In my blog post, ‘Developing a library collection’, I reflected on how ELT503, Resourcing the Curriculum, has come at just the right point in my journey as a TL. The library budget has been allocated for next year and our curriculum is changing to reflect the new National Curriculum. I have started selecting and evaluating resources to be included in the library collection to incorporate this change. Johnson states that “collection is both an art and a science. It results from a combination of knowledge, experience and intuition” (2009, p.108). There is a danger that TLs can rely solely on intuition or opinion. Having a CDP in place that is regularly used and reviewed will ensure that selection aids and selection criteria are used to ensure that the collection is developed to meet the needs of the school and the curriculum (Hughes-Hassell and Mancall, 2005; NSW Department of Education, 2015).

Currently there is one Dulwich College Library Policy which includes aspects of a Collection Development Policy (CDP) and a Collection Management Policy (CMP), as well as library procedures. With my new armour of knowledge, I am now in a position to create a new CDP and CMP with the other members of our library team. Most collection decisions have been the result of my predecessor and having a thorough knowledge of the existing collection is an ongoing process for me. I was, and still am, delighted to be working in such a well resourced library and at the beginning of the year I was very happy to announce that  we had over 9000 books in the collection. In my blog post, ‘Getting my weeding gloves dirty,’ I mention that Baumbach & Miller discuss that quality is more important than quantity and argue that “misleading, inaccurate, out-of-date information is never better than no information” (2006, p.6.). This statement has had a big impact on me and has helped guide how I will move forward with deselection and the acquisition of new resources, including digital resources. This year, I have also worked in collaboration with teachers and students to select new resources. Hughes-Hassel & Mancall (2005) discuss the importance of the community being the driving force behind resource selection. Although I agree that the TL should have the final decision on resources selected, it must be a collaborative process.

This subject has also been crucial in helping me to understand the importance of the library remaining current with constant advances in technology. The Oxford Dictionary (2017) defines ‘future-proofing’ as making something unlikely to become obsolete. Decisions need to be constantly made to ensure that this does not happen with the library space or collection.

Advances in technology play a large part in how a CDP and library practice will need to be regularly updated to keep up with current technologies. An Ebook library has been added to our collection this year and in my blog post, ‘Digital and print books for children’, I reflected on the mixed reactions to this and how in my school library many students prefer a print book rather than the electronic version. Rosenwald (2015) and O’Connell, Bales & Mitchell (2015) discuss how digital resources have not ‘taken over’ print resources as had been predicted. To ensure that money is well-spent on digital tools for our primary school library, the library must be promoting Ebooks and many other digital subscriptions, including online encyclopedias, newspapers and search and referencing tools. Once promoted, they are well used, but if not the user statistics have remained low. They must also be carefully selected and evaluated following guidelines in a CDP. Even as early as 2005, Wade discussed how there needs to be two distinct databases in the library:  the traditional library catalogue; and a second catalog which consists of carefully selected websites that meets curriculum needs. At present, that does not exist in my library, but I have added it into the action plan for the next academic year. By carefully evaluating the collection, I have identified that the non-fiction collection is underused and will need to be regularly and carefully weeded. Rather than the money spent on new print books, time will need to be spent on creating libguides with carefully selected websites and resources.

As the year draws to a close I am using McKenzie’s (2009) guidelines to create an annual report. I am effectively evaluating our collection and creating a CDP that will ensure that the DCSG library is future proof to ensure we are serving the school community in a relevant and inspiring way.

References

future-proof. (2017). English Oxford Living Dictionary. Retrieved from https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/us/future-proof

Hughes-Hassell, S. & Mancall, J. (2005). Collection management for youth: responding to the needs of learners. Retrieved from   http://www.ebrary.com.ezproxy.csu.edu.au

Johnson, P. (2009). Fundamentals of collection development and management. Chicago: ALA Editions.

McKenzie, D. (2009). Importance of creating an annual report. [blog]. Library Grits. Retrieved Nov. 2016.

Mounsey, S. (2017). Getting my weeding gloves dirty. [Blog post]. Retrieved from https://thinkspace.csu.edu.au/paws/2017/05/19/weeding-a-library-collection/

Mounsey, S. (2017). Developing a library collection. [Blog post]. Retrieved from https://thinkspace.csu.edu.au/paws/2017/05/01/developing-a-library-collection/

Mounsey, S. (2017). Digital and print books for children. [Blog post]. Retrieved from https://thinkspace.csu.edu.au/paws/2017/04/30/digital-and-print-books-for-children/

O’Connell, J., Bales, J., & Mitchell, P. (2015). [R]Evolution in reading cultures: 2020 vision for school libraries. The Australian Library Journal, 64(3), 194-208. doi:10.1080/00049670.2015.1048043

Pickett, C., Stephens, J., Kimball, R., Ramirez, D., Thornton, J., & Burford, N. (2011). Revisiting an Abandoned Practice: The Death and Resurrection of Collection Development Policies. Collection Management, 36(3), 165-181. doi:10.1080/01462679.2011.580426

Rosenwald, M.C. (2015, February 22). Why digital natives prefer reading in print: Yes, you read that right. The Washington Post. Retrieved from https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/why-digital-natives-prefer-reading-in-print-yes-you-read-that-right/2015/02/22/8596ca86-b871-11e4-9423-f3d0a1ec335c_story.html

Snow, R. (1996). Wasted words: The written collection development policy and the academic library. Journal of Academic Librarianship, 22(3), 191. Retrieved from

http://ezproxy.csu.edu.au/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bth&AN=9606153744&site=ehost-live

Wade, C. (2005). The school library: phoenix or dodo bird? Educational Horizons, 8(5), 12- 14.