The first time I heard the term ‘teacher librarian’ was early 2014. I had no idea what it meant, but as I was in the middle of being hired as a teacher I didn’t want to betray my ignorance.

Were teacher librarians simply librarians who worked in schools? Librarians who also taught a class? I tried to fit it into a context that was familiar to me, because really, I couldn’t have said what a librarian did other than manage a book collection, organise shelves and check books in and out. Just as with teachers, so much of what a librarian does is hidden from view.

Merga (2019) says that, despite being qualified as both teachers and librarians, “their educational role may be poorly understood by their teacher colleagues, school leadership and administration.” (146) This struck me as an understatement, and speaks to a much larger issue in Australia regarding valuing educators and respecting education as an institution. There’s a worrying irony that teachers can have somewhat similar attitudes towards librarians as the general public has towards teachers.

Quite likely this is due to the simple fact that most Tasmanian schools do not even employ a teacher librarian. Some schools here do not even have a library anymore, or access is on a limited basis. For decades now, funding for libraries has been seriously eroded in Australian schools (SOS Australia). Tasmanian principals have been forced to choose between a classroom teacher and a qualified teacher librarian. This despite the fact that successive Tasmanian governments have professed to be deeply concerned by students’ literacy levels and that “[r]esearch supports the contention that they can play an important role in supporting learning in literacy and literature.” (Merga, 2019) Yet because of this funding model, many school libraries are run by a part-time library technician. Teaching students how to access information; how to discern reliable sources from unreliable ones; and referencing methodologies are all skills now solely in the classroom teacher’s basket. Within such a climate, with understaffed libraries in Tasmanian schools, it is hardly surprising that not only did I not understand what teacher librarians actually do, I also didn’t understand how to collaborate with them as a teacher. Or that I could.

One aspect of the teacher librarian role that has become clearer to me in my current school, where the library and its two teacher librarians are highly valued, is just how holistic it is. The pastoral care element has been a pleasant surprise. Reading mission statements for school libraries recently, the focus is always on relevant, appropriate resources; understanding the needs of the school; and technology (IFLA, 2015, p.18-19). What is often hidden in the list of services and skills provided by a teacher librarian is their role in the school-as-community. In the creative displays our teacher librarians create, the clubs and activities they organise, and the cups of tea they provide to distressed or anxious students, I’ve witnessed the true heart of a library and the relationships it fosters.

References

International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA). 2015. School Library Guidelines (2^nd revised edition). https://www.ifla.org/publications/node/9512

Merga, Margaret Kristin (2019). How do librarians in schools support struggling readers? English in Education. vol 53 (no2), pages 145-160. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/04250494.2018.1558030

Save Our Schools (SOS) Australia (2011). Teacher librarians are fast disappearing. https://saveourschools.com.au/teachers/teacher-librarians-are-fast-disappearing/