Assignment+Two

=Assignment Two: Community Analysis =

School and Community Data
I am a teacher at Cultus Lake Community School, a school of 133 students located in the scenic community of Cultus Lake, in School District 33 (Chilliwack). At such a small community school serving a such a distinct population, it is vital that any teacher librarian understand the unique characteristics of the school before beginning to build a collection. Kay Bishop states that, “effective collection development must be based on reliable knowledge about the collection’s users.” (page 19,//The Collection Program in Schools,// 2007) A TL cannot begin to build a library that will effectively serve a specific population if he or she has not thoroughly investigated the population which is to be served. 

In an effort to illustrate the population that my school library serves, I have drawn on data from:

British Columbia’s 2001 Census, []

Chilliwack School District’s 2010 EDI Community Summary, []

Cultus Lake Community School’s enrolment information.

Cultus Lake is a community of contrasts. It consists of approximately 700 people, and is located just outside of Chilliwack, a city of close to 90 000 people. According to the 2001 census data, the top three occupations among residents of the lake are finance, teaching, and sales. The average family income in 2001 was almost $70 000.00, marginally higher than the B.C. average. However, this statistic does not paint an accurate picture of life at the lake. While there are some very well-to-do families living on the waterfront, there are also two trailer parks, a reserve, seasonal rental housing, and a second-stage transition house. 95% of the population speaks English only, although interestingly, almost a third of the students in my school have just been classified as English as a Second Dialect, according to new rules around Aboriginal students and language. The census data reports only 5% of the population as being Aboriginal, but over 30% of my school is Aboriginal, so I suspect that the census either didn’t include the reserve, or got a poor response from families living on the reserve. I was unable to confirm this theory. 

Cultus Lake Community School also includes students from Chilliwack Lake Road, another rural, isolated area, which also includes a trailer park, and many single family homes.

In the Early Developmental Instrument (EDI) chart below, the EDI count refers to the number of children that were included in the assessment each year. The columns following this show the percent of children determined to be vulnerable or at risk upon entering Kindergarten. Because Cultus Lake is so small, it is grouped with Yarrow, a small town that is home to a considerably different population. The EDI table paints a rosier picture of Cultus Lake than is accurate: in school readiness and intermediate performance Cultus Lake Community School ranks with or below the schools in Chilliwack North, which has a much higher EDI vulnerability index.



Because most of the students live in homes that are surrounded by forest and bounded by waterways, the population of Cultus Lake Community School is very active and outdoorsy. Students spend less time inside staring at screens, and more time outside engaging in outdoor pursuits than their more urban peers. Students hike, ride ATV’s, horses, mountain bikes and dirt bikes, hunt, fish, climb trees, and observe wildlife. They are passionate about nature and their surrounding environment.

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<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">Community Partners and Resources
<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">For the purposes of this course, I am focusing on the Social Studies Five curriculum. I identified three essential questions that were embedded in the learning outcomes. They are as follows:

<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; text-indent: -18pt;">1. What do we mean by the Canadian Identity? How did it develop? <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt 36pt; text-indent: -18pt;">2. How does our environment affect how we live and how Canada developed as a nation? <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt 36pt; text-indent: -18pt;">3. How and why do we organize and govern ourselves as a nation?

<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">These questions are focussed on the country and people around us, so there will be many resource people available locally who will be able to provide ideas, materials, perspectives, and experiences that connect to the curriculum and enrich the learning experience for the students in my school.

<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">The public librarians in Chilliwack are willing to come to schools to work with school TL’s and teachers to teach students to use the Fraser Valley Regional Library (FVRL) online databases and sign students up for library cards. In a district where we have no online databases in our schools, this is a valuable resource. The FVRL is also willing to assign class library cards to teachers wanting to use their online databases in the classroom. As a TL, I would definitely make sure that all of the teachers in my school were aware of these possibilities.

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<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">One third of the students in my school are Aboriginal, and so the Aboriginal content in the curriculum is all the more important. The Aboriginal support worker at Cultus Lake Community School is an invaluable resource. She has many contacts within the Aboriginal community, so if I gave her a learning outcome about Aboriginal uses of cedar, she would find an Aboriginal cedar harvester to present his experiences, perspectives, and traditions to my class. She also has an extensive collection of Aboriginal literature, art, and activities that would enhance my library programme. There is also a Halq’emaylem instructor who is eager to come out to schools and teach students the Sto:lo language and culture. My district is also in the process of developing Smart Reading sequences for picture books with Aboriginal content. As a TL, I would support my teachers in learning how to use these sequences have the necessary books in a special place in my collection.

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<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">Another resource available in any school is the parents. I know that in my class right now, one of the dads owns a logging company, and is excited to bring my students out to his work site to investigate modern logging practices, in accordance with Social Studies outcomes pertaining to natural resources in B.C. This experience would be invaluable to my students, especially since we would then be able to compare current logging practices to traditional Aboriginal uses of and attitudes towards trees. Parents come from a wide range of experiences, and are often thrilled to be invited into the school as a resource. As such, bringing parents into the library would be an integral part of my role as a TL. Building relationships with families is as important for the benefits it can bring to the library programme as it is for the benefits that it brings to students when parents are advocates for literacy. The connection between parents and the library is one important key to student achievement.

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<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">Cultus Lake Community School is in a unique position to pass on the values of environmental responsibility and action. Surrounded by a lake, a river, creeks, forest, and mountains, the school is able to emotionally and intellectually engage students in learning outcomes about the environment. The Cultus Lake Aquatic Stewardship Society (CLASS) and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans are organizations that have a mandate to provide resources to schools to inspire and instruct students to take responsibility for their actions with regard to the environment.

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<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">School, Grade, and Subject Information
<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">At Cultus Lake Community School there is currently one Grade 4/5 split class. There are only 13 Grade Five students in the school, and they are all in my class. In any given year, there will only be one or two Grade Five teachers at the school. As the teacher of a split grade, however, I only ever do one Social Studies unit at a time, so one or two classes could be working on Grade Five Social Studies outcomes at any given time. Both the 4/5 teacher (myself) and the Grade 6 (sometimes 5/6) teacher are in their first ten years of teaching. Neither class uses the library very often, as our TL is in the building on a fixed schedule for one 45 minute prep block for each teacher, and then for school based team coverage, and then 15 minutes each week for him to complete all library management tasks. Our union has strongly encouraged us to not perform any duties of a TL while our TL is not available, so our time is limited to one prep period each week. Our kids get a book exchange, and there is no time for collaboration. With teacher support, a class is sometimes able to complete a research project, but that requires defying the union, so it is a touchy area. Ideally, in a school with such a vulnerable population, library time would be a priority, given the clearly proven links between teacher librarian time and student achievement, but at our school that is not the case.

<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">Other Details and Closing
<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">Cultus Lake Community School is a school that serves a wide range of students. With only 133 students, it is truly a community school. Every teacher knows every student, and parents are involved on many levels. The staff works as a collaborative team to support the learning of all students, and every teacher is open to new ideas and challenges. Creative use of community resources and teacher strengths could get around some of the challenges presented by the unique profile of our population. This is an ideal situation for a TL who is dedicated to enriching the learning of her students. Unfortunately, reality and money get in the way, and our TL time is close to nil, but it is still an interesting situation to examine.