Appling County

Primary School:
Media Center
FRIT 7331
Toni Bowers
3/7/2014

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Appling County Primary Schools media center is centrally located in the front of the
school with three halls extending outward from it. Two are grade halls and the other leads to the
cafeteria which links the primary with the elementary school. The media center is very open with
a high ceiling to let as much light in as possible. It is surrounded by large rectangle windows and
has many florescent lights above it. It has two entrances: one a ramp for students with disabilities
and a flight of stairs at the back of the library. The ramp, in my opinion, could be a less steep
because teachers have problems controlling carts and wheel
chairs when entering the media center. It is also difficult to
push a chart or wheel chair up the ramp due to the steepness
when exiting the media center. The ramp also has a tight turn
at the beginning that blocks the view it. Many students and teachers have almost collided with
each other while
rounding that turn.


The media center operates under a flexible schedule which means that there are students
coming in and out of the media center beginning at 8:30 am until 2:00 pm individually, in small
groups, or with a class. Staff members have access at all times due in part to the open floor plan
with no way to lock access to the media center. The media center does provide tables and chairs
for the students who want to look at books or work on school assignments; however, these are
mainly used after school or not at all due in part to how the teachers prefer to schedule their
students in the media center. Students must be taught how to use the media center and its
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resources responsibly. Due to the size of the student population and the number of classrooms
served, it is necessary to have most students monitored while in the media center with help from
the classroom teachers and their paraprofessionals. Most of the time, the tables and chairs are
used for meetings with the teachers or specific grade level meetings among teachers.

To the right of the tables and chairs is the circulation desk, where books and other
resources are checked in and out using Destiny circulation software. The desk is a V shape
providing the media specialist with easy access to students. The media specialist can stand
behind the desk and have an eye on students at all times. What the new media specialist wants to
do is either place labeled baskets or
laminated signs on the desk to show students
where to return books and where to stand if
they want to check out books. This is a great
idea to because then the students can have
visual representation instead of the media
specialist just giving verbal instructions. This
would also be wonderful for the students who
have trouble reading or who are just learning to read.
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On the outerwalls of the media center are the fiction and reading resource sections. The
reading resource section is a section that has small books that
range from easy to more challenging. These books help
struggling students learn how to track from left-to-right and
how to read a book. Every grade at the school will check these
books out multiple times in the year.
The fiction section is in alphabetical order by author then book title starting from left to
right. Each letter section has a sign above identifying it with
a certain series of books or authors. Having the shelves
labeled this way are confusing, but not confusing. I knew if I
went to the Dr. Seuss section I would find Dr. Seuss books,
but I didnt know on which shelf I would find those books.
If this kind of labeling is going to be used then I think to be
clearer for the students, especially non-readers, it would be
helpful to have least an example picture of the type of book
or the actual book itself that can be located on that
particular shelf.
Located in the middle of the media center is the non-
fiction section. This section covers everything from Asia to
Zebras. This section is also arranged by Dewey beginning
with subject then alphabetically by author and book title. The
sections have labels indicating what type of non-fiction
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books can be found on that shelf. The new media specialist wanted to make it easier for the
students to see the labels so she made the lettering like the label in the picture above. Many of
our students couldnt read the label on top of the shelf so she made labels that were eye level for
the students. This supports information found in the book Empowering Learners on page 33,
The school librarian creates an environment that is conductive to active and participatory
learning, resource-based learning, and collaboration with teaching staff.
Between the non-ficiton shelves is the computer station. This station can be used by
students, teachers, and staff during the school day and after school if necessary. The students can
access online resources and find books that they
want to check out. The work space is very small,
which doesnt allow for much writing or group
work to be done here. The computers are very slow
at loading and processing webpages which makes
for more frustration than completed school work. Also, there are only two computers at the
station. If they are both being used then others have to wait or go back to class. This is not
consistent with Empowering Learners which states on page 33, The school librarian will ensure
that technology and telecommunications infrastructure is adequate to support teaching and
learning. However, all classrooms and administrative offices are linked to the media center and
its resources through four wireless routers strategically located throughout the school giving us
WiFi in addition to the networked infrastructure within the school. Three have a secure passcode
and one does not. The one that doesnt require a passcode is for all students and teachers to use.
The other three are for use by teachers and staff and are monitored more closely. These have the
same web filtering software that the desktop computers have. The media specialist doesnt
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control the filtering software, but she agrees that it does block very useful and educational
websites. She said if anyone wants to unblock a website that it must by submitted in written form
with valid reasons to the IT department for review.
At this time the media center doesnt have its own website, but the media specialist is
working very hard at putting the finishing touches on it and then making it public. As of right
now the only resource available to students at home is Galileo. The media specialist keeps the
parents updated on the username and password by sending home flyers and posting them on the
schools website. The media specialist also said that once she is able to purchase e-books those
might also be available to students at home. Right now the students can use the e-reader
applications on the classroom IPads to access books and other resources at school. The school
technology committee is now in the process of reviewing online resources that may be added to
give students access to online resources from home. Funding is always an issue and must be
considered before adding new programs and resources to our exisiting resources.
The Appling County Primary Schools media centers is a student centered facility. The
large rectangluar windows provide students with more than adequate lighting. The two entrances
allow for traffic to flow easily in and out of the media center without congestion. It has resources
for both the students and staff to use at school or at home. The media staff is always willing to
lend a helping hand to anyone who enters the media center.
However, the schools media center could use a little updating. To make the media center
more user friendly I would suggest adding two more tables with chairs. Presently with four tables
the media center can accommodate only sixteen students. With this addition the media center
could accommodate a classroom of students and individuals or small groups from other
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classrooms. I think that students would also enjoy an area designated for leisure reading that has
small comfortable chairs or bean bags. The media center has a designated area for teacher
worktools and supplies and one conference room that accommodates small group meetings. With
this layout in mind, the area for leisure reading should be visible yet comformtable for both the
students and staff. It would be helpful to have a additional updated computers available for
students and staff that could be useful for small group instruction or individual use. The media
specialist could also update the pictures on the walls of the media center by adding up to date
images that are cheerful and colorful that will enhance the atmosphere of the media center.











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Works Cited
American Association of School Librarians. (2009). Empowering Learners: Guidelines for
School Library Programs. Chicago, IL: American Association of School Librarians.