The Role of Librarians and Library Media Specialists in Addressing Cyberbullying

Parry Aftab first wrote about her gratitude for librarians while still
an associate at a big Wall Street law firm. The corporate librarian had been
invaluable in her success, finding information that no one (pre-web) could find
and giving her pointers on information she had come across.

Her high esteem for librarians didn’t end there. Although she had
admired school librarians, she hadn’t learned about library media specialists until
a good friend, Della Curtis a Ph.D. in Library Media Information, introduced
her to these secret weapons.

They understand how the technology works and what is credible and what
isn’t. They have the best lists of trusted and reliable sites and understand
what students do there. They can find anything online in two seconds flat and
match it with other offline information that makes it relevant. 

Parry even
created a Super Librarian graphic to reflect how she saw school librarians and
library media specialists. When Parry was asked to speak at the Free Speech
session for the ALA’s annual meeting many years ago, Della and other library
media specialists prepared her.

No WiredSafety school team can be created without either a school
librarian or library media specialist. When they speak, follow Parry’s lead—be
sure to listen and take careful notes!
From ParryAftab.blogspot.com. All rights reserved.