always maintained a Facebook fan page for their library.
5.Have never attended a F2F graduate school library class.
6.Have never puchased (or rented) a 16mm film, VHS tape or LaserDisc. (Let alone a filmloop or filmstrip.)
7.Have never NOT had the Internet as a resource.
8.Have never checked out 5 1/4 floppy disks of MECC games.
9.Have always helped find and stream videos rather than checked out tapes to teachers.
10.Have never arranged for interlibrary loan of a physical book.
11.Have ever worked in a library without student workstations or a computer lab.
12.Have always had wireless access for students and teachers.
13.Have never sent overdue notices to parents by postal mail.
14.Have always been more concerned about Internet sites being blocked that books being challenged.
15.Have always worried about whether their positions would exist the next school year.


Teachers entering the profession in 2011:
1.Have never gotten a buzz sniffing fresh mimeograph copies.
2.Have never used a paper gradebook (and have always needed passwords).
3.Have only received their school bulletin via school e-mail and have always had a school website.
4.Parents and students have always been able to Google them.
5.There has always been a Rate Your Teacher website.
6.Have always used white boards and LCD projectors, not chalk boards, overhead projectors or TVs.
7.Have always had a telephone and voice mail in their classrooms.
8.Have always been asked to be more concerned about test scores than about learning.
9.Have never "taught" students how to use a print dictionary, encyclopedia or atlas.
10.Have been portrayed by politicians and the press more as villains than as heroes.
11.Have always had students who can "fact check" a statement using their cellphones in class.
12.Have always had their collective bargaining rights questioned.
13.Have always had both parents and students look at their gradebook via a web portal.
14.Have always used a card rather than a key to get into their buildings and have always smiled at the security camera by the door.
15.Online classes have always been an option for students who don't like the F2F class they are attending.

The Blue Skunk Blog: Mindset lists for teachers and librarians updated