Teacher Librarians are not often considered main characters in hierarchical organisation of schools with their actual job role usually having the “Teacher” part forgotten about, except when it comes to supervision of students during free periods. So where do they belong? Are they more than a teacher? Do they get paid more? Do they hold a position of power?
Most of these answers will likely not surprise or impress you if you are looking at the role as a pioneering leader who is widely recognised and rewarded openly above that level of others within a school. But that may also be context driven by the leadership Teacher Librarians take on (Turner, 2015). Teacher Librarians do not technically sit above teachers, they also do not get paid more. However, they are a dual qualified staff member with both the “Teacher” and “Librarian” aspects to their name coming with their own unique and well-earned qualifications. This positions them often ahead of other classroom teachers in terms of qualifications and also provides a role within the school which works as a school wide leader. They are more than a classroom teacher in what they do, which is to build collaboration, advocate for student outcomes and success (Crippen & Willows, 2019), and work strategically on school wide goals in a school wide way (Zmuda & Hararda, 2008). This is a professionally recognised position, but without advocacy for this may still be a hidden one (Stephens, 2011).
References
Crippen, C. & Willows, J. (2019). Connecting teacher leadership and servant leadership: A synergistic partnership. Journal of Leadership Education, 18(2), pp. 171-180. https://journalofleadershiped.org/jole_articles/connecting-teacher-leadership-and-servant-leadership-a-synergistic-partnership/
Stephens, W. S. (2011). The school librarian as leader: out of the middle, into the foreground. Knowledge quest, 39(5), 18-21.
Turner, L. (2015). Becoming a library leader. ATLA Summary of Proceedings, (69), 179-185.
Zmuda, A,. & Hararda, V. H. (2008). Librarians as learning specialists: moving from the margins to the mainstream of school leadership, 36(1), 6.
