Key Terms—Plain and Simple

5 Roles of the School Librarian

The five primary ways school librarians contribute to student learning, instructional quality, and schoolwide leadership: Leader, Instructional Partner, Information Specialist, Teacher, Program Administrator.

Alignments

School library environments are aligned to support learners in mastering Competencies. School Library Alignments are also helpful for school librarians engaging in short- and long-term planning.

Common Beliefs

Shared professional understandings about teaching, learning, and the role of school libraries that underpin the National School Library Standards and guide decision-making.

Competencies

Observable actions learners take to show what they know and can do.

Competency-Based Learning

An approach that focuses on learners demonstrating mastery through observable skills and actions rather than just completing activities or spending time on tasks. The National School Library Standards presents competency-based frameworks that invite professional judgment, local adaptation, and growth for learners, school librarians and libraries over time.

Domains

Each Shared Foundation is explored through four Domains that mirror the inquiry process—Think, Create, Share, and Grow. These Domains describe the ways learners process and demonstrate their learning, emphasizing both cognitive and reflective learning.

Frameworks

Organized structures that show how the Shared Foundations, Domains, Competencies and Alignments fit together to guide learning and school library practice. The AASL Standards include three integrated frameworks for Learners, School Librarians, and School Libraries.

Key Commitments

Beliefs, attitudes, and dispositions that further define each Shared Foundation and set the vision that guides learners’ and librarians’ thinking and actions.

Shared Foundations

The six Shared Foundations—Inquire, Include, Collaborate, Curate, Explore, and Engage—represent the core values that learners, school librarians, and school libraries should reflect and promote as they engage with information and learning. These foundations are further defined by their Key Commitments and anchor the AASL Standards.

Standards-Based Learning

Instruction and assessment aligned to clearly defined standards to ensure learners are developing specific knowledge, skills, and dispositions systematically, often centering on grade level achievement.