IFLA 2023 | Information Literacy Section Satellite Meeting
2023-08-18 09:00 - 17:00 (Europe/London) | Technische Universiteit Delft
Darryl Toerien will be presenting his chapter – Digital Literacy: Necessary but Not Sufficient for Life-Wide and Life-Long Learning – at the IFLA Information Literacy Section’s launch of their upcoming book:
Libraries Empowering Society through Digital Literacy Education

The Information Literacy Section (ILS) is thrilled to have the opportunity to organize the satellite meeting at the Delft University of Technology Library in Delft, Netherlands. We deeply appreciate their hospitality and generosity in providing their state-of-the-art facilities and extraordinary staff support as well as making this event with free registration.
By attending the satellite meeting, you will not only hear from a group of invited authors of the upcoming IFLA book on digital and media literacy but also actively participate in roundtable discussions with the speakers.

NB: registration is required and it will be closed when the number of registrants reaches 40 or by July 31, whichever comes first.
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IFLA 2023 World Library and Information Congress
2023-08-21 - 2023-08-25

AASL 2023 National Conference
2023-10-19 - 2023-10-21
Barbara Stripling, Jenny Toerien and Darryl Toerien will be running a workshop – Leading an Inquiry-Based School: Discovering the Promise – at AASL 2023 (more details to follow).
Program Description
Lead your school to discover the promise of inquiry – that all learners develop an inquiry stance on the world and learn to think independently both within school and beyond! In this session, you will explore the essential ingredients of a successful inquiry-based school: an inquiry stance, inquiry skills taught within an inquiry process, and integration of skills with important curricular content through collaborative planning and teaching.

SJSU School of Information 2024 Conference
2024-02-29 18:00 - 21:00
Barbara Stripling, Jenny Toerien and Darryl Toerien will be presenting Engaging and Empowering Learners for Life through Inquiry / Developing Inquiry-Based Schools & School Libraries at the San Jose State University School of Information | Leap into the Future of School Libraries Conference.
Program Description
When learners develop an inquiry stance, they learn to follow their own sense of wonder into new discoveries and insights about themselves, others, and the way the world works. Through inquiry, learners develop the skills and attitudes of independent learning, a strong self-identity, cultural responsiveness, social and emotional health, voice and agency, and a growth mindset. In this session, we will explore teaching these whole-child skills and attitudes to learners throughout their years of schooling through collaboratively planned, inquiry-based curricular units and direct instruction. By teaching these life skills, school librarians can empower all students to flourish both in school and beyond.

The Day CPD Webinar
2024-12-09 16:00 - 17:00
Darryl Toerien and Nicole Campbell, Senior Subject Lead of PSHE at Lilian Baylis Technology School in South London, will be presenting Unlocking critical minds: A CPD webinar on inquiry-led learning for The Day.
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In today’s fast-paced, information-saturated world, fostering critical thinking skills in students has never been more important.
Join The Day and special guests for a dynamic CPD webinar designed to equip teachers with practical, inquiry-led strategies to enhance critical thinking in their classroom.
We’ll explore:
✅ The challenges facing students in developing critical thinking
✅ Inquiry-led learning approaches and how they can be applied in the classroom
✅ Practical tips to structure engaging lessons, inspire discussion and guide students

FOSIL Symposium 2025
2025-02-08 08:45 - 16:30
Brief contextual details of the presenters may be found here.
Free and online – register here or see below.
The Symposium is an opportunity for colleagues who are developing engaged and empowered inquirers to share with and learn from each other. While our focus is FOSIL-based inquiry, it is not exclusively so, and the Symposium is open to and free for all who share our conviction that inquiry, properly understood and supported, is the most potent educational survival strategy that we can equip our students with, which also enables them to thrive. The reason for this is that inquiry is a fundamental human response to reality, and dealing successfully with reality is the only true measure of human success. The revolution will not be televised, although in this case it will be recorded.
08:45 – 09:00 | Welcome | Elizabeth Hutchinson, School Library Specialist
09:00 – 09:15 | Revolutionary musing | Dianne Oberg, Professor Emerita at the University of Alberta, and Jennifer Branch-Mueller, Associate Dean in the Faculty of Education at the University of Alberta and President of the International Association of School Librarianship, co-authors of Focus on inquiry: a teacher’s guide to implementing inquiry-based learning, which includes the Alberta Inquiry Model
09:15 – 10:00 | The revolution will not be televised | Lee FitzGerald, Editor of ACCESS, Journal of the Australian School Library Association, and Adjunct Lecturer on the Master of Education: Teacher Librarianship course at Charles Sturt University, and Joanne Bleby, History Coordinator at Loreto Kirribilli
10:00 – 10:15 | Break
10:15 – 11:45 | FOSIL Developments | Darryl Toerien, Head of Inquiry-Based Learning at Blanchelande College, and originator of FOSIL and the FOSIL Group
Institute for the Advancement of Inquiry (IAI)

Founding the Institute | Darryl Toerien
Symbolising the Institute | Lara Stanford, Year 13 student at Blanchelande College
Integrating the Institute | Jane Grange, Director of Studies at Blanchelande College
Hosting the Institute | Alexa Yeoman, Principal of Blanchelande College
Valuing the Institute | Mark Le Page, Managing Director of Orthoginian Limited and former Deputy Director of the Guernsey Financial Services Commission

Heroic Inquiry

Conceptualising Heroic Inquiry | Darryl Toerien
Reconceptualising Heroic Inquiry | Hugh Rose, Illustrator of Traditional Stories

11:45 – 12:00 | Revolutionary musing | Mary-Rose Grieve, Librarian at Hartland International School, Co-Chair of Great School Libraries and National Committee member of CILIP’s School Libraries Group
12:00 – 12:45 | Lunch
12:45 – 13:30 | The revolution will not be televised | Ruth Maloney, Librarian at Tonbridge Grammar School
13:30 – 14:15 | The revolution will not be televised | Jannath Khanom, Learning Resource Centre Manager at Connaught School for Girls
14:15 – 14:30 | Break
14:30 – 15:15 | The revolution will not be televised | David Harrow, Headmaster at AKS Lytham, Faye Marland, Assistant Head (Staff and Student Development), and Nick O’Loughlin, Head of Student Inquiry
15:15 – 16:15 | Concluding revolutionary musing | Barbara Stripling, Professor Emerita at Syracuse University, and originator of Stripling’s Model of Inquiry and the Empire State Information Fluency Continuum
16:15 – 16:30 | Farewell | Elizabeth Hutchinson, School Library Specialist
Notes on the sessions:
The practical sessions – called The revolution will not be televised to, somewhat ironically, underscore the fact that the real educational revolution, the one that is actually needed, is hard won and for no earthly gain – essentially address three questions: Why inquiry? What are your obstacles to inquiry? Nevertheless, how are you engaging and empowering inquirers?
By contrast, Revolutionary musing is an opportunity to speak to the moment we find ourselves in.
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FOSIL – and the work of the FOSIL Group through the FOSIL Group website – is supported by the UK School Library Association.

Preconference to AASL 2025 | Leap into the Futute of School Libraries No. 2
2025-10-15
Note that this event is being held at the Renaissance St. Louis Airport Hotel, St. Louis, Missouri.
Purpose
In the spirit of the former Treasure Mountain Research Retreats, this new series, Leap into the Future of School Libraries, seeks to build a shared research agenda and promote initiatives, best practices, action proposals, and resilience among professionals who are determined to move our field forward.

Agenda
Throughout the day, we will alternate between keynote addresses and table talks. Everyone will be encouraged to contribute major ideas, which will be gathered during the event and beyond as part of a collection of innovative strategies for research, action, implementation, and demonstration—efforts aimed at placing the school library at the center of teaching and learning. Attendees will have the opportunity to meet, share, and co-create ideas with a variety of individuals throughout the day. We’ll also enjoy boxed lunches, coffee available throughout the event, dinner together, and a final “idea extravaganza” to close out the day.

Keynotes

Barbara K. Stripling and Darryl Toerien introduce their forthcoming major work, Teaching Inquiry as Conversation: Bringing Wonder to Life, to be published by Bloomsbury Libraries Unlimited.

Susan D. Ballard, Pamela C. Harland, and Rachel V. Small present findings from a Delphi study conducted with experts in the field to develop a contemporary, scaffolded model of collaboration. The research identifies key levels of collaboration, from independent access to fully integrated instructional partnerships, and illustrates the dispositions and environmental conditions necessary to support each stage. Attendees will explore the finalized model, discuss implications for their own practice, and consider how the findings can inform professional learning and advocacy.

Keith Curry Lance reviews the state of data and research across the federal government and thinks with us the future of school library research.
