The media specialist must develop, maintain, and support an effective collection to support student learning.
When you think of the resources in a library media center, books and videos may come to mind. However, it's important to remember that resources are really about ideas and information.
From scary stories and romance novels to primary source documents and websites, ideas and information all originate with people. Without authors, artists, historians, scientists, and other creators, our library would be empty. Without Shakespeare there would be no MacBeth. Where would we be without scientists like Galileo, Mendel, and Einstein?
Regardless of whether their works are read on paper or browsed on a computer screen, it's the thoughts that are essential to a community of learners. While some are controversial, outrageous, or just plain silly, it's the job of the media specialist to be certain that students and teachers have access to materials that provide ideas, information, and varied perspectives at the reading, interest, and developmental level of all their learners. At the same time, teacher librarians must help students and teachers understand the value of ideas and information. Issues of intellectual freedom, copyright, and plagiarism must be an integral part of teaching and learning.
Read Information Access and Delivery Principles of School Library Media Programs from Information Power: Building Partnerships for Learning (1998). American Library Association (ALA) and the Association for Educational Communications and Technology (AECT).
This section of the course contains the following related topics you'll want to investigate (This week):
Policies and Procedures
Collection Development.
What is the role of the teacher librarian in information access and delivery?
The school library media specialist must implement information literacy standards for student learning. In addition, he or she must work collaboratively with all members of the teaching staff to be certain that the resource needs of the curriculum are met.
Before jumping into curriculum and collection development, teacher librarians must reflect on their own values, attitudes, and bias. Do you like or dislike math or science? Are you a fan of poetry, graphic novels, or picture books? Do you prefer to read the news on paper, watch news on television, or browse online news sources? Do you rent or buy VHS videos or DVDs for personal viewing? Do you prefer abridged or unabridged audiobooks? What is your preferred learning style? What is your preferred teaching style.
Books like The Adventures of Captain Underpants, Of Mice and Men, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, or the Harry Potter series may or may not be titles you'd read yourself, but they are works by authors who have something to say that others have the right to read. Scientific American, National Geographic, and Smithsonian may or may not be magazines you would pick up off the rack, but they can be valuable learning tools for children. You may choose to read a print newspaper, but there are wonderful news sources available online also.
As you become more aware of your personal preferences, you can more easily make objective decisions related to both curriculum and collection development.
"The idea that books are outdated is based on a common misconception: the belief that new technologies automatically render existing ones obsolete, as the automobile did with the buggy whip. However, this isn’t always the case. Old technologies often handily survive the introduction of new ones, and sometimes become useful in entirely new ways."
Excerpted from Do Libraries Need Books? (Feb 2010)
Read Lauren Barack (Sept 2009): Hostility Against LGBT Youth Increases in Rural, Low-Income Areas, Report Says. School Library Journal.
According to a report by the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN), discrimination against gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) youth often increases in rural and so-called impoverished areas, . GLSEN believes school librarians can play a significant role in helping to stem this kind of harassment.
Also read the article: Do School Libraries Need Books? (Feb 2010). New York Times.
Why is collaboration essential in collection development?
The key to collection and curriculum development is understanding the informational and learning needs of students and selecting resources and learning experiences that will impact their achievement.
Curriculum development and collection development must go hand-in-hand.
Since the creation of authentic learning environments for students is at the core of both these activities, it makes sense that the school library media specialist and classroom teachers work collaboratively.
Read Callison, Daniel (May 2003). Key Words in Instruction: Learning Resources, Part I (PDF doc; Access requires login). School Library Media Activities Monthly; 19(9), 33-38.
With the growing sources of reference materials, teachers and school librarians need to develop collection mapping techniques to help them facilitate learning resource plans and application to learning standards.
Check Your Understanding
"Undoubtedly, the most difficult form of censorship to detect is that of our own and others' self-censorship, for it is absolutely invisible, and this silent censorship easily, and, I suspect, usually, occurs during the process of selection."
Excerpted from Jenkinson, David (2002). Selection & Censorship: It's Simple Arithmetic. School Libraries in Canada; 21(4), 22-23.
Read More About It
Callison, Daniel (Fall 1990). A Review of the Research Related to School Library Media Collections: Part 1. School Library Media Quarterly, 19(1).
http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/aasl/aaslpubsandjournals/slmrb/ . . . callison1.cfm
Callison, Daniel (Winter 1991). A Review of the Research Related to School Library Media Collections: Part II. School Library Media Quarterly. 19:2, 117–21.
http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/aasl/aaslpubsandjournals/slmrb/ . . . callison2.cfm
Collection Development: Resources Guides from American Library Association
http://www.ala.org/. . . /ContentDisplay.cfm
Other ALA Resources:
Booklist http://www.ala.org/ala/ . . . t/booklist.cfm
Guidelines for the Development and Implementation of Policies, Regulations and Procedures Affecting Access to Library Materials, Services and Facilities from American Library Association
http://www.ala.org/ala/aboutala/offices/ . . . /guidelinesdevelopmentimplementation.cfm
Hartzell, Gary (Sept 2002). Paper Lion
(Requires login). School
Library Journal; 48(9), 37.
http://search.ebscohost.com.proxy.ulib.iupui.edu . . . AN=7294894&site=ehost-liv
In a battle of print and electronic resources, there's
only one king.
Johnson, Doug (July 2010). Supported Collection Size. The Blue Skunk Blog.
http://doug-johnson.squarespace.com/blue-skunk-blog . . . collection-size.html
Is there a baseline size for a library collection?
Jones, Patrick (Mar 2003). To the Teen Core (Requires login).
School Library Journal; 49(3), 48.
http://search.epnet.com.proxy.ulib.iupui.edu/login.aspx...
A librarian advocates building collections that serve YA readers.
Loertscher, David; Woolls, Blanche; & Felker, Janice (2000). Building a School Library Collection Plan: A Beginning Handbook with Internet Assist.
http://www.lmcsource.com/tech/felker/
Information on how to create a nonfiction and reference collection plan. Many links to review sources and book award websites.
Print Resource
Hoffman, Frank W. and Wood, Richard J. (2007). Library Collection Development Policies: School Libraries and Learning Resource Centers. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 0810851814.
The authors examine issues involved in collection development by first providing an overview of the issue followed by sample policies. The issues include collection development policy, selection aids, weeding, collection evaluation and more. They also examine the ethical and legal issues arising from use of electronic resources.