Teacher Librarians Research Articles

Developing a Knowledge Society through Teacher Librarians

This paper briefly discusses the knowledge society and characteristics of the knowledge society at the beginning. Secondly it discusses the implications of knowledge society on education and the role of teacher librarian in the knowledge society. Then it goes on to discuss the education system of Sri Lanka, status of school libraries in Sri Lanka, the second General Education Project which supports the implementation of education reforms and the establishment of National Institute of Library and Information Science (NILIS) with an emphasis on training of teacher librarians by NILIS. Finally it describes the implementation model of its knowledge skills programme and the model and contents of the actual knowledge skills programme. The paper is concluded with some remarks on the factors, which will affect the success of the project.

Western Theory - Vietnamese Praxis

This paper provides an ethnographical account of the experience of setting up an open access library of working alongside and in close collaboration with different parties within an academic environment over the period of four years in Hanoi. It provides useful lessons for consideration for those who would like to facilitate the blending of western practices in librarianship with local knowledge in developing countries such as Vietnam. It also presents a platform for an outside's view of the practice of teacher librarianship.

Lighting the Fire

What aspects of reading engage boys? This paper looks at the importance of reading, some of the current thinking about boys and reading, and research carried out among students of St Andrew's Cathedral School, where a reading culture has developed. What implications do these findings have for our profession - for school libraries and teacher librarians? What other strategies can we employ to encourage our students to develop a lifelong love of reading? The strategies include the idea of a Literature Festival, other reading programs, ways of integrating technology into the reading experience and the Literature Circles model at St Andrew's.

Free Voluntary Reading and the Role of the Teacher Librarian

This paper attempts to do three things: Investigate recent research that outlines a relationship between free voluntary reading, or pleasure reading, and student achievement. Link these findings to my own research into the role of the teacher- librarian in creating a positive reading environment, and Detail some of the programs and initiatives that can support us in engaging students with their reading.

The Introduction of School Library Coordinators to Assist Teacher Librarians: A Grass-roots Challenge for Local Government in Japan

This paper discusses the role of the School Library Coordinator, a post created by Kawasaki City, Japan local government, in accordance with the legislated introduction of teacher librarians into all Japanese schools. It is difficult for teacher librarians to play the roles of both teacher and librarian simultaneously. They are expected to play the central role in school libraries, to support pupils’ spontaneous learning activities as well as to foster pupils’ imaginative minds.Teacher librarians are also expected to coordinate schools, families and communities to promote pupils’ reading activity by the Basic Plan to Promote Children’s Reading Activity. Kawasaki City local government introduced School Library Coordinators to assist teacher librarians and to complement their onerous duties in schools and society. Although this paper’s research and analysis indicates that Kawasaki City’s innovation of School Library Coordinators has been successful, it is noted that there is potential for more efficient performance by library coordinators in collaboration with teacher librarians.

Connecting and making coherent teachers' knowledge: Building a knowledge-oriented culture

This paper is partly based on a doctoral thesis entitled Knowledge creation, knowledge sharing and knowledge use: A case study. The paper challenges teacher librarians to view themselves as knowledge architects in the designing and sustaining of a teachers' learning community - one which values teachers' knowledge as core business in the school. This paper builds a case for teacher librarians to realign their role by focusing on their colleagues' knowledge and asking: "How can teachers' knowledge be shared, and captured and disseminated to better enable a knowledge-oriented culture?"' and "What are the structures and processes that bring teachers' knowledge out into the open to be shared?" Part A of this paper presents a synopsis of the study's purpose, rationale and key issues. It brings together the theories of learning community and knowledge management in establishing a discourse that is centred on valuing, connecting and making coherent teachers' knowledge as essential in enabling a knowledge-oriented culture to grow and to flourish. Part B presents an overview of the study with a focus on one of its three themes: knowledge sharing. Part C concludes with a brief discussion on how this research can contribute to the role of school libraries and teacher librarians in the emerging discourse on professional learning and knowledge sharing within and across work place units.

MLC Libraries intranet website: A collaborative process

This paper examines the collaborative processes involved in developing the MLC Libraries intranet website and outlines helpful hints about website design, evaluation and promotion. The MLC Libraries intranet website has been designed to provide the MLC community with information resources that reflect the educational, cultural, literary and recreational needs of the college. Information resources include an online suggestion book, online teacher librarian research assistance, access to the catalogue, newspaper and magazine databases, reading lists, information literacy programs and internet search tips. MLC Libraries promote the development of information literacy and nurture an appreciation of literature in a supportive, creative and information-rich learning environment. This intranet website was created by a team of MLC teacher librarians and library staff, with technical support from a website designer and MLC computer staff. It was launched to the MLC community in March 2003. The workshop will demonstrate a virtual and visual tour of the MLC Libraries intranet website.

During the last thirty years the rapid development of technology has left many educators struggling to come to terms with the changes the integration of technology brings to the teaching-learning environment. Governments and education administrators aroun

During the last thirty years the rapid development of technology has left many educators struggling to come to terms with the changes the integration of technology brings to the teaching-learning environment. Governments and education administrators around the world are currently diverting limited resources into the provision of infrastructure and computers in the belief that the use of technology as a means of education delivery has the potential to significantly enhance teaching strategies and resources currently available to schools. For schools and teachers, the push for the implementation of technology from the administrative levels has meant changes to the learning environment, the necessity to acquire new skills and issues of accountability. Thus the impact of technology in education and on learning has been the subject of much debate and an increasing body of research has endeavoured to assess the impact of various technologies on student learning, with mixed results. The purpose of this article is to briefly review the research on the impact of technology in education, determine some of the recurrent issues identified by the research and to examine the role of the teacher librarian as a possible facilitator for change and the effective integration of technology in the curriculum.

Student Perception of Self as a Learner: Did the Learning Quest Make a Difference?

This paper and presentation is vitally relevant to teacher librarians’ professional practice. It assumes the teacher librarian is the learning and resource specialist with the ability to get the Library curriculum, and the best practices for teaching information literacy skills, integrated into a whole year level program. This paper investigates if that practice has an impact on student perception of themselves as learners. The Learning Induction Program was introduced in 2007 to ease transition from primary to secondary school and establish year seven students as effective members and learners in the secondary school context. The library curriculum was embedded in The Learning Quest. In 2007 evaluation focussed on the success of the whole program. Now we need to find out if The Learning Quest, and the collaboration between teachers and Library, has made a difference to student learning outcomes, in particular student perception of self as a learner.

The Net Generation: Tech-savvy or lost in virtual space?

Recent findings from PEW Internet and American Life studies in the US, the JISC Information Behaviour of the Researcher of the Future report and the Educational Testing Service 2006 ICT literacy assessment, all indicate that the students from the Y or Net Generation are not as tech-savvy as portrayed by the world’s media and large Internet software providers. If this is the case, then assumptions currently being made about the information-seeking behaviour of today’s students need to be rectified at the school level to ensure that tomorrow’s citizens are not disenfranchised or disempowered as users in a world where Governments are increasingly committed to the provision of essential services and information wholly online. This paper discusses the secondary results of a much larger PhD study on the information seeking behaviour of the Net Generation and the need for schools and particularly teacher librarians, to become more involved in teaching students how to use the electronic environment effectively.

NEXUS: A School Based Approach to creating a Centre for Advancing Learning Excellence

The restructuring of the Library at The Hills Grammar School in 2007, has provided a broader concept that links and connects the whole school community (students, teachers and parents) through research, knowledge and learning involving a wide range of collaborative practices and information communication technologies. A deliberate renaming of both the Library to NEXUS and the title of the Teacher Librarian 7-12 to Faculty Liaison Teacher Librarian was necessary to intentionally shift the mindset of staff away from the traditional Library paradigm to reflect the collaborative nature of the newly established centre and to provide the catalyst for change.

An investigation into the teaching of information literacy skills by teachers in New Zealand secondary schools

There is very little research looking at how much teachers from any country actually know about information literacy and at how they develop information literacy skills with their students. This contrasts research in recent years which focuses on the influence that school libraries, teacher librarians and/or library media specialists have on student learning. For some time international government and educational bodies, including New Zealand, have recognised that all citizens need skills and processes to enable them to become information literate. This paper reports on findings from a research project which investigated the understanding, knowledge and teaching of information literacy processes of secondary teachers from five urban co-educational state secondary schools.

Promotion of reading habit among school children in Sri Lanka

School Library Development in Sri Lanka is a large scale project which covers 4000 schools and includes building construction, distribution of books, furniture and equipment and training of human resources funded by the World Bank. BOBLEP (Book Based Language Enrichment Programme) developed from the concept of reading promotion within the library project. The project not only promotes reading using the purchased books, but it also promotes production of books by school children as well as teachers. It was decided as a result of the success of the project, to expand similar reading promotion activities in general. Teacher and Teacher Librarian education programmes of Sri Lanka incorporated a variety of such activities to train reading promotion among school children. The full paper will present the history and the structure of the project and activities carried out by the teacher librarians to expand it from an English language project to a reading promotion project conducted by the school libraries. It is expected that by sharing the information of this project, other developing countries which face similar constraints in providing suitable reading material can gain useful ideas.

Impact Study of the Teacher Librarian Specific Training on Educational Achievement

This paper presents the current situation of the school library teams’ specific training in the Portuguese Integrated Elementary Schools that in 2005 were already in the Portuguese School Libraries’ Network. Other countries’ studies, like the ones from the USA and UK, suggest that students achieve higher levels of literacy, learning and problem solving when teacher librarians have specific training to perform their duties. The analysis of data gathered from a questionnaire shows that 32% of the Portuguese school librarians do not have any kind of specific training. This scenario suggests that there hasn’t been any significant improvement since 10 years ago especially in what school librarians’ training is concerned.

Engaging readers through choice

School Library Policies usually include, .”the development of a life long love of reading/literature”. Choosing a good book to read is like choosing an artwork for your house. It is subject to personal taste, artistic preference and personal experiences. The Teacher Librarian can play a pivotal role in supporting students reading for enjoyment, both formally and informally within the school. By personalizing and developing choice as part of formal reading programs, they can assist students to develop their love of reading and indulge their passion for certain types of literature in a supportive and encouraging environment.

YA Novels – Adolescent Needs, Adult Responsibilities

Are there definable boundaries between a children’s novel, a YA novel and an adult novel? This paper suggests that combining two approaches to literary criticism, Reader Theory and Narratology, can create a practical framework for teacher librarians to use in assessing whether a novel meets the needs, interests and literacy skills of their students.

From one-to-one to one-to-many

Pre-service teacher librarians in the United States often are en route from careers as classroom teachers and view field experiences as needless repetitions of student teaching. Meaningful internships can be pivotal in helping students explore potential roles, build collegial networks, and gain valuable on-the-job insight. For an educator in transition from a single classroom to a manyfaceted school library, field practica can provide crucial opportunities to shift to the organizational, collaborative mindset outlined in Information Power, the U.S. school library guidelines (1998). This paper presents an instrumental case study gathered as part of an ongoing study of practicum experiences.

The teaching of information literacy skills in Botswana’s Community Secondary Schools

The study investigated the teaching of information literacy skills in select Junior Community Secondary Schools (CJSS) situated in the city of Gaborone, Botswana. Data were gathered from a sample of ten teacher librarians via face-to-face interviews with the aid of a five-question interview schedule. The key findings of the study were: (1) respondents had varying interpretations of. what constituted information literacy skills, (2) a variety of skills were taught under the rubric information literacy skills; (3) by and large, the teaching of information literacy skills was done by teacher-librarians and subject librarians, (4) the main approaches in teaching information literacy skills involved library orientation and the use of the English Language Period, and (5) respondents cited the three challenges, namely, the absence of an office dedicated to school libraries, an exam oriented curriculum and shrinking financial resources.

Growing from Nothing


 
 
 Since 2009, Taiwan's Ministry of Education has begun to add the post of teacher librarians in some elementary schools. Teachers who are enthusiastic about reading education become teacher librarians to take charge of managing school libraries and promoting reading after receiving short professional training. This study aims to probe into whether the system is helpful to the management of libraries in elementary schools and to the establishment of reading environment at school.
 Specifically speaking, this study aims to discuss whether there is any difference in the activities of school libraries and schools' attitudes toward reading between schools with teacher librarians and schools without ones. The study surveyed elementary schools in Taiwan with a questionnaire which was filled out by teacher librarians or general librarians at school. The questionnaire was tested with Cronbach’s α reliability, and a coefficient of 0.975 was obtained, which is considered excellent reliability.
 742 copies of the questionnaire were retrieved, and 741 of them were considered valid after the elimination of one with incomplete answers. Among which, 213 copies were from schools with teacher librarians, and the rest 528 copies were from schools without teacher librarians. In addition, the fill rate of schools with teacher librarians reached 80%. The study found that schools with and without teacher librarians had significant differences in library management of their libraries and behavior and attitudes toward reading.
 
 

Enabling Teacher Librarian Leadership for Technology Integration


 
 
 The highly technological environment of 21st century schools has significantly redefined the role of the teacher librarian by presenting the opportunity to assume leadership roles through technology integration. The teacher librarian must evolve as a leader in order to address the needs of today’s learners and ensure that they are equipped with the knowledge and skills they need to use technology as an important tool for learning. This research, based on distributed leadership theory investigates practices of teacher librarians in order to identify what is enabling some to thrive as technology integration leaders and what is hindering others. This paper presents the findings from the replication research identifying what is enabling some teacher librarians to thrive as technology integration leaders and serve as a foundation on which to build research- based strategies to support practicing teacher librarians in understanding how to enact this vital role and on how to better prepare future teacher librarians for a leadership role in the integration of technology.