Library Media Teacher Program -
Course Descriptions

The following courses are included as part of the Teacher Librarian Services Credential and the Master of Arts in Education: School Library and Information Technology emphasis. Check individual  programs for specific course requirements.

ED 771: Advanced Topics in School Libraries (3)

• A study of the nature of systematic inquiry, a survey of methods employed in research and an explanation of evaluation methodology as well as the use of research and evaluation methods in actual school situations. Topics include identification of educational research problems, use of library resources, data gathering and processing, and evaluation of research articles.

ED 777A: Issues in Education (3)

• This course covers the basic trends and issues in education generally and in the student's particular discipline. The student will be involved in research, journal writing and/or presentations. The presentations will cover educational and social trends and their pedagogical implications in an interdisciplinary forum.

ED 777B: Field Based Research (3)

• This course brings the M.A. in education experience to a conclusion. Building on previous coursework, students will be expected to conduct a short research study at their work site or in their community. The student's work will include designing the study, collecting and analyzing data and writing up the findings.

ED 779: Values in School and Society (3)

• This course focuses on a cultural, historical, philosophical and/or social analysis of schools and schooling as a basis for developing an understanding of the educator's role as a change agent and as a basis for personal and professional decision making. The university's philosophy and values as expressed in the Fresno Pacific Idea and the graduate mission statement and their implications for schools and society will provide one perspective for such analysis.

LIB 710: The School Library Media Center Program (3)

• This course will provide candidates with a theoretical as well as practical foundation, affording them the opportunity to apply cooperative programs planning and teaching techniques to either the elementary or secondary school situation. Other specific services of either the elementary or secondary school media center will also be explored.

LIB 715: Administration of the School Library Media Center (3)

• This course concentrates on the attitudes and skills essential to effective communication with management and supervision of personnel. Emphasis will be placed on the role of the library media teacher as an administrator, including planning and organization, advising, and accountability.

LIB 720: Analysis, Evaluation and Selection of Learning Resources (3)

• Analysis and evaluation of learning resources includes the ability to apply basic principles of analysis, appraisal, review and evaluation to book and nonbook materials. The characteristics of different media and their appropriateness for specific instructional situations will be covered.

LIB 725: Information Services in the School Library Program (3)

• This course is designed to introduce reference to the graduate library student. It will emphasize practical teaching strategies for integrating reference materials into the curriculum and the role of references as the foundation of resource-based curriculum, instruction and learning. Students will be exposed to a wide variety of general and specific reference works, both print and electronic. The course will address the reference interview and how to conduct one, and the selection and evaluation of reference tools. Students taking this course will develop a bibliography of resources to add to the reference collection in their library. They will work with an existing lesson plan or create one and integrate references into the unit.

LIB 732: A Critical Look at Children's and Young Adult Literature (3)

• This course concentrates on literature in the context of the school library media program. Candidates will develop a comprehensive and discriminating knowledge of literature for children and young adults. The course provides candidates with the skills to develop and implement programs and activities that promote reading, listening, viewing and critical-thinking skills for all students, including those with diverse needs. Each candidate will demonstrate an understanding of the value literature plays in promoting social consciousness by producing thematic literary units that foster an awareness and appreciation of social, ethnic, racial, socioeconomic, gender and age differences.

LIB 740: Information and Communication Technologies (3)

• Learn how the Internet and online databases are integral parts of a successful library media center in this course. Knowing how to teach, search and select relevant online databases and World Wide Web sites will be discussed. Management, instructional uses, evaluation and curriculum integration of the Internet and online databases will also be covered. Daily access to the Internet by course participants is recommended for this course.

LIB 745: Organization of Learning Resources (3)

• The acquisition, organization and circulation of learning resources will be covered, along with the professional tasks of classifying and cataloging information and organizing procedures for, and the supervision of, efficient and systematic technical and clerical support services.

LIB 792: Field Studies in School Librarianship (4)

• A key component of the School Librarian Services Credential program is the field experience. Candidates are placed with credentialed library media teachers who have been carefully selected for their outstanding programs. Each student must have supervised experience in three school media centers: elementary, middle school and high school. Experience will include working directly with children through teaching, supervision and readers' advisory; circulation procedures; technical processing; weeding; inventory; and a district level overview. Graded CR/NC.

LIB 798: Project/Thesis Proposal (1)

• This course involves completion of a proposal for the project or thesis. Instruction is tutorial and reviews procedures, along with the development of a conceptual overview of the process of formulating and completing a thesis or project. May not be audited. Graded CR/NC. 

LIB 799: Project/Thesis - School Library Media (3)

• This course is a supervised project or thesis i the field of school library media. Instruction is tutorial and will result in a completed project or thesis. Prerequisites: LIB 798. May not be audited. Graded CR/NC. IP Course, Non-Standard (See in-progress course policy).

LLC 700: Reading Process and Practice (3)

• This course is designed to help elementary and secondary teachers better understand the reading process. Topics include contrasting models of reading, acquisition of literacy, how to help struggling readers and current trends regarding reading in California.

MCE 743: Telecommunications in the Classroom (3)

• The focus of this course is on the methods and practices of using telecommunications as a tool to improve the classroom environment. This course will give teachers hands-on experience working with telecommunications. Students will explore the California education bulletin board known as CORE+ or other viable systems. Students will look at tools that help navigate through the Internet. Compression and decompression routines will be covered. Students will learn basic UNIX commands and how to use FTP, Gopher and Mosaic programs to retrieve useful files. Students will take a consumer look at telecommunications services, learn classroom strategies, see sample telecommunication lessons and discuss current research on the value of telecommunications in education. May not be audited.

MCE 745: Multimedia in the Classroom (3)

• Multimedia is the delivery of synthesis of instruction through the integration of video clips, slides, sounds and text. Students will learn how to operate laser disc players, CD-ROMs, and audio and video digitizers. Students will learn how to create hypermedia stacks that control these external devices. Students will also take an in-depth look at several commercial multimedia solutions. Students will then develop a project that will incorporate one or more of the technologies into their own professional setting.

MCE 760: Technology Festival: Curriculum Integration (2)

• This course will provide candidates with the tools and expertise to be successful in online learning. It includes a tutorial on using the course management system: Moodle. The latest and greatest technology pertinent to online learning will be explored. This is a prerequisite to LIB 710.

MCE 761: Technology Festival: Leadership Support (2)

• This course is designed to develop in the participant the ability to become a leader in the use of technology and to support others to stimulate greater computer (and related technologies) use in the classroom in order to enhance teaching and learning. Participants will focus on current learning strategies and the role that technology plays in teaching. Participants will also be given the opportunity to build a valuable network of professional contacts that will help them grow in their leadership positions. Topics include (but are not limited to): network fundamentals and troubleshooting; use, set up and administration of NT server; how to set up a Web and email server; technology planning; integrating technology into the curriculum; website management; and web database use, mixed platform networks and use, set up and administration of Apple servers.

MCE 766: Developing Technology Rich Curriculum (3)

• Students will review current learning theories, instructional strategies and pertinent curriculum frameworks. Students will evaluate commercial software products that relate to their field of study. Students will then create instructional modules that merge a commercial product with a specific curriculum area.