It is inarguable that digital collections are vital in a 21st century library collection. The question is not “Should library collections include digital resources?” but, rather, “How can library collections manage the inclusion of digital resources?” Digital collections are essential to bring the content of a school library collection to the user. No longer must students physically enter the school library to be able to benefit from the resources it includes in its library collection. Current students or “digital children” as they are referred to in the Newsum journal article are adaptable, technologically capable and demand information in a fast-paced and efficient manner. The inclusion of digital resources in a school’s library collection can meet those needs. However, the management of digital resources in the current library collection can pose many challenges.

Firstly, many digital materials are accessed rather than owned. This poses difficulty in both the selection and acquisition of these resources but also in how they can be used and promoted. Teacher librarians need to be careful when leasing or subscribing to these types of materials as often the vendor will offer a bundle of resources that may not be suitable to school needs. Subscription fees need to be managed and factored into the overall budget and this can be problematic if costs go up or the resource is no longer readily available. Teacher librarians also need to be aware of accessibility restrictions when leasing, subscribing or purchasing digital resources. Considerations of how students will access digital materials (whether the school has the hardware/software to support this resource) as well as how many people can make use of this resource at any given time and under what conditions is also a point of consideration.

Promoting digital resources can also be one of the challenges that the inclusion of digital resources poses for teacher librarians. Unlike physical resources, digital materials do not exist on a tangible level so a teacher librarian needs to ensure that these resources are discoverable in the same library catalogue as physical resources and also think creatively about how these digital resources can be displayed and promoted.

The inclusion of digital resources in school library collections can be problematic on a practical level as well. In one of the slides in Pru Mitchell’s presentation, a column graph representing the number of trained library staff in both primary and secondary libraries in 2016 indicates that 40% of staff in primary school libraries and approximately 28% of staff working in secondary school libraries do not hold qualifications in teacher librarianship. This poses an additional challenge for the inclusion of digital resources in library collections as these resources require professional expertise to be able to manage them and to demonstrate the use of these resources to library patrons. It is essential that all staff working in school libraries are trained in the access and use of digital materials.

Digital resources are becoming far more prevalent as sources of information and knowledge. In a school library context they are particularly pertinent to meet the needs of 21st century teachers and learners. Despite the challenges that they pose, digital resources have an important place in all library collections.

Collection evaluation in a school setting is never easy, however, it is a must to maintain the relevancy of the collection to users. It is essential to semi-regularly evaluate both the print and electronic collection to identify strengths and weaknesses in the collection and to also assess how well the collection meets the curriculum requirements as well as the goals and priorities of the school. It can be a slow and cumbersome process though and when to schedule a collection evaluation can be tricky. Collection management requires staff to shift focus and potentially redirect their attention away from their daily tasks and towards evaluation. It also places restrictions on the functioning of the library whilst this process is being carried out. Library loans may have to be halted and access to library services may be temporarily unavailable whilst library staff are evaluating a collection.

As K. Grigg’s chapter “Assessment and evaluation of e-book collections” points out, no one methodology for collection evaluation is perfect. Usage statistics have a role in evaluation but, in a school setting, it is impossible to know whether library titles that are borrowed or accessed are even being used or whether this type of statistical measurement offers insight into the usefulness of a resource. Using qualitative measures such as surveying and focus groups may provide a better evaluation of existing resources and their use, however, school students can often be apathetic and disengaged and therefore these methods may either appeal only to certain types of students or provide skewed results that can’t be relied upon for collection evaluation. Perhaps a better methodology in the school context is to use the benchmark method of evaluation. This may be preferable as schools can compare their collection and its usage to similar types and size schools within their local area (provided comparison data is freely available or TLs have developed strong networks with other school TLs).

Current priority areas for evaluation in my school would be the non-fiction reference materials. My school does not hold a lot of these resources in a physical format due to space restrictions. The school holds an abundance of fiction resources and picture books to meet the needs of the junior library users. My school does subscribe to a number of online databases and electronic resources to be used for reference and research purposes but the glaring absence of these types of resources in a physical format is a weakness of the school library where I work.

The inclusion of eBooks in public, academic and school libraries is an area of rapid growth. The article “eBooks and elending issues paper” states that 43% of Australians had downloaded digital content in the last quarter of 2011 and the first quarter of 2012. Given that this paper was published in 2013 we can presume that the rates of digital content downloading has significantly increased since this paper’s publication ten years ago.

My current library provides access to eBooks via a portal on the LibPaths homepage. The eBook collection does not appear to be fully integrated in the cataloguing system but rather is offered via a separate search engine. Students and teachers have access to all materials by using their student/staff login and downloading the ePlatform app on their device. Loans are available for a two week period. My school library appears to use a specialist school library supplier (Wheeler’s) to supply all their eBooks and audiobooks and there are far more fiction books than non-fiction books available on this platform. My school also provides eTextbooks via the platform “Box of Books” and this is accessible to teachers and students via our learning platform “Canvas” rather than through the school library portal.

The inclusion of eBooks in library collections poses many challenges with regard to content. In many instances the publication of a physical resource and the access to an eBook is not always simultaneous. Often there is a lag time of some months. This poses a problem with access to information which is a fundamental role of the teacher librarian. Some publishers will also restrict the access to content for patrons or make the purchase of eBooks far more expensive than their hardcopy counterparts which impacts on the ability of the library to provide these resources and the patrons’ ability to access digital resources.

Another consideration when including eBooks in library collections is licensing considerations. Some publishing houses and aggregators will allow libraries to purchase single copies of items whilst others insist on providing a subscription package. Whilst this may be a more economical method to build a collection it does interfere with the librarians selection process.

Procurement of digital resources can also pose serious challenges. Procurement needs to be flexible enough for libraries to have a number of different options to meet patrons’ needs. Libraries need to be able to purchase single titles, subscribe to packages of eBooks, pay per use of eBooks or offer patron-driven acquisition to ensure that the collection meets the needs of the community. Often this is challenged by the providers as they have a monopoly over certain titles, can delete certain items and prevent material from being able to be accessed after a certain time period.

How eBooks are incorporated into the existing library collection is yet another area that can be problematic. eBooks should include high-quality metadata but often the publishing houses provide poor quality metadata and it is difficult for the library to use this data to correctly catalogue these items. Digital resources need to be effectively integrated into library cataloguing systems in order to make them easily discoverable to patrons. Greater standardisation and interoperability is needed so that these resources are able to be accessed across a range of devices to ensure that librarians meet their responsibilities in providing access to information for all and to bridge the digital divide.

Poor interoperability not only affects the patrons’ ability to access information but licensing agreements can also impact the free access to information. Publishers are understandably worried that breaches of copyright, piracy and other examples of misuse is easier with regards to digital content. Digital rights management policies have been put in place to place limits on the number of times an eBook can be accessed before the library is required to repurchase, place limits on the number of patrons who can download an eBook at any one time and also restrict the time that patrons can access eBook content.

These issues will all need to be taken into account in my future role as a teacher librarian. eBooks are already becoming the new norm in library collections and I foresee a time when these resources will potentially replace hardcopy versions.

Firstly, I must start by stating that I am not yet working in the library environment so my understanding of how censorship affects the selection, acquisition and categorisation in my school library is extremely limited.

After reading Moody’s paper on covert censorship in libraries it really did resonate with me just how difficult it is, even for the most well-intentioned librarian, to completely eradicate censorship and to develop a school library collection that truly reflects the rights of all to freedom of information. Firstly, it is my understanding that resources are often selected from the promotions and publications of major publishing houses. I think that this is partly due to the fact that most resources acquired in this way is to serve the recreational needs of the school community as opposed to the educational needs or to resource the curriculum. My school library is only a small space so much of the shelving is devoted to fiction books and many educational resources are either purchased in electronic forms or purchased for teachers and stored in their respective faculty offices for use in their classroom.

Another factor that impacts how resources are selected is the limited time given to the teacher librarian to source materials. As we only have two librarians (one who is primary-based and one who is secondary-based), I feel that they do not have the time to peruse alternative book publishing companies to source materials that offer alternative viewpoints on an issue. As stated in Moody’s discussion paper, “you don’t know what you don’t know” so I would question if our teacher librarians are even aware of some of the less mainstream resources available for purchase.

A big consideration in my school that would affect the censorship of books and other resources is the considerations of the School Board and the parent body. My school is a conservative private school and the students and their parents are very much seen as “clients”. Therefore, I think that the purchase of books considered “controversial” would very much be influenced by the ethos and agenda of the Board of Governors and particularly by the fee-paying parents.

I found the section in the Moody article about the inclusion of resources that perhaps include violence or opposing viewpoints on controversial topics such as the Holocaust an interesting one. This section of the paper was disappointingly brief and perhaps raised more questions than answers but did lead me to consider the debate over whether to include these kinds of resources in a school library where students are young, impressionable and perhaps emotionally too immature to fully understand or process the content in some of these types of books and resources.

Censorship in school libraries (and in any other library) is not something that I had ever considered until studying for my masters in teacher librarianship and now that I am aware of it I see examples and debates around this issue frequently. I found the Jenkinson article very thought-provoking and it forced me to assess where I sit on this issue now and how I will deal with it when I am eventually responsible for the selection and inclusion of materials in a school library.

The article was set in a Canadian school context but I definitely think that Australian schools are facing the same challenges. I was recently made aware of a case in which a primary-aged child had borrowed a book entitled “The Fall” and the teacher librarian who had loaned the book to him had faced a book challenge from the parent of this boy. It turns out that this boy’s father had had a catastrophic fall a couple of years ago that had led to his death and the mother was upset that the boy’s history had not come into consideration when the book was loaned to him. I was shocked to hear that such a benign book could result in a book challenge. However, when I asked why the boy himself would want to borrow such a book the teacher librarian explained to me that often children gravitate to books that contain subjects that are familiar to them.

This leads me to consider how important it is to include books on a range of previously seen as “controversial” topics. Young children and young adults do need to read about characters and situations that reflect what they are currently going through and to be able to seek possible comfort or solutions to their worries and anxieties. I am not sure yet how I would go about including such materials though. Should I just have them generally included in the collection or would I have the spines labelled according to their category or even in a special section? The future teacher librarian in me suggests that they should be included in the mainstream collection but the mother in me suggests that these books still need to be loaned out to students with care.

I feel that preventing censorship in libraries is very important in an age when we have recently debated and, in some cases, called for the removal of some Roald Dahl’s books that are now considered racist and inappropriate for school-aged students by today’s standards. It is imperative that the censorship that prevails now in the 21st century and some people’s attempts to re-write our history to suit their own narrative is not transferred into the selection process for school libraries. Students need to have access to books about all kinds of topics and be able to debate the content of these books freely in order to receive a well-rounded and balanced education.

ETL401 has introduced me to the concepts of information literacy and inquiry learning and has also challenged my perceptions of the role of the TL and their importance to the school community.

My initial understanding of a literate person was simply someone who could read and write and therefore participate in society more fully. However, in a rapidly expanding information society the term “information literacy” has never been more important. Information literacy primarily pertains to critical thinking and evaluation skills and is at the heart of learning (Hutchinson, 2017). The students that I teach are the first generation of true “digital natives” and I am guilty of assuming that because this generation have only ever known a world with technology that they must automatically be “technology savvy” (Wang et al., 2013). However, the many readings and discussion posts in ETL401 have made me realise that this generation is better defined as the “google generation”.

The persistence and replicability of digital information means that students in today’s schooling system must wade their way through an enormous volume of content in search of the information that they seek (Upton, July 18). My role as a TL will be to help students to navigate the information society in which we live. In the words of a fellow student, “If [TLs] resist the information society, we only perpetuate the outdated ideas of what a TL is and what our role is” (Whittle, 2023, July 23).

Information literacy requires students to think more deeply; to be able to successfully locate information, evaluate it, make judgements about its relevance, and then devise ways to communicate and share this information. The TL is fundamental in teaching students the best way to locate and access information and can ensure that these skills are incorporated into the curriculum.

A fellow ETL401 student noted in the discussion forum that whilst she sees plenty of opportunities to embed information literacy into the curriculum, at her school she sees only “pockets” of the school that are doing this successfully (Auld, August 13). As an aspiring TL I see the importance of taking a more systematic approach to teaching information literacy. Inquiry learning and various information literacy models can help to develop a school-wide process for students to learn how to seek, access and use information effectively and ethically.

As a result of completing this assignment, I have a new understanding and appreciation for inquiry learning. I initially thought that such an approach was sacrificing breadth of knowledge to focus on one small aspect of the curriculum. However, I now understand the numerous benefits of the inquiry learning approach to teach information literacy. TLs can use the many inquiry learning and information literacy models to support inquiry learning such as Guided Inquiry Design, The Big 6, FOSIL and ISP. All models promote information literacy by actively engaging students in the task, fostering a comprehensive understanding of the subject matter, encouraging students to think critically and solve real-world problems.  Far from my initial perception that inquiry learning was too time consuming, I have come to realise that inquiry learning is essential in developing information literacy as it teaches students to value the process of learning and not just the end product.

One of the most disheartening reflections of this course is just how under-utilised and undervalued the TL can be in schools. In one of my earliest blog posts (Upton, 2023, July 24), I expressed shock at Karen Bonanno’s view of TLs being the “invisible profession” (2015). More troubling still was that many of the readings for this course reiterated the need for TLs to constantly advocate for and justify the important work they do.

Through my studies, I have a much better understanding of the integral role that TLs play in teaching information literacy. They are fundamental in equipping students with the skills to achieve academic success and become responsible citizens.

References

Bonanno, K. (2015). A profession at the tipping point (revisited). Access, 29(1), 14-21.

Hutchinson, Elizabeth. (2017). Navigating the information landscape through collaboration. School Catalogue Information Service, (101).

Whittle, Roanna. (2023, July 23). What is a teacher librarian? [Description]. My TL Journey. https://thinkspace.csu.edu.au/roannawhittle/2023/07/23/what-is-a-teacher-librarian/

Wang, Q. (Emily), Sundaram, D., & Myers, M. D. (2013, November 8). Digital natives and digital immigrants – Association for Information Systems. Digital Natives and Digital Immigrants: Towards a model of digital fluency. https://aisel.aisnet.org/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1254&context=bise

The modern day teaching and learning environment is busier than ever. Far from whittling down the curriculum content, the new Australian Curriculum appears to have retained most of the original syllabus content and skills present in the New South Wales syllabuses as well as adding more in the form of General Capabilities.

My experience from working as a History and Geography teacher is that, whilst my school has made an effort to try to integrate the general capabilities into the various subjects studied, these twenty-first century skills are still seen as mutually exclusive to what is being taught on a daily basis in the classroom. There is the perception among teachers that by working to develop these general capabilities, they are doing so at the expense of the subject content. I work in a private school and there is a strong focus on the outcome of learning rather than the process of learning. My school has relatively recently introduced a Deep Learning focus into all secondary subjects. Whilst the intention is good, it has deteriorated into a “tick a box” activity and many teachers feel that these units have been integrated into the existing syllabus to the detriment of other content and skills that need to also be covered.

I believe that the teacher librarian can play a significant role in the promotion of the general capabilities across subject curriculum. They are the only person who has direct contact with all classes and all subjects. Teachers largely avoid the focus on developing general capabilities in their students as they either feel that they do not have the time or that, they themselves, don’t possess the skills or expertise in teaching these important skills. Teacher librarians can help to develop these skills. By combining the subject expertise of the classroom teacher with the information and research expertise of the teacher librarian the teaching and acquisition of twenty-first century skills can be achieved more authentically. In the case of my own school I feel that the experience of the teacher librarian is under-appreciated and under-utilised. Our teacher librarian has extensive experience in developing many of the general capabilities but teachers do not draw on her expertise frequently enough. It is for this reason that I feel that the role of the teacher librarian can sometimes be limited to working in parallel to the classroom teacher rather than in collaboration with them.

In a perfect world the old saying “We measure what we treasure” will refer the measure of the extent that students will have acquired twenty-first century skills that transcend subjects and serve them well for future education and workplaces and not their final mark in standardised tests.

“Literacy” is a word that I use on an almost daily basis without much thought for what is actually meant by this term. As teachers, we live in a world governed by literacy and we are always trying to employ new strategies to develop and improve the level of literacy of our students. The most simple definition of a literate person being “educated” and “learned” is too broad in the world that we live in. The correlation between being literate and being “cultured” and “able to participate” in all of life’s opportunities is still somewhat relevant and we, as teachers, all have a responsibility to ensure that students leave school with a level of literacy (or competency) across a range of contexts.

Too often I hear teachers at the school that I work at lamenting the falling literacy standards (primarily the reading, written expression and poor grammar) of today’s students. However, most assume that this is purely the responsibility of primary teachers in the students’ formative years and the English staff in the secondary school context. When whole-school literacy initiatives are introduced by the Principal or members of the Executive Team most teachers assume that they will not have to participate or engage with this policy “as they are not English teachers”.

Unfortunately, literacy has become synonymous with a student’s ability to perform well in a test or assessment. Too much focus has been put on measures of student literacy such as NAPLAN testing. Teachers (through no fault of their own) have become task-driven and are encouraged to “teach to the test”. The reading in “The Conversation” (Merga, 2022) discussed the importance of building student literacy through engagement. Students need to be encouraged to read for the pure joy of reading and to be curious learners rather than simply learn in order to pass a test.

Teachers need to be provided with training in order to identify students who are struggling with literacy skills in their subjects. Learning support staff in schools are stretched to the limit and can only provide generalised assistance with literacy. They are experts in employing strategies to support students who have diverse learning needs but they do not necessarily possess the discipline literacy required for each specialised subject. By providing tools for teachers to address the range of literacy standards within their class, this could improve students’ literacy across the various subjects taught in schools.

On reflection, I don’t necessarily think that the term “literacy” has been watered down, but rather, I think that it has expanded. As new technologies are introduced, new ways of communicating with others become mainstream and new ways of accessing information have emerged, the concept of multiple literacies has had to replace more traditional understandings of what it means to be literate. I think that “multiple literacies” now describes a need to possess a level of competence across many areas and disciplines. We forget that students who may not know anything different from the world that they live in still need to be explicitly taught how to “identify, understand, interpret, create, communicate and compute” (UNESCO, 2004) information in a range of different contexts in order to build literacy and prepare them for the future.

References:

Merga, M. K. (2022, November 29). Every teacher needs to be a literacy teacher – but that’s not happening in most Australian schools. The Conversation. https://theconversation.com/every-teacher-needs-to-be-a-literacy-teacher-but-thats-not-happening-in-most-australian-schools-184557

I have been a History and Geography teacher for twenty years and in my time in the classroom I have had the privilege of teaching students from Years 7-12. Working in the Humanities Faculty means that I have always understood the importance of literacy for students of all ages and I have designed my teaching programs to include a strong literacy focus. Despite my passion for reading and inquiry learning, I am ashamed to say that I have previously downplayed the role of the teacher librarian in schools and not utilised their incredible experience in the fields of literacy and research to help support me in my role as a teacher. Rather than seeing the role of the teacher librarian as being one that could assist me, I treated this option as a “luxury” that I was too busy to take advantage of.

I have always loved the feeling that comes over me when I enter my local community library or the school library space. There is always something so calming about being surrounded by books and having the soft whispers of the library staff fill my ears. One of the roles of the teacher librarian is to make the library an inviting and safe space for students and teachers alike. The library serves so many purposes; a quiet place to read or study, a classroom to teach students important literacy skills, a place for students to go at lunch to play board games, build LEGO and complete last-minute homework and so it is essential that this place feels welcoming and is easy to navigate.

However, the role of the teacher librarian is so much more than just designing the physical space of the library. Teacher librarians work with all students and classes across the school to foster a love of reading and inquiry learning, develop information literacy and promote creative and critical thinking. A report published in 2014 by the Young Adult Literacy Services Association states that adolescents in the 21^st century “need a much more expanded skill set”. Skills which include “communication, problem solving, information/media/digital and ICT literacy” are considered pre-requisites for student success in today’s education and work environments (Bonanno, K., 2015). Being dual qualified means that the teacher librarian is best placed to help students acquire these skills. They are the gateway between their schools and the enormous world of digital literacy and can provide specialist assistance for navigating library systems, resourcing the curriculum and working directly with classroom teachers to embed important skills and technology into teaching programs.

One of the biggest misconceptions (and one that I personally held prior to beginning my studies as a teacher librarian) is that teacher librarians work in an isolated environment and that the school library only has relevance to the students and teachers who choose to use that space. Before beginning my studies in teacher librarianship, I did not realise that the role of the teacher librarian was to foster links between the school, students, parents and the wider community. The teacher librarian, far from being isolated from the school environment, is a critical part of the school community. I have learnt so much in the short time I have been training to become a teacher librarian and have a new appreciation for the multi-faceted role that the school librarian plays.

References:

Bonanno, K. (2015). A profession at the tipping point (revisited). Access, 29(1), 14-21.