Collection Analysis
Overview
Collection Analysis is a necessary and ongoing step in the collection management process, whether you are brand new to your school and assessing the collection for the first time, or a veteran librarian updating an existing collection management plan. The reason for this is simple: you must have an accurate assessment on the state of the library collection before you can develop a plan for how it needs to be managed.
A collection analysis consists of 2 main components:
Quantitative Analysis
How many books are in each part of the collection? What digital content is included in the collection? What is the average age of each area of the collection? What items are most/least circulated? Data to support this type of analysis can be pulled from Destiny, or can be gathered using a collection analysis report through either Mackin or Follett.
Qualitative Analysis
How well does the collection meet the needs of your school? Does it support all areas of the curriculum? Does it provide students with choice for independent reading on a wide variety of topics of interests, and in a variety of formats? Is the collection reflective of the student population of your school and/or our global community? Data to support this analysis can be gathered in a variety of ways, including:
Student and parent surveys regarding library use, attitudes, and reading interests;
Teacher surveys to assess the collection's alignment to the curriculum;
Assessment of cultural relevance, such as:
Shelf Audit directions (developed by Julie Stivers)
Project READY Culturally Sustaining Library Walk (Collections section)
Auditing a Classroom Library for Diverse Perspectives (can be adapted for a school library)
Interpreting Collection Analysis Data
Simply gathering and compiling data is only a part of collection analysis. School librarians must use their professional expertise to appropriately interpret the data collected in order for it to be shared with the Media and Technology Advisory Committee (MTAC) and school library stakeholders.
Remember that quantitative data is only a piece of the puzzle and needs to be viewed in context. For example, a collection analysis report through TitleWise (Follett) may indicate that the average age of a 398.2 section is comparatively older than the rest of the library collection. This does not automatically indicate that heavy weeding is needed in this area. A professional school librarian may apply their judgement to determine that the older titles in this section of traditional literature (folk tales and fairy tales) still have merit and need to be kept in the collection.
Qualitative data gathered through stakeholder surveys requires similar interpretation through a professional lens. For example, teachers may report via a survey that the library needs more country books to support a research project that students traditionally engage in each year. A professional school librarian may apply their knowledge of pedagogy, the publishing industry, and available digital resources to recommend the curation of information found in EBSCO or Britannica (that are more easily updated to reflect current information), rather than the purchase of sets of country books (which are quick to become out-dated and inaccurate).
The average age of different parts of the library collection can be compared to WCPSS Collection Standards to help determine priorities.Â
Sharing the Collection Analysis
Collection Analysis should be a transparent part of the school library program. When stakeholders are aware of the state of the library collection, it is easier to advocate for resources to address the library's needs. Before publishing the collection analysis for the school community, take time to synthesize the data and present it in a way that makes sense for your audience. Consider the use of:
charts and graphs;
infographics;
video and images (to capture data regarding condition of materials or cultural representation).
A current collection analysis should be shared with and reviewed by the Media and Technology Advisory Committee (MTAC) yearly, as well as posted on a public-facing website for any stakeholders to view.