Upload
others
View
4
Download
0
Embed Size (px)
Citation preview
DelawareSchoolLibraries
MasterPlanQualitySchoolLibraries=HigherStudentAchievement
August2016
Writtenby
BillWilson,HimmelandWilson,LibraryConsultantsChristopherKelly,InstituteforPublicAdministrationKellySherretz,InstituteforPublicAdministration
Withresearchassistancefrom
PublicAdministrationFellowsHeatherBrody,NicholasBrock,AnnieGould,AnnaKeleher,EmmaOdren,andRachelPleet
Withcontributionsfrom
EdFreel,InstituteforPublicAdministration
Preparedbythe
InstituteforPublicAdministrationSchoolofPublicPolicy&AdministrationCollegeofArts&SciencesUniversityofDelaware
Preparedforthe
DelawareSchoolLibrariesCouncil
Fundedbythe
DelawareDepartmentofState,DivisionofLibraries
i|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Preface & Acknowledgments
AstheDirectoroftheInstituteforPublicAdministrationattheUniversityofDelaware,Iampleasedtoprovidethisreport,DelawareSchoolLibrariesMasterPlan:QualitySchoolLibraries=HigherStudentAchievement,totheDelawareSchoolLibrariesCouncil.Inthe2013DelawareSchoolLibrariesAnnualReport,theDelawareSchoolLibrariesCouncilrequestedthedevelopmentofastatewidemasterplanforschoollibraries.Thisreportwascommissionedtofulfillthatrequest.
ThepurposeofthisreportistoserveastheguidingdocumentforDelaware’sschoollibraries.Itidentifiesthecharacteristicsofaqualityschoollibraryandexaminestheimpactthatonecanhaveonstudentlearningoutcomes.ThereportthenincludesananalysisonthecurrentqualityofDelaware’sschoollibrariesandprovidesrecommendationsinfourcategoriesthatwillleadtotheirimprovement.
TheInstituteforPublicAdministration(IPA)isgratefultoSecretaryofStateJeffreyW.BullockandtheDelawareDepartmentofState,DivisionofLibrariesforprovidingfundingsupportforthiswork.IPAisalsoappreciativeoftheguidanceprovidedbytheDelawareSchoolLibrariesCouncil,theDelawareAssociationofSchoolLibrarians,andthemanyinterview,survey,andfocus-groupparticipants.IwouldliketothankbothAnnieNormanandJohnMonahanforthecountlesshourstheyspentsupportingthisproject.IalsothankBillWilson,KellySherretz,ChristopherKelly,EdFreel,HeatherBrody,NicholasBrock,AnnieGould,AnnaKeleher,EmmaOdren,andRachelPleet,fortheirworkonthisreport.AdditionalthanksgotoIPAPolicySpecialistSarahPraggforformattingandeditingthereport.
IPAaddressesthepolicy,planning,andmanagementneedsofitspartnersthroughtheintegrationofappliedresearch,professionaldevelopment,andtheeducationoftomorrow’sleaders.ThisMasterPlanisanimportantpartofthiseffort,asqualityschoollibrariescanleadtoimprovedlearningoutcomesforallstudents,regardlessofraceorsocioeconomicstatus.
JeromeR.Lewis,Ph.D.Director,InstituteforPublicAdministration
ii|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Table of Contents
ExecutiveSummary................................................................................................................1TenRecommendationsforImprovingSchoolLibrariesinDelaware...........................................3
Introduction...........................................................................................................................4TheResearch:WhatPreviousResearchHasShown................................................................6EnglishLanguageArtsPerformance...........................................................................................7Reading.........................................................................................................................................7Writing..........................................................................................................................................8
OtherAreasofIncreasedPerformance......................................................................................8ResearchSkills...............................................................................................................................8Math&Science.............................................................................................................................9InformationLiteracySkills.............................................................................................................9GraduationRates..........................................................................................................................9
TheRequisites:FactorsThatImpactPerformance.................................................................11TheReality:FindingsFromtheDelawareStudy....................................................................12ProfessionalLibraryStaff.........................................................................................................13AccesstoResources................................................................................................................15CoordinationandDataCollection............................................................................................17
TheRecommendations.........................................................................................................19Introduction............................................................................................................................19Staffing........................................................................................................................................20ContentandAccess.....................................................................................................................21GovernanceandInfrastructure...................................................................................................22AssessmentandAccountability..................................................................................................24
Staffing...................................................................................................................................25ContentandAccess.................................................................................................................27GovernanceandInfrastructure................................................................................................30AssessmentandAccountability...............................................................................................33
MovingForward...................................................................................................................39AppendixA:LiteratureReview.............................................................................................40AppendixB:DelawareSchoolLibraryStudySurvey..............................................................74AppendixD:DelawareSchoolLibraryMediaSpecialistCertificationRequirements............102
1|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Executive Summary
Overthepasttwodecades,therelationshipbetweenthequalityofschoollibrariesandstudentperformancehasbeenthefocusofdozensofstate-levelstudies.Simplystated,thesestudiesconfirmthataccesstohigh-qualityschoollibraryservicesresultsinbetterstudentperformance.Thedeclarationusedinthetitleofthisreport,QualitySchoolLibraries=HigherStudentAchievement,isnotaspeculativestatement.Researchaffirmsthisequation.
Mostresearchindicatesthatthefollowingcharacteristicsofschoollibrariesleadtoimprovedlearningoutcomesforstudents:1
• Afull-timecertified/qualifiedlibrarianatthebuildinglevel• Adequatesupportstafftoenablethelibrariantoperformprofessionalduties• Adequateexpenditurefornewresourcestoensurestudentaccesstorecent,relevant
content• Highlevelofcollaborationbetweenlibrariansandteachersandlibrariansandstudents• Flexibleschedulingthatenablesthelibrariantointeractwithteachersandstudents• Accesstoup-to-datetechnologicalinfrastructureandonlineresources• Accesstoprofessionaldevelopmentandnetworkingopportunitiesforlibrarystaff
Unfortunately,schoollibrariesinDelawareare,ingeneral,understaffed,underfunded,andunequippedofup-to-datecollectionsandresources.Librariansthatdoworkinschools,inmanycases,areunabletocarryoutprofessionaldutiesbecausetheymustcompleteday-to-daytasksrelatedtolibrarymanagementandadditionalstaffing/instructionalassignments.Oftentimes,librariansareunabletoparticipateinprofessionaldevelopmentopportunitiesandtocollaboratewithteachersandstudentsduetotheirfixedschedules(FocusGroups,2015).ThecurrentstateofschoollibrariesinDelawareisdire,whichcreatesasituationwherestudentsareunabletoreceivethemeasurablebenefitsofqualityschoollibraries.
Ofevengreaterconcern,thequalitylibrarygapisgrowingratherthanshrinkingsothatequitableaccesstoresourcesandtechnologyisnotavailableforallstudentsinthestate.AcomparisonamongDelaware’sschooldistrictsshowsthatthe10districtsinwhichlessthan40percentofthestudentsarefromlow-incomehouseholdshaveadded13librarianssincethe2005–2006schoolyear.Theninedistrictsinwhichmorethan40percentofthestudentsfromlow-incomehouseholdshavecut16librarianssincethe2005–2006schoolyear(DelawareDistrictandSchoolProfiles).Delaware’sstudentsfromlow-incomehouseholds2arefacingreductionsintheservicesneededtoimprovetheirreading,writing,andcriticalthinkingskills.
1PleaseseeAppendixA:LiteratureReviewforadditionalinformationregardingthisbodyofresearch.2Low-income,asdefinedbytheDelawareDepartmentofEducation,meansthatastudentcanqualifyforFreeandReducedPriceLunch.
2|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
DisparityinNumberofLibrarianPositionsperDistrict
InDelaware,just37percentoffourth-graderswerejudgedproficientinreading(withanaveragescoreof224ona0–500pointscale)andonly31percentofeighth-gradersreachedorexceededtheproficientlevelinreading(scoring263outof500points).3
Giventhattherelationshipbetweenqualityschool-libraryservicesandstudentlearningandperformancehasbeendemonstratedinnumerousstudies,adoptingaholisticapproachtoimprovingthequalityofDelaware’sschoollibrariesthroughtargetedinvestmentsappearstobeprudent.Theresearchindicatesthatsuchaninvestmentwouldhaveapositiveimpactonallstudents,butthattheseinvestmentswouldbenefitat-riskstudentstoanevengreaterextent.4
Thefollowingreportisintentionallyresults-oriented.Itdemonstratesthatschoollibrarieshaveapositiveimpactonstudentlearning,offersanassessmentofthecurrentstatusofDelawareschoollibraries,andpresentsaseriesofrecommendationsthat,ifimplementedinaholisticway,wouldimprovestudentlearningandperformanceonstandardizedtestsinmultiplesubjectareas.
Tenrecommendationsareoffered.Theyaregroupedintofourcategories:
1. Staffing2. ContentandAccess3. GovernanceandInfrastructure4. AssessmentandAccountability
3TestresultsarefromtheNationalAssessmentofEducationalProgress(NAEP),knownas“TheNation’sReportCard”.Dataisfrom2014–2015.4PleaseseeAppendixA:LiteratureReviewforadditionalinformationregardingthisbodyofresearch.
66
5057
70
2005–2006 2015–2016
LibrarianPosiZonsinDelawareSchoolDistricts,comparing2005–2006to2015–2016schoolyears
Districtswithlessthan40%ofstudentsfromlow-incomehouseholds
Districtswithmorethan40%ofstudentsfromlow-incomehouseholds
3|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Ten Recommendations for Improving School Libraries in Delaware
Staffing
1. Requireaschoollibrary,acertifiedlibrarian,andanappropriatelevelofsupportstaffineveryschool.
2. Seekfundingforandimplementapilotprojectinnineschoolstodeterminetheimpactthatqualityschoollibrarieshaveonstudentlearningoutcomes.
Content and Access
3. Expandstudentaccessto“e-content.”4. ExpandtheDelawareLibraryConsortiumtoincludeallschoollibraries.
Governance and Infrastructure
5. Establishspecificgovernanceresponsibilitiesforthecoordinationandoversightofschoollibraries.
6. Examineandaddresssystemicissuesthatinhibitthedevelopmentofhigh-qualityschoollibraryprograms.
7. LeverageEveryStudentSucceedsAct(ESSA)fundingtostrengthenschoollibraries.8. Implementflexibleschedulingforschoollibraries.
Assessment and Accountability
9. Designandimplementanongoingprogramofdatacollection,management,andassessmentforschoollibraries.
10. CreateaDelawareSchool-LibraryQualityIndextofacilitatethetrackingofstudentperformanceandinvestmentinschoollibraryservices.
4|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Introduction
Overthepasttwodecades,therelationshipbetweenthequalityofschoollibrariesandstudentperformancehasbeenthefocusofdozensofstate-levelstudies,includingDelaware.Onecompendiumof“schoollibraryimpact”studies(Gretes,2013)identifiedmorethan60projectsin22statesandoneCanadianprovincethathadbeenconductedinthelast20years.Morerecentstudies,includingthosecarriedoutinSouthCarolina(Lance,Rodney,andSchwarz,2014)andWashingtonState(Coker,2015),takeintoaccounttheincreasinginfluenceofe-content.
School-libraryimpactresearchhasbeenconductedingeographicallylargeandsmallstates,somewithmajorurbancentersandothersthatarepredominantlyrural,locatedineveryregionofthecountry.Thesestudieshavebeenconductedoveranextendedperiodoftimeandhaveexaminedpopulationswithdiversedemographics.Avarietyofmethodologieshavebeenemployedincarryingouttheinvestigationsandanassortmentofdifferentquestionsofinterestrelatedtotheimpactofschoollibrariesonstudentlearninghavebeenexplored.
Therelationshipbetweenqualityschool-libraryserviceandstudentperformanceonstandardizedreadingtestshasbeenresearched,ashasthecorrelationbetweenexemplarylibrariesandgraduationrates.Studieshaveexploredtheimpactofschoollibrariesoncriticalthinkingskillsandstudentperformanceinscienceandmath.Manyofthestudieshaveemployedresearchdesignsthatcontrolledforfactorssuchasthedemographicsofthestudypopulation,overallperpupilexpenditures,percentageofstudentsfromlow-incomehouseholds,5andavarietyofothercharacteristicsthatindicatethedegreeofeconomicchallengefacingstudentpopulations.
Giventhediversityofstatesinvolvedandthevarietyofmethodologiesemployed,theextenttowhichthesestudiesarriveatverysimilarconclusionsisremarkable.Simplystated,accesstohigh-qualityschoollibraryservicesresultsinbetterstudentperformance.Thedeclarationusedasthetitleofthisreport,QualitySchoolLibraries=HigherStudentAchievement,isnotaspeculativestatement.Researchaffirmsthisequation.
However,attainingpositivestudent-learningoutcomesisnotassimpleasmaintaininganattractiveschool-libraryfacilityorevenfillingsuchafacilitywithup-to-date,relevantmaterialsandstate-of-the-arttechnology.Overandoveragain,theresearchdemonstratesthatthesinglefactormostcloselyassociatedwiththepositiveimpactofqualityschoollibrariesisafull-time,qualified/certifiedlibrarian/librarymediaspecialist.A2013compendiumentitledSchoolLibraryImpactStudies:AReviewofFindingsandGuidetoSources(Gretes,2013),citesnofewerthan20differentstudiesthatlinkhigherlibrarystaffingwithhigherreadingperformancesforelementary,middle,andhighschools.Severaladditionalstudiesconductedsince2013confirmtheearlierfindings(Lance,Schwarz,andRodney,SC2014;Coker,WA2015).
5Low-income,asdefinedbytheDelawareDepartmentofEducation,meansthatastudentcanqualifyforFreeandReducedPriceLunch.
5|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Thestudiesalsoshowthatotherfactorsincludingflexiblescheduling,thelevelofinteractionbetweenthelibrarianandteachers,investmentinprintanddigitalresources,andaccesstotechnologicalresourcesalsocontributeinstatisticallysignificantwaystostudentachievement.Attainingpositiveresultsrequiresaholistic/systemicapproachtoprovidingqualityschool-libraryservices.
Thenextsectionsummarizesrelevantresearchsupportingtheroleofqualityschoollibrariesinstudentachievement.GreaterdetailregardingtheseandotherstudiescanbefoundinAppendixA:LiteratureReview.Theresearchsectionisfollowedbyareviewoffactorsthatimpactperformance,anassessmentofthecurrentconditionofDelaware’sschoollibraries,andrecommendationsforimprovementsthatwouldleadtohigherstudentachievement.
6|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
The Research: What Previous Research Has Shown
FewwouldchallengethesuppositionthatAmerica’sabilitytocompeteintheglobaleconomyiscloselylinkedtothenation’sabilitytoeducateitschildren.Yet,mostinternationalcomparisonsplacetheUnitedStates(U.S.)educationsysteminthemiddleofthepackamongdevelopednations(ProgramforInternationalStudentAssessment[PISA],2014).
OnelongitudinalmeasureofstudentachievementintheU.S.istheNationalAssessmentofEducationalProgress(NAEP).NAEPisacongressionallymandatedprojectadministeredbytheNationalCenterforEducationStatistics(NCES),withintheU.S.DepartmentofEducationandtheInstituteofEducationSciences(IES).NAEPhasassessedwhatstudentsknowandcandoinreading,writing,mathematics,andsciencesince1969.NAEP’sfindingsarereportedinapublicationreferredtoas“TheNation’sReportCard.”Thereportcardisupdatedbiennially;themostrecentdatawascollectedduringthe2014–15schoolyear.
The2015reportshowsnationalachievementlevelsinreadingholdingsteadycomparedto2013(thelastpreviousassessment)withmathachievementlevelsfallingslightlyinthesameperiod.Holdingsteadyinreadingmeansthatonly36percentoffourth-graders,34percentofeighth-graders,and37percentoftwelfth-graderswereproficientinreading.InDelaware,37percentoffourth-graderswerejudgedproficientwithanaveragescoreof224ona0–500pointscaleand31percentofeighth-gradersreachedorexceededtheproficientlevelscoring263outof500points.
TheNationalAssessmentGoverningBoard,whichoverseesNAEP,hassuggestedthattwelfth-gradestudentsscoring302oraboveontheNAEPreadingscalearelikelytopossesstheknowledge,skills,andabilitiesthatwouldmakethemacademicallypreparedforcollege.Nationally,only37percentoftwelfth-gradersscored302orhigherin2015.Many,ifnotthemajorityof,highschoolgraduatesarenotreadyforcollegeorfortheworkplacewithoutremedialassistance(PetrilliandFinn,2015).
Ameta-analysisof44studiescarriedoutbyDr.JimLindsaydocumentstherelationshipbetweenaccesstoprintmaterialsandeducationoutcomes.Theanalysisshowedthataccesstoprintmaterialshasthefollowingeffects:
• Improveschildren’sreadingperformance• Helpschildrenlearnthebasicsofreading• Causeschildrentoreadmoreandforlongerlengthsoftime• Producesimprovedattitudestowardreadingandlearningamongchildren(Lindsay,2010)
Bothanecdotalandempiricalevidencesuggeststhatchildreninmanyschoolsacrossthenationareseeingareductionratherthananincreaseintheiraccesstoreadingmaterials(Bridges,2013).Furthermore,evidencefromtheWashingtonStateSchoolLibraryImpactStudy(Coker,2015)suggests“studentswhoareleastlikelytohaveaccesstoaqualitylibraryaredisproportionatelymorelikelytofacepoverty.”Inotherwords,childrenwhoarealreadyathigherriskduetosocio-economicfactorsaremorelikelytoexperienceadeficitintheiraccesstoreadingmaterials(Lindsay,2010;Krashen,2012).
7|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
AstudybyNewYorkUniversity’sSteinhardtSchoolofCulture,Education,andHumanDevelopmentdocumentedtheexistenceof“bookdeserts”inpoorneighborhoodsandindicatedthat“accesstoprintresources…earlyonhasbothimmediateandlong-termeffectsonchildren’svocabulary,backgroundknowledge,andcomprehensionskills”(Neuman&Moland,2016).
Thefollowingoverviewofresearchsuggeststhattheimprovementofschoollibrarieswouldbeaprudentinvestmentandwouldgeneraterealgainsinstudentachievement.Theexamplesthatfollowareintentionallytakenfromthemostrecentstudiestoemphasizethefactthatschoollibrariesremainhighlyrelevantinthe21stcentury.
English Language Arts Performance
ArecentstatewidestudyinSouthCarolina(Lance,Rodney,andSchwarz,2014)validatestherelationshipbetweenqualityschoollibrariesandtestresultsforspecificEnglishLanguageArts(ELA)standards.ThestudyfoundahighcorrelationbetweenthepresenceofprofessionalschoollibrariansandtestresultsforthreeELAstandards—literarytext,informationaltext,andresearchaswellastwowritingstandards—contentandorganization.Thestudydeterminedthatthepositivelinkbetweenthepresenceofprofessionalschoollibrariansandtestresults“…couldnotbeexplainedawaybydemographicssuchasgender,race/ethnicity,disability,andsubsidizedorfreemealseligibility.”
TheSouthCarolinastudyaffirmsthefindingsofseveralotherstudies(includingstudiesinColoradoandPennsylvania)thatalsodocumenthigherstudentperformanceintheseareasinlibrarieswithfull-timeprofessionalstaff.
Reading
Multiplestudiesdocumentthestatisticallysignificantrelationshipbetweenschoolswithwell-staffedlibrariesandscoresonstandardizedreadingtests.Ina2013compendiumentitledSchoolLibraryImpactStudies:AReviewofFindingsandGuidetoSources(Gretes,2013),nofewerthan20differentstudiesarecitedthatlinkhigherlibrarystaffingwithhigherreadingperformancesforelementary,middle,andhighschools(AK2010;CA2008;CO2010;FL2003:IL2005;IN2010;IA2002;MA2010;MI2003;MN2004;MO2004;NC2003;NM;2002;NY2010;PA2000;ON2006/2009;OR2001;TX2001;WI2006).
A2012studyinColorado(Lance&Hofschire,2012)demonstratesthatgainsinreadingscoresarehighestwhenthereisafull-time“endorsed(certified)librarian”atthebuildinglevel.Thestudystatesthat“Researchfindingsonschoollibrariansandtheirassociationwithstudents’(reading)testscoresareconsistent:regardlessofhowrichorpooracommunityis,studentstendtoperformbetteronreadingtestswhere,andwhen,theirlibraryprogramsareinthehandsofendorsedlibrarians”(Lance&Hofschire,2012).
Furthermore,theresearchdemonstratesthattheinverseisalsotrue.LanceandHofschiredocumentedtheimpactoflibrarianlayoffsonfourth-gradereadingscoresbetween2004and2009.“Fewerlibrarianstranslatedtolowerperformance—oraslowerriseinscores—onstandardized
8|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
tests.”Thestudyalsofoundthat“19ofthe26statesthatgainedlibrarianssawanaverage2.2percentriseintheirNationalAssessmentofEducationProgress(NAEP)fourth-gradereadingscores”(Lance&Hofschire,2012).
Studentsatrisktendedtobeaffectedmorepositivelybytheadditionofschoollibrariansthanthegeneralstudentpopulationandtheseat-riskpopulationssufferedgreaterlosseswhenlibrarianswereeliminated(Lance&Hofschire,2012).
Writing
InarecentSouthCarolinastudy(Lance,Schwarz,andRodney,2014),allstudents,bothmaleandfemale,weremorelikelytoshowstrengthsandlesslikelytoshowweaknessesonthePalmettoAssessmentofStateStandards(PASS)Writingstandards—overallandonContentandOrganization—iftheirschoollibrarieswerestaffedbyatleastonefull-timelibrarianandatleastonefull-timeorpart-timeassistantthaniftheirlibrarieswerestaffedotherwise.Allstudentswere2percentlesslikelytoshowweaknessesonthePASSwritingstandardsifaqualifiedfull-timelibrarianwasonstaff.Allstudentswere2.1percentmorelikelytodemonstratestrengthsontheContentandOrganizationtestsifaqualifiedfull-timelibrarianwaspresentintheirschool.
AstudyconductedinPennsylvaniain2012entitledHowPennsylvaniaSchoolLibrariesPayOff:InvestmentsinStudentAchievementandAcademicStandards(Lance&Schwarz)foundthat“theimpactofschoollibrariesismorepronouncedproportionatelyforwritingthanreadingscores.”Studentswithaccesstoqualitylibraries(definedbymeasuresthatincludedacertifiedlibrarian,availabilityofsupportstaff,expendituresofatleast$11perstudentperyearfornewresources,collectionsofatleast12,000volumes,up-to-datetechnology,andflexiblescheduling),weretwo-to-five-timesmorelikelytoscore“advanced”onthePennsylvaniaSystemofSchoolAssessment(PSSA)readingandwritingteststhanstudentswhodidnothaveaccesstoqualitylibraries.
Other Areas of Increased Performance
GainsinstudentperformancearenotlimitedtoELA.TestresultsthatassesscriticalthinkingskillareasrelatedtoELAsuchasresearchandinformationliteracyarealsopositivelyimpactedbytheavailabilityofqualityschool-libraryservices.Althoughthecorrelationbetweenqualityschoollibrariesandperformanceinmathandsciencehasnotbeenstudiedasfrequently,severalstudiesshowgainsthatcannotbeexplainedbyotherfactors(Dow,Lakin,&Court,2012).Asidentifiedbythestudiesbelow,researchskills,informationliteracyskills,andevengraduationratesappeartobeimpactedbythepresenceofhigh-qualityschoollibraries.
Research Skills
TheSouthCarolinastudy(Lance,Schwarz,andRodney,2014)revealsthatthepresenceofatleastonefull-timelibrarianandafullorpart-timeassistantmadeasignificantdifferencein“exemplary”performanceintheresearchcomponentofthePalmettoAssessmentofStateStandards(PASS).Thepercentageofstudentsscoringatexemplarylevelswastwotothreepercenthigherinschoolswith
9|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
afullcomplementoflibrarystaffing.Thisgappersistedacrossmanycategoriesofstudentsincludingboysandgirls,Hispanicstudents,andlimitedEnglishlanguagestudents.
Math & Science
ResearchconductedinKansas(Dow,Lakin,&Court,2012)foundthatstudentsinschoolsthatmaintainedhigherandmorestablelibrarymediaspecialiststaffinghadhigherproficiencyratesasreportedinKansasAnnualYearlyProgressdata.Thehigherproficiencyrateswerenotlimitedtoreadingandwriting;scoreswerehigherinmathematics,science,andhistory/governmentaswell.Infact,theproficiencydifferencebetweenstudentsinschoolswithlibrarymediaspecialistsandwithoutlibrarymediaspecialistswasgreatestinmathematics.Furthermore,thisproficiencydifferencepersistedacrossthegradelevels(elementary,middle,andhighschool).
Information Literacy Skills
Researchexploringthecorrelationbetweenschoollibrariansandthedevelopmentofinformationliteracyskills(Schultz-Jones&Ledbetter,2009,2010)concludedthatschoollibrarians“candevelopandnurtureanoptimallearningenvironmentthatmakesapositiveandmeasurablecontributiontotheeducationalprocess.”Thesestudiesstresstheimportanceoflibrarian/teacherinteractionandpartnershipsinfacilitatingstudentlearning.Anothercompendiumofschool-libraryimpactstudiespreparedatMansfieldUniversity(Kachel,2013)citesstudieslinkinglibrarian/teacherinteractionandgainsinstudentlearningintheareasofinformationliteracyandtechnologyskills(Smith,2006;Klinger,2009).
Graduation Rates
TheWashingtonStateSchoolLibraryImpactStudyentitledCertifiedTeacherLibrarians,LibraryQualityandStudentAchievementinWashingtonStatePublicSchools(Coker,2015)developedameasurementtooltoassessstudentperformanceinrelationtoaholisticassessmentoflibraryquality.ThestudyappliedaLibraryQualityScale(LQS)toranklibrariesintofourcategories(lowlibraryquality,fair(-)libraryquality,fair(+)libraryquality,andhighlibraryquality)andthenexaminedstudentperformanceinrelationtoLQSrankings.TheLQScriteriaincludednineitemsthatreflectedstaffinglevelsandhoursofaccess,printandelectronicresources,accesstoup-to-datetechnology,andscheduling.
UsingtheLQSrankings,theCokerstudylookedatfive-yeargraduationratesinschoolsinthreecategories:
• Lessthan30%ofstudentseligibleforFreeorReducedPriceLunch(FRPL)• Between30%and50%ofstudentseligibleforFRPL• 50%orhigherstudentseligibleforFRPL
Whilethedifferenceingraduationratesinlowlibraryqualityschoolsandhighlibraryschoolsservingthelessthan30percentFRPLwassignificant(11%),thegapingraduationratesinlowlibraryqualityschoolsandhighlibraryschoolsservingthe50percentorhigherFRPLwasan
10|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
astounding36percent(43percentinschoolswithlowlibraryqualityand79percentinschoolswithhighlibraryquality).Again,qualityschoollibrariesappeartohavethegreatestimpactamongstudentswhofaceavarietyofsocio-economicchallenges.
Figure1:Five-YearGraduationRatesforSchoolswith50%orHigherQualifiedforFreeorReducedPriceLunch
79%
76%
69%
43%
HighLibraryQualityScale(LQS)Score
Fair(+)LQSScore
Fair(-)LQSScore
LowLQSScore
11|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
The Requisites: Factors That Impact Performance
Aswaspreviouslynoted,theextenttowhichschool-libraryimpactstudiesarriveatverysimilarconclusionsisremarkable.Thesamefactorsareidentifiedoverandoveragainasbeingcorrelatedwithstudentsuccess,andwhiletherearesomevariationsinfindings,itisthesimilarityratherthanthevariancethatisstriking.Researchindicatedthefollowingcharacteristicsmakeadifferenceinstudentlearning:
• Afull-timecertified/qualifiedlibrarianatthebuildinglevel6• Adequatesupportstafftoenablethelibrariantoperformprofessionalduties• Adequateexpenditurefornewresourcestoensurestudentaccesstorecent,relevant
content7• Highlevelofcollaborationbetweenlibrariansandteachersandlibrariansandstudents• Flexibleschedulingthatenablesthelibrariantointeractwithteachersandstudents• Accesstoup-to-datetechnologicalinfrastructureandonlineresources• Accesstoprofessionaldevelopmentandnetworkingopportunitiesforlibrarystaff
Whiletheresearchdemonstratesthatprofessionalstaffingisclearlythemostimportantofthefactorsintermsofstudentperformance,theschoollibrariesthatmakethemostdifferenceinstudentlearningarethoseinwhichallofthefactorscometogetherinaholisticway(Coker,2015).Inacknowledgementofthisfact,thisMasterPlanrecommendsaholisticapproachtothedevelopmentofqualitylibrariesandcreatesasystemforquantifying“qualitylibraries”thatwillfacilitateongoingassessmentofschool-libraryimpacts.
ThenextsectionpresentsdeficienciesthatcurrentlyexistinDelaware’sschoollibrariesaswellassometroublingtrendsthatdiminishtheeffectivenessofschoollibrariesandlibrarians.Therecommendationssectionofthereportprovidesawayforwardthat,ifimplemented,willgeneratepositiveoutcomes.
6SchoollibrariancertificationrequirementsarecodifiedinTitle14,Chapter1500,Section1580SchoolLibraryMediaSpecialistoftheDelawareAdministrativeCode.SeeAppendix.7Whatisdeemedanadequatedollaramounttomakeapositivedifferencerangesfrom$11perstudenttoover$15perstudent.
12|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
The Reality: Findings From the Delaware Study
AstudyofDelaware’sschoollibrariesconductedbyDr.RossJ.Toddin2004wasgenerallyoptimistic.ToddidentifiedanumberofchallengesfacingschoollibrariesintheFirstStatebutindicatedthat“Delawarehasthepotentialtobeidentifiednationallyasoneofthefirststatestoachievehighqualityschoollibraryservicesandprogramsandtoreachstate-basedandnationallydeterminedstandards.”Heciteddeficienciesthathecalled“shortcomingsintheprovisionofinfrastructure—resources,full-timestaffing,aswellasinstructionalopportunitiestoworkwithclassroomteachers.”Unfortunately,itappearsthatthesameshortcomingsstillexistin2016andthey,infact,havebecomeevenmorepronounced.
ThepositiveoutcomesenvisionedbyToddhavenotmaterialized,notbecausetheadviceinthereportwasflawed,butrather,becausetherecommendationsfromthereportwereneverimplemented.
Toddoutlinedasetofcharacteristicsthatparallelvirtuallyeverymajorstatewidestudyofschoollibrariesthathasbeencarriedoutsincetheyear2000.AmongthecharacteristicsidentifiedbyToddascontributingtostudentlearningoutcomeswere:
• Astate-certified,full-time,librarymediaspecialistinthebuilding;• Theavailabilityofpara-professionalstaffwhoundertakeroutineadministrativetasksand
freethelibrarymediaspecialisttoundertakeinstructionalinitiativesandreadingliteracyinitiatives;
• Alibraryprogramthatisbasedonflexibleschedulingsothatlibrarymediaspecialistsandclassroomteacherscanengageincollaborativeplanninganddeliveryofinformationliteracyinstruction;
• Aschoollibrarythatmeetsresourcerecommendationsof15to20booksperchild;• Abudgetallocationof$12to$15per-studentper-yeartoensurecurrencyandvitalityofthe
informationbase;• Astrong,networkedinformation-technologyinfrastructurethatfacilitatesaccesstoanduse
ofinformationresourcesinandoutoftheschool.
AnumberofmethodswereemployedincarryingoutthisstudytorevisitthestatusofDelaware’sschoollibrariesin2015–16.Theseeffortsincluded:
• Aweb-basedsurveydirectedtoallschool-librarystaffincludingcertifiedlibrarians,othercertifiedteachersactingasschoollibrarians,andparaprofessionalsworkingin(andsometimesmanaging)schoollibraries;
• Focusgroupswithschool-library/media-centerpersonnelheldinlocationsthroughoutthestate;
• Focusgroupswithschoolprincipals;and• Personalinterviewswithindividualsincludinglibrarians,principals,superintendents,and
otherswithspecialknowledgeofspecificprograms.
13|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Followingisanoverviewofthefindingsoftheseinformation-gatheringefforts.Greaterdetailcanbefoundintheappendicestothisreport.
Professional Library Staff
Thepresenceofafull-time,well-qualified/certifiedlibrarianatthebuildinglevelisthefactormostcloselycorrelatedwithstudentsuccessinvirtuallyalloftheschool-libraryimpactstudies.ItisthereforevitallyimportanttoconsiderhowDelaware’sschoolsarefaringinthiscriticalarea.
WhenRossTodd’sstudywasreleasedin2005,thetotalenrollmentinDelaware’spublic,non-charterschoolswas115,816students.Adecadelater,thestudentpopulationhadgrownto123,127,anincreaseof6.3%.In2005,Delawareschooldistrictsreportedthattheyemployedatotalof123librarians.Bythe2015–16schoolyear,thatnumberhaddroppedto120.Atfirstglance,thisdropmayseemrelativelyinsignificant;however,acloserexaminationrevealssomeverytroublingtrends.Thestatewidepicturemasksamuchbleakersituationthatadverselyaffectsstudentsinsomedistricts.
In2005–2006,thestatewideratiooflibrarianstostudentswasonelibrarianforevery942students.By2015–16,theratiohadgrowntoonelibrarianforevery1,026students.Again,thisdisparityseemsrelativelysmall.Itisnotuntilwebegintoexaminenumbersatthedistrictlevelthatconsiderableinequityisrevealed.In2005–2006,thedistrictwiththebestlibrarian/studentratiohadonelibrarianforevery535students.In2005–2006,thedistrictwiththepoorestlibrarian/studentratiohadonelibrarianforevery2,131students.In2015–16,thedistrictwiththebestlibrarian/studentratiohadonelibrarianforevery579students(thisdistrictaddedfourlibrarianpositionsbetweenthe2014–15and2015–16schoolyears).Thelowestratioforthe2015–16schoolyearwasonelibrarianforevery5,170students.Itwouldseemclearthatthereisasignificantdisparitybetweentheschool-libraryservicesreceivedbyastudentinadistrictwithonelibrarianforevery579studentsandtheservicesreceivedbyastudentinadistrictwithonelibrarianforevery5,170students.
Figure2:DisparityinDelawarePublicSchoolDistrictsintheRatioofLibrarianstoStudents
EvenmorealarmingisthefactthatDelaware’sschoollibrariesappeartobeheadedinanincreasinglydiredirectioninregardtothenumberofschoolswithfull-time,certifiedlibrarians.AcomparisonamongDelaware’sschooldistrictsshowsthatthetendistrictsinwhichlessthan40
579
5,170
LowestLibrarian/StudentRaroDistrict
HighestLibrarian/StudentRaroDistrict
14|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
percentofthestudentsarefromlow-incomehouseholdshaveadded13librarianssincethe2005–2006schoolyear.Theninedistrictsinwhichmorethan40percentofthestudentsarefromlow-incomehouseholdshavecut16librarianssincethe2005–2006schoolyear.It’sworthnotingthatthedistrictwiththehighestpercentageofstudentsfromlow-incomehouseholdsinthestate,addedfourlibrarianpositionsbetween2014–15and2015–16.However,theoveralltrendindicatesthatDelaware’sat-riskstudentswhocouldbenefitthemostfromqualityschoollibrariesareinsteadfacingreductionsinserviceslikelytoimprovetheirperformanceinreading,writing,andcriticalthinking.
Figure3:DisparityinNumberofLibrarianPositionsperDistrict
Anotherconcernrelatestothequalificationsoflibrarystaff.AlthoughtheDelawareDistrictandSchoolProfilesreport120librarians,acloserexaminationrevealsthatnotalloftheindividualsfillingthesepositionsarecertifiedlibrarians.AccordingtorecordsfromtheDelawareAssociationofSchoolLibrarians,approximately110ofthelibrariansareeithercurrentlycertifiedorarequalifiedforcertification.Inmostotherinstances,para-professionalsoperateschoollibrariesandarereportedinthedistrictsstatisticsaslibrarians(2015).Thisissimplyoneofmanyareasinwhichalackofcentralizeddata-collectionaboutschoollibrarieshindersqualityanalysis.
Anadditionaltroublingtrendisanapparentgradualerosionofthetimelibrariansareabletospendcarryingouttheirprofessionalduties.Inputfromtheweb-basedsurvey,librarianfocusgroups,andlibrarianinterviewsindicatesthatmany,ifnotmostDelawareschoollibrariansareseverelylimitedintheamountoftimetheycanspendworkinginaprofessionalcapacitywithstudentsandteachers.Ofthe64librariansrespondingtotheweb-survey,60.9percentindicatedthattheyhaveotherinstructionaland/orstaffingresponsibilitiesbeyondthosedirectlyassociatedwiththeirjobdutiesinthelibrary/mediacenter.Thesedutiesrangefromservingastheschooltestcoordinatororaspecialeducationteachertodutiesmorecloselyalignedwiththelibrarysuchasactingasthebuildingtechnologistandteachingresearch-skillsclasses.
66
5057
70
2005–2006 2015–2016
LibrarianPosiZonsinDelawareSchoolDistricts,comparing2005–2006to2015–2016schoolyears
Districtswithlessthan40%ofstudentsfromlow-incomehouseholds
Districtswithmorethan40%ofstudentsfromlow-incomehouseholds
15|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
AddingtothiserosionisareporteddeclineinthenumberofsupportstaffworkinginDelaware’sschoollibraries.Only10ofthe68librariansrespondingsaidthatanyotherpaidstaffworkedintheirlibraries.Ofthese,fourlibrarieshadonlypart-timesupport.Consequently,manylibrariansreportedspendingasignificantportionoftheirtimeonclericaltasksrangingfromcheckingmaterialsinandout,re-shelvingbooks,andprocessingmaterials(attachingbookcovers,labels,etc.).Timespentcarryingoutclericaltasksdirectlyimpactstheamountofcollaborationwithteachersthatresearchdemonstrateshasapositiveimpactonstudentlearning.8
Severallibrarianswhoparticipatedinfocusgroupsraisedarelatedissueconcerningprofessionallearningcommunities(PLCs).AlthoughlibrariansareuniquelypositionedtoaddsignificantlytoPLCsascross-disciplinaryresources,librariansreportthattheirroleisoftenrelegatedtocoveringclasseswhileteachersparticipateinPLCmeetings.ArethinkingoftherolethatlibrariansmightplayinPLCswouldverylikelyyieldpositiveresults(Hughes-Hassel,Brasfield,andDupree,2012).
Librariansparticipatinginfocusgroupsandininterviewsalsoraisedconcernaboutunitcounts.Theyexpressedtheopinionthattheinclusionoflibrariansinthegeneralunitcountpitslibrariansagainstothervaluedandneededstaff.Theavailableresearchbuildsastrongcaseforamodelthatmandatesaleveloflibrarystaffingthatreflectsthesizeofthestudentpopulationratherthanplacinglibrariansincompetitionwithothereducatorsandsupportstaff.9
Finally,informationgatheredinfocusgroups,interviews,andinsessionswiththeDelawareSchoolLibrariesCouncilunderscorestheimportanceofongoingstaffdevelopmentforlibrarians.Theweb-basedsurveydocumentsthefactthatmostschoollibrariansinDelawareareworkinginisolationfromotherlibraryprofessionals.Delaware’scertificationprogramforlibrariansshouldbereviewedwithaneyetowardstrengtheningtheprofessionaldevelopmentcomponent.
Inshort,professionallibrarianpositionsarebeingcutdisproportionatelyindistrictsinwhichstudentscouldbenefitmostfromtheirservices.Furthermore,theeffectivenessofmanyofthelibrariansalreadyinplacehasbeendiminishedbecauseofalackofsupportstaffandbytheencroachmentofmanyotherdutiesthatreducetheamountoftimetheyareabletospendinteractingwithstudentsandteachers.
Access to Resources
Accesstoup-to-date,relevantresourcesproducesnumerouspositiveoutcomes(Lindsay,2010)including:
• Improvingchildren’sreadingperformance• Helpingchildrenlearnthebasicsofreading• Causingchildrentoreadmoreandforlongerlengthsoftime• Producingimprovedattitudestowardreadingandlearning
8PleaseseeAppendixA:LiteratureReviewforadditionalinformationregardingthisbodyofresearch.9PleaseseeAppendixA:LiteratureReviewforadditionalinformationregardingthisbodyofresearch.
16|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
However,itappearsthatthebooksandotherlearningresourcesofferedbyDelaware’sschoollibrarieshavedeclinedsincetheToddstudywasconductedmorethanadecadeago.Toddreportedanaveragecollectionsizeof11,500itemsandamedianbudgetallocationfornewmaterialsat“below$6,000”perschool.Theweb-surveyconductedin2015identifiedthemeanexpendituresfornewmaterials(purchasedwithtaxfunds)as$4,688andthatthemedianbudgetwas$3,000—halfoftheestimatedamountreportedintheToddstudy.
Althoughthesurveyfoundthataverageschoolcollectionshavegrownslightly(amedianof12,450items),onaverage,only460newitemswerebeingaddedtoeachschool’scollectionperyear(medianwasevenlowerat300).ThisisaveryclearindicationthatDelaware’sschool-librarycollectionsareoutdated.Atareplacementrateof460newitemsayear(3.7%ofthecollectionperyear),itwouldtakeroughly27yearsfortheentirecollectiontoturnover.
In2012–13,theDelawareSchoolLibrariesCouncilworkedwithFollett,thecurrentschool-librarycatalogvendor,toconductananalysisofprintcollections.TheresultsofthisanalysisappearedintheDelawareSchoolLibrariesCouncilAnnualReportfor2013.FollettreportedthattheaveragecopyrightdateoffictiontitlesinDelaware’sschool-librarycollectionswas1994andthattheaverageimprintdateofnon-fictionmaterialswas1993.Nearly90percent(89.97%)ofthematerialsinScienceTechnology,Engineering,andMath(STEM)categories(Dewey500s[Science]andDewey600s[AppliedSciences])weremorethan5yearsold.
TheToddstudyrecommendedanexpenditureof$12to$15perstudentperyearforthepurchaseonnewresources.However,thisrecommendationwasmademorethantenyearsagoanddoesnotaccountforinflationthathasoccurredoverthepastdecade.Currently,itisimpossibletoaccuratelyreporttotalexpendituresfornewlibraryresources.Forthemostpart,decisionsregardinglibrarymaterialsbudgetsarebeingmadeatthebuildingratherthanatthedistrictlevelandnocentralizedsystemofreportingtheseexpendituresisreadilyavailable(FocusGroups,2015).However,web-surveyresultssuggestthatthetotalexpenditurefornewmaterialsisintherangeof$800,000to$900,000.Thiswouldtranslateintobetween$6.50to$7.50perstudent.
TheSouthCarolinastudy(Lance,Rodney,andSchwarz,2014)indicatedthatexpendituresof$13.33ormoreperstudentwascorrelatedwithpositiveoutcomesintermsofstudentperformance.AnearlierstudyinPennsylvania(LanceandSchwarz,2012)foundthatexpendituresover$11.00perstudentmadeadifferenceinstudentperformance.Whileitisdifficulttodefineapreciseexpenditurerecommendation,thereisnoquestionthattheamountthatwouldcontributetodesiredresultsinstudentlearningisconsiderablymore,andprobablyclosertodouble,whatisbeingspentperstudentatthecurrenttime.
OneadvantagethatstudentsinDelawarehavethatisn’taffordedtoallchildreninthenationisaccesstohigh-qualityonlinedatabases.UDLib/SEARCHisaprogramthatworkstodeliverequitableaccesstoinformationresources.Thecontinuationofthisprogramisessential.Whileonlinedatabasesareanextremelyvaluableresearchtool,theyarenotareplacementforbook-lengthworks.Buildingonthismodelbyexpandingittoincludemorecurriculum-basede-contentoffersanopportunitytoincreaseaccesstoup-to-date,relevantcontentinawaythatensuresequityaswellasquality.
17|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Thecurrentstatusofresourcesharingbetweenandamongschoolshasimprovedtoamodestextentoverthecourseofthepastdecade.Dr.Toddreportedthat40percentofschool-librarycatalogsweresearchableviatheInternet.Whilethatpercentagehasdoubled(80.9percentofsurveyparticipantsindicatedthattheirlibraryholdingswereavailableoutsidetheschoolbuilding),theoveralllevelofresourcesharingamongschoolsisstillverylow.Thisisdue,atleastinpart,toalackofareasonablequantityofup-to-datematerialsthatareinhighdemand(FocusGroups,2015).However,thelackofanetworkedonlineresourceforfindingandreservingmaterialsalsocontributestothissituation.ApilotprogramisunderwaytoincludealimitednumberofschoollibrariesintheDelawareLibraryCatalog.Thismayserveasamodelforthesharingofresourcesnotonlybetweenandamongschoollibrariesbutbetweenandamongschoolandpubliclibrariesaswell.
Coordination and Data Collection
Delawareschoollibrarieshavesufferedafatecommontomanyotherstatesinregardtostatelevelcoordination.Atonetime,manystateeducationdepartments,includingDelaware,hadindividuals(andoftenwholeunits)thatworkeddirectlywithschoollibrariestosupportandcoordinatetheirefforts.Overtimemanyofthesepositionsdisappeared.Makingmattersevenworse,havingadistrict-levelschool-librarycoordinatorusedtobecommon,butnowthesepositionshavenearlydisappeared.Inshort,bothstate-anddistrict-levelpersonnelsupportingschool-libraryserviceshaveevaporated.Schoollibrariansreportedthattheyoftenfeelasiftheyareoperatinginavacuum.ProfessionaldevelopmentandthebuildingofprofessionalnetworkshavelargelybeentheresultofpersonalinitiativeandvoluntaryactivitiesasopposedtobeingeffortssupportedbyeithertheStateorbyschooldistricts.
The“reconstitution”oftheDelawareSchoolLibrariesCouncilhasbeenonestepintherightdirectioninthataformalgovernmentalbodynowexiststhathasthemissionof“establishinganexemplaryschoollibraryprogram.”Inadditiontospearheadingthecurrentmasterplanprocess,thecouncilhasundertakensomedatacollectionandhasservedasapointofcontactandasanadvocateforschoollibrarieswithschooldistricts,schoolboards,thelegislature,andthepublic.ItiscriticalthattheCouncilbereauthorizedthroughExecutiveOrderunderthenextgovernor’sadministration.Unfortunately,nopaidstaffisassignedtothecouncilanditseffortshavelargelybeenundertakenasalaboroflovebyindividualswhocareaboutschoollibrariesandwhoareawareofthedifferencethattheycanmake.However,withoutformalstaffingsupport,thecouncil’sabilitiestoaffectchangewillbeextremelylimited.
Furthermore,theworkthatneedstobedoneisconsiderable.Inadditiontothesupportandcoordinationofschool-libraryprogramsfromthestatelevel,programstocollectandreportschool-librarystatisticshaveallbutdisappeared.Inthepast,somebasicinformationregardingschoollibrarieswasgatheredthroughtheNationalCenterforEducationalStatistics(NCES)SchoolsandStaffingSurvey(SASS).Whileincompleteinitsscope,SASSatleastprovidedsomebaselineinformationthatcouldbeusedforcomparativeandresearchanalysispurposes.However,SASShasnowbeenreplacedbytheNationalTeacherandPrincipalSurvey(NTPS).Unfortunately,theNTPSsurveycaptureslittlemorethanverificationofwhetherornotanindividualschoolhasalibrary.
18|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Thisseverelylimitstheabilityofschools,schooldistricts,andstateeducationagenciestoassesstheimpactofinvestmentsinschoollibraries.Inshort,thebasictoolsneededtoassesstheimpactofschool-libraryprogramsonstudentperformancearelargelylacking.
19|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
The Recommendations
Introduction
Thedeclarationusedasthetitleofthisreport,QualitySchoolLibraries=HigherStudentAchievement,isnotaspeculativestatement.Researchaffirmsthisequation.ConsiderableevidencesuggeststhatDelawarewillattainmeasurablegainsinstudentperformanceifstrategicinvestmentsaremadeinimprovingthequalityoftheFirstState’sschoollibraries.Thefollowingrecommendationsareintendedtochartacoursethatwillenablethestatetorealizethesegains.
Itshouldbenotedthatseveraloftherecommendationsarenotnew,noraretheyrevolutionary.ThefindingsofthisMasterPlananditsrecommendationsareconsistentwiththosemadeinastudybyDr.RossToddwhenheexaminedDelaware’sschoollibrariesoveradecadeago.Therecommendationsarealsoconsistentwiththosemadeindozensofotherstatewidestudiesconductedacrossthenationsincetheyear2000.ThefactthatpotentialgainsoutlinedintheToddreport(andinmanyothers)havenotmaterializeddoesnotreflectpoorlyonthequalityoftherecommendations;rather,progresshasbeenimpededinDelaware(andmanyotherstates)becausegoodrecommendationswereneveractedupon.
Therecommendationsinthisreportareintentionallyresults-oriented.Therecommendationsproposemakingholisticchangesthattogetherwillyieldpositiveoutcomes.Therecommendationshavebeenorganizedintofourseparatecategories.Theyare:
• Staffing• Contentandaccess• Governanceandinfrastructure• Assessmentandaccountability
Researchshowsthatdifferentcomponentsoflibraryservicescontributetostudentsuccesstovaryingdegreesandthattheyimpactlearnersindifferentways.10Forexample,overall,full-timeprofessionalstaffingattheschoolbuildinglevelhasthegreatestimpactonperformanceonstandardizedteststhatassessreading,writing,andresearchskills.However,simpleaccesstoreadingmaterialsisalsocrucial.Severalstudies(Pribesh,2011;Krashen,2012)documentarelationshipbetweenpoorreadingtestscoresamongchildreninpovertyandlackofaccesstobooksintheirhomesandcommunities.Thisissuewasrecentlyunderscoredinthe“bookdesert”studythatlookedataccesstoprintresourcesinlow-incomeneighborhoods(Neuman&Moland,2016).
Ahighcorrelationhasalsobeenfoundbetweenstudentachievementandfactorssuchasthenatureandqualityofinteractionbetweenlibrarians,flexibleversusfixedschedulesandoverall
10PleaseseeAppendixA:LiteratureReviewforadditionalinformationregardingthisbodyofresearch.
20|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
expendituresonlibraryservices.11Anapproachthatimprovesthequalityofschoollibrariesinmultiplewaysismostlikelytogeneratepositiveresultsintermsofstudentlearningandperformance.
Abriefoverviewoftherecommendationsispresentedbelowfollowedbyadditionaldetailsregardingeachoftheproposedactions.
Staffing
Researchdemonstratesthatthepresenceofacertifiedprofessionallibrarianwithanappropriatelevelofsupportstaffingatthebuildinglevelisthecomponentoflibraryservicethatismosthighlycorrelatedwithstudentperformance.12Consequently,tworecommendationsaredirectedtowardachievingthegoalofhavingafullystaffedlibraryineachpublicelementary,middle,andhighschoolbuildinginthestate.Thefirstrecommendationinvolvesthedevelopmentoflegislationthatcodifiestherequirementforlibrariesineachschoolanddesignatesschoollibrariansandaccompanyingparaprofessionalsasadistinctcategorywithinthestate’sunitcountappropriationmodel.
Statefundingforthisinitiativewouldbeapproximately70percentofthetotalneededtoimplementtheeffort.Fullyimplementingtheprogramwouldrequirelocalschooldistrictsupportofapproximately30percent.Recognizingthatfullyreachingthisgoalwilllikelytakeaperiodoftime,thesecondrecommendationcallsforaprivately-funded“proof-of-concept”pilotprojectinvolvingnineschools(anelementaryschool,amiddleschool,andahighschoolineachcounty).Thepilotprojectwouldsupporttheimprovementofninelibrariesinfourcriticalareas(professionalstaffing,supportstaffing,acquisitionofnewmaterials,andimprovedaccesstoexistingresources)thatresearchdemonstratesproducesimprovedlearningoutcomesforstudents.Thepilotwouldenabletheparticipatingschoolstoachieveahighlevelonaschool-libraryqualityindexthatisbuiltaroundresearchfindings.Studentperformanceonspecificstandardizedtestsattheappropriategradelevelswouldthenbeusedtodemonstrateanddocumenttheimpactofqualityschoollibraries.
Recommendation 1: Require a School Library, a Certified Librarian, and an Appropriate Level of Support Staff in Every School
Delawareshouldimplementlegislationthatcodifiestherequirementforaschoollibraryineachschoolandprovidesacertifiedlibrarymediaspecialistandappropriatelevelofsupportstaffineveryelementary,middle,andhighschool.ThislegislationwouldbesimilartoHouseBillNo.152,whichwasintroducedinthe148thGeneralAssembly,butwould“scale”therequirementforcertifiedlibrarymediastaffandwouldaddsupportstaffbasedonanindividualschool’senrollmentlevel.Thelegislationwoulddesignateschoollibrarians,andappropriatelibrarysupportstaff,asadistinctcategorywithintheState’sunitcountappropriationmodeltoensurethateachschoolwillreceivesufficientStatefundingtohirethenumberofschoollibrariansandsupportstaffrecommendedintheSchool-LibraryQualityIndex(seeRecommendation#10).
11PleaseseeAppendixA:LiteratureReviewforadditionalinformationregardingthisbodyofresearch.12PleaseseeAppendixA:LiteratureReviewforadditionalinformationregardingthisbodyofresearch.
21|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Recommendation 2: Seek Funding for and Implement a Pilot Project in Nine Schools to Determine the Impact that Quality School Libraries Have on Student Learning Outcomes
Delawareshouldseekcorporate/foundation/philanthropicfundingforapilotprojectdesignedtoserveasaproof-of-conceptofthecorrelationbetweenqualityschoollibrariesandstudentperformance.Thepilotshouldbeimplementedoverafive-yearperiodinnineschools(oneelementaryschool,onemiddleschool,andonehighschoolineachcounty.)Participantschoolswouldbefundedforfiveyearsatalevelthatwouldcoveranappropriatestaffingcomplement,fundingforlibraryresourcesattherecommendedlevelof$15perstudentandcostsassociatedwithparticipationofthelibraryintheDelawareLibraryCatalog.ThesepilotlibrarieswillbeconsideredQualitySchoolLibrarieswhentheyhaveachievedascoreofatleast90pointsontheSchool-LibraryQualityIndex.
Content and Access
Severalofthestudiesthatexplorethecorrelationofqualitylibrariesandstudentperformancehavefoundstatisticallysignificantrelationshipsbetweenthelevelofaccesstoreadingresourcesandstudentperformance(Krashen,2004,2012;Lindsay,2010).Thatthereisarelationshipbetweenaccesstoreadingmaterialsandtheabilityofchildrentoreadwouldseemintuitive.
Annualexpendituresfornewresources(print,non-printmedia,andonlineresources)areastrongindicatorofaccesstoresourcesthatactuallywillberead.Outdatedtitlesgetlittleuse(BaumbachandMiller,2006).Therelationshipbetweenexpendituresfornewmaterialsandstudentlearningisnotquiteasstrongastheprofessionallibrarian/studentlearningcorrelation,nevertheless,itisstatisticallysignificantandrepresentsakey,measurablecomponentinqualitylibraryservice(Kachel,2013).
Unfortunately,thereisatremendousdisparityinthequantityandqualityofresourcesavailabletoDelaware’sstudents.Studentsinschoolswithnolibrariesorwithlibrariesstockedwithoutdatedresources(indicatedbythefactthattheyspendlittleornothingfornewmaterialsorcontent)areatacleardisadvantagewhencomparedtochildreninschoolsthatinvestinnewresourcesonanongoingbasis.
Tworecommendationsseektoremedythisdisparity.ThefirstcallsfortheexpansionoftheUDLib/SEARCHprogramandDelawareDivisionofLibraries’e-bookprogramtoincreasetheaccesstoe-books.E-booksareanexcellentinvestment.DatafromtheDelawareDivisionofLibraries’e-bookprogram(2015)indicatesthat41percentoftheire-booksare“checkedout”atanygiventimecomparedtoarateofabout10percentfortypicalprintcollections.
ThesecondrecommendationrecognizesthatDelaware’staxpayersarealreadyinvestinginawidevarietyoflibrarymaterialsinschoolandpubliclibraries.ByincludingschoollibrariesintheDelawareLibraryCatalog(whichalreadyincludestheholdingsofallpubliclibrariesandsomeacademiccollections),allchildrenandadultsinDelawarewouldgainimprovedaccesstoawealthofresources.Participationinthesharedcatalogwouldalsofacilitatethesharingofmaterials
22|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
betweenschoolsinthesamedistrict,amongdistrictsinthestateandbetweenschoolsandpubliclibraries.WhileitwouldbepossibletomarginallyimproveresourcesharingthroughthecreationofasharedFollett“Destiny”system(mostschoolsinDelawarecurrentlyuselocalversionsofthissystem),theDLCsolutionoffersgreaterpossibilitiesforexpansionasaprimaryinformationsourceinadditiontobeingafindingandresourcesharingtool.ParticipationintheDLCwouldalsoaddresstheseriousissuesthatexistinregardtoequityofaccesstoresources.
Recommendation 3: Expand Student Access to “E-Content”
DelawareshouldexpandonitssuccessfulgrouplicensingeffortsrepresentedbyUDLib/SEARCHprogramthroughtheUniversityofDelaware’sMorrisLibraryande-booklicensingonbehalfofallDelawareresidentsfacilitatedthroughtheDelawareDivisionofLibrariestoincreasestudentaccesstoadditionalonlineanddownloadablee-content,especiallye-books.TheUDLib/SEARCHmodelalreadyensuresequitablestudentaccesstoanoutstandingsetofresearchandstudytools.Expandingtheprogrambyprovidingstatewidefundingforcurriculum-relatede-bookswouldaddressaseriousdisparityinthequalityandquantityofothereducationalresourcesthatcurrentlyexists.TheprogramwouldbecoordinatedandadministeredasanextensionofUDLib/Search.ExpandingtheDelawareDivisionofLibraries’e-bookprogramtoincludemoretitlesforchildrenwouldprovideenhancedaccesstogeneralreadingmaterialsforallStateresidentsincludingstudentsandteachers.
Recommendation 4: Expand the Delaware Library Consortium to Include all School Libraries
TheDelawareLibraryCatalog,providedthroughtheDelawareLibraryConsortium,offersresidentsoftheFirstStatesingle-searchaccesstotheholdingsofeverypubliclibraryinthestate.TheholdingsofallDelawareschoollibrariesshouldalsobereflectedintheDelawareLibraryCatalog.Thiswouldresultinmoreefficientstudentaccesstovaluablelibraryandinformationresourcesaswellasthemoreefficientuseofthestateandlocaltaxdollarsthatarecurrentlyspenttopurchaselibrarymaterials.Studentswouldlikelymakegreateruseofpubliclibrarymaterialsaswellbecauseasinglesearchwouldenablethemtofindrelevantresourceswherevertheyexistinthestate.Finally,theinclusionofschoollibrariesintheDelawareLibraryCatalogwouldalsostrengthentheconceptofalifelonglearningcontinuuminvolvingschoolsandpubliclibrariesandmoveDelawaretowardthe“seamlessinformationlandscape”envisionedinthe2004Toddstudy.
Governance and Infrastructure
Theeffectivenessofexistingschoollibrarieshasbeenhamperedinanumberofdifferentways.Mostschoollibrarianscurrentlyoperateinavacuumwithlittlecoordinateddirectionandwithlimitedopportunitiestoinnovateandcollaboratewithintheirschools,withintheirdistrictsandwithinthestate.Schooldistrictsarelargelyunawareofresourcesheldbyotherneighboringdistrictsandthereisalackofaneffectiveresourcessharingsystem.Creatingagovernanceframeworkandaresourcesharinginfrastructurewouldenableschoollibrariestomaximizethevalueofstaffandothereducationallibraryresourcesthatarepurchasedwithtaxpayerdollarsbyexpandingthepotentialaudienceforeveryitempurchased.
23|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Becausethereareanumberofdistinctfactorsthatcontributetothissituation,avarietyofrecommendationsareoffered.Recommendation4(thattheDelawareLibraryConsortium(DLC)beexpandedtoincludeallschoollibraries)iscloselytiedtotheGovernanceandInfrastructurerecommendations.Infact,arobustsharedintegratedlibrarysystemispartoftheoverallinfrastructurethatisneeded.WhileitwouldbepossibletomarginallyimproveresourcesharingthroughthecreationofasharedFollett“Destiny”system,theDLCsolutionoffersgreaterpossibilitiesforexpansionasaprimaryinformationsourceinadditiontobeingafindingandresourcesharingtool.
However,creatingalinkedsystemofschoollibrarieswillrequiremorecoordinationthaniscurrentlyinplace.ItwouldrequirethecreationofpositionswithintheDelawareDepartmentofEducationandDivisionofLibrariestocoordinate,support,andoverseeschoollibraries.Themanagementofschoollibrariesandhiringdecisionsregardinglibrarystaffwouldstillremainatthelocalandschooldistrictlevels.Thepointofincreasedcoordinationisnotcontrol,rather,itisdesignedtoachievegreaterefficiencyandeffectivenessoflimitedresources.Statewidecoordinationwouldprovideprofessionalsupporttoschoollibrariansandwouldofferadvicetolocaladministratorswhenrequested.
AsecondGovernanceandInfrastructurerecommendationcallsforthereviewofadministrativerulesandstructuralmechanismsthattendtomakeschoollibrariestargetsforcutsandreductionstocreateanewmodelthatprovidesincentivesratherthandisincentivestodistrictstosupportqualitylibraries.
Athirdrecommendationidentifieschangesinafederalprogram(thetransitionfromtheElementaryandSecondarySchoolAct[ESEA]totheEveryStudentSucceedsActof2015[ESSA])thatmayprovideopportunitiestousefederalfundstoimproveschool-libraryservices.Thefinalrecommendationinthiscategoryurgestheadoptionofaflexibleschedulingmodelinschools.Thisrecommendationstemsfromthefactthatresearchdemonstratesthatlibrarian/teachercollaborationisvastlyimprovedunderthismodel.Collaborationbetweenlibrariansandteachersinactivitiesrangingfromparticipationinprofessionallearningcommunitiestoco-teachinghasbeenidentifiedasanimportantfactorinthelinkbetweenqualitylibrariesandstudentlearning(Lance,Rodney,andSchwarz,2010).
Recommendation 5: Establish Specific Governance Responsibilities for the Coordination and Oversight of School Libraries
SpecificresponsibilitiesforthecoordinationofoversightofDelaware’sschoollibrariesshouldbecodifiedandimplemented.Toensurecoordinationandcooperationbetweenschoolandpubliclibrariesinthefurtherdevelopmentofacontinuumoflifelonglearning,someoftheseresponsibilitiesshouldbegiventotheDelawareDepartmentofEducation,whileotherresponsibilitiesshouldresideintheDivisionofLibraries.
24|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Recommendation 6: Examine and Address Systemic Issues that Inhibit the Development of High-Quality School-Library Programs
Theimportanceofhavingahigh-qualityschoollibrarystaffedbyacertifiedlibrarianineveryschoolcannotbeoverstated.Adequatestaffing,sufficientqualityresources,andasupportiveadministrativecultureareallcriticalcomponentsthatallowschoollibrariestoserveasacatalystforimprovinglearningoutcomesforallstudentsregardlessofsocioeconomicstatus.Unfortunately,severalissuessuchastheabsenceofadesignatedfundingsourceforstaffandmaterials,insufficientmechanismsfortheevaluationoflibrarians,andalackofunderstandingregardingtheimpactthathigh-qualityschool-libraryprogramscanhaveonstudentshindertheirdevelopmentandperformance.Theseissuesmustbeexaminedinfurtherdetail,andsolutionsshouldbedevelopedtoaddressthem.
Recommendation 7: Leverage Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) Funding to Strengthen School Libraries
DelawareshouldtakeadvantageoftheEveryStudentSucceedsActof2015tostrengthenitsschoollibrariesinspecific,targetedways.ThereauthorizationoftheElementaryandSecondaryEducationAct(ESEA)astheEveryStudentSucceedsActof2015placesagreateremphasisonschoollibrariesandprovidesopportunitiesforleveragingfederalfundstoenhancestudentlearningthroughtheimprovementofDelaware’sschoollibraries.
Recommendation 8: Implement Flexible Scheduling for School Libraries
Delawareschoollibrariansshouldworkwiththeirschoolanddistrictadministrationstowardtheimplementationofaflexibleschedulingmodelforlibrariesinallschools.Researchindicatesthatthequalityofinteractionbetweenlibrariansandteachersisgreatlyenhancedwhenlibraryservicesareoperatingwithinaflexibleschedulingenvironment.Schoolsshouldbeencouragedtoimplementflexibleschedulingoratleasttoestablishahybridoffixed/flexiblescheduling.
Assessment and Accountability
ThediscontinuationofthecollectionofstatisticaldataonschoollibrariesthroughtheFederalSchoolsandStaffingSurvey(SASS)leavesDelawareandtherestofthenationwithadearthofbasicreliabledataaboutschoollibraries.ThisunfortunatesituationlimitsthedegreetowhichDelawarecantracktheimpactofitsschoollibraries.ThelackofdesignatedstaffintheDepartmentofEducationwithresponsibilitiesforschoollibrariesmakesthesituationevenworsesincetheStateisnotcurrentlyinthepositiontofillthisinformation/statisticsgatheringandanalysisgap.Furthermore,theresearchdemonstratesthatgainsinstudentperformancerequiremorethansimplytheexistenceofaschoollibrary.Qualityschoollibrariesmakeadifference.Theresearchclearlyidentifiesthefactorsthat,together,constitutequality.13
Tworecommendationsrevolvearoundassessmentandaccountability.Thefirstcallsforthecollectionofabasicsetofdatafromschoollibrariesonanongoingbasis.Thesecond
13PleaseseeAppendixA:LiteratureReviewforadditionalinformationregardingthisbodyofresearch.
25|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
recommendationcreatesaneffectivemechanismthatwouldusethedatathatarecollectedtoevaluatelibrariesbasedonaschool-libraryqualityindex.School-libraryqualityindexratingsandstandardizedtestscorescanthenbeappliedtoassessprogressinstudentlearninginrelationtolibraryquality.
Recommendation 9: Design and implement an ongoing program of data collection, management, and assessment for school libraries
Delawareshoulddesignandimplementitsownongoingassessment/datacollection/datamanagementefforttodocumentthegainsresultingfromadditionalinvestmentinthestate’sschoollibraries.Thedearthofqualitycomparativedataregardingschoollibrariesmakesassessmentdifficult,andinsomeinstances,impossible.Datacollectionshouldbelimitedtoasmallsetofessentialdatawithspecificapplicationtomeasuringtheimpactofqualitylibraryservicesonstudentperformance.
Recommendation 10: Create a Delaware School-Library Quality Index to Facilitate the Tracking of Student Performance and Investment in School-Library Services
Delawareshouldimplementa“School-LibraryQualityIndex”thatusesthedatacollectedastheresultofRecommendation9.Thisindexwouldcreatearatingofschool-libraryservicesthatwouldbeusedinconcertwithstandardizedtestingresultstomeasuretheimpactthatspecific,targetedinvestmentsinschoollibrarieshaveonstudentperformance.
Followingisamorein-depthlookateachoftherecommendations.
Staffing
Recommendation 1: Require a School Library, a Certified Librarian, and an Appropriate Level of Support Staff in Every School
Delawareshouldimplementlegislationthatcodifiestherequirementforaschoollibraryineachschoolandprovidesacertifiedlibrarymediaspecialistandappropriatelevelofsupportstaffineveryelementary,middle,andhighschool.ThislegislationwouldbesimilartoHouseBillNo.152,whichwasintroducedinthe148thGeneralAssembly,butwould“scale”therequirementforcertifiedlibrarymediastaffandwouldaddsupportstaffbasedonanindividualschool’senrollmentlevel.Thelegislationwoulddesignateschoollibrarians,andappropriatelibrarysupportstaff,asadistinctcategorywithintheState’sunitcountappropriationmodeltoensurethateachschoolwillreceivesufficientStatefundingtohirethenumberofschoollibrariansandsupportstaffrecommendedintheSchool-LibraryQualityIndex(seeRecommendation#10).
NewlegislationshouldbedraftedthatencompassesthestaffingrecommendationsoutlinedintheSchool-LibraryQualityIndex.ThislegislationwoulddifferfromHouseBillNo.152,introducedinthe148thGeneralAssembly,inthatitwouldrequireeachschoolbuildingtohavealibraryandwouldcallforbothaspecificnumberofcertifiedlibrarymediaspecialistsandparaprofessionalsupportstaffbasedonthesizeofthestudentenrollmentineachschool.Itwouldintegrateschoollibrarians,andaccompanyingparaprofessionals,asadistinctgroupwithintheState’sunit-countappropriation
26|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
model(Title14,Chapter17,StateAppropriations).DoingsoensuresthedevelopmentofadedicatedfundingsourcefromtheStatetosupportthesalaryandbenefitsofschoollibrariansandaccompanyingparaprofessionals.Therecommendednumberofstaffreflectsresearchthatdemonstratesastrongcorrelationbetweenschoollibrarystaffingandstudentperformance.14
Statefundingforthisinitiativewouldbeapproximately70percentofthetotalneededtoimplementtheeffort.Fullyimplementingtheprogramwouldrequirelocalschooldistrictsupportofapproximately30percent.
Followingaretherecommendedlevelsforcertifiedlibrarymediaspecialistsandsupportstaff:
Table1:CertifiedLibraryMediaSpecialist
Enrollment CertifiedLibraryMediaSpecialistTarget
0–299 .5Full-TimeEquivalent
300–999 1.0Full-TimeEquivalent
1,000–1,599 1.5Full-TimeEquivalent
1,600orhigher 2.0Full-TimeEquivalent
Table2:LibrarySupportStaff/Para-Professional
Enrollment LibrarySupportStaff/Para-professionalTarget
0–299 .0Full-TimeEquivalent
300–999 .5Full-TimeEquivalent
1,000–1,599 1.0Full-TimeEquivalent
1,600orhigher 2.0Full-TimeEquivalent
Ideally,theproposedlegislation,oradditionalcompanionlegislation,wouldalsoaddresstheissueofper-pupilexpendituresfornewlibraryresourcesbyestablishingincentivestoreachspecifictargets.TargetlevelsforthiselementshouldalsobebasedontherecommendationsfoundintheSchool-LibraryQualityIndex.Anexpendituretargetof$15perstudent(adjustedannuallytoreflectinflation)istheultimategoal.
Recommendation 2: Seek Funding for and Implement a Pilot Project in Nine Schools to Determine the Impact that Quality School Libraries Have on Student Learning Outcomes
Delawareshouldseekcorporate/foundation/philanthropicfundingforapilotprojectdesignedtoserveasaproof-of-conceptofthecorrelationbetweenqualityschoollibrariesandstudentperformance.Thepilotshouldbeimplementedoverafive-yearperiodinnineschools(oneelementaryschool,onemiddleschool,andonehighschoolineachcounty.)Participantschools 14PleaseseeAppendixA:LiteratureReviewforadditionalinformationregardingthisbodyofresearch.
27|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
wouldbefundedforfiveyearsatalevelthatwouldcoveranappropriatestaffingcomplement,fundingforlibraryresourcesattherecommendedlevelof$15perstudentandcostsassociatedwithparticipationofthelibraryintheDelawareLibraryCatalog.ThesepilotlibrarieswillbeconsideredQualitySchoolLibrarieswhentheyhaveachievedascoreofatleast90pointsontheSchool-LibraryQualityIndex.
AstrongDelawareSchoolLibrariesCouncil(DSLC)isessentialinmakingthisandotherinitiativesareality.ExistingvacanciesonthecouncilneedtobefilledtoensuretheeffectivenessofDSLC.DSLCshouldworktomakesurethatDelawareansarefullyawareofthebenefitsofstrongschoollibraries.Furthermore,DSLCshouldworkwiththeDepartmentofEducation,theDelawareDivisionofLibraries,withschoolsuperintendents,legislators,andotherinterestedpartiestodevelopthepilotprojecttoreachatleast90pointsontheSchool-LibraryQualityIndex.
SchoolsselectedtoparticipateshouldrepresentthediversityofDelaware’sschoolsinregardtosocio-economicfactorsandcurrentstudentperformanceonstandardizedtests.Baselinedataandongoingprogressdata(usingtheSchool-LibraryQualityIndexandtestscoresonspecificstandardizedtestsapplicabletoagivengrade-level/school)wouldbetrackedforthedurationoftheprojecttodeterminetheimpactoftheimprovedlibraryservicesonstudentperformance.AmechanismforgraduallyshiftingthecostoftheprogramfromsoftfundingtoStateandlocalschooldistrictfundingcouldbebuiltintothepiloteffort.
Inadditiontoseekingthefundingnecessarytosupporttheon-siteprograms,fundsshouldbeincludedinthepilotprogramfortheongoingassessmentprocessandstaffdevelopmentrelatedtothepilotprojectforlibrarians,librarysupportstaff,teachers,andprincipals.
Content and Access
Recommendation 3: Expand Student Access to “E-Content”
DelawareshouldexpandonitssuccessfulgrouplicensingeffortsrepresentedbyUDLib/SEARCHprogramande-booklicensingonbehalfofallDelawareresidentsfacilitatedthroughtheDelawareDivisionofLibrariestoincreasestudentaccesstoadditionalonlineanddownloadablee-content,especiallye-books.TheUDLib/SEARCHmodelalreadyensuresequitablestudentaccesstoanoutstandingsetofresearchandstudytools.Expandingtheprogrambyprovidingstatewidefundingforcurriculum-relatede-bookswouldaddressaseriousdisparityinthequalityandquantityofothereducationalresourcesthatcurrentlyexists.TheprogramwouldbecoordinatedandadministeredasanextensionofUDLib/Search.ExpandingtheDelawareDivisionofLibraries’e-bookprogramtoincludemoretitlesforchildrenwouldprovideenhancedaccesstogeneralreadingmaterialsforallStateresidentsincludingstudentsandteachers.
TheUDLib/SEARCHprogramisessentialinlevelingtheplayingfieldforallDelawarestudents.WhiletherearetremendousdisparitiesinregardtoaccesstoqualitycollectionsofprintmaterialsinDelaware’sschoollibraries,allpublicK–12studentsaswellasthestudentsinamajorityofprivateschoolstudentsinDelawarehaveequalaccesstoawidearrayofhigh-qualitydatabasessuchascriticalreferencematerialsandfull-textjournalarticles.State-levelfundingfortheseresources
28|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
enablesDelawaretoprovideabaselineofimportanteducational/curriculum-relatedcontentinthemostcosteffectivewaypossible.
WhileUDLib/SEARCHoffersawealthofdatabases,thecurrentfundinglevelfortheprogramallowsforthelicensingofaverylimitednumberofe-books.HarnessingtheUniversityofDelaware’sexpertiseandthelicensinginfrastructurethatisalreadyin-placethroughUDLib/SEARCHcouldgoalongwaytowardimprovingthedepthandbreadthoflibraryandinformationresourcesavailabletoeverychildinDelaware.Theinvestmentof$350,000incurriculum-relatede-contentlicensingthatwouldbesharedamongallpublicschoolshasthepotentialforatremendousreturnoninvestment.Aproratedamountofthistotalexpenditurewouldbeincludedwhencalculatingtheper-studentexpenditurefactoratthebuildinglevel.
AnexpansionoftheDelawareDivisionofLibraries’e-bookeffortswouldalsobenefitstudentsbyprovidingallstateresidents,includingschoolchildrenwithadditionalreadingmaterials.Theseitemswouldbeavailabletoall.Anexpenditureofanadditional$250,000isrecommended.Thishybridlicensingapproach(curriculum-relatedmaterialsthroughUDLib/SEARCHandenrichmentmaterialsthroughtheDivisionofLibraries)isdesignedtomaximizetheState’spurchasingpower.Licensingthatislimitedtostudents(aswellasteachers,schooladministratorsandparents)islesscostlythanlicensingcurriculum-relatedmaterialsforallstateresidents(manyofwhomwouldnotusethecurriculum-basedresources).
ItshouldbenotedthatthedatainfrastructureofDelaware’sschoolsmustbeupgradedtoensurethatallstudentsinDelawareareabletoaccesstheresourcesprovidedbythisexpansionofelectronicdatabasesandcontent.AccordingtoSenateConcurrentResolution22(Delaware,2015)theState“currentlypaysfor10megabytesofbandwidthtoschools,whichfallswellbelowtherecommendedamounttosupporttheinternetneedsofthestudentpopulation.”Improvingthebandwidthavailabletoeachschoolwillallowstudentstoaccesstheseadditionalresourcesquickly,whilealsoensuringthatthedatainfrastructurewillnotbeoverburdened.
Recommendation 4: Expand the Delaware Library Consortium to Include all School Libraries
TheDelawareLibraryCatalog,providedthroughtheDelawareLibraryConsortium(DLC),offersresidentsoftheFirstStatesingle-searchaccesstotheholdingsofeverypubliclibraryinthestate.TheholdingsofallDelawareschoollibrariesshouldalsobereflectedintheDelawareLibraryCatalog.ThiswouldresultinmoreefficientstudentaccesstovaluablelibraryandinformationresourcesaswellasthemoreefficientuseoftheStateandlocaltaxdollarsthatarecurrentlyspenttopurchaselibrarymaterials.Studentswouldlikelymakegreateruseofpubliclibrarymaterialsaswellbecauseasinglesearchwouldenablethemtofindrelevantresourceswherevertheyexistinthestate.Finally,theinclusionofschoollibrariesintheDelawareLibraryCatalogwouldalsostrengthentheconceptofalifelonglearningcontinuuminvolvingschoolsandpubliclibrariesandmoveDelawaretowardthe“seamlessinformationlandscape”envisionedinthe2004Toddstudy.
ParticipationofallschoollibrariesintheexistingDLC,whichalreadyincludesallpublicandsomeacademiclibraries,wouldstreamlinestudentandteacheraccesstoawealthofmaterialsinlibraries
29|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
throughoutthestate.ParticipationintheDelawareLibraryCatalogwouldgreatlyexpandthediversityofmaterialsavailable,wouldsimplifyinterlibraryloan,andwouldofferstudentsandteachersafamiliarinterfaceforsearchingforresourcesinschool,athome,andintheircommunitylibraries.
Participationofschoollibrarieswouldalsofacilitatecoordinatedcollectiondevelopmentbothwithinandacrossdistricts.StudentsandteacherswouldalsohaveeasieraccesstootherresourcessuchasLibGuides,e-booksthroughtheDelawareDivisionofLibraries,andthe“AskaLibrarian”virtualreferenceprogram.Whiletheseservicesarecurrentlyavailabletostudentsandteachers,theywouldbemorelikelytousethemiftheywereusingthesameentryportalintheschoolsthatisavailableathomeandintheirpubliclibrary.
HavingallschoolsasparticipantsintheDLCcouldalsoprovidegreaterimpetustoextendtheDelawareLibraryCatalogbeyonditsexistingprimaryfunctionofservingasafindingtool.MakingtheDelawareLibraryCatalogaprimarysourceofdirectlyaccessibleresources(suchasdirectaccesstoonlinedatabasesanddownloadablecontentfromcatalogsearches)wouldgreatlybenefitallstateresidentsinadditiontoenrichingtheresourcesavailabletostudentsandteachers.Collaborationwithpubliclibrariesoncollection,development,andmanagementwouldenableschoollibrarianstospendmoretimeandattentiononcollaborationwithteachersandfulfillingstudents’needs.
ThedevelopmentofthisunifiedlibraryplatformwillfulfillakeyrecommendationoftheAspenInstitute’sRisingtotheChallenge:Re-EnvisioningPublicLibraries(2014)report.Thisreportcalledforthecreationof“adigitalpubliclibrarymodel[that]wouldhaveasingleinterface—oratmostafew—thatallowsexistingonlinelibrarycatalogstobefullyintegratedwithnewones.Itwillprovideasinglepointofaccesstoalltitles,takingtheburdenofbothtechnologyandarchivingoffindividuallibraries”(Garmer,2014).
Finally,inclusionofschoollibrariesintheDLCwouldeasethedatacollectionburdenonschoollibrariansbyprovidingcentralized“live-data”regardingnumberofholdings,recencyofmaterialsbysubject/topicandcirculationactivity.Thiswouldalsoassistschoollibrariansinrefiningtheircollectiondevelopmentpracticesbymakingvaluablereal-timeinformationavailabletothem.
Therehasbeensomediscussionofcreatingastatewideschool-librarycatalog/resourcesharingsystembyexpandingontheFollett“Destiny”school-librarymanagementsystem.Thiswouldclearlybeanimprovementoverthestatusquo;however,expandingtheDLCtoincludeschoollibrarieswouldaccomplishallthatastatewidedestinysystemwouldaccomplishandwould,inaddition,linkschoollibrarieswithpubliclibraryresourcesandprovideasharedportalforthedeliveryofinformationalandeducationalcontent.
30|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Governance and Infrastructure
Recommendation 5: Establish Specific Governance Responsibilities for the Coordination and Oversight of School Libraries
SpecificresponsibilitiesforthecoordinationofoversightofDelaware’sschoollibrariesshouldbecodifiedandimplemented.Toensurecoordinationandcooperationbetweenschoolandpubliclibrariesinthefurtherdevelopmentofacontinuumoflifelonglearning,someoftheseresponsibilitiesshouldbegiventotheDelawareDepartmentofEducation,whileotherresponsibilitiesshouldresideintheDivisionofLibraries.
Atthepresenttime,thehealthandstatusofschoollibrariesislargelydeterminedatthedistrictandschoolbuildinglevel.Whilesomeaspectsofthislocalcontrolarecertainlypositive,thelackofcoordinationandoversightatthestatelevelhasresultedininequitiesandanunevennessinstudentaccesstoanessentialelementinpositivelearningoutcomes.State-levelcoordinationofschool-libraryserviceswouldalsoassistlocaladministratorsandlibrariansbyincreasingawarenessofemergingtrends,bestpractices,andsupplementalfundingopportunities.
Werecommendthatafull-timepositionbeestablishedwithintheDelawareDepartmentofEducationtoserveasthecoordinatorofschool-libraryprograms.Thepositionshouldbefilledbyacertifiedlibrarymediaspecialistwithfirst-handexperienceinschoollibraries.Dutiesofthepositionwouldincludeplanningprograms,conductingassessments,andcoordinatingstaffdevelopmentforschoollibraries.Thecoordinatorofschool-libraryprogramswouldalsoprovideassistanceandguidancetoschoolsandschooldistrictstoensurethatbestpracticesandnewandemergingtrendsinschool-libraryserviceareincorporatedintotheassessmentoflibrarystaff.
Theschool-librarycoordinatorwouldoverseethecollectionandanalysisofrelevantstatisticsandwouldreportannuallyonthestatusofschoollibrariesasitrelatestostudentperformance.TheDepartmentofEducationpositionwouldalsobeinvolvedinstatewideplanningrelatedtotheimprovementofschool-libraryservicesincoordinationwiththeDelawareDivisionofLibraries,wouldidentifypotentialsourcesofgrantstosupportschool-libraryinitiatives,wouldcoordinatestaffdevelopmentopportunitiesforschool-librarypersonnel,andwouldcoordinatethedevelopmentandmaintenanceofweb-contentrelatedtobest-practicesinschoollibraries.Theschool-librarycoordinatorwouldalsofacilitatestrategicplanningforlibraryservicesincoordination/cooperationwithDelawareDivisionofLibrariesstaffinvolvedinstrategicplanningforpubliclibraries.Finally,thepersoninthispositionwouldstafftheDelawareSchoolLibrariesCouncil.
Ideally,eachschooldistrictwouldalsoemployalibrary/mediacoordinatortooverseeschool-libraryimprovementatthedistrictlevel.Thedistrictlibrary/mediacoordinatoror,ifsuchaspositiondoesnotexist,onelibrarianineachdistrictshouldbedesignatedtoactasthedistrict’sliaisonwiththeDepartmentofEducation’sschool-librarycoordinator.
Itisalsocriticaltoensurethatschoollibrariesaresupportedinwaysthatleverageothertaxpayerresourcestoadvancestudentlearning.Consequently,werecommendthatanadditionalpositionbeestablishedwithintheDelawareDivisionofLibraries.Thispositionwouldcoordinateschool
31|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
participationintheDelawareLibraryConsortium,wouldcooperatewiththeUDLib/SEARCHprograminregardtoe-contentlicensing,andwouldserveasaliaisonbetweenschoolandpubliclibraries.ThispositionwouldalsofacilitatestrategicplanningforpubliclibrariesincoordinationwiththeDepartmentofEducation’sschool-librarycoordinatorwhowouldbechargedwithstrategicplanningresponsibilitiesforschoollibraries.
Recommendation 6: Examine and Address Systemic Issues that Inhibit the Development of High-Quality School-Library Programs
Theimportanceofhavingahigh-qualityschoollibrarystaffedbyacertifiedlibrarianineveryschoolcannotbeoverstated.Adequatestaffing,sufficientqualityresources,andasupportiveadministrativecultureareallcriticalcomponentsthatallowschoollibrariestoserveasacatalystforimprovinglearningoutcomesforallstudents,regardlessofsocioeconomicstatus.Unfortunately,severalissuessuchastheabsenceofadesignatedfundingsourceforstaffandmaterials,insufficientmechanismsfortheevaluationoflibrarians,andalackofunderstandingregardingtheimpactthathigh-qualityschool-libraryprogramscanhaveonstudentshindertheirdevelopmentandperformance.Theseissuesmustbeexaminedinfurtherdetail,andsolutionsshouldbedevelopedtoaddressthem.
Currentlyfunding(Title14,Chapter17StateAppropriations)forschoollibrariansisbasedentirelyonthediscretionofschoolanddistrictadministrators,creatingasituationwherethereisacompetitionforlimitedfundingbetweenlibrariansandothervaluablespecialtypositions/services.Asdiscussedthroughoutthisreport,librariansserveavitalrolebypromotingreading,enhancingcommunicationskills,andprovidingaccesstoawealthofinformationandtechnologytoallstudents.Recommendation1isdesignedtoensurethateveryschoolwillhaveaccesstothisvaluableresourcedespitecompetitionforfunding.
Moremustbedonetodevelopanadministrativecultureattheschoolanddistrictlevelthatissupportiveoflibraries.Doingsowillrequireenhancedadvocacyeffortsbyschoollibrariansandstakeholdersthatshowcasehowtheactivities/programsofschoollibrariescanaddressthepressingissuesofpubliceducationinDelawaretoday,suchasimprovinglearningoutcomesandaccesstoresourcesforstudentsthatarelivinginpovertyandassistingwiththeintegrationofEnglishlanguagelearnersintotheclassroom.Linkingschool-libraryprogramstothesepressingissueswillenhancetheirvaluetoschool/districtadministrators,andcanleadtothedevelopmentofasupportiveadministrativeculture,whichwillallowthemtoeffectivelycompeteforfundingthatisprovidedatthediscretionofschoolanddistrictleadership.
Thequalityoflibraryresourcesinmanyschoolsacrossthestateisalsosufferingduetoinsufficientfunding.Toensurethatallstudentshaveaccesstorelevant,up-to-date,high-qualityresources,legislationmustbeproposedthataddressestheissueofperpupilexpendituresfornewlibraryresourcesbyestablishingincentivestoreachspecifictargets.TargetlevelsforthiselementshouldalsobebasedontherecommendationsfoundintheSchool-LibraryQualityIndex.Anexpendituretargetof$15perstudent(adjustedannuallytoreflectinflation)istheultimategoal.
32|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Themechanismscurrentlyinplacetoevaluatetheperformanceofschoollibrariansmustbeenhancedtoensurethatconstructivefeedbackisprovidedtostaff.Acrossthestate,thereisalackofaunifiedunderstandingoftheroleoftheschoollibrarianandthemetricsthatmustbeusedtoevaluateperformance.Insomeinstances,theyareevaluatedasteachers,andinothers,theyareassessedasspecialists.Thislackofaunifiedperformanceappraisalhinderstheprofessionaldevelopmentofstaffandforcesadministratorstobasedecisionsoffofincompleteinformation.Severalprincipalsreportedthattheperformanceappraisalprocessforlibrariansisdifficultduetothelackofaclearunderstandingofthelibrarian'srole.Developingastatewidejobdescriptionforschoollibrarians,alongwiththemetricsthatshouldbeusedtodetermineperformance,shouldbeassignedtotheDepartmentofEducation.Routinizedproceduresmustbeestablished,andqualifiedevaluatorsmustbetrained.
Recommendation 7: Leverage Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) Funding to Strengthen School Libraries
DelawareshouldtakeadvantageoftheEveryStudentSucceedsActof2015(ESSA)tostrengthenitsschoollibrariesinspecific,targetedways.ThereauthorizationoftheElementaryandSecondaryEducationAct(ESEA)astheESSAplacesagreateremphasisonschoollibrariesandprovidesopportunitiesforleveragingfederalfundstoenhancestudentlearningthroughtheimprovementofDelaware’sschoollibraries.
TheDelawareSchoolLibrariesCouncilshouldpartnerwiththeDepartmentofEducationandtheDivisionofLibrariestodeterminehowfederalfundingthroughESSAcanbeusedtosupportarenewedemphasisonthequalityofschoollibraries.SchoollibrariesaremoreprominentlymentionedinESSAthantheywereinESEA.WhilespecificusesofESSAfundingwilldependonotheruses,ataminimum,thefollowingareasshouldbeexploredingreaterdepth.
TitleI,PartAfundsmightbeusedtosupportplanningactivitiesatthestateanddistrictlevels.TitleII,PartAfundscouldconceivablybeusedtosupportlibrarystaffdevelopmentandprogrammingactivities.
TitleII,PartB,Subpart2mightbeusedtoencourageandenhancelibrarian/teachercollaborationinactivitiesrelatedtoliteracy.TitleII,PartB,Subpart2,Section2226couldbeusedtosupportspecificinnovativeliteracyinitiativesaimedatlow-incomecommunities.Finally,TitleIV,PartAblockgrantfundscouldbeusedforavarietyofeffortsrelatedtolibraries.
Recommendation 8: Implement Flexible Scheduling for School Libraries
Delawareschoollibrariesshouldworkwiththeirlocaladministrationstowardtheimplementationofaflexibleschedulingmodelforalllibraries.Researchindicatesthatthequalityofinteractionbetweenlibrariansandteachersisgreatlyenhancedwhenlibraryservicesareoperatingwithinaflexibleschedulingenvironment.Schoolsshouldbeencouragedandincentivizedtoimplementflexibleschedulingoratleasttoestablishahybridoffixed/flexiblescheduling.
Researchdemonstratesthatoperatingunderaflexibleversusfixedschedulehasagreatimpactonthedegreetowhichlibrariansandteachershaveanopportunitytocollaborateandthedegreeto
33|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
whichstudentsareabletoparticipateinactivitiesdirectlyrelatedtotheirdevelopmentofcriticalthinkingskills(Lance,Rodney,andRussel,2007).
Thedecisiontoimplementfixedorflexibleschedulesistypicallymadeatthebuildinglevelandoftenishighlyintertwinedwithahostofotherschedulingdecisionsrelatedtoteachersandotherstaff.Movingawayfromthefixedframeworkandtowardtheflexibleframeworkmayrequireanincrementalchange.Thischangeisunlikelytocomeunlessallpartiesareawareofthesignificantbenefitsofthechange.Acombinationofstepsmayhelpthetransition.
Pilotprojectsshouldprovideanopportunitytodocumentthebenefitsoftheflexiblemodel.TheinclusionoffixedversusflexibleintheSchool-LibraryQualityIndexmayalsoencouragemovementfromfixedtoatleastahybridapproach.Thedisseminationofthisreportamonglegislators,schoolboardmembers,districtadministrators,principals,andteachersandtheschedulingofwebinarsandotheropportunitiestobuildanunderstandingofthebenefitsofadoptingaflexiblemodelisalsoimportant.Educationanddemonstrationarethekeystochangeinthisarea.
Assessment and Accountability
Recommendation 9: Design and implement an ongoing program of data collection, management, and assessment for school libraries
Delawareshoulddesignandimplementitsownongoingassessment/datacollection/datamanagementefforttodocumentthegainsresultingfromadditionalinvestmentinthestate’sschoollibraries.Thedearthofqualitycomparativedataregardingschoollibrariesmakesassessmentdifficult,andinsomeinstances,impossible.Datacollectionshouldbelimitedtoasmallsetofessentialdatawithspecificapplicationtomeasuringtheimpactofqualitylibraryservicesonstudentperformance.
Inthepast,somebasicinformationregardingschoollibrarieswascollectedthroughtheNationalCenterforEducationalStatistics(NCES)SchoolsandStaffingSurvey(SASS).Whileincompleteinitsscope,SASSatleastprovidedsomebaselineinformationthatcouldbeusedforcomparativeandresearchanalysispurposes.However,SASShasnowbeenreplacedbytheNationalTeacherandPrincipalSurvey(NTPS).Unfortunately,theNTPSsurveycaptureslittlemorethanverificationofwhetherornotanindividualschoolhasalibrary.Thisseverelylimitstheabilityofschools,schooldistricts,andstateeducationagenciestoassesstheimpactofinvestmentsinschoollibraries.
Werecommendthedevelopmentandimplementationofadata-collectiontoolthatwouldbeadministeredeachyear.Toavoidaddingaconsiderableburdenonlibrarianswhoareoftenalreadyoverextended,datacollectionshouldbehighlytargeted.Itshouldincludeinformationidentifyingtheschool,thedataelementsincludedintheDelawareSchool-LibraryQualityIndex(seeRecommendation4)andonlyafewothersrelevanttotheongoingassessmentofthecorrelationbetweenschool-libraryqualityandstudentperformance.
34|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Initiallistofdataelementstobecollectedinclude:
• Librarianon-site(buildinglevel)• Statusofcertificationoflibrarian• Numberofhoursperweekthelibrarianspendsonlibrary-relatedfunctions• Paraprofessional/librarysupportstaffon-site(buildinglevel)• Numberofhoursperweektheparaprofessionalspendsonlibrary-relatedfunctions• Totallibraryexpendituresbyrevenuesource(State,district,grant,other)• Totalexpendituresfornewmaterials(includesprint,non-print/media,e-content)by
revenuesource• Numberofnewitemsaddedtothelibrarycollectionduringthepreviousyear(tracked
throughparticipationintheDelawareLibraryCatalog)• Totallibrarycollectionsize(numberofitems,numberofe-booksavailable,etc.)(tracked
throughparticipationintheDelawareLibraryCatalog)• Averagenumberofqualitylibrarian/teacherinteractionsperweek(co-teaching,
participationwithteachersinPLCs,etc.)• Averagenumberoflibrarian/studentinteractionsperweek(includingstructuredclassvisits,
butdoesnotincludestudy-halltypecontacts)• Libraryaccessforstudentsandteachers(fixedschedule,fixed/flexiblemix,flexible
schedule)• Numberofcomputersand/ortabletsavailabletostudentsinthelibrary• Totalnumberofitemscirculated(trackedthroughparticipationintheDelawareLibrary
Catalog)• Numberofitemscirculatedbysubjectarea(trackedthroughparticipationinthe
DelawareLibraryCatalog)
Specificdefinitionsofeachdataelement,appropriatemeasurementtechniques(appropriatenessofsamplingversusactualcount,etc.)wouldbeoutlinedinanassessmenttoolguideandwouldbeasharedresponsibilityoftheDelawareDepartmentofEducationandtheDivisionofLibraries.TrainingincollectingandreportingthedatawouldbeprovidedbytheDepartmentofEducation’sschool-librarycoordinator.ItshouldalsobenotedthattheparticipationofallschoollibrariesintheDelawareLibraryConsortiumwouldallowforthereal-timecapturingofseveralofthedataelementsandwouldofferthetrackingofmaterialusagebytopic/subject.Thiswouldmakevaluableinformationavailableineffortsdirectedatcreatingalifelongcontinuumoflearninginvolvingschoolandpubliclibraries.
Recommendation 10: Create a Delaware School-Library Quality Index to Facilitate the Tracking of Student Performance and Investment in School-Library Services
Delawareshouldimplementa“School-LibraryQualityIndex”thatusesthedatacollectedastheresultofRecommendation9.Thisindexwouldcreatearatingofschool-libraryservicesthatwouldbeusedinconcertwithstandardizedtestingresultstomeasuretheimpactthatspecific,targetedinvestmentsinschoollibrarieshaveonstudentperformance.
35|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Aswasnotedatthebeginningofthisreport,attainingpositivestudentlearningoutcomesisnotassimpleasmaintaininganattractiveschool-libraryfacilityorevenfillingsuchafacilitywithup-to-date,relevantmaterialsandstate-of-thearttechnology.Areliablemeasurementoflibraryqualitymustbeavailabletoaccuratelymeasurethecorrelationbetweentheprovisionofqualityofschoollibrariesandstudentperformance.
Werecommendtheadoptionofa“School-LibraryQualityIndex”thatquantifiesthedegreeofexcellence.Theindexwoulduseratingsonavarietyofdataelementstoachieveascoreforeachlibraryrangingfrom0to100.Theweightingofeachdataelementisrelatedtotheimportanceofthevariouselementsidentifiedinpreviousresearch.Consequently,thelargestnumberofpointsisrelatedtotheprovisionofacertifiedlibrarymediaspecialistandlibrarysupportstaff.Otherpointsareallocatedforexpendituresperstudentfornewresources(print,non-print/media,andonlineanddownloadablecontent),newitemsaddedtothelibrarycollectionperstudent,librarycollectionsizeperstudent,numberoflibrarian/studentinteractions,numberoflibrarian/teacherinteractions,flexibleversusfixedscheduling,andtheavailabilityoftechnologicalresourcessuchascomputersandtabletsinthelibrary.
Table3:CertifiedLibraryMediaSpecialist(35points)
Enrollment CertifiedLibraryMediaSpecialistTarget
0–299 .5Full-TimeEquivalent
300–999 1.0Full-TimeEquivalent
1,000–1,599 1.5Full-TimeEquivalent
1,600orhigher 2.0Full-TimeEquivalent• 35pointsforreachingtheappropriatelibrarymediaspecialist(LMS)target• 10pointsforreachingtargetone-levelbelowrecommendation
Table4:LibrarySupportStaff/Para-Professional(10points)
Enrollment LibrarySupportStaff/Para-professionalTarget
0–299 .0Full-TimeEquivalent
300–999 .5Full-TimeEquivalent
1,000–1,599 1.0Full-TimeEquivalent
1,600orhigher 2.0Full-TimeEquivalent
• 10pointsforreachingtheappropriatelibrarysupportstaff/para-professionaltargetinadditiontoreachingLMStargetlevel
• 5pointsforreachingtargetone-levelbelowrecommendation
36|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Table5:ExpendituresperStudentforNewAcquisitions/Resources(10points)
PerStudentExpenditure Points
$0.00-$0.99 0points
$1.00-$2.99 1point
$3.00-$4.99 2points
$5.00-$6.99 3points
$7.00-$8.99 4points
$9.00-$10.99 5points
$11.00-$12.99 6points
$13.00-$14.99 8points
$15.00orhigher 10points
Table6:NewItemsAddedtoLibraryCollectionperStudentperYear(5points)
ItemsAddedperstudent Points
0.00–0.99/student 0points
1.00–1.99/student 1point
2.00–2.99/student 2points
3.00–3.99/student 3points
4.00–4.99/student 4points
5.00ormore/student 5points
Table7:CollectionSizeperStudent(5points)
ItemsperStudent Points
0.00–9.99itemsperstudent 0points
10.00–14.99itemsperstudent 1point
15.00–19.99itemsperstudent 2points
20.00–24.99itemsperstudent 3points
25.00–29.99itemsperstudent 4points
30ormoreitemsperstudent 5points
37|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Table8:Librarian/StudentInteraction(10points)
Group(Classroom)VisitsperWeek Points
0.00–1.99qualityclassroomvisitsperweek 0points
2.00–3.99qualityclassroomvisitsperweek 1point
4.00–5.99qualityclassroomvisitsperweek 2points
6.00–7.99qualityclassroomvisitsperweek 3points
8.00–9.99qualityclassroomvisitsperweek 4points
10.00–11.99qualityclassroomvisitsperweek 5points
12.00–13.99qualityclassroomvisitsperweek 6points
14.00–15.99qualityclassroomvisitsperweek 7points
16.00–17.99qualityclassroomvisitsperweek 8points
18.00–19.99qualityclassroomvisitsperweek 9points
20ormorequalityclassroomvisitsperweek 10points
A“quality”classroomvisitinvolvesmorethansimplythepresenceofaclassintheschool-libraryfacilityfor“studyhall”purposes.Aqualityvisitwouldincludeinstructionintheusageoflibraryresourcesorpersonalinteractionbetweenthelibrarianandindividualstudentsorgroupsofstudentsrelatedtofinding,evaluating,andusinginformationresources.Visitsofthelibrariantoclassrooms(asopposedtostudentsvisitingthelibraryfacility)couldbecountedasqualityclassroomvisitsifinstructionisprovidedthatrelatestotheeffectiveuseoflibraryservicesandresources.
Table9:Librarian/TeacherInteraction(10points)
ContractsperWeek Points
0.00–0.99qualitycontactsperweek 0points
1.00–5.99qualitycontactsperweek 2points
6.00–10.99qualitycontactsperweek 4points
11.00–15.99qualitycontactsperweek 6points
16.00–19.99qualitycontactsperweek 8points
20ormorequalitycontactsperweek 10points
Co-teachinginvolvementandparticipationinProfessionalLearningCommunities(PLCs)meetingswouldqualifyasaqualitylibrarian/teacherinteractionaswouldindividualmeetingswithteacherstoidentifyappropriateresourcesforstudents,planco-teachingactivities,andconferencestoidentifyresourcesthatmightbeacquiredtosupportaparticularcurriculum.Librariansshouldbeinvolvedinthedevelopmentoftheseguidelinesandcollectionofdatamightbeaperiodicsamplingratherthananongoingcount.
38|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Table10:FixedVersusFlexibleSchedule(10points)
ScheduleType Points
Fixed 0points
CombinationFixed/FlexibleSchedule 5points
FlexibleSchedule 10points
Table11:TechnologyResourcesAvailabilityattheBuildingLevelperStudent(5points)
Computers/TabletsAvailableperStudent Points
0.00–0.99computers/tabletsperstudent 0points
1.00–2.99computers/tabletsperstudent 1point
2.00–3.99computers/tabletsperstudent 2points
3.00–4.99computers/tabletsperstudent 3points
5.0-9.99computers/tabletsperstudent 4points
1ormorecomputers/tabletsperstudent 5points
39|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Moving Forward
“Promotethen,asanobjectofprimaryimportance,institutionsforthegeneraldiffusionofknowledge.Inproportionasthestructureofagovernmentgivesforcetopublicopinion,itisessentialthatpublicopinionshouldbeenlightened.”GeorgeWashington,1796
AsthisMasterPlan,accompanyingliteraturereview,andvastbodyofresearchknownasthe“impactstudies”haveshown,qualityschoollibrariescanhaveasignificantimpactonstudentachievementinavarietyofacademicsubjects.Allstudents,regardlessofrace,geographiclocation,andsocioeconomicstatus,experiencethesepositiveimpacts.TheMasterPlan’srecommendations,whichhavebeendevelopedthroughextensiveresearchandfieldwork,aredesignedtodevelopaholisticsystemthatleadstohigh-qualityschoollibrariesstatewide.Theyaddressareasincludingstaffing,accessandcontent,governanceandinfrastructure,andassessmentandaccountability.Adoptingtherecommendationsineachofthesecategoriesiscriticalbecausethey,asawhole,willleadtothedevelopmentofarobustandresponsiveinfrastructurethatwillallowschoollibrariestoflourishacrossthestate.
Whiletheimplementationoftheserecommendationswillrequireanextensiveallocationoffinancialandhumanresources,theanticipatedoutcomesclearlyjustifytheexpectedeffort.High-qualityschoollibrarieswillnotonlyleadtoimprovedlearningoutcomesforallstudents,butwillalsoleadtothenurturingoflife-longlearnersthatareabletoappropriatelyanalyzeandsynthesizeinformationfromavarietyofsources.Theselife-longlearnerswilleventuallybeDelaware’sleadersandresidents,therefore,itiscriticalforthestate’seconomicandsocietalwell-beingthatallstudentsreceivethebenefitsprovidedbyhigh-qualityschoollibraries.
Ultimately,investmentinthedevelopmentofhigh-qualityschoollibrariesenhancesstudentlearningandperformancebyprovidingstudentswiththeresourcesandguidancetheyneedtosucceed.Providingadequateaccesstotimely,appropriatelearningresourcesandprofessionaldirectioninhowtofind,evaluate,andnavigatetheconfusinguniverseofinformationandmisinformationwillbuildessentialresearchandcriticalthinkingskillsthatwillservestudentswellbothinschoolandintheworkplace.
40|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Appendix A: Literature Review
Introduction
ThefollowingdocumentisacompilationoffindingsfromtheresearchusedtodeveloptheDelawareSchoolLibrariesMasterPlan:QualitySchoolLibraries=HigherStudentAchievementanditsaccompanyingrecommendations.Thisliteraturereviewencompassestopicsincludingthecharacteristicsofqualityschoollibrariesandhowtheyimpactstudentperformance,theroleoftheschoollibrarian,librarytechnology,andthedevelopmentofpartnershipsbetweenschoolandpubliclibraries.Literaturecoveredinthisreviewincludesnumerousschoollibraryimpactstudiesandrelevantjournalarticlesandpublications.
Quality School Libraries
Aqualityschoollibrarycanbethecoreoftheschool,ahubwherelearningflourishes.Itshouldbetransformativeandleadtoimprovedstudentperformance.AccordingtotheDelawareSchoolLibrariesCouncil’sAnnualReport(2013),aqualitylibraryhasthefollowingcharacteristics:
• Sufficientfunding• Acurrentandfullcollection• Currenttechnologyandstaffwiththeabilitytouseitcorrectly• Afull-timecertifiedlibrarian• Integrationintotheschoolcurriculumthatsupportsliteracyandstudentachievement• Flexiblescheduling
Thissectionwillfocusonthesecharacteristicsandtheiridealcorrespondinggoals,alongwiththeimpactthatachievingthesegoalscanhaveonstudentperformance.Itwillalsoincludebestpracticesrelatedtotheenvironmentandphysicalfeaturesofthelibrarytoprovidedecision-makerswithanideaofwhataqualitylibrarylookslike,andthecharacteristicsthatitexhibits.
Funding
Sufficientandstablefundingisoneofthemostimportantcharacteristicsofaqualityschoollibrary.Multiplelibraryimpactstudieshavefoundthathigherexpendituresperstudentandoveralllibraryspendingcorrelateswithhighertestscores.Accordingtoa2000studyofPennsylvaniaschoollibraries(Lance,Rodney,Pennel-Hamilton,2000),“higherachievingschoolsoftenspendtwiceasmuch—ormore—ontheirschoollibraryprogramsaslowerachievingschools”(Gretes,2013).
Withoutadequatefunding,librariescannotbesufficientlystaffedorhaveup-to-datecollectionsandtechnology.AccordingtoTheSchoolLibraryJournal's2014SpendingSurvey:SavvyLibrariansAreDoingMorewithLess,manylibrariesonlyfunctionbecauseschoollibrariansarewillingtoutilizetheirownresourcestosupporttheirinsufficientbudgets(Barack,2014).In2007,anaverageof$11,015wasspentnationallybyschoollibrariesoninformationresources,whichincludeprint
41|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
andnon-printmaterials,licenseddatabases,andothermethodstoaccesselectronicinformation(Davis,2009).
In2004,overhalfofDelaware’sschoollibrarieshadannualbudgetallocationsbelow$6,000(ToddR.J.,2005).TheDelawareSchoolLibrarySurvey(2004)describesahigh-qualityschoollibraryashavingbudgetallocationsof$12to$15perstudentoninformationresources(ToddR.J.,2005).ThiscomparesfavorablywithAmericanLibraryAssociationdatafrom2008thatshows$12asthenationalaverageforper-studentexpendituresoninformationresources.However,itshouldbenotedthatthedataalsoshowsthat$12wasonlytwo-thirdsthecostofafictiontitle($17.26)andone-thirdthecostofanon-fictiontitleatthattime($27.04)(Davis,2009).
In2011,theCommonwealthofPennsylvaniaproducedtheGuidelinesforSchoolLibraryProgramsthatprovidesquantitativeinputsandoutputstoguideperformance.Theguidelinesarebasedonresultsfrompreviousstudiesinthestatethatdemonstratedthepositiveimpactthatschoollibrariescanhaveonstudenttestscores.Inordertoproducetheseimprovedlearningoutcomesforstudents,schoollibrariesneedsufficientbudgets.Forthistobeachieved,accordingtothestudy,thetotalexpendituresperstudentmustbe$41inanelementaryschoollibrary,$45inamiddleschoollibrary,and$50inahighschoollibrary(OfficeofCommonwealthLibraries,2011).Thereportdividedthesetotalexpendituresperstudentintoprint,audiovisual,andelectronicresourcesbudgets.
Collection
Acurrentcollectionisoneofthekeyattributesofaqualityschoollibrary.Robustcollectionscaninspireapassionforreadinginstudentsandprovidethemwithaccesstoawealthofinformationinavarietyofsubjects(OfficeofCommonwealthLibraries,2011).Withoutup-to-dateresources,librariescannotprovidestudentswithadequateaccesstoinformation.Forinstance,ifSTEMbooksareolderthan5yearsold,theywillnolongerprovidestudentswiththemostrecentfindingsintheirsubjectmatter(DelawareSchoolLibrariesCouncil,2013).Accordingtothe2013AnnualReportbytheDelawareSchoolLibrariesCouncil,only29,998of299,169STEMbooks(10.3percent)inthe167participatingschoolsinDelawaremetthisstandard.AgeofresourcesisnotonlyimportantforSTEMbooks,butforallcollectionmaterials.In2013,ofthe2,154,929itemsin169Delawareschools,theaverageyearofpublicationwas1994.
Robust,timelycollectionsareacrucialcomponentofschoollibrariesthatcanincreaselearningoutcomesforallstudents.Ina2012impactstudyinPennsylvania(LanceandSchwarz,2012),theresearchteamfoundthatfor“BlackandHispanicstudents,accesstomorethan12,000librarybooksmorethandoublestheirchancesofobtaining‘Advanced’Writingscoresandcutstheirriskof‘BelowBasic’Writingscoresinhalf”(Kachel,2013).Thesefindingsshowthatalibrarywitharobustcollectioncanhaveasignificantimpactonimprovingwritingscoresandclosingtheachievementgapforminoritystudents.
TheStandardsforSchoolLibraryMediaCenters:DelawarePublicSchools(2002)statesthatinordertofunctionproperly,alibrarycollectionshouldhave15currentlyusefulvolumesperstudent.(DelawareSchoolLibrariesCouncil,2013).In2004,Delaware’saverageofusefulbooksperstudent
42|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
was12.56anddatafromtheDelawareSchoolLibrarySurveyshowsthat37percentofschoollibrariesdidnotmeettheminimumresourcerecommendation(ToddR.J.,2005).TheCommonwealthofPennsylvaniastatesthattheminimumvolumesperstudentshouldbe15inmiddleandhighschoolsand20inelementaryschools,whiletheidealamountis20inmiddleandhighschoolsand25inelementaryschools(OfficeofCommonwealthLibraries,2011)
Inthedigitalage,e-books,e-readers,andtabletsareexpandingtheirpresenceinschoollibraries.In2014,66percentofschoolsnationwideofferede-books.Themediannumberofe-booksremainsatalow189titlesperschoolcomparedto11,300printbooks,butschoollibrariansexpecte-bookspendingasapercentageoftheirtotalmaterialsbudgettoquadrupleinthenextfiveyears(Sun,2014).Qualityschoollibrariesarerecognizingthisdigitalshiftandallocatingmoreresourcestoelectronicmaterials.
TheSchoolLibraryJournalconductedasurveyin2014,whichexaminedhowschoollibrarianswereattemptingtokeepup-to-datecollectionswiththeirshrinkingbudgets.Accordingtothesurvey,theadoptionofdigitaltoolsandcontentwereamongthemostimportantprioritiesoftheschoollibrarianseveniftheirbudgetdidnotsupportit.Forty-sixpercentofelementaryschoollibrariansreportedthatdigitalusewasup,and60percentreportedthatprintusewasdown.Atthemiddleschoollevel,45percentreportedthatdigitalusewasup,and60percentreportedthatprintusewasdown.Ofthehighschoollibrarians,46percentreportedthatdigitalusewasup,and59percentrespondedthatprintusewasdown.The43percentofrespondentsthatpurchasede-booksin2012–2013spentanaverageof$1,100onthistypeofcontent,and34percentoftheserespondentsexpectedtospendmoreone-booksinthefuture(Barack,2014).
E-booksrefertodigitizedversionsofprintbooksandtextbooks.Theyareoftenformattedforandaccessedonspecializede-readers,butmanyarealsoavailableondesktopcomputers,laptops,andsmartphones.E-booksprovideseveraladvantagesforstudentsandschoolscomparedtotraditionalprintbooks.Digitalresourcesareavailableeverydayoftheyearandatalltimesofday,whileprintresourcesareonlyaccessibleforstudentsduringlimitedlibraryhours,unlesstheyarecheckedoutandtakenhome.Whene-booksaremadeavailableonsmartphones,theyareespeciallyconvenientforstudentsandthereisanecdotalevidencethattheyinspirestudentstoreadmorefictionontheirowntime(Nelson,2012).E-booksarealsogenerallycheaperthanprintbooks(Davidson&Carliner,2013),sostudentscangainaccesstoawiderbreadthofresourcesinlibrariesthatallocatefundingtoe-bookpurchases.Whilelibrarymediacentersestimatedthattheyspentamedianof$402one-booksin2013−2014,20percentoflibrariesmanagedtospendnomoneyone-books,acquiringtheminsteadthroughstate,district,orconsortiummembership(Sun,2014).
Althoughstudieshavefoundthatelementaryschoolstudentsperformedequallywellwhenusinge-booksversusprinttextbooks,therearesomedrawbackstotheuseofe-books.Somestudentshavefoundthatthereadabilityofe-booksislowerandstrugglewiththebasicfunctionsofe-bookssuchashighlighting(Davidson&Carliner,2013).Readingfromascreentakestwentytothirtypercentlongerthanreadingfrompaper,hasbeenfoundtocausemorestressandrequiremoreeffort,andcanmakeithardertorememberwhathasbeenread(Marcum,2012).Whilee-booksaregenerallycheaperthanprintbooks,theyrequireexpensivetechnology,likecomputersande-readers,to
43|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
access.Ifstudentsdonothavethesetechnologiesathome,oriflicensingagreementsonlyallowaccesstodigitalresourceswithintheschool,itmaybedifficultforstudentstoaccessdigitalresourcesoutsideofschoolhours.
Duetoadvancesintechnology,databasesarenowreadilyavailableforstudentstoaccessinschoollibrarieswiththeguidanceoflibrarians.Databasesaresearchableonlinecompilationsofpublishedworksthatstudentscanuseforresearch(EnochPrattFreeLibrary).Theyareavailablefromarangeofpublishingcompaniesandsomearedirectedtowardspecificagegroupsanddisciplineswhileothersaremoregeneral(Michaelson,2014).Schoollibrariesobtainaccesstodatabasesfortheirstudentsbypurchasingsubscriptions.InDelaware,K–12publicschoolshaveaccesstoUDLib/Search,acollectionofdatabasesthatprovideonlinemagazines,journals,encyclopedias,andeducationalactivities(AboutUDLib/Search,2015).WhileaccesstotheUDLib/Searchdatabasesandtechnicalassistance/trainingarefreeforschoolsthatparticipate,theStatecontributessignificantfundingeachyeartopayforlicensingfees,personnel,andotheroperatingcosts.ThenumberofUDLib/Searchsearchesmadeeachyeargenerallyincreases,showingthatpublicschoolsareusingthedatabases(Miller,2015).
Itisoftentheresponsibilityoflibrarianstochoosedatabasesthatbothfittheneedsoftheirstudentsandareaccessible(Michaelson,2014).Furthermore,studentsmustalsobetaughtproperuseofdatabases.StudentstodayprefertousegeneralsearchengineslikeGoogletofindinformation.Zimmerman(2012)arguesthatmoststudentsreverttousingGooglebecause,“Theyfindthattheschoolstheyattendprovideaccesstoalotofdata,butitisatthecostoflearningahighlydevelopedmethodofsearching.Thisisnotanobstacletoatrainedlibrarian,butitisalargeobstacletoanuntrainedstudent.”Librarianscantrainstudentsintheuseofdatabasesandensuretheyhavetheskillstotakefulladvantageoftheonlineresourcesthatalibraryoffers.
Technology and Information Literacy
Inthe21stcentury,qualityschoollibrariesmustprovideup-to-datetechnology.Moreover,qualityschoollibrariesmustalsoemploycertifiedlibrarianswiththeknowledgeandskillstoutilizetechnologyandteachotherstohowtodoso.AccordingtotheNationalBoardforProfessionalTeachingStandards(NBPTS),withcurrenttechnology,librariescanfurthertheirroleasthehubsofschoolcommunities(LibraryMediaStandards,2012).Onelibrarianunderlinedtheimportanceoftechnologybystating,“Hereweareinacomputererawheretheamountofinformationisdoublingeverycoupleofmonths.Thekidsneedmorehelpthaneverbeforetolocateinformationandtoapplyitandanalyzeit.It’sjustamazingtomethatwere[sic]notseeingitasmorebeneficialthaneverbefore”(Pascopella,2005).The21stcenturyschoollibraryplaystwovitalroles:1)providingaccesstotechnologyand2)promotinginformationliteracy.
ProvidingAccesstoTechnologySchoollibrariesplayavitalroleingivingstudentsaccesstotechnology,becausemanystudentsdonothaveaccesstotheseresourcesathomeorintheircommunitiesoutsideofschoolhours.AccordingtothePewResearchCenter,asofSeptember2013,70percentofadultAmericanshadbroadbandaccessathome,butonly52percentofadultAmericansthatmadelessthan$30,000a
44|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
yearhadaccesstothisservice(ZickuhrandSmith,2013).Thesedatashowthatasignificantportionofthepopulationstilldoesnothaveaccesstohigh-speedinternetathome,whichcanmakecompletingclassworkoutsideofschooldifficultforstudentswhocannotefficientlyacquireinformationonline.AstudyconductedbytheNewYorkComprehensiveCenterin2011cametotheconclusionthat“schoollibrariesareimportantinsupportingthedevelopmentof21stcenturyskills,includingthosethatrequiretechnologicalliteracy.Thedigitaldividethatmanyat-riskstudentsfacecanbealleviatedwiththeresourcesandtechnologicalinstructionschoollibrariesoffer”(NewYorkComprehensiveCenter,2011).Notonlydoschoollibrariesprovideaccesstotechnology,buttheyalsoprovidestudentswiththeopportunitytolearnhowtouseiteffectivelyandresponsiblythroughtheguidanceofprofessionallytrainedschoollibrarians.
Accordingtoa2006studyconductedonDelaware’sschoollibraries,“themosthelpfuldimensionsofschoollibraries,asperceivedbybothstudentsandfaculty,centeronthecentralplaceofinformationtechnologyinaccessinginformationandusingthetechnologytoenablestudentstocompletetheirschoolwork”(ToddandHeindstrom,2006).Surveyresultsshowedthat88.9percentofstudentsfoundthatcomputersprovidedintheschoollibrarywereatleastalittlehelpfulwithregardstoimprovingtheirabilitytocompleteschoolassignments,while94.1percentfoundthatcomputerslocatedinschoollibrarieswereatleastalittlehelpfulinassistingthemwithacquiringinformationlocatedbothinsideandoutsideschoollibraries.15
PromotingInformationLiteracyInadditiontoprovidingDelaware’sstudentswithaccesstotechnology,schoollibrariesalsoimprovetheinformationliteracyofmanystudents.Forinstance,94.2percentofstudentsrespondedthattheschoollibrarywasatleastalittlehelpfulinteachingthemthedifferentstepsinvolvedinacquiringandusinginformation,while90.3percentbelievedthatitwasatleastalittlehelpfulinassistingthemwithfindingdifferentopinionsabouttopicsofinterest(ToddandHeindstrom,2006).Schoollibrariesalsoprovidesomestudentswithassistanceindeterminingthecriticalinformationprovidedbysources,with91.7percentstatingthattheschoollibrarywasatleastalittlehelpfulinguidingtheminidentifyingthemostimportantthingsinthesourcestheyreview,while87.6percentfoundthattheschoollibrarywasatleastalittlehelpfulinteachingthemto“bemorecarefulaboutinformation[theyfound]ontheinternet”(ToddandHeindstrom,2006).Nearly92percentofstudentsmentionedthattheschoollibrarywasatleastalittlehelpfulbyassistingthemindeterminingthequalityofinformationtheyfound.
ImpactstudiesconductedinNewMexico(Lance,Rodney,andHamilton-Pennell,2002),Wisconsin(Smith,2006),NewJersey(Todd,Gordon,andLu,2010),andWashington(Coker,2015)alsoshowedthepositiveimpactthatschoollibrariescanhaveonstudentlearningoutcomesthroughtheprovisionoftechnologyandlessonsrelatedtoinformationliteracy.OneofthekeyfindingsintheNewMexicostudywasthat“middleschoolswiththehighestNewMexicoAchievementAssessmentProgram(NMAAP)languageartsscoresweretwiceaslikelyasthelowest-scoringschoolstoprovideaccesstolicenseddatabasesviaaschoollibrarynetwork”(Scholastic,2015).IntheWisconsinstudy,researchersfoundthat“elementaryschoolswithmorecomputersand
15Thisincludesthefollowingfourresponses:mosthelpful,quitehelpful,somehelp,andalittlehelp.
45|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
technologyequipmentmadeupthetop25schoolswithhighestWCKE[WisconsinConceptsandKnowledgeExamination]scoresinreadingandlanguagearts”(Kachel,2013),andthat“studentsvaluedmostthelibrarymediaspecialist’shelpinteachinguniqueskillsnotcoveredintheclassroom—especiallyinformation,communication,andtechnologyskillsessentialforstudentsinthe21stcentury”(Scholastic,2015).
ThestudyinNewJerseywentintodetailonhowschoollibrariansinthestate“madekeycontributionstostudentsuccess”inareassuchas:masteringofinformationliteracycompetencies,developingfamiliarityoftheresearchprocess,modelingethicaluseofinformation,andnurturingresponsibleuseoftechnology(Todd,Gordon,andLu,2010).Meanwhile,theresearchteaminWashingtonfoundthat“studentswhoattendschoolswithon-staffcertifiedteacher-librarians(CTLs)havemoreequitableaccesstotechnologicallyadvancedandaccessiblelibraryfacilities…greateraccesstodatabasesandresourcesforlongertimesduringtheschoolday…[thatareoften]accessibleoutsidetheschoolaswell…[and]aremorelikelytobetaughtinformationtechnologyskillsandtechnologyfluencyskills”(Scholastic,2015).ThesefindingsarealsosupportedbytheresearchofDr.BarbaraSchultz-JonesandDr.CynthiaLedbetter,twoscholarsinthefieldoflibraryandinformationscience,who,afterexaminingthecorrelationbetweenschoollibrariansandtheirimpactonstudents’informationliteracyskills,concludedthatschoollibrarians“candevelopandnurtureanoptimallearningenvironmentthatmakesapositiveandmeasurablecontributiontotheeducationalprocess”(Schultz-JonesandLedbetter,2009,2010).Multiplestudiesshowthatschoollibrariescanplayasignificantroleinprovidingstudentswithaccesstotechnology,whilealsocreatinganenvironmentwheretheycanlearnhowtouseitinaneffectiveandresponsiblemanner.
InTexas,schoollibrarieshavestandardsthatfollowtheNBPSTrecommendations,andthus,theTexasAdministrativeCode(updatedin2011)encouragestheuseoftechnologyinschoollibrariesasamethodofaccessing,evaluating,anddisseminatinginformation(SchoolLibraryPrograms:StandardsandGuidelinesforTexas,2005).Accordingtothestandards,aqualityschoollibraryshould:
• Providestudentsandstaffwithcampus-wideandremoteaccesstoelectroniclibraryresourcesthroughalibrary-designedportal.
• Provideaweb-deliveredonlinepublic-accesslibrarycataloginthelibrary,campus-wide,andremotely.
• Provideoneadministrativecomputerperlibrarystaffmember.• Providetwocomputersdedicatedtocirculationandonecomputerdedicatedtoteacher
use.• Facilitatethefullintegrationoftechnology,includingmultimediaandthewebintothe
curriculumandinstruction.• Employarepresentativetoserveontheschooltechnologycommittee,helpdevelopthe
schooltechnologyplan,andprovideinputinthedevelopmentofthedistricttechnologyplan.
46|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
• Employalibrarianthatactivelyandsystematicallytrainsstudentsandstaffintheuseoflocal,statewide,ornationalconsortiatechnologyinitiatives,includingstatewideinterlibraryloan,ifapplicable.
Pennsylvaniaalsoprovidesstandardsforschoollibrariesrelatedtotechnology.Thestateguidelinesrecommendthatschoollibrarieshaveinternetcapabilityaswellas35computersperlibraryortwo-thirdsofitsseatingcapacity,whicheverisgreater(OfficeofCommonwealthLibraries,2011).
Staffing
Themajorityofstudiesfocusingonevaluatingtheimpactthatschoollibrarieshaveonstudentlearningoutcomesgointodetailontheimportanceofafull-time,state-certifiedlibrarianincultivatingaqualityschoollibrary.Certifiedlibrarianshavebeenfoundtobooststudentachievement,specificallyreadingscoresandliteracyrates.Aproperlystaffedlibraryhasevenbeenlinkedtobetterattitudestowardreading(Klinger,2009).
Oneofthecriticalfunctionsofaschoollibraryistoelevatetheimportanceofreadinginschoolbyprovidingstudentswithboththeopportunityandencouragementtoread.AccordingtoScholastic’sKidsandFamilyReadingReport:5thEdition,asurveyof2,558parentsandchildren,14percentofchildren“read[forfun]athomeandschoolequally,and14[percent]saytheyreadforfunmostlyinschool”(Scholastic,2014).Readingforfuninschoolisevenmoreprevalentamonglow-incomestudents.Ofstudents(ages6to17)fromfamiliesthatmakelessthan$35,000ayear,19percentreadforfunprimarilyinschooland41percentreadingforfunaboutthesameamountoftimeinschoolandathome.Formorethanhalfofstudents(52%),independentreadingintheclassroomisconsideredapositiveexperiencewith34percentmentioningthatitis“oneof[their]favoritepartsoftheschoolday”and31percentstatingthattheywishedtheywoulddoitmoreoften(Scholastic,2014).
Theschoollibraryisakeycomponentinprovidingthesestudentswiththeopportunitytoreadbecause,accordingtothesurvey,77percentofchildrenages6to11and58percentofchildrenages12to17foundthebookstheyreadforfunatthelibrary.Resultsfroma2010ScholasticandBillandMelindaGatesFoundationsurveyof25,452K–12publicschoolteachersalsosupportthisfinding.Init,83percentofteachersstatedthattheirstudentsgotthebookstheyusedforindependentreadingfromtheschoollibrarymostoften(ScholasticandBillandMelindaGatesFoundation,2010).
TheresultsfromtheseScholasticsurveysshowthatformanyschool-agechildren,particularlythosefromlow-incomehouseholds,theschoolenvironmentiswheretheywillfindaccesstobooksandengageinasignificantamountoftheirreading.Findingsfroma2006studyinDelaware,whichincludedasurveyof5,773studentsfrom13elementaryandhighschools,showedthattheschoollibrarycanbehelpfultostudents’“generalreadinginterests.”Surveyresultsshowedthat88.1percentofstudentsagreedthattheschoollibraryhelpedatleastalittle16whenitcametoprovidingthemassistanceinfindingstoriesthattheylike.Approximately83percentofstudents
16Thisincludesthefollowingfourresponses:mosthelpful,quitehelpful,somehelp,andalittlehelp.
47|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
agreedthattheschoollibrarywasatleastalittlehelpfulinprovidingthemassistanceinreadingmore,while81.3percentagreedthatitwasatleastalittlehelpfulinassistingthemwithbecomingabetterreader(ToddandHeinstrom,2006).Theimportanceofthelibraryincultivatingaloveofreadingwasalsoevidentina2006studyofover800elementaryschoolsconductedinOntariothatfoundthat“schoolswithteacher-librarianscouldbeexpectedtohavereadingenjoymentscoresthatwere8percentilepointshigherthanaverage”(Queen’sUniversityandPeopleforEducation,2006).Thesefindingsshowthatschoollibrariesareacriticalcomponentofastudent’seducationalexperience,particularlyiftheyarefromalow-incomehousehold,becausetheyprovidethemwithaccesstobooksandtheencouragementtoread.
ArecentstudybyNewYorkUniversity’sSteinhardtSchoolofCulture,Education,andHumanDevelopmenthighlightedthisissuebydocumentingtheexistenceof“bookdeserts”inlow-income,urbanareasacrossthecounty.Thestudyindicatedthat“accesstoprintresources…earlyonhasbothimmediateandlong-termeffectsonchildren’svocabulary,backgroundknowledge,andcomprehensionskills”(NeumanandMoland,2016).Ameta-analysisof44studiesconductedbyDr.JimLindsayfoundasimilarrelationshipbetweenaccesstoprintmaterialsandstudentlearningoutcomes.Positiveeffectsprovidedbyprintmaterialsinclude(Lindsay,2010):
• Improveschildren’sreadingperformance• Helpschildrenlearnthebasicsofreading• Causeschildrentoreadmoreandforlongerlengthsoftime• Producesimprovedattitudestowardreadingandlearningamongchildren
Thesepositivelearningoutcomescaneventuallymanifestthemselvesinimprovedscoresonstandardizedtestsbystudents.Ananalysisontheimpactofschoollibrarianlayoffsinrelationtofourth-gradereadingscorescollectedbytheNationalCenterforEducationStatisticsbetween2004and2009conductedbyKeithCurryLanceandLindaHofschireshowedthat“regardlessofwhethertherewerefewerclassroomteachersschoolwide,studentsinstatesthatlostlibrarianstendedtohavelowerreadingscores—orhadaslowerriseonstandardizedtests—thanthoseinstatesthatgainedlibrarians”(LanceandHofschire,2011).Infact,theresearchers“foundthat19ofthe26statesthatgainedlibrarianssawanaverage2.2percentriseintheirNationalAssessmentofEducationalProgress(NAEP)fourth-gradereadingscores…[while]9ofthe24statesthatlostlibrarianshada1percentrise”(LanceandHofschire,2011).Theauthorsnotedthatwhilethesechangesmayseeminsignificant,“minorshiftsarequitemeaningfulsincetheretendstobelittleoverallchangewithfourth-gradeNAEPreadingscoresovertime”(LanceandHofschire,2011).Significantpositiveimpactsonreadingscoreswerealsofoundforlow-income,Hispanic,Black,andEnglishlanguagelearnerstudents.
48|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
FigureA:PercentChangeinFourth-GradeNAEPTestScores,2004-2005to2008-2009
Source:Lance,K.andHofschireL.,(2011,September).SomethingtoShoutAbout:NewResearchShowsthatMoreLibrariansMeansHigherReadingScores.TheSchoolLibraryJournal.Theresultsfromthisanalysisaresimilartotheonesfoundintheschoollibraryimpactstudiesconductedin25statesandOntario(Scholastic,2015).Accordingtoananalysisofthesestudies17completedin2013,thisbodyofresearchconfirmsthat“qualityschoollibraryprogramswithfull-time,certifiedlibrariansandlibrarysupportstaffareindicativeofandcriticaltostudentachievement”(Kachel,2013).Thisanalysisincludesachartdetailing35particularschoollibrarycharacteristicsthatwereproventohavea“positiveassociationwithstudentachievement”andthestudywhereeachassociationwasfound.Librarycharacteristicsfallunderthefollowingcategories:staffing/availability,instruction/informationliteracycurriculum,professionaldevelopment/training,collaboration/cooperation,electronicnetworkingandtechnology,collectionsandresources,usage,andfunding/budget.
Forinstance,findingsfromanimpactstudyconductedinColoradoin2010(Francis,Lance,andLietzau,2010)includedthatelementaryschoolswithatleastonefull-timeendorsed(statecertified)schoollibrarianhad4to5percentmorethird,fourth,andfifthgradestudentsscoringproficientoradvancedinreadingonstandardizedteststhanelementaryschoolsthatdidnot(Scholastic,2015).Inthisstudy,itwasalsofoundthatschoolswithatleastonefull-timeendorsedschoollibrarianhad2to3percentlessthird,fourth,andfifthgradestudentswithunsatisfactoryscoresonstandardizedtests(Francis,Lance,andLietzau,2010).InalaterimpactstudyconductedinColoradoitwasfoundthatschoollibrariesstaffedonlybyassistants,asopposedtohavingacertifiedschoollibrarian,had
17FindingsfromastudyconductedinSouthCarolinaandoneinWashingtonwerenotincludedintheanalysisbecausetheyhadnotyetbeenreleased.
1%1.2%
2.3%
0.9%
-1.4%
1.5%
2%
2.8%
1.7%
0.5% 0.5%
1.8%
0.2%
-2.8%-3%
-2%
-1%
0%
1%
2%
3%
AllStudents PoorStudents BlackStudents HispanicStudents
Allstates
Statesthatgainedlibrarians
Statesthatlostlibrarians
Englishlanguagelearners
49|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
noinfluenceoverstudentreadingscores(LanceandHofschire,2012).TheseresultsaresimilartothefindingsofastudyconductedinFloridain2002(Baumbach)whereitwasdiscoveredthatelementaryschoolsthathadlibrariesstaffedforatleast60hoursperweekhada9percentimprovementintestscoresoverthosethatdidnot,whilemiddleschoolsthatfitthiscriterionhada3.3percentimprovement.Highschoolsthatmetthiscriterionhada22.2percentimprovementintestscores(Scholastic,2015).
ArecentstudyconductedinSouthCarolina(Lance,Rodney,andSchwarz,2014)alsosupportsthefindingsthatschoollibrarieshaveapositiveimpactonstudentstandardizedtestscoresinreadingandwriting.ThestudyfoundthattherewasahighcorrelationbetweenthepresenceofprofessionalschoollibrariansandstudenttestscoresforthreeEnglishLanguageArtsstandardsincludingliterarytext,informationaltext,andresearch.Inparticular,schoolsthathadatleastonefull-timelibrarianandafull-timeorpart-timeassistanthad2to3percentmorestudentsreceiving“exemplary”scoresontheresearchsectionofthePalmettoAssessmentofStateStandards(PASS).Studentsatschoolswithatleastonequalified,full-timelibrarianandonefull-timeorpart-timeassistantwere2percentlesslikelytoshowweaknessesonthewritingsectionofthePASSassessmentandwere2.1percentmorelikelytoshowstrengthsoncontentandorganizationcomponentsofthetest.Findingsfromthestudy“couldnotbeexplainedawaybydemographicssuchasgender,race/ethnicity,disability,andsubsidizedorfreemealseligibility.”
ThreerecentimpactstudiesconductedinPennsylvania(LanceandSchwarz,2012),Washington(Coker,2015),andKansas(Dow,Lakin,andCourt,2012)cametosimilarconclusions.InthePennsylvaniastudy,theresearchteamconcludedthat“studentsinwell-supported,resourced,andstaffedschoollibrariesachieveahigherlevelofacademicsuccess…”andthat“Black,Hispanic,andstudentswithdisabilitiesorwhowereeconomicallydisadvantagedbenefittedproportionallymorethanstudentsingeneral…”meaningthat“staffinglibrarieswithcertifiedlibrarianscanhelpclosetheachievementgapsamongthemostvulnerablelearners”(Scholastic,2015).Specifically,inschoolsthathadafull-timecertifiedlibrarian,2.5percentmorestudentsscoredadvancedinwritingonstandardizedtests,onaverage,thaninschoolsthatdidnothaveafull-timecertifiedlibrarian.Thisbenefitnearlydoubledwhensupportstaffassistedlibrariansintheschoollibrary.(Kachel,2013).
ResultsfromthestudyconductedinWashington,whichexamined1,486K–12publicschools,showedsimilarpositiveresults,revealingthat“studentswhoattendschoolswithCTLs[certifiedteacherlibrarians]andqualitylibraryfacilitiesperformbetteronstandardizedtestsandarefarmorelikelytograduate.FacilitieswithCTLshadan85%five-yeargraduationrate,versus79%forthosewithout”(Scholastic,2015).FindingsfromtheKansasstudyincludedthatschoolswithhigherandmorestablestaffinglevelsinschoollibrarieshadstudentswithhigherproficiencyratesinreading,writing,mathematics,science,andhistory/governmentasmeasuredintheKansasAnnualYearlyProgressdata(Dow,Lakin,andCourt,2012).Theseresultswerefoundacrossallgradelevels,andmathematicswasthesubjectwiththegreatestdifferenceinproficiencyratesbetweenschoolswithatleastonelibrarianandoneswithout.
50|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Infact,someelectedofficialsinDelawarefoundtheneedforacertifiedlibrarianineveryschoolsovitalthattheydraftedHouseBill152,sponsoredbyRepresentativePaulBaumbachandSenatorDavidSokola.HouseBill152requiresthattherebeatleastonelibrarymediaspecialistineveryelementary,middle,andhighschoolinthestate(DelawareGeneralAssembly,2015).Theneedforthisbillisunderscoredbyitgarneringbi-partisansupport.
Accordingtothe2004DelawareSchoolLibrarySurvey,itisimportantthatpara-professionalstaffdonotreplaceschoollibrarians,butinsteadoffersupportbyundertaking“routineadministrativetasksand[freeing]thelibrarymediaspecialisttoundertakeinstructionalinitiativesandreadingliteracyinitiatives”(ToddR.J.,2005).ThelackofsupportstaffinDelawarehasforcedcertifiedlibrarianstoreservetimeforadministrativetasksinsteadofdevelopingprogramsthatwillincreasestudentachievement.In2004,Delawarehadpara-educatorsemployedin60percentofschoollibraries,with54percentofelementaryschoollibrarieshavingnopara-educatorsupport,andonly22percentofschoollibrarieshavingfull-timesupportstaff(ToddR.J.,2005).
Connection with School
Librariansshouldhaveacentralroleinsupportingclassroomlearning.Aseducators,librarianshaveabroadbaseofknowledgeandcanhelpotherteacherslocateresourcesthatenhancelearningactivitiesforstudents.However,researchfindsthatcollaborationamonglibrariansandclassroomteachersisnotasextensiveasitcouldbe.
Promotingcollaborationbetweenlibrariansandeducatorsispossiblethroughadministrativesupport.Forinstance,inOntario,aprincipalinaschoolwithaqualitylibrarystrivedtostrengthentherelationsbetweenclassroomteachersandlibrarians.Toachievethisgoal,theprincipalrequiredeachteachertopartnerwiththelibrarianonceperyeartoco-developandco-teachalessonthatalignedwiththecurriculum(Klinger,2009).
Findingsfromschool-libraryimpactstudieshaveshownthebenefitsthatflexibleschedulingandcollaborationbetweenteachersandschoollibrarianscanbring.Forinstance,ina2005impactstudycompletedinIllinois(Lance,Rodney,andHamilton-Pennel,2005),theresearchteamfoundthatinhighschoolseleventh-gradeACTscores“werehighestwhentherewasahighdegreeoftruecollaborationbetweenlibrarymediaspecialistsandclassroomteachersinawidespectrumofactivities”(Scholastic,2015).Itwasalsofoundthat“elementaryschoolswithmoreflexiblyscheduledlibrariesperformed10%betterinreadingand11%betterinwritingontheISATtestsoffifth-gradersthanschoolswithlessflexiblyscheduledlibraries”(Kachel,2013).SimilarfindingsweredetailedinanimpactstudyconductedinIndiana(Lance,Rodney,andRussel,2007),wheretheresearchteamfoundthat“acrossgradelevels,Indianastudentstendedtoperformbetteronstatetestswhereprincipalsvaluedteacher-librarymediaspecialistcollaboration,supportedflexiblelibraryscheduling,metregularlywiththelibrarymediaspecialist,andhadthelibrarymediaspecialistserveonkeyschoolcommittees”(Scholastic,2015).Thefindingsofthesestudiesshowthataschoollibraryprogram,anddynamiclibrarian,thatareintegratedintotheschoolcurriculumanddecision-makingprocessescanhaveasignificantpositiveimpactonstudentperformance.
51|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Physical Environment
Ina2005study,AppoquiniminkSchoolDistrictdescribedtheirqualitylibrariesasthecenteroftheschool(Pascopella,2005).Similarly,oneschoolinOntariowithamodellibrarydescribedtheroomasneartheschooloffice,withcozycorners,colorful,welldecorated,andevenholdingapiano(Klinger,2009).TheSchoolLibraryMediaQuarterlypublishedanarticlethataddressedadditionalelementsthataqualityschoollibraryshouldhave.Primarily,itshouldbeawarm,welcomingplace.Thistypeofatmospherecanbecreatedthroughpaintorwithaccentcolorsinpostersordisplayboards.Carpetingisalsorecommendedasitcontrolsnoiseandappealstochildrenasaplacetorelax.Ifwall-to-wallcarpetingistooexpensive,schoollibrariescanalsopurchasearearugstoprovideasimilareffectforstudents(Doll,1992).
Modernlibrariesareusedasmeetingareasforstudentsandthusneedtohaveplentyofcollaborativespaces.InacasestudyofVancouverPublicSchools,DigitalPromise501(c)(3)foundthatmodernlibraryspacesshouldbeopenandflexible,withmoveablefurniturethatcancreateavarietyoflayouts.Thisallowsstudentstoarrangethemselvesintodifferentgroupsandworkeffectivelywitheachother(DigitalPromise).Anonlinesurveythatreceivedhundredsofstudentresponsesfromacrossthegloberevealedthatstudentsprefer“student-friendly”librariestothetraditionallibraryatmosphere,evenifthatmeansthatspacesarelouderandmessier(Fingal,2014).
Thedevelopmentoftechnologyhascreatednewneedsforlibraryspaces.Accordingtothe2004DelawareSchoolLibrarySurvey,morelibrarymediaspecialistsregarded“space”asapriorityfortheirlibrarymediacentersthananyotherresponse(ToddR.J.,2005).Onetraditionalfunctionofalibraryistoprovidedesktopcomputersforclasses.Onestudyfoundthatstudentsandteachersbothpreferroomswith“peripheral”layouts,whichreferstoasetupinwhichcomputerandworkstationsarearrangedaroundtheedgesoftheroomwithscreensfacinginwards.The“peripheral”layoutallowsforeasymovementandcollaborationbetweenstudentsandalsoallowsteachersandlibrarianstomonitorstudents’workandensurethatstudentsarestayingon-task(Brush&Hew,2007).Librariescanalsosavemoneybyusinglaptopswithwirelessconnectionsinordertosavebuildingandmaintenancecostsofthecomputerlaboratories(Russell,Bebell,&Higgins).Libraryspacesshouldadapttonewtechnologybybeingflexibleandoptimizedforstudentcollaborationandtheuseofpersonalelectronicsanddigitalresources.
Summary of Quality School Library Research
AliteraturereviewcompletedbyGretesResearchServicesonbehalfoftheHarryandJeanetteWeinbergFoundationsummarizedthefindingspresentedbytheschool-libraryimpactstudiesassuch:
Universalfindingsfrommorethan60impactstudiesconductedin22statesconcludethatschoolswithawell-equippedlibrary,staffedbyafull-time,certifiedlibrarianandappropriatestaffcontributesignificantlytogainsinstudentlearning.Highqualityschoollibrariesnotonlyhelpstudentsreadmore,butalsohelpthemlearnhowtouseandprocessinformationbetterandperformbetteronachievementtests.Levelsoflibraryfunding,
52|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
staffinglevels,collectionsizeandrange,andtheinstructionalroleofthelibrarianallhaveadirectimpactonstudentachievement.(Gretes,2013)
Overall,thecommonthemeofthisbodyofresearchisthatanadequatelystaffedandsupportedschoollibrarycanhaveasignificantpositiveimpactontheeducationalexperienceofstudents,whichcanthenberealizedthroughimprovedstandardizedtestscores.Schoollibrariesareanintegralcomponentofastudent’seducationalexperienceandnumerousstudieshaveshownthattheirservicescanleadtoimprovedlearningoutcomesforindividualsfromallbackgrounds(Gretes,2013).Byprovidingallstudentswithaccesstobooksandtechnology,implementingprogramsfocusedonencouragingreading,andpromotinginformationliteracy,schoollibrariesarehelpingtopreparestudentsforsuccessinthe21stcentury.
The Role of the School Librarian
K–12schoollibrariansareanintegralpartofschoolcommunitiesandcanleadtoimprovedstudentlearningoutcomes.Schoollibrarians’successiscontingentuponvariousenablersandbarriersthattheyfaceintheircareers.Oneofthemostsignificantfactorsthathaschangedtheroleofschoollibrariansistheadvancementoftechnology.Inthisdigitalage,librarianshavethepotentialtoleadintechnologyintegrationbyteachingbothstudentsandothereducatorshowtechnologycanpositivelyimpactacademicgrowth.Whiletechnologicalcompetenciesarebecomingincreasinglyimportant,librariansmustalsopreserveanddemonstratethetraditionallibrarianskillsofteachingstudentshowtobecriticalthinkersandinspiringthemtobelifelongreadersandlearners.Schoollibrarianscanmakeaninvaluableimpactonentirelearningcommunitiesandstudents.Schoollibrarianshavedemonstratedtheimportanceoftheirroles,andtheycancontinuetopositivelyimpacteducationsystemsacrossthenationiftheyreceiveadequatesupportfromdecision-makers.
Thefollowingsectionwillexaminetherolethattheschoollibrarianplaysintheschoolcommunity.Itwillbeginwithanexaminationoftheprocessthatschoollibrariansmustgothroughtoreceivetheircredentials,andthencontinuewithadescriptionofpotentialenablersandbarrierstoschoollibrariansuccess.Moderntechnology’sinfluenceonchangingtheroleoftheschoollibrarianisthendescribed.Thesectionthenconcludeswithananalysisoftheroleofthelibrarianwithregardstotechnologyintegrationandtheirimpactwithintheschoolcommunityonbothstaffandstudents.
American Library Association and American Association of School Librarians Standards and Competencies for School Librarian Programs
Beforeindividualscanacquirethetitleof“schoollibrarian,”theymustobtaintheappropriateprofessionaldegreessupportedbyboththeAmericanLibraryAssociation(ALA)andtheAmericanAssociationofSchoolLibrarians(AASL).TheALAisanonprofitorganizationthatendorseslibraryeducationinternationally,andtheAASListheonlynationalmembershiporganizationthatisfocusedontheprofessionalismofschoollibrariansandtheschoollibrarycommunity(AmericanLibraryAssociation[ALA],2015a).Whilebothorganizationshaveestablished“schoollibrarian”astheofficialprofessionaltitle,“schoollibrarymediaspecialist,”“teacherlibrarian,”“media
53|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
coordinator,”and“libraryinformationspecialist”areallacceptablenamesfortheprofession(NationalCouncilforAccreditationofTeacherEducation[NCATE],2010).
AccordingtotheAmericanLibraryAssociation,K–12schoollibrariansneedamaster’sdegreeastheirfirstprofessionaldegree,buttheymaydosothroughoneoftwotracks.Thefirsttrackisearningamaster’sdegreefromaprogramaccreditedbytheALA,whichcanbepursuedincollegesanduniversitiesacrosstheUnitedStates,Canada,andPuertoRico.DegreenamesincludeMasterofLibraryScience(MLS),MasterofArts,MasterofLibrarianship,MasterofLibraryandInformationStudies(MLIS),andMasterofScience(ALA,2015a).Thesecondtracktoreceiveamaster’sdegreefortheschoollibrarianprofessionistoearnamaster’sdegreewithaspecialtyinschoollibrarianshipfromaprogramrecognizedbytheAASLinaneducationalunitaccreditedbytheCouncilfortheAccreditationofEducatorPreparation(CAEP)(ALA,2015a).InDelaware,certificationrequirementsforSchoolLibraryMediaSpecialistsareincludedinTitle14,Chapter15,Section1580oftheAdministrativeCode(refertoAppendixD).
Standards and Competencies
AccordingtotheALA/AASLStandardsforInitialPreparationofSchoolLibrarians,therearefivecorecompetenciesthatallschoollibrariansmustmeet.First,schoollibrariansmustteachfortheultimatepurposeoflearning,consideringallstudentsandothermembersofthelearningcommunity.Throughthisstandard,candidatesacknowledgeandsupportstudents’diverselearningstylesandtheirphysicalandintellectualabilitiesandneeds.Theyareeducatedonthestagesofhumangrowthanddevelopment,andtheyunderstandthatvariousculturescaninfluencelearning.Further,candidatesexchangebestpracticesofteachingandlearningwithothereducatorstoinstillcollaborativepartnershipsontheprinciplesofeducation.Thisstandardalsorecognizestheimportanceoftechnologyintegrationasameansofcreativeteachingforadiversebodyofstudents(NCATE,2010).
Thesecondstandardthatschoollibrariansmustmeetrelatestotheimportanceofreadingandliteracy.Throughthisstandard,candidatesdevelopcollectionsofliteratureandselectinformationmaterials,inprintandelectronicformats,suitedforchildrenandyoungadultsbasedonvaryingreadinglevelsandcultural,social,andlinguisticneeds.Theysupportreadingforpersonalgrowth,lifelonglearning,andenjoymentthroughthiscompetency(NCATE,2010).
Informationandknowledgeformthebasisofthethirdcompetency.Schoollibrariansmustbeknowledgeableofthevariousphysical,digital,andvirtualcollectionsofresourcesandservicesthataremadeavailabletothediverselearningcommunity(NCATE,2010).
Thefourthcompetencyemphasizesadvocacyandleadership.Tomaximizestudentlearningandachievement,schoollibrarianshelpfacilitatethecollaborationbetweenteachers,administrators,librarians,andmembersofthecommunity.Dynamicschoollibraryprogramsthriveasschoollibrariansleadprofessionaldevelopmentworkshopsforothersdedicatedtotheimportanceofeducation(NCATE,2010).
54|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Throughprogrammanagementandadministration,whichshapethefifthcompetency,schoollibrariansareexpectedtoplan,implement,andcontinuouslyevaluateschoollibraryprogramsandservicesaccordingtotheethicsandprinciplesoftheirprogrammission(NCATE,2010).
Enablers and Barriers to School Librarians’ Success in Four Domains
Onceschoollibrariansearntheappropriatedegree(s)anddemonstrateaproficiencyinmeetingallfivecompetencies,theirsuccess,orlackthereof,stemsfromanumberofenablersandbarriers.LynnF.ZinnconductedextensiveresearchonteacherleadershipandpublishedthefindingsthroughtheAmericanEducationalResearchAssociationin1997.BasedonZinn’sresearch,domainsthatimpactlibrarians’achievementincludesocialrelationships,institutionalstructures,personalconsiderationsandcommitments,andintellectualandpsychologicalcharacteristics(Johnston,2012).ExamplesofenablersandbarriersaredetailedbelowinTable1.
Table1:EnablersandBarriersinFourDomains
FourDomainsImpactingLibrarians’Achievement ExamplesofEnablers ExamplesofBarriers
1. PeopleandInterpersonalRelationships
Maintainingpersonalsupportsystematwork
Havingpositiveworkingrelationshipswithschooladministrators,teachers,andprincipal
Lackingpersonalsupportsystem
Lackingpositiveworkingrelationshipsandlackingprofessionalrespect
2. InstitutionalStructures Receivingnecessaryresources,suchasfunding,personnel,time,andtechnology
Understandingclearlydefinedroledefinitions
Lackingresources,suchashavinginsufficienttimetocompletetasks
Lackingroledefinitionsfrombroadly-andill-definedleadershiprolesandresponsibilities
3. PersonalConsiderationsandCommitments
Continuinggoodhealthandwellness
Gainingsupportfromfamilyandfriends
Havingpersonalhealthissues
Lackingsupportfromfamilyandfriends
4. IntellectualandPsychologicalCharacteristics
Possessingintellectualcuriosity,enjoymentoflearning,andprofessionalgrowth
Perceivingabilitytomakeadifferenceinthelivesofstudentsandteachers
Lackingintellectualcuriosity,enjoymentoflearning,andprofessionalgrowth
Havingfeelingsofdiscouragementandfrustration
55|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Most Frequently Reported Enablers and Barriers
In2009,ThePALMCenterconductedTheSchoolLibraryMediaSpecialistandTechnologyIntegrationSurvey(Johnston,2012).Throughthisstudy,schoollibrariansidentifiedwhichenablersmostcontributedtotheirsuccessfulcareers.Thehighestrankingenableridentified,withafrequencyofjustover9.5percentwashavingasupportiveprincipal(Johnston,2012);amongotherthings,librarians’positiverelationshipwiththeirsuperiorinstillsasenseofmutualtrust,confidence,andmotivationthatgenerateshighachievementintechnologyintegration.Inthesamestudy9.5percentofparticipantsstatedthatopportunitiestogainaleadershiproleandassumemoreresponsibilitiesledtotheirsuccess.Theymentionedthattheirroleasaschoollibrarianhasbecomemorefulfillingthroughbothdesigningstaff-developmentworkshopsandservingonleadership,technology,andcurriculumcommitteesinschoolsandatthedistrictlevel(Johnston,2012).Accordingtothestudy,anequallyimportantenablerforschoollibrariansisthedesiretomakeadifferenceforstudentsandteachers(Johnston,2012);whenlibrariansembracemorally-basedmotivationstohelpothers,theybelievethattheyperformbetterintheirdesignatedrolewithintheirschoolcommunities.Otherfrequentlyreportedenablersfromthestudyincludethefollowing:professionaldevelopmentopportunities,senseofobligationtogetinvolved,commitmenttocontinualprofessionalgrowth,expertise,collaborativeteachers,professionalorganizations,andpersonalbeliefsandvalues(Johnston,2012).
InthesamePALMCenterstudy,schoollibrariansidentifiedthecorebarrierstotheirsuccess.Withafrequencyofnearly25.5percent,timewastheleadingbarrieridentified(Johnston,2012).Numerousschoollibrariansfeltthatwithmoretimetheycouldbetterinvestintheirpartnershipswithothereducators,enhancetheirrelationshipswithstudents,implementmoredesiredlibraryprograms,andbecomemoreknowledgeableontechnologyintegrationforteachingpurposes.Theyreportedthat,sincetoomuchtimeisspentonshelvingbooks,checkingbooksinandout,andcompletingpaperwork,thereisnotenoughtimetodevotetomoreconstructivetasks(Johnston,2012).Whileopportunitiestogainleadershipandtoundertakemoreresponsibilitieshavejointlysurfacedasanenabler,manyschoollibrariansalsorecognizethelackoftheseopportunitiesasamajorbarrier;theybelievethatexclusionfromtheseenrichingopportunitiesoftenhindersgrowth.“Unsupportiveprincipal”wasalsoidentifiedasabarrier,whichcorrespondswiththeaforementionedenablerofasupportiveprincipal(Johnston,2012).Otherkeybarriersthatschoollibrarians’mentionedincludedlackoffunding,inadequatestaffing,competitiveinstructionaltechnologists,aclimateofcompetitionwiththedistricttechnologydepartment,technologyresources,uncollaborativeteachers,andafixedschedule(Johnston,2012).
Digital Age Shifts Librarians’ Role
Technology,asacrucialelementofteachingandlearning,hassignificantlytransformededucationinthe21stcentury.Bothinandoutsideoftheclassroom,studentsareabletoutilizetechnologytoolsandresourcestoobtaininformationquickly,analyzeandsynthesizeit,andthenpresentitinaprofessionalmanner(Johnston,2012).Onceindividualsinsocietyunderstandhowtousetechnology,theymustthenadoptanewmindsetthatsupportstechnology’sroleinstimulating
56|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
morecreativityandmeaninginwhatisdone(Kuhlthau,2010).Thechanginginformationlandscapehasredefinedtheroleofschoollibrarians,givingthemnewopportunitiesforleadership;fromthefamiliaritywithelectronicdatabasestothecreationofpresentationsusingPowerPoint,librarianshaveanenormouspotentialtoleadintechnologyintegration(Johnston,2012).
Bringingtabletapplicationsande-booksintoaschoollibrarycreatesnewrolesforschoollibrarians.First,itrequiresthatlibrarianscurateapplicationofferingsforelementaryschoolstudents.Veryfeweducationappsarequality;appsneedtobeevaluatedforuserinterfacesandothercharacteristics.Childrenmayexperiencefrustrationandboredomunlesstheappisattherightlevelofdifficulty(Neumann&Neumann,2013).
E-booklibrariesalsoneedtobecarefullycuratedandorganized.Inadditiontopurchasingmaterialsthatarespecificallyneededforstudentsinaparticularschool,librariescanexpandtheresourcesavailabletostudentsbyparticipatingincooperativepurchasingagreementsandconsortia(AmericanAssociationofSchoolLibrarians[AASL],2013).Librariansalsoneedtodeterminewhethertheywillbuyaccesstosubscriptionservices,andifsowhichoneswillbestfittheirschool’sneedsandbudget.Importantly,schoollibrariesshouldhaveacomprehensiveandeasy-to-usecatalogueofresources.Afterall,spendingonelectronicresourcesisonlyjustifiediftheresourcesareactuallyusedbythestudents.Printmaterialsanddigitalmaterialsshouldbeintegratedinthecataloguesostudentscanfindtheinformationtheyarelookingforregardlessofitsformat.Tofurtherencourageuseofdigitalresources,librariesshouldmakesurethatstudent-owneddevicesareacceptedonschoolnetworkssothatlibrary-owneddigitalresourcescanbeviewedonwhateverdeviceastudentprefers(AASL,2013).In2013–14,nearly75percentofschoolmediacentersreportedthatstudentsaccessedlibrarye-booksonstudent-owneddevices(Sun,2014).
Beyondprovidingdigitalresources,librariesshouldtakeresponsibilityforteachingstudentshowtoeffectivelyusethem.Inadditiontocuratingtabletapplicationsinelementaryschools,librariesneedtoprovidescaffolding—encouragementforstudentstouseappscorrectlyandcreatively,andmodelingtheiruse(Neumann&Neumann,2013).Inlibrariesthatprovidee-books,librariansshouldhelpstudentswithcommonchallengesrelatedtotheiruse,includingreadability,highlighting,andaccessibility.InaNewYorkStatesurvey,74percentoflibrarymediaspecialistsprovidedguidancetostudentsintheuseofdigitalresourcesatleastonceperweek(Gretes,2013).
Ultimately,theroleofaschoollibrarianentailsoptimizingtheadvantagesofe-booksandtabletapplicationswhilemitigatingtheirdrawbacksthroughcuratingonlineresourcesandeducatingstudentsontheiruse.
Librarians’ Potential to Lead in Technology Integration
Withintheirschoolcommunities,schoollibrariansplayapivotalroleinhelpingtointegratetechnologyintostudents’educationalandprofessionaldevelopment.Librarians’academicbackgroundandtechnologicalexpertisegivethemgreatpotentialtolead.Best-practicelibrarymediaprogramsthriveinschoolswhereschoollibrariansactasinnovators,informationagents,andtechnologyintegrationleaders(Johnston,2012).Theyhavebroadknowledgeinlocatingand
57|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
evaluatinginformationusingextensiveresourcesinthelibrary,ontheinternet,inelectronicdatabases,andinthecommunity(Kuhlthau,2010).
Researchfindingspointtotheroleofthelibrarianasatechnologyleaderinschools.Notonlydoschoollibrariansdirectlyimpactstudentsthroughtheirleadership,buttheycanalsoprovideandsupporttechnologytrainingforteachers,othercolleagues,administrators,andparents;asleadingtechnologyfacilitators,librarianscanadministerprofessionaldevelopmentinareasrelatedtoinstructionalandtechnologyresourcestotheentirelearningcommunity(ISTE,n.d.).Technologyinclassroomsisonlyeffectiveifteachersarewelltrainedonitsuse.Librarianscanactivelycoachteachersonhowtousethetechnologyintheirclassroomsandserveasaresourceforanyadditionalhelpthatteachersmayneed(DigitalPromise).Asexpertsintechnology,librarianscanprovidetechnicalsupportforeducationalprograms,IWBs,andspecialWiFinetworksforstudent-owneddevicesinclassrooms.
Furthermore,librarianscanberesourcesforstudentsusingtechnologyintheclassroomandlibrary.Responsibilitiesofthemodernlibrarianoftenincludeteachingin-classlessonsandteachingresearchskillsdirectlytostudents(DigitalPromise).Outsideofformalclasstime,librariansshouldbeavailabletohelpmatchstudents’needsandinterestswithappropriateresources(Rosen,2014).
Havingendlessaccesstodigitalinformationresourcesforthewholelearningcommunityhelpsstudentstoimprovetheirlearningandremainacademicallyengaged(AASL,2010).TeachingtoreflectallISTENETSstandards,whichhelptomeasureproficiencyfortechnology’sintegrationintoeducation,schoollibrarianscaneducatestudentsonawide-rangeoflocal,state,andnationalcurriculum,technologystandards,andinformationliteracy(ISTE,n.d.).Thiseducationismeanttobothdevelopinformationskillsvitaltousingtechnologyasatoolforcurrentlearning,whilealsohelpingstudentsinthefuture“…toactively,safely,andethicallyparticipateinthedigitalculture”(Johnston,2012).Aseducatorswithasecurebackgroundintechnology,schoollibrarianshavearesponsibilitytohelppreparestudentsastheymoveforwardintotheirfuturecareers.
Concerns with Technology Integration
Althoughschoollibrarianshaveauniquepotentialtoleadintechnologyintegration,numerouseducatorsandcommunitymembershaveunfortunatelyneglectedtorecognizethispotential.Schoolcommunitiesarenotfullyutilizinglibrariansinthiscapacity,andasaresultlibrariansareunsurehowtotakeontheirnewroles(Johnston,2012).Manyfeelthattheyaretooinexperiencedinemergingtechnologies,suchassocial-networkingsites,blogs,wikis,andpodcasts,andthattheymustacquiretheappropriateknowledgepriortointegratingtechnologyintotheirstudents’education.Further,accordingtotheresearchofHughes-HassellandHanson-Baldauf,whenaskedhowtheyprefertolearntouseandapplytechnologytools,schoollibrarianspredominantlychosemethodsthatindicated“self-motivationandawillingnesstolearntechnologyontheirowntimetodeveloptheirexpertise”(Johnston,2012,p.22).Ifschoollibrarianshadmoretimetothemselves,manyofthemwouldpotentiallytakeadvantageofthisself-educatingapproach.
Besidestime,adequatefundingisanessentialenablertoschoollibrarians’success.Fundinginthisareaisusedforhardware,software,subscriptiondatabases,onlinetools,andotherdigital
58|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
resourcestosupportresearchandinquiry-basedlearning(ISTE,n.d.).Toaccountforconcernsrelatedtopurchasinge-contentandtechnology,budgetsandtheprocessesusedtodevelopthemneedtoevolvetobettersupportlibrarytechnology.AccordingtoAASL,traditionalpurchaseorderproceduresareoutdatedandnotsuitedtodigitalpurchases.Librariansneednewprocessestopayfordigitallibrarymaterials,suchase-booksandsubscriptionservices.Theprocessshouldbequickenoughforlibrarianstokeepconstantlyevolvingdigitalresourcesup-to-dateandflexibleenoughforlibrarianstobuynewresourcesastheyaredeveloped.Theyalsoneedcontinuousfundingfromschoolstoupdatedigitalcontentandtechnology(AmericanAssociationofSchoolLibrarians,2013).Itisimperativethatlibrarybudgetsarepreparedforthenewcostsoflibrarytechnologyandthatschoolsplanforthechangesinfundingneeds.
Further,thereareconcernsrelatedtothescopeofschoollibrarians’technologyintegrationinvolvement.Comparedtoleadingintechnologyrelatedactivitieswithintheirschoolbuildings,schoollibrarianshaveadmittedlyreportedmuchlowerlevelsofsuchinvolvementindistrict-widepolicymakingandinformationsharingwithpeersandcommunitymembers(Johnston,2012).
Impact Within the School Community
Althoughthecurrentdigitalagepresentsnovelleadershipopportunitiesforschoollibrarians,librariansmustcontinuetoalsoleadinthemoretraditional,non-technologicalcapacitiestoachievethefundamentalmissionandfulfilltheroleofschoollibrarian.Withintheschoolcommunity,theycancooperatewithparentsandcollaboratecloselywithteacherstodesignprogramsandconstructanenvironmentthatisconducivetoimprovedstudentlearningoutcomes.Schoollibrarianscanalsoserveonschoolimprovement,curriculum,andplanningcommitteesasinstructionalleaders(ISTE,n.d.).Insomecases,theyadditionallyserveontheirschools’decision-makingteamsandshareexpertisebypresentingatfaculty,parent,andschoolboardmeetings(AASL,2010).Schoollibrarianssometimesalsosuperviseandevaluatetheirsupportstaff,whichmayincludeeducationalassistants,computereducationassistants,studentassistants,andvolunteers.Alongwithengaginginin-personcommunication,schoollibrarianscanalsoplayaroleinmaintainingfrequentcommunicationtostakeholdersthroughaschoollibrarywebsite,parentnewsletters,emailexchanges,video/audiostreamingandpodcasts,andmore(AASL,2010).
Direct Influence on Students
Beyondtheclassroom,librarianshelptoempowerstudentstobecomebettercriticalthinkers,skillfulresearchers,ethicalusersofinformation,andenthusiasticreaders(AASL,2010).However,believingthatschoollibrariansplayatrivialroleinstudentachievement,severalschooldistrictshavecutfundingfornon-classroomteachingpositions(ISTE,n.d.).Thesedecisionsruncountertoevidenceindicatingthatcertifiedschoollibrariansandstronglibraryprogramsenhancepre-K–12students’successthroughouttheiracademiccareers(ISTE,n.d.).Forexample,accordingtoa2011studyusingdatafromtheNationalCenterforEducationStatistics,“...statesthatgainedlibrariansfrom2004–2005to2008–2009—suchasNewJersey,TennesseeandWyoming—showedsignificantlygreaterimprovementsinfourthgradereadingscoresthanstatesthatlostlibrarians,likeArizona,Massachusetts,andMichigan”(Kachel,2015).
59|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Statefundingcuts,though,haveheavilyimpactedlibrarians’presenceinschools.Overadecade,Ohiohaslostmorethansevenhundredschoollibrarypositions,whileCaliforniaretainstheworstratio—1-to-7,000librarians-to-students—ofanystateinthenation(Kachel,2015).Onemainreasonwhystatesarechoosingtodismisslibrariansandschoollibraryprogramsisbecausetheylegallycan.Insomestates,suchasPennsylvania,schoolsarenotevenrequiredtohavelibraries.Whilelibrariesarerequiredinprisons,barberandcosmetologyschools,andnursingprograms,theyareoptionalinpublicschools(Kachel,2015).Publicschoolshavetightbudgetsandmustfaceatoughacademicdecisionandunfortunatetradeoff;theymustdecidewhethertheywanttoterminatetheemploymentofteachers,whospendthemajorityoftheirtimewithstudentsintheclassroom,ortheemploymentoflibrarians,whoareoftenperceivedtobesupportstafftotheclassroomteachers(Santos,2011).
Althoughtechnologicaladvancementshavechangedthelandscapeofpublicschoolsandschoollibraries,librariansstillplayamajorroleinboththedigitalandnon-digitalcapacities.Throughcollectionandmaintenanceofmiscellaneousdigitalandprintedmaterialsandliteratureofvariousgenres,librariansexposestudentstoadiversearrayofperspectivesinavarietyoftopicsacrossmultipledisciplines.Theyinstillinstudentsthevaluesofbuildingonpriorknowledgewhilealsohelpingthemtoconstructnewknowledge(AASL,2010).
Accordingtotheideaofguidedinquiry,sometimesathirdmember,suchasateacherspecializinginmusic,reading,orart,contributestooptimalstudentlearning(Kuhlthau,2010).Thethree-membercoreteamcomposedofaclassroomteacher,schoollibrarian,andteacherspecialistprovideasynergeticapproachtovariousareasoflearning.Whenstudentslearnaboutinformationliteracy,socialskills,curriculumcontent,literacycompetence,andeventheprocessesoflearningthroughthecollectiveeffortoftheseeducators,theyabsorbknowledgethroughamuchmoreenrichinglearningexperience(Kuhlthau,2010).Schoollibrariansarecoremembersoftheseteams.Whiletheymayleadparticularlyinareasoftechnologyintegration,librarianscanalsocontributesignificantlytotheadvancementofstudenteducationalachievementinnon-technologicalcapacities.
Schoollibrariansalsohavetheresponsibilitytofullyunderstandthecopyrightandlicensingpoliciesthatprotectintellectualpropertyinthelibrary(AASL,2010).Theymustrelaytheirknowledgeoffairusetostudentssothatthey,too,canproperlymanagetheiruseofbothelectronicandnon-digitalsources.Alongwithoverseeinglibraryresourceuseandmanagement,insomecases,librarianscanalsosupervisepersonnelandfacilitiesforthedevelopmentandimplementationoflibraryprograms(AASL,2010).Theseandotherresponsibilitieshelpschoollibrariansexerciseeffectivemanagementprinciplesforstudents’bestinterests.
Summary of the Role and Impact of the School Librarian
Inavarietyofdifferentcapacities,schoollibrarianspositivelyimpactstudents,teachers,andentirelearningcommunities.Amongotherthings,havingasupportiveprincipalenablesthelibrariantosucceedintheirroles.Havinganinsufficientamountoftimetoimplementeffectivelibraryprogrammingisoftenconsideredtobetheleadingbarriertosuccess.Theadoptionofe-books,
60|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
databases,tabletapplications,andotherinnovativeclassroomtechnologieshavecreatednewrolesforlibrarianstofulfill.However,withsufficientresources,librarianscansucceedinbothtechnologyintegrationandinpracticingmoretraditionallibrarianroles.Schoolsthatchoosetocutfundingfromlibraries,whetherbychoiceorduetotightfinancialconstraints,unfortunatelydismissmanyoftheopportunitiesforstudentacademicgrowth.Theroleoftheschoollibrarianisoftheutmostimportance,anditshouldnotbeoverlooked.
School and Public Library Partnerships
Thecurrenteconomicclimate,andcorrespondingbudgetshortfalls,threatenscollections,staff,andprogramminginalllibraries.Increasingthecollaborationbetweenschoolandpubliclibrariescanleadtoenhancedstudentandcommunitylearningoutcomes.Despiteservingsimilarpopulations,historically,publicandschoollibrarieshaveoperatedasseparateentities.Someofthetrendsstillremaintruetoday.A2012surveyof559publiclibrariansconductedbytheSchoolLibraryJournalfoundthatonly30percentofrespondentscollaboratedwith“localschoolstocoordinatebookpurchasestosupportthecurriculum”andonly9percent“workeddirectlywithschoollibrariansandteachers”onhomeworkassignments(GirmscheidandMiller,2012).Emphasisoncollaborationexemplifiestheevolutionofschoolcurriculumreformandlibrarianship.Inaninformation-richsociety,improvedcollaborationwillgreatlyenhancethequalityofeducationandservicesofferedtothecommunityat-large.
Developing Partnerships
Collaborativerelationshipsdonotdevelopovernight.Thedevelopmentofsustainablepartnershipsreliesonthecapabilitiesoflibrariestoserveascentersforintergenerationallearningforfamiliesresidinginlocalandneighboringcommunities.Initiatingcontactcanbeassimpleasaschoollibrarianstoppingintoapubliclibraryandformallymeetingthestafftherebeforeadministrativelyseekingaformalpartnership.AsillustratedinNatalieZiarnik’sbookSchoolandPublicLibraries:DevelopingaNaturalAlliance,thesectiontofollowlaysoutfoundationalguidelinesthatcanassistinlaunchingaproductiveandcollaborativepartnership.Ziarnik’sworkidentifiesthreekeyprinciplesthatschoollibrarianscanutilizetobridgethepublic-andschool-librarydivide:
61|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Table2:ThreeKeyPrinciplestoBridgingthePublic-andSchool-LibraryDivide
ArrangingaVisit SustainingtheConnection ContinuingContact
Createalistofpotentialattendees/collaborators.
Findatimethatisconvenientforbothschoolandpubliclibrarians.
Distributepacketsofinformationregardingyourlibraryorschool.
Duringthevisit,offeraninformaltourofyourfacility.
Becomeacquaintedwitheachcolleague’sschedule.
Considerwhichpartsofthecollaborativeeffortwillmakeefficientuseofresourcesandexpertise.
Bepracticalandmaintainlevelexpectations.Collaborativeeffortsshouldfitwithinthemissionsofinvolvedinstitutions.
Establishamonthlynewsletterofrelevantresourcesandongoinginstitutionalevents.
Maintainregularinteractiontoensurebetterserviceforstudents.
Establishsummerreadingprogramstokeeptheschoolandpubliclibraryconnectedthroughoutthesummer.
Source:Ziarnik, N. (2003). School and Public Libraries: Developing the Natural Alliance. American Library Associations. Chicago, IL
Successfulcommunicativeoutreacheffortsassistinestablishingproductiverelationships.Takinganinformalapproach,schoollibrariansshoulddiscusstheanticipatedbenefitsofestablishedpartnershipswithadministrationbeforecontactingpotentialcollaborators.Additionally,identifyingapointofcontact,understandingthetargetpopulation,andoutliningpotentialcollaborativeareasshouldbeexploredpriortothisengagement.Recognizingthepopulationtheseinstitutionsserveandtheservicestheyofferhelpsintheconstructionofaformalrelationship.Initiatingcontactcantakeplacethroughanumberofdifferentavenues(email,telephone,physicalvisits)dependingonthepubliclibrarian’savailability.Emailsdetailingcurrentendeavors,upcomingevents,andotherinitiativesestablishaformalcommunicationtrail.Informationgleanedfromreceivednotificationsmaysparkfutureinterestincollaborativeopportunities.Fromthepubliclibrary’sperspective,internalconsultationamongstaffregardingservicescurrentlyprovidedtolocalschoolscanclarifyareaswhereadditionalsupporteffortscanbedirected.
Managing Partnerships
Publicandschoollibrarypartnershipsplayanintegralroleinaddressingtheneedsofallstudentlearners.Whilepreliminaryoutreachmeasureswereidentifiedintheprevioussection,smallinitialcollaborativepartnershipscanhelpin“establishingabasiccooperativerelationshipbetweenschoolandpubliclibraries”(Squires,2009).Takingonsubstantialprojectsintheearlystagesofthepartnershipcanleadtodisastrousresults,butestablishinganon-goingandconsistentdialoguebetweenlibrariescanaccomplishnoteworthyprojectswithminimaleffort.Thisshared-approachtoeducationbetweenschoolandpubliclibrariesreallocatesresourcestocomplementstudents’curriculumandliteracyneeds.
62|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Thedevelopmentofsustainablecollaborativeeffortsisdependentonthepromotionofavailablelibraryresources.Publicandschoollibrariesshouldperiodicallyshareinformationregardingupcomingevents,programs,andservicesinanefforttoidentifyareaswherecollaborationcanbebeneficial.Throughthepostingofinformativeflyersinlocalschools,advertisementofmonthlyevents,ordevelopmentofaninternalnewsletter,studentsandfamiliescanbeprovidedtheopportunitytolearnmoreaboutdailylibraryhappenings.Althoughtheoverallsuccessofeventscanbehardtopredict,schoollibrariescanincentivizeparticipationinjoint-venturesbyofferingextracreditforaparticularassignment.
Coordinatingschoolcurriculumwithlibraryprogramscanprovideadditionalsupportforstudentsthroughtheutilizationofavailableresources.AsnotedbyLindaWunderlin,mediaspecialistatNewHavenMiddleSchoolinIndiana:
Whenwehaveaprojecttopicgoingon,Isendanemailtomycontactatthelocalpubliclibrary.Sheputstogetheracollection,sothatwhenthekidscomelooking,theyaredirectedtothealreadypulledcollection.(Squires,2009)
Providingthepubliclibrarywithadequatetimetoalign,plan,andpromoteeventstothelargercommunityisvitalinthesuccessofcollaborativeinitiatives.Similarly,establishingahomeworkclubwithinthelocallibrarycanprovideanencouragingspaceforlearning.ExamplessuchastheTallTreeInitiativeinWestchesterCounty,N.Y.,wherestudentsreceivedhomeworkassistancefromteachersemployedpart-timebythelibrary,enrichestheeducationallearningenvironmentforchildren(Rosenberg,1998).Areasfacingbudgetconstraintscanactivelyrecruitcommunityvolunteersandsupporttocarryoutsimilarefforts.
Resource Sharing
Librariansmaintainasignificantroleinsuccessfulresourcesharingbetweenpublicandschoollibraries.Resourcesharing,asdescribedbyAllenKent,entails:
Amodeofoperationwherebylibraryfunctionsaresharedincommonbyanumberoflibraries.Thegoalsaretoprovideapositiveneteffect:(a)onthelibraryuserintermsofaccesstomorematerialsorservices,and/or(b)onthelibrarybudgetintermsofcost,ormuchmoreservicesatlesscostthanifundertakenindividually.(Kent,1978)
Morerecently,theavailabilityofdatainthe“InformationRevolution”hasforcedlibrariestoundertakeinnovativestrategiesaimedatincreasingtheaccessstudentshavetoavarietyofdatabasesandonlineresources.Establishedthroughaconsortiumofnetworks,resourcesharingcentralizesthelocationandavailabilityofliteraturematerialsbyreducingcommunicationgapsbetweenlibrariesandcostsbyincreasingpurchasingpower.Resourcesharingservices,whichincludetheInterlibraryLoan(ILL),bookexchanges,andonlineshared-catalog,allowforthephysicalandvirtualsharingofrequestedmaterials.
Continuouslydevelopingwaystobetterservetheiraudience,suchinitiativesprovidean“Easywaytoexpandtheresourcesoftheschoollibrarymediacenterwithlittleeffort,andincreasecirculationofthepubliclibrary’scollection”(Fitzgibbons,2000).Moreover,technologicaladvancementshave
63|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
expandedlibrarynetworksbeyondthewallsthatpreviouslyconfinedthem.Ruralareas,withlimitedaccesstopubliclibrarybranches,arenowabletoutilizeonlinedatabases,catalogues,ande-collectionsthroughthevirtuallinkageofpublicandcollegiatelibraryinstitutions.Librariesnowpossessaccesstomoreresourcesthanpreviouslyavailable,whileminimizingtheinformationcostassociatedwithdeliveryoflibraryservicesinpreparationofforecastedbudgetconstraints.
Collaboration in Practice: Denver Public Library and the Denver Public Schools
Collaborationassistsinbothhelpingexpandthetypesofprogramslibrariesprovideandmodernizingtheiravailablecollections.Collaborativeeffortstoenhancethedistrict-wideeducationalgoalsbetweentheDenverPublicLibrary(DPL)andtheDenverPublicSchools(DPS)officiallybeganwiththeattainmentofa$262,306LibraryServicesandTechnologyAct(LSTA)grantin2007(ColoradoStateLibrary,2007).Duringatwo-yearperiod,schoollibrarians,mediaspecialists,andteachers“formedprofessionallearningcommunities”tobetterinformandsharetheirinsightregardinghowtobetterservetheneedsoftheirstudents(ColoradoStateLibrary,2007).Recognizingthat34percentofDenver’sK–12studentsareEnglishlanguagelearners,schoollibrariespartneredwithlocalnonprofitstoensurethatyoungchildrencouldhaveaccesstoanumberofculturallyrelevantexperiencesbyprovidingfreeadmissiontovenuessuchastheDenverBotanicalGardensandtheColoradoBallet(Murvosh,2013).Inaddition,thiscollaborationledtothecreationoftheMyDenverCard,incooperationwithUnitedHealthcare,whichservesasbothalibrarycardandrecreationpasstoanumberofongoingeventsyear-round(CityandCountyofDenver,2015).Despitethegrantsconclusionin2009,thecityhascontinuedtosupportsimilarinitiatives.
Limitless Libraries: The Nashville Public Library and Metro Nashville Public Schools
Lookingforwaystobetterleveragethecity’sresources,NashvilleMayorKarlDeanrecommendedaformalpartnershipbetweentheNashvillePublicLibrary(NPL)andMetroNashvillePublicSchools(MNPS)calledLimitlessLibraries.Thecollaborativeprogram,establishedin2009,has“helpedmodernizeandexpandschoolcollectionsbyweedingoutoutdatedbooksandbyusingthecity’spurchasingpowertoefficientlyacquirenewmaterial”(Bengel,2013).Today,LimitlessLibrariesserves81,000publicstudentsthroughoutall128MNPSschools.NPLandMNPSworktogetherincoordinatingbookpurchases,assessingcurrentcollections,andalleviatingthedigitaldivide,inanareawhere90percentofthedistrict’sstudentsareeligibleforfreeandreducedpricelunch.
AreportcommissionedbytheStateofTennesseetoanalyzehowstudentsuseandbenefitfromLimitlessLibrariesproducedthefollowingfindings(Lance,Rodney,andSchwarz,2013):
• SincetheimplementationofLimitlessLibraries,circulationattheschoolshasincreased79percent.
• Today,thereare28,007RegisteredLimitlessLibrariesUsers,ofwhich,nearly43percentofthosestudentshadneverhadalibrarycardbefore.
64|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
• Usersweremorelikelythannon-userstobesuccessfulinmeetingthestate’stestedacademicstandards.
Theprogramalsoledtonearly$271,000inestimatedsavingsduetodiscountsnegotiatedwithvendors(UrbanLibrariesCouncil,2016).Suchfindingsconfirmtheimportanceofcollaborativeinitiativesinbothexpandingaccessandincreasingtheutilizationoflibraryresources.ThesuccessofLimitlessLibraryparticipantsinmeetingthestateacademicstandardsbyincreasingthenumberofqualityitemsperstudentsignifiestheusefulnessofdynamicpartnerships(Bengel,2014).
Summary of Developing and Managing Partnerships
Thissectionoutlinedthetoolsneededtocreate,develop,andmaintainpartnershipsbetweenschoolandpubliclibraries.Collaborationcanonlyoccurwhenbothpartiesseethevalueinworkingtogethertoachieveacommongoal.Craftingtimelinestocarryoutsuchinitiativeswillassistin achievingdesiredoutcomes.Recognizingthepotentialchallengesinincreasingcooperativeefforts,aninternaldiscussionwithschooladministrationandleadershipshouldbeconductedpriortoformallyengagingwithpotentialcollaborators.Schoolandpubliclibrariesmustrealizethattheyarenotcompetitors,butrather,membersofthesameteam.Establishingamutuallybeneficialpartnershipcansignificantlyimprovetheeffectivenesswithwhichstudentsareserved—leadingtoimprovedlearningoutcomes(Ziarnik,2003).
Conclusion
Inclosing,theresearchprovidedconveysacompellingargumentofthepositiveimpactthatqualityschoollibrariesandcertifiedlibrarianscanhaveonstudentlearningoutcomes.Thisliteraturereviewincludesacomprehensiveexaminationofthecharacteristicsofqualityschoollibrariesandhowtheyimpactstudentperformance;theroleoftheschoollibrarian;librarytechnology;andthedevelopmentofpartnershipsbetweenschoolandpubliclibraries.Astheresearchhasshown,improvedlearningoutcomesfromstudentscanonlyberealizedifadequatesupportisprovidedtoschoollibraries.Providingthissupportgivesstudentsaccesstoaninfiniteamountofinformation,alongwiththeguidanceandencouragementoftrainedschoollibrarians.
65|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Bibliography
AboutUDLib/Search.(2015).RetrievedOct2015,fromUDLib/Search:http://udlibsearch.lib.udel.edu/about/
Albright,M.(2015,May20).Insomeclasses,cellphonesarewelcome.RetrievedOct2015,fromDelawareonline:http://www.delawareonline.com/story/news/local/2015/05/19/classes-cell-phones-welcome/27603395/
Allington,R.,McGill-FrazenA.,CamilliG.,WilliamsL.,GraffJ.,ZeigJ.,ZmachC.,&NowakR.(2010).AddressingSummerReadingSetbackAmongEconomicallyDisadvantagedElementaryStudents.ReadingPsychology,(31)5,411-427
AmericanLibraryAssociation[ALA].(2015a).AASL-CAEPSchoolLibrarianshipEducationPrograms.Retrievedfromhttp://www.ala.org/aasl/education/ncate/programs
AmericanLibraryAssociation[ALA].(2015b).Libraryeducation&licensing.Retrievedfromhttp://www.ala.org/aasl/education/recruitment/licensing
AmericanAssociationofSchoolLibrarians.(2013,June28).PositionStatementonDigitalContentandE-booksinSchoolLibraryCollections.Retrieved2015Oct,fromAmericanAssociationofSchoolLibrarians:http://www.ala.org/aasl/advocacy/resources/statements/digital-content
AmericanAssociationofSchoolLibraries[AASL].(2010).Samplejobdescription,title:schoollibrarian.Retrievedfromhttp://www.ala.org/aasl/sites/ala.org.aasl/files/content/guidelinesandstandards/learning4life/resources/sample_job_description_L4L.pdf
Barack,L.(2014).SLJ's2014SpendingSurvey:SavvyLibrariansAreDoingMorewithLess.SchoolLibraryJournal.Retrievedfromhttp://www.slj.com/2014/04/budgets-funding/sljs-2014-spending-survey-savvy-librarians-are-doing-more-with-less/#_
Baumbach,D.,Miller,L,.(2006)LessisMore:APracticalGuidetoWeedingSchoolLibraryCollections.AmericanLibraryAssociation.Chicago,IL.
Baumbach,D.J.(2002).MakingtheGrade:TheStatusofSchoolLibraryMediaCentersintheSunshineStateandHowTheyContributetoStudentAchievement.SaltLakeCity,UT.HiWillowResearchandPublishing
Bengel,T.(2014).LimitlessLibraries.UrbanLibrariesCouncil.Washington,DC
Bengel,T.(2013).LibrarieswithNoBounds:HowLimitlessLibrariestransformedNashvillePublicSchools’libraries.SchoolLibraryJournal.NewYork,NY
Bridges,L.(2013).MakeEveryStudentCount:HowCollaborationAmongFamilies,Schools,andCommunitiesEnsuresStudentSuccess.ScholasticFamilyandCommunityEngagement.Retrievedfromhttp://teacher.scholastic.com/products/face/pdf/research-compendium/Compendium.pdf
66|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Brigham,T.(2013).SmartBoards:AReemergingTechnology.MedicalReferenceServicesQuarterly,32(2),194-202.
Brush,T.,&Hew,K.(2007,June).IntegratingTechnologyintoK–12TeachingandLearning:CurrentKnowledgeGapsand.EducationalTechnologyResearchandDevelopment,55(3),223-252.
Brzozowski,C.(2015,April13).K–12librarians’rolesshifttomeetdigitaldemands.EducationWeek.RetrievedApril13,2015,fromhttp://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2015/04/15/k-12-librarians-roles-shift-to-meet-digital.html
Cheung,A.,&Slavin,R.(2013).TheeffectivenessofeducationaltechnologyapplicationsforenhancingmathematicsachievementinK–12classrooms:Ameta-analysis.EducationalResearchReview,9,88-113.
Cheung,A.,&Slavin,R.(2012).Howfeaturesofeducationaltechnologyapplicationsaffectstudentreadingoutcomes:Ameta-analysis.EducationalResearchReview,7(3),198-215.
CityandCountyofDenver.(2015).MyDenverCard.OfficeofChildren’sAffairs.DenverCO
Coker,E.CertifiedTeacher-Librarians,LibraryQualityandStudentAchievementinWashingtonStatePublicSchools.Edmonds,WA.WashingtonLibraryMediaAssociation.RetrievedDecember1,2015,https://wala.memberclicks.net/assets/WLMA/Advocacy/wsslit%20exec%20summary%204.7.15.pdf
ColoradoStateLibrary.(2007).2007/2008LSTAGrant.ColoradoDepartmentofEducation.Denver,CO
Davidson,A.,&Carliner,S.(2013).HandbookofResearchonEducationalCommunicationsandTechnology.Ine-BooksforEducationalUses(pp.713-722).NewYork:Springer.
Davis,D.(2009).TheConditionofU.S.Libraries:SchoolLibraryTrends,1999-2009.ALAOfficeofResearchandStatistics.Retrievedfromhttp://www.ala.org/research/sites/ala.org.research/files/content/librarystats/librarymediacenter/Condition_of_Libraries_1999.20.pdf
DelawareDepartmentofEducation.(2016).InDelawareSchoolProfiles.Retrievedfromhttp://profiles.doe.k12.de.us/schoolprofiles/State/Default.aspx
DelawareGeneralAssembly.(2015)SenateConcurrentResolution22:EstablishingaTaskForcetoStudyEducationalTechnologyandUpdatetheStateEducationTechnologyPlanRetrievedfromhttp://legis.delaware.gov/LIS/lis148.nsf/vwLegislation/SCR+22/$file/legis.html?open
DelawareGeneralAssembly(2015,May28).Legislation:HouseBill152.RetrievedfromDelaware:http://legis.delaware.gov/LIS/lis148.nsf/d0089be0dea91f34852569d6004dedbb/67491bc754cfa75285257e44005bab49?OpenDocument
67|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
DelawareSchoolLibrariesCouncil.(2013).AnnualReport.DelawareSchoolLibrariesCouncil.Retrievedfromhttp://libraries.delaware.gov/planning/pdfs/COSLAnnualReport2013_web.pdf
DigitalPromise.(n.d.).TheNewLibrarian:LeadersintheDigitalAge.RetrievedOctober2015,fromDigitalPromise:http://www.digitalpromise.org/blog/entry/teacher-librarians-chart-a-new-course-in-vancouver-public-schools
DiGregorio,P.,&Sobel-Lojeski,K.(2009-2010).TheEffectsofInteractiveWhiteboards(IWBs)onStudentPerformanceandLearning:ALiteratureReview.JournalofEducationalTechnologySystems,38(3),255-312.
Doll,C.(1992).SchoolLibraryMediaCenters:TheHumanEnvironment.SchoolLibraryMediaQuarterly,20(4).Retrievedfromhttp://www.ala.org/aasl/sites/ala.org.aasl/files/content/aaslpubsandjournals/slr/edchoice/SLMQ_SchoolLibraryMediaCenters_InfoPower.pdf
Dow,M.,McMahon-Lakin,J.&Court,S.(2012)SchoolLibrarianStaffingLevelsandStudentAchievementasRepresentedin2006-2009KansasAnnualYearlyProgressData.SchoolLibraryResearchJournal.
Dow,M.,&McMahon-Lakin,J.2012.“SchoolLibrarianStaffingLevelsandStudentAchievementasRepresentedin2006–2009KansasAnnualYearlyProgressData”,AmericanAssociationofSchoolLibrarians.http://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ994364
Enis,M.,&Bayliss,S.(n.d.).SLJ’sSchoolEbookMarketDirectory.RetrievedOct2015,fromSchoolLibraryJournal:http://www.slj.com/resources/sljs-school-ebook-market-directory/#
EnochPrattFreeLibrary.(n.d.).Databases.RetrievedfromEnochPrattFreeLibrary:http://www.prattlibrary.org/research/database/index.aspx?id=39810
Fingal,D.(2014,June10).Wanttoknowwhatstudentsthink?Thislibrarianaskedthem!RetrievedOctober2015,fromInternationalSocietyforTechnologyinEducation:https://www.iste.org/explore/articledetail?articleid=33
Fitzgibbons,S.(2000).SchoolandPublicLibraryRelationships:EssentialIngredientsinImplementingEducationalReformsandImprovingStudentLearning.AmericanAssociationofSchoolLibrarians.Chicago,IL.
Francis,B.,Lance,K.,&Lietzau,Z.(2010,November).SchoolLibrariansContinuetoHelpStudentsAchieveStandards:TheThirdColoradoStudy(2010).(CloserLookReport).Denver,CO.ColoradoStateLibrary,LibraryResearchService.RetrievedDecember1,2015,http://www.lrs.org/documents/closer_look/CO3_2010_Closer_Look_Report.pdf
Garmer,A.(2014,October).RisingtotheChallenge:Re-EnvisioningPublicLibraries.AspenInstitute.Washington,D.C.
68|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Gersh,L.(2013,July29).TheVelocityOfObsolescence.Retrieved2015Oct,fromForbes:http://www.forbes.com/sites/lewisgersh/2013/07/29/the-velocity-of-obsolescence/
Girmscheid,L.,&Miller,R,(2012).ItTakesTwo:TheNeedforTighterCollaborationbetweenSchoolandPublicLibrarians.SchoolLibraryJournal.NewYork,NY.
Gretes,F.(2013,August)SchoolLibraryImpactStudies:AReviewofFindingsandGuidetoSources.NewYork,NY.GretesResearchServices.RetrievedDecember2,2015,http://c.ymcdn.com/sites/www.palibraries.org/resource/collection/FAAEA358-CF27-4976-889B-2F95015B1AEC/School_Libraries_at_Risk_-_Library-Impact-Studies.pdf
Hughes-Hassell,S.,Brasfield,A.,&Dupree,D.,MakingtheMostofProfessionalLearning Communities.KnowledgeQuest,v41n2p30-37Nov-Dec2012InternationalSocietyforTechnologyinEducation[ISTE].(n.d.)Theroleofschoollibrariansin
promotingtheuseofeducationaltechnologies.RetrievedNovember15,2015,fromhttp://www.iste.org/docs/pdfs/the-role-of-school-librarians-in-promoting-the-use-of-educational-technologies_9-10.pdf?sfvrsn=2
Johnston,M.(2012).Schoollibrariansastechnologyintegrationleaders:enablersandbarrierstoleadershipenactment.SchoolLibraryResearch:ResearchJournaloftheAmericanAssociationofSchoolLibrarians,15,1-33.Retrievedfromhttp://www.ala.org/aasl/sites/ala.org.aasl/files/content/aaslpubsandjournals/slr/vol15/SLR_School_Librarians_as_Technology_Integration_Leaders_V15.pdf
Kachel,D.(2015,July13).Thecalamityofthedisappearingschoollibraries.TheConversationUS,Inc.RetrievedNovember16,2015,fromhttp://theconversation.com/the-calamity-of-the-disappearing-school-libraries-44498
Kachel,D.(2013).SchoolLibraryResearchSummarized:AGraduateClassProject.Mansfield,PA.SchoolLibraryandInformationTechnologyDepartmentatMansfieldUniversity.RetrievedDecember1,2015,http://sl-it.mansfield.edu/upload/MU-LibAdvoBklt2013.pdf
Kent,A.(1978).EncyclopediaofLibraryandInformationScience.25(NewYork:Dekker,1978),295
Klinger,D.(2009).ExemplarySchoolLibrariesinOntario.Toronto:TheOntarioLibraryAssociation.Retrievedfromhttp://www.peopleforeducation.ca/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/Exemplary-School-Libraries-in-Ontario.pdf
Krashen,S.,Lee,S.,&McQuillan,J.,(2012)IstheLibraryImportant?MultivariateStudiesattheNationalandInternationalLevel.JournalofLanguageandLiteracyEducation.8(1)26-36
Krashen,S.(2004).ThePowerofReading.Portsmouth,NH.Heinemann.
Kroski,E.(2013,February27).10GreatTechnologyInitiativesforYourLibrary.RetrievedOct2015,fromAmericanLibraries:http://americanlibrariesmagazine.org/2013/02/27/10-great-technology-initiatives-for-your-library/
69|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Kuhlthau,C.(2010).Guidedinquiry:schoollibrariesinthe21stcentury.SchoolLibrariesWorldwide,16(1),17-28.Retrievedfromhttps://comminfo.rutgers.edu/~kuhlthau/docs/GI-School-Librarians-in-the-21-Century.pdf
Lance,K.,Rodney,M.,&Schwarz,B.(2013)LimitlessLibraries:HowStudentsUseandBenefitfromLimitlessLibraries.RSLResearchGroup.Nashville,TN
Lance,K.,&Schwarz,B.(2012,October).HowPennsylvaniaSchoolLibrariesPayOff:InvestmentsinStudentAchievementandAcademicStandards.Louisville,CO.RSLResearchGroup.RetrievedDecember1,2015,http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED543418.pdf
Lance,K.,Schwarz,B.,&Rodney,M.(2014).HowLibrariesTransformSchoolsbyContributingtoStudentSuccess:EvidenceLinkingSouthCarolinaSchoolLibrariesandPASS&HSAPResults.Columbia,SC:SouthCarolinaAssociationofSchoolLibraries.http://www.scasl.net/the-south-carolina-impact-study
Lance,K.,Rodney,M.,&Schwarz,B.,(2010),TheIdahoSchoolLibraryImpactStudy:HowIdahoLibrarians,Teachers,andAdministratorsCollaborateforStudentSuccess
Lance,K.,&Hofschire,L.(2012,January).ChangeinSchoolLibrarianStaffingLinkedwithChangeinCSAPReadingPerformance,2005to2011.Denver,CO.ColoradoStateLibrary,LibraryResearchService.RetrievedDecember1,2015,http://www.lrs.org/documents/closer_look/CO4_2012_Closer_Look_Report.pdf
Lance,K.andHofschireL.(2011,September).SomethingtoShoutAbout:NewResearchShowsthatMoreLibrariansMeansHigherReadingScores.TheSchoolLibraryJournal.RetrievedDecember1,2015,http://www.slj.com/2011/09/industry-news/something-to-shout-about-new-research-shows-that-more-librarians-means-higher-reading-scores/
Lance,K.,Rodney,M.,&Russell,B.(2007)HowStudents,Teachers,andPrincipalsBenefitfromStrongSchoolLibraries:TheIndianaStudy—2007.Indianapolis,IN.AssociationforIndianaMediaEducators.RetrievedDecember1,2015,http://c.ymcdn.com/sites/www.ilfonline.org/resource/resmgr/aisle/infinalreportnextsteps.pdf
Lance,K.,Rodney,M.,&Hamilton-Pennell,C.(2005)PowerfulLibrariesMakePowerfulLearners.TheIllinoisStudy.Canton,IL.IllinoisSchoolLibraryMediaAssociation.RetrievedDecember1,2015,https://www.islma.org/pdf/ILStudy2.pdf
Lance,K.,Rodney,M.,&Hamilton-Pennell,C.(2002).HowSchoolLibrariansImproveOutcomesforChildren:TheNewMexicoStudy.SantaFe,NM.NewMexicoStateLibrary.
Lance,C.,Rodney,M.,&Hamilton-Pennell,C.,(2000).MeasuringUptoStandards:TheImpactofSchoolLibraryProgramsandInformationLiteracyinPennsylvaniaSchools.Greensburg,PA.PennsylvaniaCitizensforBetterLibraries.PennsylvaniaDepartmentofEducation
70|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Lindsay,J.(2010,August).Children’sAccesstoPrintMaterialandEducation-RelatedOutcomes:FindingsfromaMeta-AnalyticReview.LearningPointAssociates.Naperville,IL.Retrievedfromhttp://static1.squarespace.com/static/5731ee0840261d67c7155483/t/5767517d29687f6102b04f75/1466388897631/Lindsay_Children%27s+Access+to+Print+Material+and+Education-Related+Outcomes_2010.pdf
Lynch,G.(2015,August25).MeetKristinaHolzweiss,SLJ’s2015SchoolLibrarianoftheYear.SchoolLibraryJournal.RetrievedNovember16,2015,fromhttp://www.slj.com/2015/08/industry-news/meet-kristina-holzweiss-sljs-2015-school-librarian-of-the-year/
Marcum,E.(2012,November).TheCognitiveDisadvantagesofE-Books.AALLSpectrum,pp.26-27.
McGill-Franzen,A.,&Allington,R.(2001).LostSummers:ForSomeChildren,FewBooksandFewOpportunitiestoRead.TheCenterforSummerLearningatJohnsHopkinsUniversity.Baltimore,MD
Michaelson,E.(2014,April10).StellarDatabases:SLJReaders’FavoritesandOtherEssentialElectronicResources.RetrievedOct2015,fromTheDigitalShift:http://www.thedigitalshift.com/2014/04/metadata/stellar-databases-slj-readers-favorites-essential-electronic-resources/
Miller,L.(2015,December).OfficeoftheViceProvost,UniversityofDelaware.(A.Keleher,Interviewer)
Murvosh,M.(2013).PartnersinSuccess:Whenschoolandpubliclibrariansjoinforces,kidswin.SchoolLibraryJournal.NewYork,NY
NationalAssessmentofEducationalProgress.(2015)Nation’sReportCard.Retrievedfromhttp://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/mathematics/
NationalAssessmentofEducationalProgress.(2015)Nation’sReportCard.Retrievedfromhttp://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/reading/
NationalBoardforProfessionalTeachingStandards.(2012).LibraryMediaStandards.NationalBoardforProfessionalTeachingStandards.Retrievedfromhttp://www.nbpts.org/sites/default/files/documents/certificates/nbpts-certificate-cya-lm-standards.pdf
NationalCouncilforAccreditationofTeacherEducation[NCATE].(2010,October24).ALA/AASLstandardsforinitialpreparationofschoollibrarians(2010).Retrievedfromhttp://www.ala.org/aasl/sites/ala.org.aasl/files/content/aasleducation/schoollibrary/2010_standards_with_rubrics_and_statements_1-31-11.pdf
Nelson,C.(2012).WhateBooksMeanforSchoolLibraries:Part1.RetrievedOct2015,fromEducationWorld:http://www.educationworld.com/a_tech/how-a-school-library-has-embraced-ebooks.shtml
71|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Neuman,S.,Moland,N.,(2016).BookDeserts.TheConsequencesofIncomeSegregationonChildren’sAccesstoPrint.UrbanEducation.1-22
Neumann,M.,&Neumann,D.(2013).TouchScreenTabletsandEmergentLiteracy.EarlyChildhoodEducationJournal,231-239.
NewYorkComprehensiveCenter.(2011,October)InformationalBrief:ImpactofSchoolLibrariesonStudentAchievement.NewYork,NY.NewYorkComprehensiveCenter.RetrievedDecember2,2015,http://www.nysl.nysed.gov/libdev/nyla/nycc_school_library_brief.pdf
OfficeofCommonwealthLibraries.(2011).GuidelinesForPennsylvaniaSchoolLibraryPrograms.PennsylvaniaDepartmentofEducation.Retrievedfromhttp://www.psla.org/assets/Documents/Publications/PDE-Documents/PDE20Guide20For20School20Libraries20201120FINAL.pdf
ProgramforInternationalStudentAssessment.(2014).PISA2012ResultsinFocus:What15-Year-Oldsknowandwhattheycandowithwhattheyknow.OrganisationforEconomicCo-operationandDevelopment.Retrievedfromhttps://www.oecd.org/pisa/keyfindings/pisa-2012-results-overview.pdf
Pascopella,A.(2005,January).HeartoftheSchool.RetrievedfromDistrictAdministration:http://www.districtadministration.com/article/heart-school
Petrilli,M.,&Finn,C.,(2015,April)CollegePreparednessOvertheYears,AccordingtoNAEP.ThomasB.FordhamInstitute.Retrievedfromhttps://edexcellence.net/articles/college-preparedness-over-the-years-according-to-naep
Pribesh,S.,Gavigan,K.,&Dickinson,G.(2011).TheAccessGap:PovertyandCharacteristicsofSchoolLibraryMediaCenters.TheLibrary.81(2),143-160.
Queen’sUniversityandPeopleforEducation.(2006,April).SchoolLibrariesandStudentAchievementinOntario.Toronto,ON.TheOntarioLibraryAssociation.RetrievedDecember1,2015,http://www.peopleforeducation.ca/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/School-Libraries-2006.pdf
Roman,S.,Carran,D.,&Fiore,C.(2010).TheDominicanStudy:PublicLibrarySummerReadingProgramsClosetheReadingGapU.S.InstituteofMuseumandLibraryServices.DominicanUniversityGraduateSchool.RiverForest,IL
Rosen,R.(2014,June18).DigitalResourcesinSchoolLibraries:APublisher'sProspective.RetrievedOct2015,fromAmericanLibraries:http://americanlibrariesmagazine.org/2014/06/18/digital-resources-in-school-libraries/
Rosenberg,M.(1998).HelpingStudentMineLibraryStacks.NewYorkTimes,NewYork,NY.
72|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Russell,M.,Bebell,D.,&Higgins,J.(n.d.).LaptopLearning:AComparisonofTeachingandLearninginUpperElementaryClassroomsEquippedWithSharedCartsofLaptopsandPermanent1:1Laptops.RetrievedOct2015,fromTechnologyandAssesmentStudyCollaborative:http://www.bc.edu/research/intasc/PDF/Andover1to1.pdf
Santos,F.(2011,June24).Inleantimes,schoolssqueezeoutlibrarians.NewYorkTimes.RetrievedNovember14,2015,fromhttp://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/25/nyregion/schools-eliminating-librarians-as-budgets-shrink.html?_r=0
Scholastic.(2015).2016EditionSchoolLibrariesWork!ACompendiumofResearchSupportingtheEffectivenessofSchoolLibraries.NewYork,NY.Scholastic,Inc.
Scholastic.(2014).KidsandFamilyreadingReport:5thEdition.NewYork,NY:Scholastic,Inc.RetrievedDecember1,2015,http://www.scholastic.com/readingreport/Scholastic-KidsAndFamilyReadingReport-5thEdition.pdf?v=100
ScholasticandBillandMelindaGatesFoundation.(2010).PrimarySources:America’sTeachersonAmerica’sSchools.NewYork,NY:Scholastic,Inc.RetrievedDecember1,2015,http://www.scholastic.com/primarysources/pdfs/Scholastic_Gates_0310.pdf
SchoolLibraryJournal.(2015).SLJ’sschoollibrarianoftheyear.RetrievedNovember16,2015,fromhttp://www.slj.com/awards/school-librarian-of-the-year/
SchoolLibraryJournal.(2013).E-BookUsageinU.S.Schools(K–12)LibrariesFourthAnnualSurvey.SchoolLibraryJournal.
Schultz-Jones,B.,&Ledbetter,C.(2010).Investigatingthirdthroughsixthgradestudents’perceptionsofschoollibrarylearningenvironments.ResearchPaperacceptedfortheProceedingsoftheAmericanEducationalResearchAssociation(AERA)AnnualMeeting,Denver,Colorado,April30-May4,2010.
Schultz-Jones,B.,&Ledbetter,C.(2009).Schoollibrariesaslearningenvironments:Examiningelementaryandmiddleschoolstudents’perceptions.ResearchPaperintheProceedingsof
the13InternationalForumonResearchinSchoolLibrarianshipatthe38InternationalAssociationofSchoolLibrarianshipAnnualConference,Padua,Italy,September1-4,2009.
Smith,E.(2006,January).StudentLearningthroughWisconsinSchoolLibraryMediaCenters:CaseStudyReport.Austin,TX.EGSResearchandConsulting.RetrievedDecember2,2015,http://dpi.wi.gov/sites/default/files/imce/imt/pdf/finalcasestudy.pdf
Squires,T.(2009).LibraryPartnerships:MakingConnectionsbetweenSchoolandPublicLibraries.InformationToday,Inc.Medford,NJ
StateofDelaware.(2009)AdministrativeCode.SchoolLibraryMediaSpecialist.RetrievedonAugust9,2016fromhttp://regulations.delaware.gov/AdminCode/title14/1500/1580.pdf
Sun,C.(2014,Nov12).EbooksTakeHoldinSchools—Slowly.RetrievedOct2015,fromSchooLLibrary:http://www.slj.com/2014/11/industry-news/ebooks-take-hold-slowly/#_
73|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
TexasStateLibraryandArchivesCommission.SchoolLibraryPrograms:StandardsandGuidelinesforTexas.(2005,May16).RetrievedfromTexasStateLibraryandArchivesCommission:https://www.tsl.texas.gov/ld/schoollibs/sls/index.html
Todd,R.,Gordon,C.,&Lu,Y.(2010,July).ReportofFindingsandRecommendationsoftheNewJerseySchoolLibrarySurveyPhase1:OneCommonGoal:StudentLearning.NewBrunswick,NJ.CenterforInternationalScholarshipinSchoolLibrariesatRutgersUniversity.RetrievedDecember2,2015,http://www.njasl.info/wp-content/NJ_study/2010_Phase1Report.pdf
Todd,R.,andHeinstrom,J.(2006,April).ReportofPhaseTwoofDelawareSchoolLibrarySurvey:StudentLearningThroughDelawareSchoolLibraries.NewBrunswick,NJ.CenterforInternationalScholarshipinSchoolLibrariesatRutgersUniversity.RetrievedDecember1,2015,http://www2.lib.udel.edu/taskforce/study/phasetwo.pdf
UrbanLibrariesCouncil.(2016).LimitlessLibraries.InInnovations.RetrievedAugust1,2016,fromhttp://www.urbanlibraries.org/limitless-libraries-innovation-731.php?page_id=175
Washington,G.(1796).FarewellAddress.YaleLawSchool.RetrievedAugust9,2016fromhttp://avalon.law.yale.edu/18th_century/washing.asp
Wilson,B.,Kelly,C.,&Sherretz,K.(2016).AppendixB:DelawareSchoolLibraryStudySurveyinDelawareSchoolLibraryMasterPlan.
Ziarnik,N.(2003).SchoolandPublicLibraries:DevelopingtheNaturalAlliance.AmericanLibraryAssociations.Chicago,IL
Zickuhr,K.,&Smith,A.(2013,August)HomeBroadband2013.Washington,DC.PewResearchCenter.RetrievedDecember2,2015,http://www.pewinternet.org/2013/08/26/home-broadband-2013/
Zimmerman,M.(2012).Digitalnatives,searchingbehaviorandthelibrary.NewLibraryWorld,113(3),174-201.
74|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Appendix B: Delaware School Library Study Survey
Delaware School Library Study Survey 2015
Pleaseselectyourschooldistrict.Value Percent Count
Appoquinimink 10.0% 7
Brandywine 10.0% 7
CaesarRodney 4.3% 3
CapeHenlopen 2.9% 2
Capital 5.7% 4
Christina 8.6% 6
Colonial 4.3% 3
Delmar 1.4% 1
IndianRiver 5.7% 4
LakeForest 2.9% 2
Laurel 2.9% 2
Milford 4.3% 3
NCCVotech 4.3% 3
POLYTECH 1.4% 1
RedClay 12.9% 9
Seaford 2.9% 2
Smyrna 2.9% 2
SussexTech 1.4% 1
Woodbridge 2.9% 2
CharterSchools 8.6% 6
Total 70
Ifyouselected"CharterSchool"or"Other,”pleasespecify.Response Count
AcademyofDoverCharter 1
CampusCommunityCharterSchool 1
CharterSchool 1
MOTCharter 1
OdysseyCharterSchool 1
SussexAcademy 1
Total 6
75|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Pleaseindicatethelibrary/schoollibrarymediacenterinwhichyouwork.Response Count
AlexisI.duPontHighSchool 1
AlfredG.WatersMiddle 1
AppoquiniminkHighSchool 1
BayardMiddleSchool 1
BrandywineHighSchool 1
BrickMillElementary 1
BunkerHillElementary 1
CabCallowaySchooloftheArts 1
ConradSchoolsofScience 1
DelcastleVocational-TechnicalHighSchool 2
DelmarMiddleandSeniorHighSchools 1
Donot-amtheheadofschool-donothaveLibrary/Informationbutgettingreadytohire
1
FairviewElementary 1
FirstStateMontessoriAcademyCharterSchool 1
GeorgetownElementary 1
GeorgetownMiddleSchool 1
GunningBedfordMiddleSchool 1
H.B.duPontMiddleSchool 2
HanbyElementary 1
HeritageElementary 1
IndianRiverHighSchool 1
JohnBassettMoore 1
JonesElementarySchool 1
KathleenH.WilburElementary 1
LakeForestHighSchool 1
LancashireElementary 1
LewisElementary 1
LombardyElementarySchoolLibrary 1
LordBaltimoreElementary 1
MOTCharter 1
MayB.LeasureElementarySchool 1
MilfordCentralAcademy 2
MiltonElementary 1
MispillionElementary 1
76|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Response Count
MountPleasantHighSchool 1
NellieStokesElementarySchool 1
NewarkHighSchool 1
NorthDoverElementarySchool 1
NorthLaurelElementary 2
OdysseyCharterSchool 1
OldStateElementary 1
PolytechHighSchool 1
PostlethwaitMiddleSchool 1
RichardsonParkElementary 1
RobertS.GallaherElementarySchool 1
SeafordMiddleSchool 1
SilverLakeElementary 2
SmyrnaMiddleSchool 1
SpringerMiddleSchool 1
StGeorgesTechnicalHighSchool 1
TalleyMiddleSchool 1
WBSimpson 1
WestSeafordElementarySchool 1
WTChipmanMiddleSchool 1
WelchElementary 1
WilliamHenryMiddleSchool 1
WilliamPennHighSchool 1
WoodbridgeHighSchool 2
BrandywineSpringsElementarySchool 1
DownesElementarySchool 1
Shue-MedillMiddleSchool 1
Total 67
Pleaseenterthename(s)ofanyadditionalschoolsinwhichyouworkinalibrarycapacity.Response Count
ClaytonIntermediateSchool 1
DunbarElementary 1
TheCharterSchoolofWilmington(housedinthesamebuildingasCabCalloway)
1
Total 3
77|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Pleaseindicatethegradelevelsservedbythelibrary/mediacenterinwhichyouwork.Response Count
Pre-Kindergarten–5 1
Kindergarten–4 2
Kindergarten–5 15
Kindergarten–6 1
Kindergarten–8 4
1–5 9
2–4 2
5–6 2
5–8 1
5–12 1
6–8 13
6–12 3
7–8 1
9–12 13
9–12&LifeSkills 1
Total 69
Pleaseindicatethegradelevelsservedbythelibraries/mediacentersintheadditionalschoolorschoolsinwhichyouworkinalibrarycapacity.Response Count
5–6 1
9–12 2
K–1 2
Total 5
78|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Pleaseindicateyourjobtitle.Response Count
CTETeacher,MediaSpecialist 1
ElementarySchoolLibrarian 1
HeadofSchool 3
Librarian 22
Librarian(Secondary) 1
Librarian/MediaSpecialist 1
Librarian/TechnologyEducator 1
Librarian/TechnologyTeacherandGiftedandTalentedTeacher
1
LibraryManager 1
LibraryMediaSpecialist 18
LibraryMediaSpecialist/SpecialEdTeacher 1
LibraryMediaSpecialist/TechnologyTeacher 1
Library/InformationSpecialist 1
Para-Professional 1
Para-Librarian 3
SchoolLibrarian 6
SchoolLibrarian/ContentChairofLibrary/MediaChristinaSchoolDistrict
1
SchoolLibraryMediaSpecialist 2
SecondaryLibrarian 1
Technology/LibraryTeacher 1
Total 68
Pleaseindicateyoureducationalbackgroundbycheckingalllevelsofeducationyouhavecompleted. Value Percent Count
AssociateDegree 4.4% 3
Bachelor'sDegree 50.0% 34
Master'sDegree 88.2% 60
Doctorate 5.9% 4
Othergraduatelevelstudy 30.9% 21
Total 68
79|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
AreyouacertifiedschoollibrarianintheStateofDelaware?
Value Percent Count
Yes 82.6% 57
No 13.0% 9
Other 4.4% 3
Total 69
Ifyouanswered"Other"above,pleasespecifyinthetextboxprovidedbelow.Response Count
CurrentlypursuingdegreeinLMS 1
IhavecompletedmycourseworkandthetranscriptandothermaterialsarebeingsubmittedtoDOEandDistrict
1
CertifiedinNJ;DEcertexpiredin2014.Iretiredin2012anddidn'tthinkIwouldbeneedingcertificationrenewal.
1
Total 3
Yes82.6%
No13%
Other4.4%
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%
80|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Howlonghaveyoubeenworkingatthislibrary/mediacenter?
Value Percent Count
Lessthan1year 10.6% 7
1–3years 25.8% 17
4–6years 21.2% 14
7–10years 21.2% 14
Morethan10years 21.2% 14
Total 66
Doyouhaveotherinstructionaland/orstaffingresponsibilitiesbeyondthosedirectlyassociatedwithyourjobdutiesinthelibrary/mediacenter?
Value Percent Count
Yes 60.9% 39
No 39.1% 25
Total 64
Lessthan1year10.6%
1–3years25.8%
4–6years21.2%
7–10years21.2%
Morethan10years21.2%
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%
Yes60.9%
No39.1%
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%
81|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
If"Yes,"pleasespecifyotherduties/responsibilities.Response CountCoverstudentsinRTIgroupsandforteachersmeetinginPLCgroups. 1
Full-timeCTEteacher.LibraryresponsibilitiesarehandledmostlyasEPER. 1
HomeworkClub,LunchDuty,DismissalDuty 1
Iamassignedfour90-minuteIndependentStudyclasseseveryday. 1
Iamresponsibleforfour90-minuteindependentstudyclasses. 1
Iteachskillsto10thgraders 1
Lobbyduty,lunchduty,plccoverage,classroomcoverage,substitute 1
Lunchduty,busduty 1
Morningannouncements,recessduty,materialsmanagement 1
Morningbusdutiesandwalkkidstotheirparentsatpickup. 1
PLCcoverage.AMCarrider/walkerdutyPM 1
SchoolTestCoordinator 1
SpecialEducationteacher 1
Startingnextschoolyear2015-2016,firstperiodeverydayteachresearchskillsclass. 1
StateTestingAdministrator 1
Wehavenolibrarymediacenter 1
Willbeteachingsomeclasses 1
Yearbook,DataPLC's 1
Actassubstitutewhenschoolcan’tfillallpositions. 1
Testadministrator 1
Co-TechnologyCoordinator,PBSCommittee,lunchdutyhallwayduty,busduty,studentmentor,technologytrainer
1
CoveringPLCtimesforteacherswithouthavingaccesstothosemeetings.Sevenlunchdutiesatoneschoolandoneattheother.Busduty,breakfastdutytwiceatoneschool.
1
Iamthebuildingtechnologistformyschool,Iamthedistrictcontentchairoflibrary/mediafortheDistrictandIdoafternoonpickupdutyeverydayforourstudents.
1
Teachlibraryscienceclassesdaily,cafeteriadutydaily,morningandafternoonduties,scheduleandmaintainfourlaptopcartsandthreeiPadcarts,schedulethreecomputerlabs,teachthreeRTIreadingclassesperweek,teachtwo"activityperiods"perweek.NextyearIamscheduledwithafullteachingload(6classesperday)inadditiontotheresponsibilitieslistedabove.
1
Iteachfive6thgradelibrary/researchclasseseachday.WeareonanA/Bschedule,givingmeatotalof10gradedclasses.
1
CafeteriaDutyduringopenblockeachweekBusDutyeverydayatwhicheverschoolIamassigned.YearBookPBSTeamWellnessTeam
1
IsubstituteforthefrontofficesecretarywhensheisoutandIhavebeenaskedtocover/subinclassrooms
1
CoverageforProfessionalLearningCommunities6classperiodsforweekthatareadditionaltotheregularlyscheduledlibraryvisitsforeachclassineachgrade(30classes)
1
82|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Response CountScorekeeper&FieldJudgeforBasketballandTrack/FieldEvents,TeachEconomicsinAdultEdDept.,XSch.Dist.-9thyearAlso,DECertifiedin:SocialStudies(6-12)-HighlyQualified(PRAXISII-rankedtop15%inU.S.)English(6-12)-HighlyQualifiedLibrarian/MediaSpecialist-(K–12)-HighlyQualified
1
Eachyearmyadditionaldutiesvarydependingupontheneedsoftheschool.ThisyearIwasscheduledtocoveraclassfor90minutesofPLCtimeonceperweek.
1
ImakesurethatthestudentscompletetheirCareerCruisingStudentSuccessplan.Ischeduleallthecomputerlabs.
1
Wecurrentlyhaveavolunteerlibrarianasthefundsarenotavailabletohireafulltimelibrary/mediaspecialistthisyear.
1
Coverageforteachersformeetings,beforeandafterschoolduties,webpagemaintenance,LeadershipTeam,DistrictTechnologyandInnovationTeam
1
Teacherofgiftedpull-outprogram(grades3-4,3hoursperweek)Screeningforgiftedprogram(primarily2ndgrade,duringlibraryinstructionaltime)Teacheroftechnologyclasses(gradesK–4,9classesor13.75hoursperweek)Breakfastdutyeachmorning
1
Iamalsothegiftedandtalentedteacheraswellasthetechnologyteacher.Otherdutiesincludehallwayduty,breakfastduty,morninggymduty
1
AdministerAcceleratedReaderprogrambymonitoringstudentgoalsandgrowthandprovideincentivesforthosewhomeetgoals.MorningandAfternoonAnnouncements.Arrivaldutydaily,lunchdutyweekly.School-widereadingchallengeswithrewardstoencourageliteracy.GuysReadinitiativetoincreasemalereading.Providereadingandmathinterventiontogrades2and5.Hostauthorvisits
1
Ialsomanagetechnologyinstructionandinventory,whichsomewouldargueispartofbeingaschoollibrarian.
1
Supervisingkeyboardingclasses,turningoncomputerinlabsnotattachedtothelibrary,coveringteachers'classesdailysotheycanattendgradelevelmeetings
1
CollegeandCareer-setupallcollegevisitstoschool,inchargeofthewebsiteandfordisseminatinginformationaboutcollegevisits,summerprograms,andscholarships.TestCoordinatorforthebuilding,inchargeofsettingupalltestingschedules,security,teachertrainings,andmakingsureallstudentscompletetherequiredtests.ThetestsincludeSTARELA&Math,SmarterELAandMath,DCASScience,EOCUSHistory,andAltDCAS.DistrictadministratorforFollettDestinyLibrarySystemBuildingadministratorforiSafeInternetSafetyProgram
1
Teachingremedialreadingandfornextyearalsoteachingmultiplelevelsofcreativewriting.thischangehappenedthisyear(gettingacoupleclasses)andnextyearmyschedulewillbesplitevenmorewithhalflibrary/halfELA.
1
Maintaining/deliveringlaptopcartsLunchdutydailyMorningandafternoonhalldutyClothesclosetdutySchedulingschoolcomputerlabs(3)andlaptopcarts(3)5"ActivityBlocks"perweek-3RTIblocks
1
Total 41
83|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Withhowmanyschoolfacultydoyouworkdirectlyinanaverageday?Response Count
0 2
1 4
2 3
3 1
4 1
5 16
6 3
8 3
10 8
12 3
15 3
20 5
25 1
30 1
40 4
50 3
120 1
Total 62 Librarian/Faculty Interaction
MeanNumberofDailyInteractionswithOtherFaculty 14.33perdayMedianNumberofDailyInteractionswithOtherFaculty 8.00perday
Inwhatcapacityorcapacitiesdoyoutypicallyworkwithfaculty?(Pleasecheckallthatapply.) Value Percent Count
Identifyingexistingresources(alreadyowned/licensed)thatsupportthecurriculum 89.4% 59
Identifyingnewresources(notalreadyowned/licensed)thatsupportthecurriculum 68.2% 45Helpingfacultyimprovetheirsearching/researchskills 51.5% 34Planningotherservices/initiativesthatenhancestudentlearning 78.8% 52Other(Pleasespecify.) 37.9% 25
Total 66
84|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Ifyouanswered"other"above,pleasespecifyinthetextboxprovidedbelow.Response Count
Assistingotherteacherswithstudents 1
Assistingwithtechnology,testing,planning,software,etc. 1
Co-teaching;Helpwithtechnologyissues,textbookissues,aplethoraofotherquestions 1
Collaborativeresearchprojects,bookclubs 1
Handleallthetechnology,laminating. 1
Helpfacultycompleteprofessionaldevelopmentassignedbythedistrict. 1
IcoverTeacherprepperiodswithafixedschedule 1
Idon'tworkwithotherfacultymembers 1
LifeSkillsclassweekly. 1
Planningandimplementingcurriculumsuchasresearchprojectsandliteraturecircles. 1
PlanninginstructionalunitsalignedtotheCCSS 1
Teachinformationliteracyskillsandcriticalinquiry 1
TeamTeachingintheclassroom. 1
Technologysupport 1
Troubleshootingtechnologyissues.Supportingintegrationoftechnologyandinstruction. 1
Planninginstructionalactivitiesforstaff. 1
Schedulinglabs/cartstechnologytroubleshootingco-teaching 1
Checkingbooksinandoutfortheirclasses,gatheringbooksonsubjectstheyareworkingon,goingtothepubliclibrary(closeby)topickupandreturnbooksIhavegottenforthemfromthatlibrary
1
AsTestingCoordinatorsinceSpringbreakIdealwithaminimumof25facultyadayfortestingissues.IntheFallwithcollegevisits,usually18aday.
1
Icoverclassroomteachers'planningperiods.Iamoneofthe5"specialclasses"inourelementaryschools.
1
CollaboratingonlessonstoensuremeaningfulnessandrelevancytostudentsAdministeringSTAR/ARpasswords,reports,etc.RegisteringfacultyforEbooksubscription
1
Icollaboratewithteachersandco-teachwiththemonlessons.Ialsoteachalotoftechnologytobothstudentsandteachers.
1
Helpingwithprintersandtechtheycan'tfigureouthelpingwithtestingortestadministration 1
Iworkwiththeteacherandstudentswhocomeintothelibraryonadailybasis.Theteachervariesfromdaytoday.
1
HallMonitors,CommunityMentors,ADMStaff.Deliveringbookcartservices.CoachingStaff,Custodians
1
85|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Response Count
Iamtheonetheycalloniftheirclassroomcomputersarenotworking,ItakecareofSmartBoardproblems,Iamabuildinghugger(studentsatriskearnbonustimewithmeiftheyhavehadagoodday),Ihelppreparestudentlaptopsforstatetestingandrepairlaptops,Imaintainthebuildinghumorwall,fixthelaminatorwhenitjams,andIamabuildingmentorforfirstyearteachersiftheyhavequestionsorproblems.
1
Total 26
Withhowmanystudentsdoyouworkdirectlyinanaverageday?Response Count
30 1
40 1
50 3
60 1
65 2
70 3
75 1
90 1
95 1
100 13
105 1
120 1
125 4
130 1
140 1
150 8
165 1
180 1
190 1
200 7
205 1
250 3
300 2
350 1
1000 1
Total 61
86|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Librarian/Student Interaction
MeanNumberofDailyInteractionswithStudents 151perdayMedianNumberofDailyInteractionswithStudents 125perday
Inwhatcapacityorcapacitiesdoyoutypicallyworkwithstudents?(Pleasecheckallthatapply.)Value Percent Count
Assistingstudentsinusingonlineresources 84.9% 56
Assistingstudentsinusingprintmaterials 80.3% 53
Teachinginformationliteracyskills 75.8% 50
Teachingbasiclibraryand/orresearchskills 83.3% 55
Checkingphysicalmaterialsinandout 95.5% 63
Other(Pleasespecify.) 33.3% 22
Total 66
Ifyouanswered"other"above,pleasespecifyinthetextboxprovidedbelow.Response Count
Assiststudentsinfindingappropriatebookstoreadforpleasure 1
AssistingthemwithproblemswithPowerPoint,Word,Prezi,GoogleDocs,andprinting. 1
Bibliotherapist,makerspaceoverseer,therapist/friend,etc. 1
Encouragingaloveoflearningandliterature 1
Helpwithwordprocessingandprinting 1
Helpingwithstudentpublishing/printing;photographyforschoolneeds;yearbookinterviews
1
Ihelpstudentinawidevarietyofways.Iteachalotoftechnologyskills. 1
PAWSandbookclub(literacy)andprinting/proofreading 1
Reader'sAdvisorySupervisingstudentlibraryaides 1
Teachingaclass. 1
Technologyandtypingskills. 1
Assistingstudentwithresearchskills 1
Completingprojects,printing.joborcareersearches,collegeprep.personalneeds. 1
Coverageofregularclassrooms 1
Lunchgroupinmyroom,RTI, 1
Researchprojectsthataredesignedinconjunctiontothecurriculum 1
TeachingreadingRTIoractivityperiodslunchgroups 1
Teachingtechnologyskills-usingWordandExcel,howtosetupemail,savingandfindingdocuments,editingpapers,listeningtostudentsinacounselingcapacity,collegeandcareerguidance
1
87|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Response Count
AssistHallMonitorduringClassTransitions&Arrival/DismissalEPERwithBasketball&Track/FieldEventsOccasionallyCoveraClassforShortTime
1
Technologyissues,publishingofwork,Reader'sAdvisory,answeringquestionspertainingtoEVERYTHING
1
Ihaveanopenlibraryprograminthemorningbeforeclassesstart,Iseestudentsduringafterschoolpickuptime,andIhelpoutwithstudentsathighriskinmybuilding.Ialsoteachalockedscheduleof6eachday.
1
Teachingstudentstousetechnology;Assistingstudentsinusingtechnology;AssistingstudentsinEnglishLanguageartsskills;Assistingstudentsinre-shelvingbooks;
1
Ispendtimewithstudentsdoingspecialprojects.IalsohaveaschoolgardenthatIorganizedandcareforwithstudents.Ispendmentoringtimewithstudentsandeatlunchwithstudentsatleast2-3timesaweek.Iorganizedanopportunityforthe4thand5thgraderstoreadtokindergartenstudents.Iranaread-a-thonandraisedmoneyforHeiferInternational.IgiveawayRIFbooks3timesayear.IorganizedamonthworthofactivitiesforILove-to-ReadMonthincludingspecialguestauthorstotalktothestudentsaboutthewriting,publishingandillustratingaspectsofwritingbooks.IhadtheNewCastleCountyLibraryintalkingtoparentsandstudentsabouttheSummerReadingprogramandgivingthemLibraryCardApplications.Iorganizedandhelp80familiesinneedatChristmas.
1
Assistingwithbookselection,helpingthemwiththeirperformanceandchoicesfortheirreadingprogramcomponentoftheirELAgrade.
1
Total 24
Howmanycertifiedlibrarymediaspecialistsareemployedinthelibrary/mediacenterinwhichyouwork?Response Count
0 11
1 54
2 1
Total 66
Whatisthetotalnumberofhoursperweek(duringtheschoolyear)workedbycertifiedlibrary/mediaspecialistsinthelibrary/mediacenterinwhichyouwork?Response Count
0 8
7.5 3
20 1
22 1
32 1
88|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Response Count
35 8
37 2
37.5 12
40 24
42 1
43 1
45 1
45-55 1
50 1
Total 65
Howmanyotherpaidstaffmembersareemployedinthelibrary/mediacenterinwhichyouwork?Response Count
0 58
.5 1
1 8
3 1
Total 68
Whatisthetotalnumberofhoursperweek(duringtheschoolyear)workedbyotherstaffmembersinthelibrary/mediacenterinwhichyouwork?Response Count
0 47
2 1
20 1
30 2
35 1
36 1
37.5 2
40 2
60 1
Total 58
89|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Approximatelyhowmanyphysicalitems(booksandmedia/non-print)areinthecollectionofthelibrary/mediacenterinwhichyouwork?Response Count
1,500 1
2,000 3
4,000 1
5,400 1
6,000 1
6,500 1
6,700 1
8,000 2
8,150 1
8,500 1
9,000 1
9,600 1
9,800 1
9,874 1
10,000 5
10,100 1
10,734 1
11,000 3
11,641 1
12,000 3
12,267 1
12,400 1
12,500 2
13,000 5
14,000 3
14,500 1
14,537 1
15,000 5
16,000 3
16,500 1
16,503 1
17,000 2
90|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Response Count
20,000 3
20,716 1
21,000 1
25,000 1
29,000 1
40,000 1
45,000 1
Total 66 Collection Size
MeanCollectionSize 13,256MedianCollectionSize 12,450
Approximatelyhowmanynewitemswereaddedtothecollectionofthelibrary/mediacenterinwhichyouworkduringthepastacademicyear?Response Count
0 2
25 1
50 1
60 1
75 1
80 1
100 7
110 1
150 2
180 1
200 5
207 1
225 1
250 4
300 6
350 1
400 4
420 1
91|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Response Count
450 1
500 10
525 1
600 2
700 2
800 1
1,000 2
1,182 1
1,200 2
1,223 1
2,000 1
4,000 1
Total 66 Items Added Previous Year
MeanNumberofItemsAdded 460MedianNumberofItemsAdded 300
Excludinggiftsandotherdonationsthroughparents'organizationsandpromotions,howmuchwasallocatedforthepurchaseofnewmaterialsforthecollectionofthelibrary/mediacenterinwhichyouworkduringthepastacademicyear?Response Count
$0 6
$2 1
$300 1
$1,000 3
$1,200 2
$1,350 1
$1,500 3
$1,675 1
$1,763 1
$2,000 8
$2,200 1
$2,500 2
92|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
$3,000 4
$3,428 1
$3,500 2
$3,632 1
$4,000 2
$5,000 2
$5,500 1
$6,000 3
$6,200 1
$6,500 1
$7,000 1
$8,000 4
$8,321 1
$9,000 1
$9,200 1
$10,000 3
$16,000 2
$24,400 1
$25,000 1
Total 63 Budgeted Allocation For New Library Materials
MeanBudgetedAmountforNewMaterials $4,688MedianBudgetedAmountforNewMaterials $3,000
HowmanyInternetaccessiblecomputersareavailableforstudentuseinthelibrary/mediacenterinwhichyouwork?Response Count
0 1
1 1
10 1
11 2
12 5
13 1
14 2
16 2
93|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Response Count
18 1
2 2
20 1
220 1
23 1
24 1
25 1
26 1
28 1
3 1
30 9
32 4
33 1
34 1
35 1
4 5
5 2
54 1
55 1
58 1
59 1
6 7
64 1
8 3
87 1
9 1
90 1
Total 67
IsWi-Fiavailabletostudentsinthelibrary/mediacenterinwhichyouwork?Value Percent Count
Yes 64.7% 44
No 35.3% 24
Total 68
94|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Whichofthefollowingbestdescribeslibrary/mediacenteravailabilityforstudentusewithlibrary/mediacenterstaffpresent?
Value Percent Count
Fixedschedule(classesatregularlyscheduledtimes) 40.9% 27
Modifiedfixedschedulewhichprovidessomeopenaccessinadditiontoclasses
16.7% 11
Openaccessthroughouttheschoolday(flexibleschedule) 25.8% 17
Openaccessincludingextendedhoursoutsideoftheschoolday 12.1% 8
Other(Pleasespecify.) 4.6% 3
Total 66
Ifyouanswered"other"above,pleasespecifyinthetextboxprovidedbelow.Response Count
Exceptduringtesting-thenfixed 1
Extendedhoursasrequestedbystudents,byappointment 1
Openaccessexceptwhenwearetesting 1
Byappointment:(w/teacher)classvisits,(w/oteacher)smallgroups;individualswithpassfromteacher.
1
Myscheduleismostlyflexible,howeverIamscheduledforone90-minutesessiononceperweektocoverteacher'sPLCtime.
1
Fixedschedule40.90%
Modifiedfixedschedule
16.70%
Flexibleschedule25.80%
Openaccess12.10%
Other4.60%
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%
95|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Aretheholdingsofthelibrary/mediacenterinwhichyouworkrepresentedinanautomatedcatalogavailableoutsidetheschoolbuilding?Value Percent Count
Yes 80.9% 55
No 19.1% 13
Total 68
Arethematerialsinthelibrary/mediacenterinwhichyouworksharedbetween/amongotherlibraries/mediacenterswithinyourschooldistrict? Value Percent Count
Yes 70.6% 48
No 29.4% 20
Total 68
Haveyoucollaboratedwithpubliclibrariesinyourareainthepast?
Value Percent Count
Yes 42.7% 29
No 57.4% 39
Total 68
Yes42.7%
No57.4%
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%
96|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Ifyouanswered"Yes"above,inwhichofthefollowingwayshaveyoucollaborated?Value Percent Count
Technologyandcomputereducation 10.5% 4
Socialsciences 0.0% 0
Languageeducation 5.3% 2
STEM/STEAMprograms 5.3% 2
Literacyandreadingprograms 68.4% 26
Artsandrecreationprograms 2.6% 1
Historyandgeographyrelatededucation 0.0% 0
Financialeducation 0.0% 0
Other(Pleasespecify.) 13.2% 5
WehaveNOTworkedwithpubliclibrariesinthepast 21.1% 8
Total 38
Ifyouanswered"other"above,pleasespecifyinthetextboxprovidedbelow.Response Count
BookdonationstoourLibrary-referralsbyourLibrarytoNCCLibraries 1
Representativeatourbookfairfamilynight;info.onsummerreadingprogram 1
Sharinginformationonprogramsandsummerreading 1
Borrowingbooksfromthem 1
Fieldtriptothepubliclibrary 1
Wehaveaskedpubliclibrariestocometoourfamilyeventstoissuelibrarycardsand/orinformation
1
Total 6
97|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Appendix C: Interview Questions
Delaware School Libraries Master Plan Interview Questions for Building Level Administrators (Principals, Assistant Principals, etc.)
Welcome and Introductions
• Participantsandfacilitators• Thanktheparticipantsfortheirwillingnesstocome• Anyadministrativedetails
Purpose of the Focus Group
YouarebeinginvitedtoparticipateinaresearchprojectthatwillassistinthecreationofamasterplanforDelawareschoollibraries.ThepurposeofthisstudyistogatherinformationaboutschoollibrariesfromschooladministratorstohelpinformthecreationofmasterplanforDelawareschoollibraries.Thisplanwillcreateavisionthatwillinformsolutionsforthedevelopmentofstate-of-the-artschoollibrariesinDelaware.ThisworkisbeingdonewiththeDelawareSchoolLibrariesCouncil,withsupportfromtheDelawareDepartmentofStateandtheDepartmentofEducation.Youwillbeoneofapproximately100participants.
Therearenoriskstoyourparticipationandtheremayisnodirectbenefittoyou.However,yourparticipationisanopportunitytoshareyourexperiences,beliefs,andopinions.Furthermore,yourparticipationwillenableustobetterunderstandtheroleofschoollibraries.
Wewilltakespecialstepstoprotectyourprivacy.Yourresponseswillbeaccessibleonlytotheresearcherteamonthisproject.Aftertheinterview,identifyinginformation(names,schools)willberemovedtoensureyourparticipationwillremainconfidential.Alldatawillbestoredinapasswordprotectedfolderencryptedfilesand/orinlockedfilingcabinet.Thestoreddatawillbedestroyedthreeyearsaftertheconclusionoftheproject.Theresearchteamwillmakeeveryefforttokeepallresearchrecordsthatidentifyyouconfidential.Thefindingsofthisresearchmaybepresentedorpublished.Ifthishappens,noinformationthatgivesyournameorotherdetailswillbeshared.
Takingpartinthisresearchstudyisentirelyvoluntary.Youdonothavetoparticipateinthisresearch.Ifyouchoosetotakepart,youhavetherighttostopatanytime.Ifyoudecidenottoparticipateorifyoudecidetostoptakingpartintheresearchatalaterdate,therewillbenopenaltyorlossofbenefitstowhichyouareotherwiseentitled.Yourdecisiontostopparticipation,ornottoparticipate,willnotinfluencecurrentorfuturerelationshipswiththeUniversityofDelaware.
98|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Ifyouhaveanyquestionsaboutthisstudy,pleasecontactthePrincipalInvestigator,KellySherretz,at(302)831-4271orkscollon@udel.edu.Ifyouhaveanyquestionsorconcernsaboutyourrightsasaresearchparticipant,youmaycontacttheUniversityofDelawareInstitutionalReviewBoardathsrb-research@udel.eduor(302)831-2137.
1) Pleaseprovideaquickovervieworlibrary/mediacenterservicesavailableinyourschoolbuilding.[Size(incomparisontoanaverageclassroom),staffing,budget,etc.](Ifnoschoollibrary/mediacenterisprovidedinthebuildinginquestion,posethefollowingquestionsinaprospectivefashionsuchasaskingwhatroleschoollibrariesSHOULDplayasopposedtoDOtheyplayintheirbuilding.)
2) Schoollibraries/mediacentersserveavarietyofdifferentrolesdependingonthegradelevelstheyserve,availabilityofotherinterrelatedservicesinadistrictanddistrictpriorities.Whatdoyoubelievearethemajorrolesthatschoollibraries/mediacentersplayinyourschool?
3) Budgetallocationsforschoollibraries/mediacentershavebeendecreasinginmanydistrictsthroughoutthenation.Overthepastfiveyears,hasfundingfortheschoollibraries/mediacenterinyourbuildingIncreased,decreased,orremainedlevel?Whatwouldyousayistheprimaryreasonormajorreasonsforchangesintheamountallocatedforlibrary/mediacenterpurposes?
4) Schoollibrarians/mediacenterpersonnelperformavarietyofdifferentfunctions.Lookatthiscard(handthemacardwiththefollowingitemslisted)
a. ReadingMotivatorb. Readers’Advisor/ContentAdvisorc. InstructionalResourcesManagerd. TechnologyInstructore. InformationLiteracyCoachf. In-serviceTrainingProvider(forfaculty)g. Co-Teacherh. Teacheri. Curriculumdevelopmentpartner
Which,ifany,oftheroleslistedaretheprimaryrolesfulfilledbylibrarians/mediacenterpersonnelinyourschool?Whichdoyouthinkisthemostimportantinyourschool?Whatotherroleorrolesdoschoollibrary/mediacenterstafffulfillinyourschool?
5) Areyouresponsibleforconductingformalobservationsand/orforperforminganannualperformanceevaluationofcertifiedschoollibrariansandotherlibrarystaff?Ifyes,whatcriteriaareappliedthatspecificallyreflectlibrary-relateddutiesandresponsibilities?
99|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
6) Avarietyofstatewidestudieshaveshownahighcorrelationbetweenhighqualityschoollibraries/mediacentersandperformanceonstandardizedreadingtestsevenwhendifferencesrelatedtosocio-economicfactorsandoverallfundingarecontrolled.Towhatextentdoyoubelievethateducationaloutcomesarecurrentlybeingfactoredintodecisionsrelatedtotheschoollibrary/mediacenterinyourschool?
7) Whatotherservicesorprogramsexistinyourschoolthatsubstantiallycontributetoacademicsuccessinreadingand/orinformationliteracy?
Delaware School Libraries Master Plan Interview Questions for School Librarians/Media Center Staff
Welcome and introductions
• Participantsandfacilitators• Thanktheparticipantsfortheirwillingnesstocome• Anyadministrativedetails
Purpose of the Focus Group
YouarebeinginvitedtoparticipateinaresearchprojectthatwillassistinthecreationofamasterplanforDelawareschoollibraries.ThepurposeofthisstudyistogatherinformationaboutschoollibrariesfromschoollibrarianstohelpinformthecreationofmasterplanforDelawareschoollibraries.Thisplanwillcreateavisionthatwillinformsolutionsforthedevelopmentofstate-of-the-artschoollibrariesinDelaware.ThisworkisbeingdonewiththeDelawareSchoolLibrariesCouncil,withsupportfromtheDelawareDepartmentofStateandtheDepartmentofEducation.Youwillbeoneofapproximately100participants.
Therearenoriskstoyourparticipationandtheremayisnodirectbenefittoyou.However,yourparticipationisanopportunitytoshareyourexperiences,beliefs,andopinions.Furthermore,yourparticipationwillenableustobetterunderstandtheroleofschoollibraries.
Wewilltakespecialstepstoprotectyourprivacy.Yourresponseswillbeaccessibleonlytotheresearcherteamonthisproject.Aftertheinterview,identifyinginformation(names,schools)willberemovedtoensureyourparticipationwillremainconfidential.Alldatawillbestoredinapasswordprotectedfolderencryptedfilesand/orinlockedfilingcabinet.Thestoreddatawillbedestroyedthreeyearsaftertheconclusionoftheproject.Theresearchteamwillmakeeveryefforttokeepallresearchrecordsthatidentifyyouconfidential.Thefindingsofthisresearchmaybepresentedorpublished.Ifthishappens,noinformationthatgivesyournameorotherdetailswillbeshared.
Takingpartinthisresearchstudyisentirelyvoluntary.Youdonothavetoparticipateinthisresearch.Ifyouchoosetotakepart,youhavetherighttostopatanytime.Ifyoudecidenotto
100|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
participateorifyoudecidetostoptakingpartintheresearchatalaterdate,therewillbenopenaltyorlossofbenefitstowhichyouareotherwiseentitled.Yourdecisiontostopparticipation,ornottoparticipate,willnotinfluencecurrentorfuturerelationshipswiththeUniversityofDelaware.
Ifyouhaveanyquestionsaboutthisstudy,pleasecontactthePrincipalInvestigator,KellySherretz,at(302)831-4271orkscollon@udel.edu.Ifyouhaveanyquestionsorconcernsaboutyourrightsasaresearchparticipant,youmaycontacttheUniversityofDelawareInstitutionalReviewBoardathsrb-research@udel.eduor(302)831-2137.
1) Pleaseprovideaquickovervieworlibrary/mediacenterservicesavailableinyourschoolbuilding.[Collectionsize,facilitysize(incomparisontoanaverageclassroom),staffing,budget,etc.]
2) Schoollibraries/mediacentersserveavarietyofdifferentrolesdependingonthegradelevelstheyserve,availabilityofotherinterrelatedservicesinadistrictanddistrictpriorities.Whatdoyoubelievearethemajorrolesthatyourschoollibrary/mediacenterplaysinyourschool?WhatroleorrolesdoyouthinkitSHOULDbeplaying?
3) Budgetallocationsforschoollibraries/mediacentershavebeendecreasinginmanydistrictsthroughoutthenation.Overthepastfiveyears,hasfundingforyourschoollibrary/mediacenterIncreased,decreased,orremainedlevel?Whatwouldyousayistheprimaryreasonormajorreasonsforchangesintheamountallocatedforlibrary/mediacenterpurposes?
4) Schoollibrarians/mediacenterpersonnelperformavarietyofdifferentfunctions.Lookatthiscard(handthemacardwiththefollowingitemslisted)
a. ReadingMotivatorb. Readers’Advisor/ContentAdvisorc. InstructionalResourcesManagerd. TechnologyInstructore. InformationLiteracyCoachf. In-serviceTrainingProvider(forfaculty)g. Co-Teacherh. Teacheri. Curriculumdevelopmentpartner
Which,ifany,oftheroleslisteddoyoucurrentlyfulfill?Whichisthemostimportantinyourschoolgiventhemake-upofyourstudentbodyandotherservicesthatareavailableinyourbuilding/district?Whatotherroleorrolesdoyoucurrentlyfulfillinyourschool?
5) Avarietyofstatewidestudieshaveshownahighcorrelationbetweenhighqualityschoollibraries/mediacentersandperformanceonstandardizedreadingtestsevenwhendifferencesrelatedtosocio-economicfactorsandoverallfundingarecontrolled.Towhat
101|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
extentdoyoubelievethatyourdistrict/schoolboardhasconsiderededucationaloutcomesindecisionsthathaveaffectedtheschoollibrary/mediacenterinyourschool?
6) Discusstheexistinglevelofinteractionthatyouhavewithteachersinyourschool.Doyouthinkthatthefacultyperceivesyouasa“teachingpartner”intheschool?
7) Doyouserveonkeyschoolcommitteesthatmakedecisionsregardingissuessuchascurriculum,neweducationalinitiatives,grantapplications,etc.?Describeyourroleonthesecommittees.
8) Howwouldyoucharacterizeyourroleinregardtointegratingtechnologyintothecurriculum?Wouldyoucharacterizeyourroleas:
a. Leadershiproleb. Substantivesupportrolec. Generalsupportroled. Peripheralrole
Giveexamplesofyourinvolvementinintegratingtechnologyintothecurriculum.
9) Howwouldyoucharacterizeyourroleinimpartinginformationliteracyskillstostudents?Yourroleinimpartingtheseskillstoteachers?
10) Whatdoyoubelievearethemajorfactorsthatimpactyourabilitytoofferthehighestqualityschoollibraryserviceinyourbuilding?Arethesefactorsthesameordifferentonthedistrictlevel?Ifthefactorsaredifferent,pleaseprovideexamples.
11) Whatelsedoyouthinkweneedtoknowtounderstandthestatusandroleofthelibrary/mediacenterinyourschool?
102|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
Appendix D: Delaware School Library Media Specialist Certification Requirements
Source:http://regulations.delaware.gov/AdminCode/title14/1500/1580.shtml
1580 School Library Media Specialist
1.0 Content
1.1ThisregulationshallapplytotheissuanceofaStandardCertificate,pursuantto14Del.C.§1220(a),forSchoolLibraryMediaSpecialist.ThiscertificationisrequiredforgradesKto12.
1.2Exceptasotherwiseprovided,therequirementssetforthin14DEAdmin.Code1505StandardCertificate,includinganysubsequentamendmentorrevisionthereto,areincorporatedhereinbyreference.
2.0 Definitions
2.1Thedefinitionssetforthin14DEAdmin.Code1505StandardCertificate,includinganysubsequentamendmentorrevisionthereto,areincorporatedhereinbyreference.
3.0 Standard Certificate
3.1Inaccordancewith14Del.C.§1220(a),theDepartmentshallissueaStandardCertificateasaSchoolLibraryMediaSpecialisttoaneducatorwhohasmetthefollowing:
3.1.1HoldsavalidDelawareInitial,Continuing,orAdvancedLicenseorStandardorProfessionalStatusCertificateissuedbytheDepartmentpriortoAugust31,2003;and,
3.1.2Hasmettherequirementsassetforthin14DEAdmin.Code1505StandardCertificate,includinganysubsequentamendmentorrevisionthereto;and
3.1.3Hassatisfiedtheadditionalrequirementsinthisregulation.
4.0 Additional Requirements
Aneducatorshallalsomeetthefollowing:
4.1Hassatisfiedatleastoneofthefollowingadditionalrequirements:
4.1.1HoldsaMastersorDoctoraldegreefromaregionallyaccreditedcollegeoruniversityinanAmericanLibraryAssociationapprovedprograminSchoolLibraryMedia;or
4.1.2HoldsaMastersorDoctoraldegreefromaregionallyaccreditedcollegeoruniversityinanyarea;and
103|D e l a w a r e S c h o o l L i b r a r i e s M a s t e r P l a n – A u g u s t 2 0 1 6
4.1.2.1HascompletedaDepartmentapprovedSchoolLibraryMediaprogramwhichmeetsAmericanLibraryAssociationStandards.
7DEReg.632(11/1/03)
Renumberedeffective6/1/07-seeConversionTable
12DEReg.1206(03/01/09)
The University of Delaware is a non-discriminatory, equal opportunity, and affirmative action institution.See www.udel.edu/aboutus/legalnotices.html for detailed policy information.
Institute for Public AdministrationSchool of Public Policy & Administration
College of Arts & SciencesUniversity of Delaware
180 Graham Hall University of Delaware Newark, DE 19716-7380
phone: 302-831-8971 e-mail: [email protected] fax: 302-831-3488
www.ipa.udel.edu
The University of Delaware’s Institute for Public Administration (IPA) addresses the policy, planning,and management needs of its partners through the integration of applied research, professionaldevelopment, and the education of tomorrow’s leaders.
backpage_Layout 1 2/6/12 12:02 PM Page 1