In the beginning…

In the beginning it really was dark. Metaphorically, literally. And of course it was the teacher librarian (TL) who turned the light on. Metaphorically and literally.

“Do they give you anything to get you started?” asked the principal. I was standing in a classroom with 30 desks, a couple of cupboards and a blackboard. However, I learned (before Hermione) that when in doubt, you go to the library. I was welcomed by the TL, shown to the Teacher Reference room and taught how to squeeze your hand between the shelf and the wall to turn on the light. It was strange to discover that reading and writing were not on the same shelf, big books were not just for kindergarten, book dust is never ending and makes you sneeze and, most shocking of all, that few other teachers visited this room. The TL would hover, question, suggest and direct.  So here in the library, before the students arrived, I learned that teacher librarians are “information specialists”  (Australian School Library Association – ASLA, 2001, 2nd edition p.60-62), providing teachers with access to resources, training and assistance. In this instance, this service was provided to individuals by request and apparently I was the only one requesting. So why weren’t more teachers accessing the Teacher Reference room and using the teacher librarian’s help? Is this an ongoing issue today?

As an information specialist for students, I was aware that the TL taught research skills during my release from face to face teaching (RFF) but as that happened out of sight, the enduring “light bulb” moment for me occurred during borrowing time, when class teachers were asked to assist. Here I witnessed the magic – all of the TL’s roles as outlined by ASLA came to the fore. Here was the “information specialist” (ASLA, 2001, 2nd edition p.60-62) showing students how to use the online catalogue system and teaching both students and myself where to then find their chosen books. Here also was the “curriculum leader” and “information service manager” (ASLA, 2001, 2nd edition p.60-62). The TL knew every student’s needs and interests when it came to choosing their “reading for pleasure” (Merga, 2020, p.890) books and she had resourced and organised the library accordingly. At borrowing time the students were in control of what they read and their eyes sparkled with the possibilities. Why then is this part of the role referred to only minimally in ASLA’s description of the teacher librarian’s role (2001) and in the School Library Association of Victoria’s (SLAV 2018) clever infographic?

Track forward 19 years to my role as acting teacher librarian in a low socio-economic area. The job of creating a school reading culture, widely acknowledged as having strong correlations with student achievement in literacy and other subjects, is, I believe, my most important job (Merga, 2020). I feel that I alone am responsible for getting books into  student’s homes knowing that I may be the only one providing this service. While I try to increase my collaboration with class teachers, I believe the people I ultimately need to collaborate with are parents, a fact briefly acknowledged by Merga (2020). My current school’s Strategic Improvement Plan (SIP) recognises the importance of a partnership with parents as well, so perhaps I can fulfill ASLA’s role description after all and keep those metaphorical lights on.

Teacher librarians support and implement the vision of their school communities through advocating and building effective library and information services and programs that contribute to the development of lifelong learners (ASLA, 2001, 2nd edition, p.60-62)