Throughout this first semester I have learnt a huge amount in relation to the school library collection and its role within the school. My current school has a fairly average collection policy that was inherited from the previous library team. My current team is attempting to rewrite the policy which has been advantageous for me considering I have also been studying this subject. This has allowed me to practically apply things that I have read and think critically about the choices that we currently make in regards to our collection. John Kennedy highlights another crucial justification for having a well written collection development policy, that of promotion of the school library and all that it contributes. He states that the collection development policy is a ‘public relations document, and can be a lobbying device’ he goes on to say that by ‘emphasising the priorities the library gives to various kinds of materials or various subjects, policies can assist in the allocation of funding’ (2006, p.15). John Crowley also notes that a collection development policy that aligns priorities with some, if not all, of the priorities of the school leaders then they may be more receptive at budget-building time’ (2011, p. 3). Of course I do not believe the policy document should be solely written to appease the school leadership team rather I believe that a collection development policy should align with the values of the school and should be focused on ensuring the best possible resources to meet the needs of both the curriculum and students.
I can clearly see how a quality collection development policy can guide and justify strategic choices made within both the library and collection. A quality collection development document can help to, not only guide the staff that work within the library and assist with the continue forward projection of the school library. Without a document that holds its staff accountable I feel that it could be very easy to become complacent and static within the library. However, if the school is guided by a strong collection development policy then the library is forced to look inward at its practices and reflect and update where required. Sue Kimmel advises that a 3 to 5-year plan allows the school library to become a ‘living part of the mission of the school that grows and is replenished in response to the learning needs of the school community’ (2014, p. 71). As these documents are reviewed the staff responsible not only need to think critically about their practice but also about what the future holds for their library, staff need to think carefully about what challenges they may face in the future and plan appropriately. Peggy Johnson acknowledges that it’s this uncertainty about the future that should drive careful planning; ‘planning is the process of allocating and reallocating resources in response to change in the environment within the context of the library’s evolving mission and priorities’ (2014, p. 92).
One element of collection development that has particularly resonated with me is the idea of censorship and in particular self-censorship as a teacher librarian. In my time within the library working as a teacher librarian I have seen this occur with other members of staff and I have naïvely thought that this is just what we do. I have seen staff hide things from direct view or strongly tell students they can’t borrow something. We have also had in our library something that Disher refers to as the most ‘common form of internal censorship’, we have engaged in the practice of labeling material that is ‘deemed’ inappropriate for some students and restricted access on those books to Year 10, 11 and 12 students. This is a practice that we are stopping as we are not there to act as loco parentis, which is something I referred to in my forum post 6.2 (Otto, 2018). I was interested to read what others feel about censorship and issues of challenged books within their own libraries in Forum 2.8. I agree with Jennifer Evans who suggested that a well written selection criterion can help to develop a collection that is ‘suitable and balanced for the school’s audience (2018). However, I also feel that this could become a form of self-censorship of you tighten up the criteria so that anything even slightly controversial gets vetoed. That’s why I think having a really clear challenged book policy is crucial to today’s libraries.
I still have a great deal to understand and learn about the library and collection development but I definitely feel I now have a strong foundation on which to build.
References:
Crowley, J. D. (2011). Developing a vision : strategic planning for the school librarian in the 21st century. Retrieved from https://ebookcentral-proquest-com.ezproxy.csu.edu.au
Disher, W. (2014). Crash course in collection development. Retrieved from https://ebookcentral-proquest-com.ezproxy.csu.edu.au
Evans, J. (2018) Forum 2.8. Message posted to: https://interact2.csu.edu.au/webapps/discussionboard/do/message?action=list_messages&course_id=_30013_1&nav=discussion_board_entry&conf_id=_56394_1&forum_id=_112629_1&message_id=_1594599_1
Kennedy, J. (2006). Topics in australasian library and information studies : collection management: a concise introduction. Retrieved from https://ebookcentral-proquest-com.ezproxy.csu.edu.au
Kimmel, S. C. (2014). Developing collections to empower learners. Retrieved from https://ebookcentral-proquest-com.ezproxy.csu.edu.au
Otto, A. (2018) Forum 6.2 Message posted to: https://interact2.csu.edu.au/webapps/discussionboard/do/message?course_id=_30013_1&nav=discussion_board_entry&restrict_end_datetime=2018-5-22%2020%3A1%3A00&conf_id=_56394_1&restrict_start_time=00%3A00&search_type=conference&filterSearch=conference&restrict_start_date=22%2F05%2F2018&restrict_end_date=22%2F05%2F2018&pickname=&pickname=&isSearch=Y&restrict_start_datetime=2018-5-22%200%3A0%3A00&action=collect_forward&restrict_end_time=20%3A01&origRequestId=40381632_1526983267133&pickdate=&pickdate=&