Ifla pre event_helen_boelens2

Changing times :

school librarians and information specialists co-operating at international level to promote role of the school library and

information centre in education in digital Europe

Presented by:

Helen Boelens

ENSIL Foundation

Gothenburg, Sweden.

August 2010.

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Introduction:

The future of (school) libraries

• An old Norwegian fairy tale (The three Billy Goats Gruff -

De tre bukkene Bruse) to illustrate different points of view :

• http://www.atozteachingresources.com/images/BillyGoatsGruff.jpg

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What is happening in other library

sectors?

How are other libraries addressing

“changing times”?

Example: The ShanachieTour : A Library Road Trip around the world –

Erik Boekesteijn, Jaap van de Geer and Geert van den Boogaard.

(from the DOC, Public Library, Delft, the Netherlands.

Asking questions in different countries throughout the world :

interviews and films (at their own expense) – available via Internet.

http://wordpress.shanachietour.com/about/

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Local study

How my school addressed these “changing times”

Development of the Kalsbeek Information Literacy Matrix

(KILM) – began in 1997 - (at the initiative of a member of the school

leadership, Dr. Jaco Schouwenaar):

• Original objectives were to combine three factors:

– Educational reforms, introduction of new literacies (incl. : information, digital and media

literacy)

– New theories and concepts of learning (incl.: theories of multiple intelligences (M.I.),

learning to Learn, individual (independent or learner-based learning, co-operative or collaborative

learning, competency-based learning, inguiry-based learning, guided inquiry, E-learning.

– The introduction of ICT throughout the school as an educational tool.

• The ultimate goal was to maintain or increase the quality of education

throughout the school in “changing times”.

How my own study in “changing times” began

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European (international) study

• Question asked by founders of ENSIL (European Network for School

Libraries and Information Literacy) in 2003.

• At the beginning of the study, I had to decide, as a researcher, exactly

what we are looking for and what we want to find out.

Dutch national study in 2005 (described in earlier presentations and

reports by Boekhorst, Van Veen and Boelens.

How my own study began (cont.)

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We are all librarians. We love stories! The following story helps to

describe the problem.

An old story from the Hodja (philosopher),

Mulla Nasruddinto illustrate European

(international) research goals

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http://gurdjieffdominican.com/mulla_nassr_eddin_files/image001.jpg

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http://gurdjieffdominican.com/mulla_nassr_eddin_files/image001.jpg

http://www.aecunity.net/Portals/657/storytelling.jpg

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The 3 groups of “researchers”

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The fruit they found

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What the people learned

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Objectives of the study

Question:

• What are we looking for?

• What does this study want to find out?

• How are we going to do that (at International

level)?

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The KILM which has been implemented at the Kalsbeek College, using the school library as the heart of the learning environment, has lead to an increase in educational quality throughout

the school.

Would it be possible to use the KILM (or a similar sub-matrix) in other schools throughout

Europe?

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If the school library impacts educational quality and academic achievement, how

can these factors be described and measured at international level?

throughout Europe?

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The diversity of school librarianship – it has many different faces (Coatney, 2010)

It is a European (international) study.

A positive study makes it possible to present research to the international community (EU, and other international organisations). Good for school library advocacy.

It requires co-operation from different disciplines: education and LIS (library and information science) – cross-discipline.

It also requires co-operation from those who are interested in the introduction of ICT as an educational tool into schools.

It has both educational and political implications.

Important factors about this study which need to be

considered:

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• Educational reform;

• The introduction of ICT as an educational tool into schools).

• The use of ICT in schools for managerial and administrative objectives was not studied;

• The importance of traditional forms of learning;

• Changes in teaching and learning;

• The use of new theories of learning;

• New learning environments;

• The new or altered role of the school library and information centre;

• Changes in job roles; training.

Which factors in both disciplines (education and LIS) were addressed in the

study at the Kalsbeek College?

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Review of the literature carried out in Dutch and English at

European, national and local level:

.

The educational vision and expectations when

ICT was introduced into schools in the 1990’s

The new or altered role of school

libraries and information centres

Historical context

Social context

New learning environments

New job roles

The importance of traditional forms of learning

Changes in society since the beginning of

the contemporary information age

The actual changes which have taken place

within the school since the introduction of

ICT into schools

A new job role for the school

information specialist

Role of libraries

and school libraries

An overview of the subject areas addressed during the review of the literature, relevant to this study.

Effect on educational

quality and academic

achievement

The review of the literature was carried out in Dutch and English at European, national and local level

Information Ages

The present day functions of the school

library and the school information specialist.

How these staff members can influence

educational quality, learning outcomes and

academic achievement.

The historical objectives of school

libraries and their educational objectives.

Changes in teaching and learning

New forms of learning

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Decisions which needed to be made before the research

could begin:

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• Members of the European Union and/or members of

the Council of Europe;

• Countries which were formerly part of the U.S.S.R.;

• Different language communities of Belgium;

• Separate countries within the U.K.

A total of 61 countries.

Decision 1:

Which countries should take part in this study?

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Albania

Andorra

Armenia

Austria

Azerbaijan

Belarus

Belgium (3 communities)

Bosnia & Herzegovina

Bulgaria

Croatia

Cyprus

Czech Rep.

Denmark

Estonia

Finland

France

Rep. of Georgia

Germany

Greece

Hungary

Iceland

Rep. of Ireland

Italy

Kazakhstan

Kosovo

Kyrgyzstan

Latvia

Liechtenstein

Lithuania

Luxembourg

Rep. of Macedonia

Malta

Moldova

Monaco

Montenegro

Netherlands

Norway

Poland

Portugal

Romania

Russian Federation

San Marino

Serbia

Slovakia

Slovenia

Spain

Sweden

Switzerland

Tajikistan

Turkey

Turkmenistan

Ukraine

United Kingdom (incl. England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales)

Uzbekistan.

List of countries which have been included

in this study (61 countries):

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Decision 2:

Definition of terms – the study must make

comparisons at international level:

International definitions are needed for:

a school library;

a school librarian;

educational quality and academic achievement.

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Decision 3:

What is the importance of language in this

international study?

In the 61 countries which will be studied, 52 national and/or official languages are spoken and used.

Ease of communication at international level?

Accuracy of translations of concepts and data.

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Abkhazian

Albanian

Armenian

Azerbaijani

Azeri

Basque

Belarusian

Bosnian

Bulgarian

Catalan

Croatian

Czech

Danish

Dutch, (Netherlands), Flemish

English

Estonian

Finnish

French

Frisian

Galician

Georgian

German

Greek

Hungarian

Icelandic

Irish

Italian

Kazakh

Kyrgyz

Latvian

Lithuanian

Luxembourgish

Macedonian

Maltese

Moldovan

Norwegian

Polish

Portuguese

Romanian

Romansh

Russian

Serbian

Serbo-Croatian

Slovak

Slovenian

Spanish (Castilian)

Swedish

Tajik

Turkish

Turkmen

Ukrainian

Uzbek

List of official or national languages which have been taken

into account in this study (52 languages).

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School libraries in countries which were part of the former U.S.S.R, or

School libraries which came under communist influence after World War 2.

How can these school libraries be described: facilities, etc. compared with other countries in this survey? When were they set up?

Do they comply with the IFLA School Library Manifesto?

Demonstrates how important some politicians believe these libraries to be – used to improve educational quality and also for filtered knowledge and political indoctrination.

“Invisible” or “Silent” school libraries : IFLA/FAIFE World Report 2007.

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Albania : 1700 school libraries

Armenia : 1353 school libraries

Azerbaijan : No information received

Belarus : No information received

Bosnia & Herzegovina : 204 school libraries

Bulgaria (2 figures received: 1465 or 2599 school libraries

Croatia : 1264 school libraries

Czech Rep. : 4151 school libraries

Estonia : 451 school libraries

Rep. of Georgia : No information received

Germany (former DDR) : See country report Germany

Hungary : 4347 school libraries

Kazakhstan : 6852 school libraries

Kyrgyzstan : 2133 school libraries

A total of approx. 140,000 school libraries.

Latvia : 1099 school libraries

Lithuania : 1312 school libraries

Rep. of Macedonia : No information received

Moldova : 1433 school libraries

Poland : 15200 school libraries

Romania : No information received

Russia : 66000 school libraries

Serbia : 1700 school libraries

Slovakia : 5483 school libraries

Slovenia : 648 school libraries

Tajikistan : No information received

Turkmenistan : No information received

Ukraine : 20600 school libraries

Uzbekistan : No information received.

Countries in former USSR and/or under Communist influence

after World War 2:

Number of school libraries reported to the IFLA/FAIFE World Report 2007.

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Some of the other international surveys and studies which were discussed in this study:

Library studies:

Doctoral thesis – Dr. Laurel Anne Clyde (1981)

Singh school library survey (1993);

Libecon millennium (library) study (2000) – included school libraries;

UNESCO pilot (library) study (2008) – did not include school libraries.

Also the IFLA/FAIFE World Report (2007)

Various educational studies (described in detail in the dissertation included):

e.g. Eurydice database, Korte and Husing (2006), PIRLS testing (2007), PISA, European Schoolnet, European Commission, Eurydice, UNESCO, UNICEF, World Bank etc.

Question: Who supplied data to these studies? How accurate was it?

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Difficulties in collecting data, confirmed by other international surveys;

Accuracy of qualitative and quantitative data – had reliable national surveys been held? Who supplied the information? Political implications; Hearsay; Opinions;

4 ENSIL surveys;

From both traditional and digital information resources: Books, reports, surveys etc.;

Interviews (traditional and via Internet);

Using Web 2.0 communication

How was information for this European study collected?

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Population, GNI per capita;

Education at primary and secondary school level (expenditure on education,

adult literacy, school enrolment ratios, training of teachers, compulsory

education and gross enrolment rates)

Ranking in international tests (e.g. PISA and PIRLS) related to educational

achievement;

Introduction of ICT into schools (including school library);

ICT policy in schools;

Media, information and new literacy policies;

Libraries, incl. school libraries and information centres;

General background information;

Specific information about school libraries and information centres.

Which data was collected in the

country reports?

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• a total of approximately 191,000 school

libraries which were reported in the 61

countries in this study (most information collected in

2007).

• these school libraries serve more than 115

million pupils and their teachers

The original research document (Boelens,

2010) studied:

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Important preliminary steps have been taken to improve and accentuate the importance of co-operation between various stakeholders in education and librarianship.

The use of digital technology plays a role in this. Every second the WWW is expanding and changing. It provides facilities, including important communication facilities which make this kind of qualitative research possible.

What happened during this research process?

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The European school librarianship web.

Albania

Andorra

Armenia

Bulgaria

Cyprus

Croatia

Azerbaijan

Estonia

France

Austria

Bosnia & HerzegovinaBelarus

Belgium (3 communities)

Finland Rep. Of Georgia

Germany

Czech

Rep.

Denmark

Kyrgyzstan

Kosovo

KazakhstanHungary

Iceland

Malta

Rep. Of Ireland

Italy

Greece

Montenegro

Romania

RussianFederation

Moldova

Slovakia

Serbia

San Marino

Luxembourg

Lithuania

Poland

Slovenia

Tajikistan

Liechtenstein

Turkmenistan

Uzbekistan

Ukraine

Norway

Monaco

Latvia

Rep. Of Macedonia

Netherlands

SwitzerlandSwedenSpain

United Kingdom(England -NorthernIreland,

Scotland,Wales)

Turkey

Portugal

Core of the web of information for school

librarians and informationspecialists.

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The greatest problem in

this communication is

language.

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Question 1:

What is the present state of school libraries at European level? What is

their mission?

Answer:

Since many of the countries in this survey do not use a specific

definition for what a school library actually is, there is no specific way

in which this question can be answered. This study has revealed a

great diversity in ‘school libraries’. Some are of excellent quality and

are run by trained personnel. Others are merely a box of books in a

school cupboard. The mission of the school library has not been

clearly defined in many countries.

Answers to research questions at European level:

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Question 2:

What are the goals of the school library in digital Europe?

Answer:

The School Library Manifesto (IFLA/UNESCO 1999) and the School

Library Guidelines (IFLA/UNESCO 2002) define these goals for the

countries which are members of these organizations. Clear national

definitions (per country) of what the ‘school library’ actually is, and

how it can be described within the present day educational process,

were difficult to locate.

The documents mentioned above may need updating.


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Question 3:

What is the role of school libraries and the library staff within the school since the introduction of educational reforms, ICT and new forms of learning into schools?

Answer:

This role varies from country to country. In countries which fall into the middle or low income bracket, emphasis is placed on the importance of the school library, however its role is often concerned with literacy goals and the distribution of books and textbooks. In some countries with a high GNI per capita, the school library and the library staff play an important role in:

1. the implementation of literacy goals,

2. the implementation of ICT as an educational tool, and

3. the introduction of new forms of learning in an interdisciplinary way throughout the school.


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Question 4:

Would it be possible to introduce the sub-matrix known as the KILM

into these school libraries?

Answer:

This would be primarily dependent upon:– political support at national level;

– the educational vision and leadership qualities of the school directors;

– the quality of the library staff;

– co-operation with other members of the teaching staff (lead by the school leadership);

– availability of continuous training for school leaders, teachers and library staff and

– the facilities which are available within the school and in the school library.


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Question 5:

What facilities would be needed for a successful implementation?

Answer:

These facilities may vary – the ability of the school library staff to

adjust to different facilities is the most important factor.


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Question 6:

A. What are the critical success factors.

B. Are there other factors which are important in order to implement the KILM throughout the school?

Answer A:

– Co-operation at international level between two disciplines (education and LIS) and also with those who are interested in the introduction of ICT into schools (as an educational tool);

– An understanding of current critical theory for library and information science (Leckie 2010) and the need to cross-discipline exploration;

– A clear understanding of the issues at political, governmental and school leadership level. These are described in the dissertation.

– An understanding of the many faces of school librarianship

– Clear definitions.

Answer B:

– The co-operation between different members of the school staff.


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Question 7:

What changes in educational quality, learning outcomes and

educational achievement could be expected?

Answer:

An increase in educational quality, learning outcomes and academic

achievement can be expected.


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1. The quality of education, at European level is limited, per country, by various socio-economic and cultural factors such as poverty, wars and disasters, politics, educational policy and the quality of the education system, investment in education, the academic quality of the teaching staff, the facilities which the school provides and the attitudes of the school community, including pupils and parents.

2. The quality of the school library is only partially dependent upon the facilities or the amount of ICT hardware or software which it has at its disposal. These facilities need to be in balance with the educational objectives of the school (Kennisnet, 2006). These factors are co-ordinated by the school leadership.

3. Countries which have made large investments in education and also in ICT hardware and software have not necessarily shown an increase in educational quality and academic achievement.

4. School libraries are special libraries which play an important role in two different processes – the educational process and the library process. Co-operation between these two processes is essential if school libraries are to be effective. School libraries no longer play a dependent role in education and librarianship (Clyde, 1981).

5. Since the introduction of ICT within the school, the trained school librarian plays an even more important and essential additional role - that of a school information specialist.

Conclusions

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6. Some tertiary level LIS and educational institutions (throughout the world) are considering and implementing changes in their curriculum in order to prepare school librarians (school information specialists) for their new role.

7. The national school library law in each country is very important. It provides clear definitions of a “school library” and also describes the work of the school librarian; it provides “status” for the school library and reduces confusion which may result in inaccurate data being forwarded to national or international surveys.

8. Accurate, quality data on school libraries needs to be collected at national level, on a worldwide basis.

9. Some countries within Europe do not have a school library tradition.

10. All libraries (at all levels) should support each other’s work. There should not be a competition for status or funding. Also there is a need for better cross-discipline communication. Co-operation between the library process and the educational process is essential.

Conclusions (continued)

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Under certain specific circumstances and when there is co-operation within the school

community, school libraries enhance educational quality and academic achievement.

The school librarian is qualified as both a teacher and a librarian. This person teaches/

instructs pupils and teachers throughout the school, and has similar status to other teachers.

The training and re-training of school librarians is imperative and must occur frequently, in

order to keep abreast of new ICT trends. The research shows that this essential training at

tertiary level no longer takes place in a number of countries, for various reasons.

School leaders and other teachers sometimes do not understand the work which the school

librarian carries out. They do not realise or exploit the many advantages of co-operation with

the school librarian.

Other important factors, which have been studied in earlier research, were confirmed:

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What must we do for the survival of

school librarianship?

• Communicate as widely as possible with colleagues

throughout the world.

• Support each other at local, national and international level.

• Provide Information to others. Information has been provided

by national and international organizations for this

presentation.

• Facilitate translations of important international school library

documents into national and official languages.

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My thanks to people from many different countries and cultures, and who spoke

many different languages, who joined together with me to make this survey of

school libraries possible.

They have tried to tell the international community what school libraries in their

own countries are like.

Information was provided in an atmosphere of trust and co-operation. The

researcher is very grateful for this support but is also aware of the ethical

responsibility to present this information in a fair, responsible and impartial way.

Thanks to all my virtual friends and colleagues for their co-operation.

Final remarks

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