The Connecting School and the Intranet Librarian

Abstract

A growing number of Scottish education authorities are providing intranet technology to schools. This article is based on grounded research investigating the role of the school librarian within an intranet environment. The evidence suggests that despite a lack of expectation by school library services and authority intranet officers, school librarians are taking on roles of intranet building, management, and content creation. It appears that far from distancing librarians from traditional areas of interest, their involvement in the intranet has promoted their relationship with whole-school resourcing and literacy support. Despite evidence that recent graduates are more likely to take on roles with the intranet, it is shown that a key factor is the attitude of the librarian and linking of the intranet to resource provision.