Reflect on Farmer’s ideas about print and digital reference material. Are there other materials you would consider appropriate in an Australian context? What factors may influence the decision on which format (physical or digital, or both) to choose?

The essence of Farmer’s ideas about the benefits and use of print and digital reference materials is that both formats are valuable when they serve to meet the range of information needs within a school (Farmer, 2014, p. 52). Any format of reference material is useful when it:

 

• supports the curriculum needs of the teacher
• supports the learning needs of students
• contains reliable information
• is easy to find on a shelf or library website
• is simple to navigate and addresses specific reading levels
• is cost effective because it is being used

The fundamental role of the TL is to support the curriculum needs of the teacher and the learning needs of the student. The reference materials they choose, and the format for delivery, must focus on that role. There are several factors that inform the TL’s decision.

Maintaining a physical collection that is current is a bigger challenge for physical collections. Reference materials can be expensive. On the other hand, the cost of digital encyclopedias and atlases includes constant updating with current information.

Print materials take up shelf space which may present a challenge for smaller libraries. Digital materials are present on a platform that needs reliable IT support and maintenance.

Digital collections assume all students have access to the hardware to interact with the platform. This may not always be the case. When IT is not available or well supported, then print materials are necessary.

Students with specific learning needs may find the accessibility features of digital reference materials important. The ability to listen to content, change font size and colours, and moderate reading levels are important factors in selecting digital reference materials. Print materials are increasingly visual and may provide fewer peripheral distractions on the page.

Common sense suggests that a combination of both formats that suit the individual circumstances of the school is prudent.

Farmer provides a substantial list of excellent reference materials. Additional resources for the Australian context include dictionaries of Indigenous languages, an Atlas of Indigenous Australia, or newsletters from the Australian National Placenames Survey.

Cath

Australian National Placenames Survey. (2020). https://www.anps.org.au/index.php

Australian Society for Indigenous Languages. (n.d). Dictionaries. http://ausil.org.au/node/3717

Booktopia. (2020). Macquarie Atlas of Indigenous Australia. https://www.booktopia.com.au/macquarie-atlas-of-indigenous-australia-bill-arthur/book/9781760556587.html

Farmer, L.S.J. (2014). Introduction to reference and information services in today’s school library. Rowman & Littlefield.