Mary Snyder Broussard, Rachel Hickoff-Cresko, and Jessica Urick Oberlin.  (2014). Snapshots of Reality: A Practical Guide to Formative Assessment in Library Instruction. Chicago: American Library Association.

Through ten practical chapters, Snapshots of Reality works from the assumption that classroom-based assessment does not have to take away from invaluable instruction time, nor does it have to be an overwhelmingly complicated task. The book outlines the concept of formative assessment, “bite-sized” assessments that help the librarian get a snapshot of the students’ level of understanding in relation to the learning target(s). These mini-assessments are usually learning tools themselves and can be assessed quickly enough that can be adjusted on the spot to meet the immediate needs of learners. Snapshots of Reality explores the adaptation of formative assessment theory into something that works for the library one-shot and more advanced instructor-librarian collaborations. It also includes three sections detailing 48 FAST (Formative Assessment Snapshot Technique) ideas for use before, during and after instruction sessions as well as a guided planning template to help librarians seamlessly bring formative assessment into the library classroom. This book is appropriate for all types of academic libraries, school libraries with strong information literacy programs, and library and information school collections.

The Standing Committee of the IFLA School Libraries Section is holding its annual mid term meeting in London, UK April 7-8, 2014 at the Bloomsbury headquarters of CILIP (Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals). The focus of the meeting will be work on the revision of the 2002 IFLA/UNESCO School Library Guidelines. Tricia Adams, Director, School Library Association, will be hosting the meeting and has arranged for the members of the Standing Committee to travel to Oxford for a one-day School Libraries Association professional development workshop on April 9th at Oxford University Press (CPD@OUP http://www.sla.org.uk/members-day.php)

Joint Book Proposal Approved
The Professional Committee of IFLA has approved a new school libraries book (hard on the heels of Global Perspectives on School Libraries: Projects and Practices). This will be a joint project of IASL and IFLA School Libraries with the Joint Committee once again acting as an advisory committee to the project. The working title of the new book is School Library Guidelines: Global Action. It will be co-edited by Dianne Oberg (Canada) and Barbara Schultz-Jones (USA). The call for chapters will go out in June, with proposals due in October and full chapters due in November.

Just published in Collaboration in International and Comparative Librarianship
Marquardt, L., & Oberg, D. (2014). Collaboration in editorship: “Global Perspectives on School Libraries.” In S. Chakraborty & A. K. Das, A. K., Collaboration in international and comparative librarianship (pp. 126-136). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-4666-4365-9
This chapter, in an IGI Global publication edited by Susmita Chakraborty (University of Calcutta, India) and Anup Kumar Das (Jawaharlal Nehru University, India), describes the process of collaborative editing that resulted in the DeGruyter Saur book, Global perspectives on school libraries: Projects and practices (2011), which was a joint project of IASL and the IFLA School Libraries Section.

Dianne Oberg
Chair, Joint Committee of IASL/IFLA School Libraries
Secretary, IFLA School Libraries Standing Committee

Information about Book Giving Day Feb 14: http://www.thebookchook.com/2014/01/lets-celebrate-digital-learning-day-2014.html
bookmark http://bookgivingday.com/2014/01/25/a-bookmark-for-potential-existing-bookworms/,

bookplates http://bookgivingday.com/bookplates/,

and http://bookgivingday.com/2014/01/19/a-promise/Thanks

Ahead of the plenary meeting of Licences for Europe that will be held this afternoon in Brussels, EBLIDA calls on the European Commission to open in-depth discussions on copyright reform as the Licences for Europe process fails to address key concerns of libraries and their users.

Please find the full Press Release issued November 13, 2013, at this link: http://www.eblida.org/news/press-release-licences-4-europe-plenary-on-13-november.html?PHPSESSID=0a065b391f02851ca0689f3e350fdc87.

Frost may be on the ground, but planning for spring library programs is well underway! Now is the perfect time to add a program celebrating international children’s books to your April selection of programs and lesson plans for children.

USBBY (United States Board on Books for Young People) has been awarded the sponsorship of the 2013 International Children’s Book Day, traditionally celebrated on April 2, Hans Christian Andersen’s birthday. Program ideas, a poster created by artist Ashley Bryan and poet Pat Mora, and much more are available now at:

http://internationalchildrensbookday.wordpress.com/

Here are some of the easy-to-replicate programs already available on the site:

Monsters of the World submitted by Cristy Burne

Featuring books from Australia, New Zealand and Africa, this program appeals to children’s fascination with monsters and requires little more than your fabulous read-aloud skills, easy to find international books, and pencils and paper!

International Playground Games submitted by Lisa Herskowitz

Botswana, Jamaica, Romania, and Argentina are just a few of the countries you can travel to in this fun and easy program. Take a look!

Do you have a great idea for celebrating International Children’s Book Day? Please share it with your colleagues around the world by submitting a program idea online.

Singapore to Host the 2013
International Summit of the Book
“A Book By Any Other Name” Theme of Meeting
Elaine Ng, the chief executive officer of the National Library Board of Singapore, today invited experts and supporters of literacy worldwide to attend the 2013 International Summit of the Book, to take place in Singapore Aug. 16,2013. Her remarks came at the close of the first International Summit of the Book, held at the U.S. Library of Congress.
“We look forward to an insightful debate on the evolving concept of the book from an Asian perspective,” Ng said. “We are privileged to have professor Tommy Koh, Singapore’s ambassador-at-large and former ambassador to the United Nations, as chairman of the organizing committee.”
The theme of the Singapore conference will be “A Book By Any Other Name,” keyed to the well-known phrase about a rose from Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet.”
Information on the conference, including registration information, can be found at the website blogs.nlb.gov.sg/booksummit2013/.
While the printed page is one of the most cherished images associated with the book, digital technology has inspired new compositions of the book and transformed the way stories are created and shared, Ng said.
“The shift from page to pixel is merely one of the issues to be discussed during the summit,” she said. “Other questions to be explored include: ‘How will stories be told?’ ‘How will the form of the book evolve?’ and ‘How will reading, writing and publishing change?’”
The Singapore summit will bring together leaders in academia, libraries, culture and technology. By engaging a diverse range of views beyond the traditional book world, its organizers hope to spark meaningful, inspiring and perhaps surprising discussions among participants.
Ng and Koh received the crystal book that represents the “passed torch” for the International Summit of the Book at a ceremony today closing the first such summit, held at the U.S. Library of Congress. There, some three dozen experts on literacy, rare books, the history of books and the future of the book made and heard presentations about the value of literature and the unique role the book has played in the dissemination of human knowledge and culture.
The National Library Board of Singapore oversees the National Library, the Public Libraries and the National Archives. The board’s mission is to provide a trusted, accessible and globally connected library and information service through the National Library and a comprehensive network of public libraries. Also under its management are 31 libraries belonging to government agencies, schools and institutions. Through its innovative use of technology and collaboration with strategic partners, NLB ensures that library users have access to a rich array of information services and resources that are convenient, accessible and relevant. More information is available at www.nlb.gov.sg
The Library of Congress, the nation’s oldest federal cultural institution, is the world’s pre-eminent reservoir of knowledge, providing unparalleled collections and integrated resources to Congress and the American people. Many of the Library’s rich resources can be accessed through its website at www.loc.gov.