Filling a gap: would evidence-based school librarianship work in the UK?

School librarians in the UK have a lower status than librarians in other sectors, and research on school librarianship in the UK is sparse. Annual self-evaluation is one way the profession has tried to make itself more visible. Evidence-based school librarianship (EBSL) could assist school librarians in the UK improve their services, boost their profile, and build their portfolios as part of existing self-evaluation programmes. EBSL is an off-shoot of evidence-based librarianship, which aims to bridge the gap between research and practice, and encourages practitioners to conduct research in the workplace. Most of the current EBSL work is being done in the US, where school librarians are also typically trained teachers, however, EBSL is suitable for adaptation and use in the UK. Appropriate research methods must be chosen in order to make EBSL work in the UK, action research being one such method

School Librarians’ Teacher Self-Efficacy: A Predictor of Reading Scores?

Teacher self-efficacy, the belief teachers have that they can make a difference for their students or have a positive impact on their students’ academic careers, has been studied for years. Very little is known about teacher self-efficacy in school librarians, however. The following study examined the difference in school librarians’ teacher self-efficacy among those who worked in elementary, middle, and high schools. The study also attempted to determine if elementary school librarians’ self-efficacy could be a predictor of reading scores for the schools’ overall average rates on the Virginia Standards of Learning assessment. This quantitative study addressed the gaps in the literature by indicating that there is no difference in the levels of teacher self-efficacy among elementary, middle, and high school librarians, and found a weak but positive predictive relationship between the self-efficacy levels and the schools’ overall average pass rates on standardized testing. The researchers noted the need for an instrument designed strictly for measuring the self-efficacy of school librarians, based on the myriad tasks they perform beyond the teaching role

Norm Critical Projects in Swedish School Librarian Practices

In this article, we explore the practices of school librarians with a specific focus on norm critical pedagogy, a distinctively Scandinavian concept with a basis in critical pedagogies. In Sweden, norm critique is a practice, a pedagogy and a discourse. Our article offers examples of school librarian practices that deal with issues of sexuality and gender conceptualized in their work with LGBTQ+ literature from a norm critical perspective.  We analysed semi-structured interviews with eight librarians in four secondary and upper secondary schools through the lens of the theory of practice architectures (Kemmis & Grootenboer, 2008). Our findings demonstrate how the norm critical practices of school librarians are enabled and constrained by arrangements within the school site, as well as by management, colleagues and professional learning practices. The projects carried out by school librarians that employ norm critical perspectives are both strengthened and challenged by collaboration with principals and other education professionals at the school site. When teachers challenge the views of librarians, they the latter have to re-think and re-negotiate normative positions. Hence, norm critical thinking is not only taught but also practiced in the everyday work in school libraries.  This article argues that these norm critical perspectives and the librarians’ practices represent important contributions to the democratic assignment of Swedish schools

Leading for learning : a model for best practice in school libraries

This chapter introduces a model for school libraries in Scotland, based on best practices as identified in the literature, and on five case studies undertaken in schools in the United States and Scotland. Our research design was qualitative, and used grounded theory and multiple case study methods

What is the literacy supportive role of the school librarian in the United Kingdom?

© The Author(s) 2020. Building students’ literacy skills is a key educative purpose of contemporary schooling. While libraries can play a key role in fostering literacy and related reading engagement in schools, more needs to be known about school librarians’ role in promoting these goals. To this end, this article seeks to identify the nature and scope of the literacy supportive role required of the school librarian in the United Kingdom. It also investigates how this aspect is situated within the broader competing role requirements of the profession. Using a hybrid approach to content analysis including both qualitative and quantitative methods, this article presents in-depth analysis of 40 recent job description documents recruiting school librarians in the United Kingdom to investigate these research aims. The vast majority of documents (92.5%) included literacy supportive roles or characteristics of a school librarian, and recurring salient components included supporting literature selection, having a broad and current knowledge of literature, promoting and modelling reading for pleasure, devising and supporting reading and literature events, promoting a whole-school reading culture, working closely with students to support reading and literacy skill development, and implementing and supporting reading programmes. This literacy supportive role was found to sit within a potentially highly complex and diverse work role which may compete with the literacy supportive role for time and resourcing in school libraries. This research suggests that the role of school librarians in the United Kingdom is both complex and evolving, and that school librarians in the United Kingdom have a valuable literacy supportive role to play in their school libraries

The contribution of England's primary school libraries to the development of students' information literacy

This study sets out to determine whether or not a primary school library, managed by a school librarian, makes a contribution to the information literacy development of year 6 students (ages 10-11 years old). The methodological approach to this research was interpretivist, ethnographic case studies. This is a shift from other studies on school library impact because it employs direct observation of students, and studies each school as a whole, where prior studies have relied on assessment data. This study relied on data collected in the natural environment where children were working to develop rich descriptions of the schools chosen, to be written into detailed case studies. In order to determine the contribution of the school library to information literacy development, the researcher spent time in three different schools, which had differing levels of library provision. The researcher spent time with a Year 6 (age 10-11 years) class in each school, and observed their information behaviour during a research task assigned by their classroom teacher. In order to streamline the observations, an observation framework was developed. This also ensured that each class in the three schools was observed in the same way. The researcher was immersed in each class for the duration of the class assignment, and walked around during the research lessons and spoke to the children about their research process. Semi structured interviews were conducted with members of teaching staff and head teachers to gain information about the school, and to determine their attitudes about school library provision, employing a librarian and the instruction of information literacy. Each school was then written into a case study to provide a rich picture of the school, and of the specific events during the observation sessions with the students. From the case studies, themes about the ways that the students experienced information emerged, and the findings from each school was the basis for the creation of an information literacy framework and recommendations of best practice found in each of the three schools. The investigation highlighted the important contribution that a well-managed school library made to the development of students information literacy

The self-perceived status of school librarians

This study investigated how school librarians perceive their status within the school by looking at factors suggested by the literature as either impacting on, or impacted by, status: their relationships with their colleagues and supervisors, their role within the school, job satisfaction, and views on their careers and their training. Most respondents reported a high self-perceived status, on par with a head of department, and they believe that teachers and their supervisors support the library, they always felt welcome in the staff rooms, they feel regarded as both an important and a professional member of staff, and they are satisfied with their jobs. Those who identify themselves as having a low status within the school are far less likely to exhibit extra-role behaviour within the school and are far more likely to be planning on leaving their jobs within 2 years. This research fills a gap on what is known about the current picture of school librarianship, particularly in Scotland. Further research building upon this might further examine the relationship between head teachers, school management teams, and school librarians, as management emerged as the most influential factor of one's self-perceived status