A school library is (or should be) a whole-school facility,
enabling the learning needs of all students, supporting staff to deliver the
curriculum, and providing resources for reading and information within a unique
space. That’s the theory. The reality, however, is likely to be a librarian constantly
juggling between the diverse needs of various groups; library lessons full of hands-on
activities, busy research lessons using a multitude of resources, quiet periods
of study and times of silent personal reading. All this usually in one room
during one day! It is said that you can’t be all things to all people and yet
that is exactly what a school librarian tries to do.
Most of the time this works although it does depend on
what sort of space you have – an area that lends itself to being “zoned” will
be more accommodating to differing needs than a large square room – and it also
requires tolerance, recognition of diverse needs and flexibility but it is no
surprise that sometimes the needs of one group override another’s. This is not
usually a problem if it’s short-term, such as during the intense exam period
when students may need a quiet place to revise but when the school library is permanently
designated for a specific use, it means the rest of the school population lose
out.
There have been a couple of trends I’ve noticed
recently in many schools: one is to use the library as a dedicated sixth form
space, making it a silent study area often with the librarian supervising
students (a waste of their skills and expertise) and preventing other groups
from accessing resources and services. The other is to stop regular library
lessons, deeming them lacking in progress and learning, with the often-heard
comments that “students don’t need to read in the library because they read in
English” and the general consensus that the library is open at breaks for them
to visit.
Does this matter? Do students need regular library
lessons? What do they lose when these don’t happen?
·
Library induction delivered in one or two
sessions does not work. The beginning of a school year is a busy time, even
more so for new students who have to cope with finding their way around a huge site
and integrating with their peers whilst remembering what to bring each day,
where to go for each lesson and what their teacher’s name is! So it’s no
surprise that the Dewey Decimal Classification system is low down on their list
of priorities. How to use the library and where to find resources needs
reinforcing via several lessons not delivered in a quick session fitted in
between other subjects.
·
Regular library lessons mean that students
become comfortable with both the space and their librarian. They soon recognise
that the library is somewhere “different” in the school; it’s not a classroom -
and the librarian is not a teacher yet has that authority of being a member of
the school staff. Students also learn that whilst certain behaviours are
expected of them during lessons, the library can, and often is, a much altered
room at breaktimes. Every school
librarian I know will tell you that their library is a safe haven for the
vulnerable, for those students who have not found their niche within school, and
for those who are not easy with the masses. This pastoral role is much
undervalued yet so important as the library provides a unique space for such
students within the school.
·
Library lessons mean exposure to books!
Even if a library is accessible at breaks, those visiting it are likely to
already be readers and comfortable with being surrounded by books. The students
that you want to lure into the library – the reluctant and non-readers – are unlikely
to be anywhere near the library. And contact with books on a regular basis
sends an important message – that the school values reading and considers it
important.
·
Regular library lessons are SO important! They
enable the librarian to develop relationships with each student, to find out
what type of reader they are, what sort of texts (if any) they like to read and
what their interests are. They allow us to guide each student in selecting
books, something even the more-able readers need at times. They expose students
to a wide range of genres, medium and authors and, essentially, give students “permission”
to read. In an environment where reading is often seen as “not cool”, regular
library lessons incorporating time for reading enable those who enjoy books to
do so knowing that this behaviour is expected of them and they won’t be disparaged.
Without library lessons, you are unlikely to turn non-readers into readers for
pleasure.
·
A lack of regular library lessons means it
is difficult to organise and promote many of the activities that encourage
reading and boost literacy levels such as competitions, book talks and author
visits as well as participation in both local and national initiatives. Communication
via tutors and posters dotted around the school site has a limited reach.
·
In addition to library skills, many
librarians deliver an information skills programme teaching basic competences that
are essential for both further education and the workplace, and that create
independent learners with the capabilities to cope with further and higher
education. These skills are sometimes taught via the curriculum albeit in a
piecemeal fashion so the librarian is able to incorporate all of them into a cross-curricular
programme using research lessons designed in collaboration with teaching staff.
Restricting use of the library limits the delivery of such a programme.
Basically, reduced access to books (which is what
happens when the library is used exclusively for one group of students or
library lessons are not part of the timetable) means a reduction in reading. This
impacts on reading for pleasure which needs choice AND access as well as
discouraging students to use the library for their information needs. A school
that allows this to happen is not using its librarian or library efficiently or
effectively, and is providing a much diminished service to its students..
