Advancing the Learning Community: Exemplar A3

Standard: Advancing the Learning Community to Achieve School Goals

Theme: Planning for School Improvement

Growth Phase: Established

Growth Indicator: LLC leadership team develops clear goals to align programs with school goals and share and showcase teaching and learning achievement.


View this example of principal and teacher-librarian sharing how they shifted to library learning commons involving the learning community.

Durham District School Board (DDSB). (2017). DDSB Shift: Elementary Library Learning Commons [Video file]. Retrieved from https://youtu.be/Wp-XiTwJ99o


View 9th grade students learning about use and benefit of online resources/databases for a science research project in the learning commons.

Durham District School Board (DDSB). (2017). DDSB Shift: Secondary Library Learning Commons [Video file]. Retrieved from https://youtu.be/u84TCRfKvM4


Teacher-librarian Lyons has created two inspiring and practical  infographics promoting the LLC; one for students as to what is available to them in the LLC and one for teachers outlining co-planning, co-teaching, and collaboration from an inquiry stance. Lyons invites others to use, share or adapt the infographics.

Lyons, B. (2019, May 6). Sharing the LLC Space- An Advocate’s Infographic [Blog post]. Retrieved from https://thelibrariansjourney.blogspot.com/2019/05/sharing-llc-space-advocates-infographic.html?m=1


British Columbia teacher-librarian and CSL Director Armstrong relates how the Leading Learning standard for Advancing the Learning Community to achieve school goals supports the many ways that ongoing advocacy can be exercised within our learning communities by describing how teacher-librarians in her school district formed a committee to advocate for school libraries and presented their vision to the school board. Included are slides of the presentation and a diagram linking district goals, teacher-librarian standards of practice and “what that looks like” in a learning commons.

Armstrong, L.  (2024, March 14).  Advocating for change.  Canadian School Library Journal 8(1). https://journal.canadianschoollibraries.ca/advocating-for-change/


Teacher-librarian and President of the Manitoba School Library Association (MSLA) shares some of the many ways MSLA  is working to educate and elevate conversations related to school libraries with social media posts for election candidates and championing intellectual freedom.

Bartok, B.  (2023, November 26).  Manitoba School Library Association’s social media advocacy campaigns.  Canadian School Library Journal 7(3).   https://journal.canadianschoollibraries.ca/manitoba-school-library-associations-social-media-advocacy-campaigns/