El Centro de Recursos de Aprendizaje e Investigación de Caguas Private School tiene el objetivo de desarrollar servicios de información competitivos, en total armonía con la filosofía, visión y misión del Colegio. De manera activa e incorporando permanentemente las Destrezas del Siglo XXI, fomentamos los valores sociales y culturales del país, para la formación holística de nuestra comunidad académica.

The Caguas Private School Learning and Research Resources Center has the objective to developing competitive information services, in total harmony with the philosophy, vision and mission of our school. Actively and permanently, incorporating the 21st Century Skills, we promote the social and cultural values ​​of the country, for the holistic formation of our academic community.

The importance of school libraries in the Google Age

by Kay Oddone

In Australia, for example, access to the internet is almost ubiquitous. In 2014–15, 85% of the Australian population aged 15 years and over were internet users, with 99% of people aged 15–17 using the internet (ABS 2016). With such widespread access to information comes the commonly asked question: now that we have Google, do we still require libraries and librarians? This question is particularly being pressed in schools, where smartphones mean that both teachers and students carry a wealth of information in their pocket, and school budgets are increasingly stretched between a wide range of competing demands.

A qualified teacher librarian and a well-resourced library increases student achievement

Overwhelmingly in local, national, and international studies, a positive correlation is found between the presence of a qualified teacher librarian and student achievement. Extensive research also finds that administration — most specifically principal — support for the teacher librarian role and the school library significantly enhances the positive impact the library has on student achievement (Haycock 1999; Oberg 1995; Oberg, Hay & Henri, 2000 cited in Hartzell 2002).

Scholastic's publication 'School Libraries Work!' (2016) includes reports from 25 states in the USA, as well as findings from the National Center for Literacy Education, and the School Library Journal's analysis. The research suggests that having a qualified school librarian, a well-developed library collection, and collaboration and co-teaching between the teacher librarian and teaching staff all elevate student learning.

In Australia, research demonstrates similar findings. Principle findings from the most recent Australian School Library Survey (Softlink 2015) suggest there is a positive correlation between annual school library budgets, the number of qualified teacher librarians employed, and NAPLAN Reading Literacy results. This relationship has been consistent since the annual survey began in 2010.

Teacher librarians can provide access to curated information that specifically meets student and staff needs

Trying to find quality information on the internet has been described as trying to take a sip of water from a fire hydrant. Even choosing a novel to read can be an overwhelming experience when faced with the millions of titles available through providers such as Amazon. A library offers access to high-quality information and resources that have been carefully curated to meet local needs. Teacher librarians have been specifically trained to help teachers and students find the information they need, and know how to model and teach these skills so that the top hit on Google ceases to be the most popular option. Teacher librarians can share tips and tricks for searching online, provide access to databases and indexes that can drill down into areas that a surface Google search cannot reach, and are familiar with the collection of resources that are currently available.

What's more, with increasing numbers of resources available digitally, library catalogues are becoming far richer than simply lists of books that are currently sitting on shelves. A well-developed library catalogue provides access to collections of books, DVDs, CDs, and other physical resources, as well as ebooks and audiobooks, links to websites, reviews of apps for installation on mobile devices, and more. This movement toward seeing the library catalogue as a social space (Tarulli 2012) is being adopted across many libraries — but in schools, it is driven by qualified teacher librarians.

Teacher librarians take pride in developing library catalogues without 'dead ends' that take users directly to high quality resources. The top ten 'hits' on a well-developed catalogue are probably much closer to what a teacher or student is looking for than the top ten 'hits' from a simple Google search.

A teacher librarian works to develop a reading culture and to raise the levels of information literacy across the school

Teacher librarians know and love literature. They promote texts in a variety of formats, including novels, ebooks, audiobooks, graphic novels, picture books, and magazines. Teacher librarians' knowledge of literacy development, current releases, and popular culture ensures they have the ability to suggest the right book to entice the reluctant reader, and to share joy with the compulsive bookworms when new titles by favourite authors are released.

The teacher librarian has a unique role in the school. Having qualifications in both teaching and librarianship, they are familiar with pedagogy and curriculum, and also have expertise in resource management, information literacy, and literature (ASLA 2014). Not being tied to a particular year level or subject area means that they interact with everyone, allowing them to develop a 'big picture' of the school in a way that few others can.

In the age of 'infowhelm', having an information expert on staff, who can not only identify the right tool or piece of research but can also teach staff and students the skills and strategies required to access it, is essential. Teacher librarians are experts in content curation, and they can create digital lists of resources that are carefully evaluated, selected, and distributed in easily accessible ways.

School libraries provide a social space to meet, collaborate, research, learn, share, and relax

The school library can be seen as one of the only spaces in a school which is truly free — the space that is not 'home' or a 'classroom', and which can be without academic, sporting, or family expectations. While some may insist that the stereotypical 'silent' library should still exist, many school libraries provide a space to meet, talk, eat, study, relax, make, and play. Along with great examples of modern libraries such as the State Library of Queensland’s The Edge, school libraries can also be welcoming, flexible learning environments. School libraries have long been a place of refuge from the playground for many students, and now, with changing technologies and concepts such as makerspaces becoming commonplace, libraries are even more exciting to explore than ever before.

As Roly Keating, Chief Executive of the British Library, states: ‘[Libraries] stand for a certain freedom, and privacy of thought and search and expression. They stand for private study in a social space; they are safe . . . places of sanctuary. . . And they are trusted’ (cited in Furness 2015).

The challenge for school libraries now is how to effectively combine the physical and the virtual — to find the right balance so that the library is not seen as a dusty remnant of the past, but as a living incubator of ideas, learning, and innovation. Without a teacher librarian available to direct this growth, this challenge often goes unmet, and the library, which represents a significant investment of school funds, does not meet its potential. A well-resourced school library and a qualified, passionate teacher librarian can transform a school. A qualified contemporary teacher librarian can:

• plan and teach collaboratively across all year levels and subjects

• encourage an active reading culture

• develop an inquiry-based learning culture

• provide advice and information on cutting-edge technologies and pedagogies

• manage and develop relevant and responsive collections of physical and digital resources

• and provide professional learning for teachers, admin, and other school community members in areas such as information management, social media management, and resource development.

The connected teacher librarian is an indispensable part of every school in this information age.

How can a school exist without one?

References

Australian Bureau of Statistics 2016, Households with internet access at home, Australian Bureau of Statistics, viewed 18 February 2016, http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/mf/8146.0

Australian Bureau of Statistics 2015, Schools, Australia, 2014, Australian Bureau of Statistics, viewed 10 February 2016, http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/DetailsPage/4221.02014?OpenDocument

Australian School Library Association 2014, ‘What is a teacher librarian?’, Australian School Library Association, viewed 11 February, 2016, http://www.asla.org.au/advocacy/what-is-a-teacher-librarian.aspx

Earls, N 2015, ‘It’s not about shelving the books and keeping kids quiet’, web blog post, viewed 7 February 2016, https://nickearls.wordpress.com/2015/09/21/its-not-about-shelving-the-books-and-keeping-kids-quiet/

Furness, H 2015, ‘Libraries could outlast the internet, head of British Library says’, Telegraph, 11 February, http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/hay-festival/11627276/Libraries-could-outlast-the-internet-head-of-British-Library-says.html

Gillard, J 2009, Building the Education Revolution: primary schools for the 21st century, P21 round two factsheet, Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations, Australian Government, viewed 11 Feburary 2016, http://ow.ly/HZNn301Ay5Q

Hartzell, G 2003, ‘Why should principals support school libraries?’, Teacher Librarian, 31(2), 21–23.

Kachel, D 2015, ‘The calamity of the disappearing school libraries’, The Conversation, 13 July, http://theconversation.com/the-calamity-of-the-disappearing-school-libraries-44498

McKenzie, P, Weldon, P, Rowley, G, Murphy, M & McMillan, J 2013, ‘Staff in Australia’s schools 2013: main report on the survey’, Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER), viewed 11 February, http://research.acer.edu.au/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1021&context=tll_misc

Preiss, B 2014, ‘Teacher librarians on borrowed time as pages turn on reading sources’, The Age online, 20 September, http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/teacher-librarians-on-borrowed-time-as-pages-turn-on-reading-sources-20140918-10j3ly

Scholastic 2016, School Libraries Work!, Scholastic Library Publishing, viewed 8 February 2016, http://www.scholastic.com.au/assets/pdfs/school-libraries-work.pdf

Softlink 2015, 2015 Australian School Library Survey, Softlink, viewed 10 February 2015, https://www.softlinkint.com/assets/img/banners/2015_Softlink_ANZ_School_Library_Survey_Report.pdf

Tarulli, L 2012, The Library Catalogue as Social Space, Libraries Unlimited, Santa Barbara, California.