Module 6 – Activity
Examine and compare a number of models of collection policies to gather ideas for writing your own. It is a useful exercise to examine and question areas of consistency and variation between models. A key area to watch for is the level of acknowledgement and inclusion of digital resources.
The “Manual for developing policies and procedures” (ALIA & VCTL, 2017) noted the changes made in the 2017 version from the 2007 version in the sections of “collection development” and “access and circulation”. These changes reflect the integration of e-resource as a core collection in the library in recent years. The section headings in the templates attached to the manual do not specifically mention about e-collection. Therefore, it relies on the teacher librarians who use the templates to create sections and contents in the Manual for developing policies needed for the development and management of the e-collection.
The “Queensland Public library standards and guidelines” (SLQ, 2013) is a very useful document for the librarians to use to determine the necessary policies and procedures in order to achieve the standards and benchmarks recommended in the Guidelines. Although the guidelines are written for the public libraries, school libraries can device their own standards by following the standards recommended in the Guidelines. Policies should be designed aiming at achieving the set standards and outcomes. The evaluation of the efficiency of the policies can also be based on the standards. The standards for “collection size” and “acquisition” apply to printed books and ebooks. In the school library, it would be more practical to work out separate standards for the two categories because the use of ebooks is largely dependent on the devices and Internet connection needed for using the ebooks. This factor can affect the collection size and the volume for acquisition. I also agree with the point raised in the Guidelines that the proportion of the e-collection varies according to user demands and acceptance. In the context of the school library, it refers to the students’ demands and acceptance.
The “American Library Association’s workbook for selection policy writing” (ALA, 2020) provides guidelines in addressing the collection selection issues. I think the guidelines are rather general and there is no special mention about the selection issues in relation to e-collection.
The “collection development policy” and the “collection processing procedures” in the school library I am currently working were written by the previous teacher librarian. It is a priority for me to review and update both of them. I will use the “Manual for developing policies and procedures” (ALIA & VCTL, 2017) and the “Queensland Public library standards and guidelines” (SLQ, 2013) and Barbara Braxton’s (2014) “Sample collection policy” as the references to revise the policy and the manual.
References:
American Library Association (ALA) (2020). American Library Association’s workbook for selection policy writing. http://www.ala.org/Template.cfm?Section=dealing&Template-/ContenManagement/ContentDisplay.cfm&ContentID=11173
Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA) & Victorian Catholic Teacher Librarians (VCTL) (2017). A manual for developing policies and procedures in Australian school library resource centres. https://asla.org.au/policy-development-manual
Braxton, B. (2014). Sample collection policy. https://500hats.edublogs.org/policies/sample-collection-policy/
State Library of Queensland (SLQ) (2013). Queensland Public Library standards and guideline: Library collections standards. https://plconnect.slq.qld.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0020/146261/Library_Collections_Standard_2013.pdf