1. AALS and ISTE Standards

   People today like "new", especially when it is shiny or convenient, but people typically begin to grumble when "new" means confusion and misunderstanding. The latter is the "new experience" many school librarians across the country felt when the new AASL standards were released in 2018. After attending a conference, Courtney Lewis and her fellow independent school librarians decided to ban together to break down and understand the standards through the framework, outside sources, and conversations. They demonstrated the importance of collaboration in the role and success of school libraries and librarians (Lewis, 2019). 

    The same type of collaboration is a critical component that the AASL and ISTE standards provide the framework for learners and librarians. Both sets of standards place the students in the driver's seat during the inquiry phase and the importance of recognizing students' interests. AASL and ISTE understand the value of an environment that fosters and encourages learning and growth within each learner. The significance of learners making real-world connections so they can relate to the target skills of the learning standards is demonstrated throughout both standard sets. Self-feedback is another area in which learners are encouraged to evaluate and reflect on their learning and offer feedback to others within the AASL and the ISTE standards. 

    While AASL standards encourage a broad range of learning with a primary focus on information literacy, the ISTE emphasizes digital literacy. The infographics below provide an example of how each standard is set up. AASL standards use short phrases for their competencies, while the ISTE uses an objective sentence approach, much like state education standards. Another critical difference between the two standard sets involves inclusion and the amount of emphasis each places on this shared foundation. When referring to the lack of standards from the ISTE under the "Include" foundation on the crosswalk (AASL, 2018) for the standard sets, Lewis (2019) stated, "(it) demonstrates school librarians' emphasis on issues of diversity and inclusivity in our work." The AASL standards show that librarians play a significant role in the information skills and more of learners. Still, it is also essential to understand that the way learners gather, send, and receive information has changed drastically in the last decades. This awareness creates a bridge between the AASL and ISTE standards that every librarian should crossover and connect with daily. Using these two standard sets as supporting documents for each other rather than competing is the only way for librarians to truly provide learners with well-balanced information literacy instruction. 

                  

          (American Association of School Librarians, 2018)            (International Society for Technology in Education, 2016)

    

References

AASL standards crosswalk future ready. American Association of School Librarians. (2018). 

        Retrieved June 21, 2022, from https://standards.aasl.org/wp-

        content/uploads/2018/08/180828-aasl-standardscrosswalk-future-ready.pdf

American Association of School Librarians. (2018). Shared foundations: Engage.

        [Infographic]. American Association of School Librarians. 

        https://standards.aasl.org/project/foundations/.

International Society for Technology in Education. (2016). I am a digital age learner. 

        [Infographic]. International Society for Technology in Education. https://info.iste.org/iste-

        student-standards-transform-the-classroom-            

        poster_ga=2.104771720.987667400.1655769278-246135604.1655769278.

Lewis, C. (2019). “Collaborating to communicate.” Knowledge Quest. (47)5, 36-43.