13 Point Checklist 2009

Last August, I put out a draft/revision in progress version of this document. I appreciate the feedback I received. Here is the final? product. Thanks especially to Donna Baratta, Library Media Specialist at ME Strang Middle School in Yorktown Heights, NY and Kate Burgher, retired DPI Library Consultant in Wisconsin for their suggestions which strengthened this tool. Modify it, use it, share it as you will.

13 Point Library Media Program Checklist for School Principals, 2009 

Doug Johnson

Doug0077@gmail.com

Rapid changes in technology, learning research, and the library profession in the past 20 have created a wide disparity in the effectiveness of school library media programs. Is your school's library media program keeping current? The checklist below can be used to quickly evaluate your building’s program.

1. Professional staff and duties

• Does your library media center have the services of a fully licensed school library media specialist (SLMS)?
• Is that person fully engaged in professional duties? Is there a written job description for all library media personnel: clerical, technical, and professional?
• Does the SLMS understand the changing roles of the SLMS as described in Empowering Learners: Guidelines for School Library Media Programs (AASL, 2009)?
• Does the SLMS offer staff development opportunities in information literacy, information technologies, and integration of these skills into the content area?
• Is the SLMS an active member of a professional organization?
• Is the SLMS considered a full member of the teaching faculty?

2. Professional support

• Is sufficient clerical help available to the SLMS so that she/he can perform professional duties rather than clerical tasks?
• Is sufficient technical help available to the SLMS so that she/he can perform professional duties rather than technical tasks?
• Is there a district media supervisor, leadership team, or department chair who is responsible for planning and leadership?
• Does the building principal, site leadership committee and staff development team encourage the library media personnel to attend workshops, professional meetings, and conferences that will update their skills and knowledge?
• Does the SLMS participate in a Professional Learning Community and Personal Learning Networks?

3. Collection size and development

• Does the library media center’s book and audiovisual collection meet the needs of the curriculum? Has a baseline print collection size been established? Is the collection well weeded?
• Is a variety of media available that will address different learning styles?
• Have electronic and on-line resources been added to the collection when appropriate? Are there sufficient hardware and Internet bandwidth for groups of students to take advantage of these resources?
• Has a recent assessment been done that balances print collection size and electronic resources? Have some print materials been supplanted by on-line subscriptions? Has space formerly used to house print materials been effectively repurposed?
• Are new materials chosen from professional selection sources and tied to the curriculum through collection mapping?

4. Facilities

• Is the library media center located so it is readily accessible from all classrooms? Does it have an outside entrance so it can be used for community functions evenings and weekends? Can computer labs be reached directly from a hallway instead of through the library media center?
• Does the library media center have an atmosphere conducive to learning with serviceable furnishings, instructional displays, and informational posters? Is the library media center carpeted with static-free carpet to reduce noise and protect electronic devices? Is the library media center climate-controlled so that materials and equipment will not be damaged by high heat and humidity, and so that it can be used for activities during the summer?
• Does the library contain general instructional areas, a story area (in elementary schools), and spaces for individuals to work?
• Does the library media center contain a computer lab or wireless laptops/netbooks for students and teachers working with a class or independently in the library and for the SLMS to use to teach? Does the library contain and support multi-media workstations and digital video production facilities?
• Is the library media center fully networked with voice, video and data lines in adequate quantities? Does the library media center serve as the "hub" of these information networks with routers, file servers, video head ends, and technical staff housed there?
• Does the library maintain a useful, up-to-date online presence with resources for students, staff and families?

5. Curriculum and integration

• Is the SLMS an active member of grade level and/or team planning groups?
• Is the SLMS an active member of content curriculum writing committees?
• Is the SLMS a part of grade-level or content area professional learning communities?
• Are library media center resources examined as a part of the content areas’ curriculum review cycle?
• Are library media and information technology skills taught as part of content areas rather than in isolation? Are the information literacy skills of evaluating, processing and communicating information being taught as well as accessing skills?
• Is the safe and appropriate use of online resources a part of the information and technology literacy curriculum?

6. Resource-based teaching

• Does the SLMS with assistance from building and district leadership promote teaching activities that go beyond the textbook?

• Do teachers and administrators view the SLMS as an instructional design and authentic assessment resource? Does the library program support inquiry based and student centered learning activities throughout all curricular areas? Does the SLMS collaborate with students and teachers to create a wide range of opportunities that enable the development and practice critical thinking skills and responsible digital citizenship?

• Does flexible scheduling in the building permit the SLMS to be a part of teaching teams with classroom teachers, rather than only covering teacher preparation time?
• Is a clear set of information literacy and technology benchmarks written for all grade levels available? Are these benchmarks assessed in a joint effort of the SLMS and classroom teacher? Are the results of these assessments shared with the student and parents?

7. Information technology

• Does the library media center give its users access to recent information technologies such as:
  • computerized library catalog and circulation system for the building collection
  • access to a computerized union catalog of district holdings as well as access to the catalogs of public, academic and special libraries from which interlibrary loans can be made
  • full on-line access to the Internet
  • a wide variety of online reference tools like full text periodical indexes, encyclopedias, atlases, concordances, dictionaries, thesauruses, reader's advisors and almanacs
  • a wide variety of computerized productivity programs appropriate to student ability level such as word processors, multi-media and presentation programs, spreadsheets, databases, desktop publishing program, graphic creation programs, still and motion digital image editing software
  • access to collaborative learning/networking tools such as wikis, blogs and other online sharing programs and cloud computing resources such as online productivity tools and file storage?
  • production hardware such as multi-media computers, still and video digital cameras, scanners, and LCD projection devices.
  • educational television programming and services
  • access to desktop conferencing equipment and software
  • educational computer programs including practices, simulations and tutorials that support the curriculum
• Are the skills needed to use these resources being taught to and with teachers by the SLMS?

8. Telecommunications

• Is the school linked by a telecommunications network for distance learning opportunities for students? Are there interactive classrooms in the building?
• Does the library media program coordinate programming which can be aired on the local public access channel?
• Does the library program coordinate in-house video broadcast programming?

9. Reference, networking and interlibrary loan

• Does your SLMS have the expertise needed to provide effective and timely reference services to the building students and staff?
• Is your school a membedr of a regional multi-type system or library consortium?
• Does the SLMS use interlibrary loan to fill student and staff requests that cannot be met by building collections?
• Does the SLMS participate in cooperative planning opportunities with other schools, both locally and distant?

10. Planning/yearly goals

• Does the library media program have a district-wide set of long-range goals?
• Does the SLMS set yearly goals based on the long-term goals that are tied directly to building and curriculum goals in collaboration with building leadership?
• Is a portion of the SLMS’s evaluation based on the achievement of the yearly goals?
• Is the library media program represented on the building technology planning committee? The district technology planning committee?

11. Budgeting

• Is the library media program budget zero or objective based? Is the budget tied to program goals?
• Does the SLMS write clear rationales for the materials, equipment, and supplies requested?
• Does the budget reflect both a maintenance and growth component for the program?
• Does the SLMS keep clear and accurate records of expenditures?
• Does the SLMS write grant applications when available?

12. Policies/communications

• Are board policies concerning selection and reconsideration polices current and enforced? Is the staff aware of the doctrines of intellectual freedom and library user privacy? Do these policies extend to digital resources?
• Does the district have a safe and acceptable use policy for Internet and technology use?
• Does the SLMS serve as an interpreter of copyright laws? Does the SLMS help others determine the rights they wish to put on their own intellectual property?
• Does the SLMS have a formal means of communicating the goals and services of the program to the students, staff, administration, and community? Is the library's web presence professional, easy-to-navigate, current and useful?

13. Evaluation

• Does the SLMS determine and report ways that show the goals and objectives of the program are being met and are helping meet the building and district goals? Does the SLMS create an annual library report for administrators, staff and parents that include qualitative and quantitative measurements?
• Do all new initiatives involving the library media and technology program have an evaluation component?
• Does the district regularly evaluate the library media program using external teams of evaluators as part of any accreditation process?
• Do the SLMS and school participate in formal studies conducted by academic researchers when requested?

Library as warehouse RIP

In a blog post, The Day It All Changed, Fran Toolan describes a demonstration given by Brewster Kale "Internet Archive Founder and Chief Librarian" of the BookServer Project. Toolan writes:

BookServer is a framework of tools and activities. It is an open-architectured set of tools that allow for the discoverability, distribution, and delivery of electronic books by retailers, librarians, and aggregators, all in a way that makes for a very easy and satisfying experience for the reader, on whatever device they want...

• Brewster announced that the number of books scanned at libraries all over the world has increased over the past year from 1 million books to 1.6 million books.

• He then announced that all of these 1.6 million books were available in the ePub format, making them accessible via Stanza on the iPhone, on Sony Readers, and many other reading devices in a way that allows the text to re-flow if the font has been changed.

• Next he announced that not only were these files available in ePub form, but that they were available in the “Daisy” format as well.  Daisy is the format used to create Braille and Text to Speech software interpretations of the work.

• There were other statistics he cited related to other mediums such as 100,000 hours of TV recordings, 400,000 music recordings, and 15 billion (yes it’s a ‘b’) web pages that have been archived.

• He then choreographed a series of demonstrations.  Raj Kumar from Internet Archive demonstrated how the BookServer technology can deliver books  to the OLPC (One Laptop per Child) XO laptop, wirelessly.  There are 1 million of these machines in the hands of underprivileged children around the world, and today they just got access to 1.6 million new books.

• Michael Ang of IA then demonstrated how a title in the Internet Archive which was available in the MOBI format could be downloaded to a Kindle – from outside the Kindle store – and then read on the Kindle.  Because many of these titles were in the Mobi format as well, Kindle readers everywhere also have access to IA’s vast database.

• Next up, Mike McCabe of IA, came up and demonstrated how files in the Daisy format could be downloaded to a PC then downloaded to a device from Humana, specifically designed for the reading impaired.  The device used Text-to-speech technology to deliver the content, but what was most amazing about this device was the unprecedented ease at which a sight impaired person could navigate around a book, moving from chapter to chapter, or to specific pages in the text.

• Brewster took a break from the demonstrations  to elaborate a couple of facts, the most significant of which was the fact the books in the worlds libraries fall into 3 categories. The first category is public domain, which accounts for 20% of the total titles out there – these are the titles being scanned by IA.  The second category is books that are in print and still commercially viable, these account for 10% of the volumes in the world’s libraries.  The last category are books that are “out of print” but still in copyright.  These account for 70% of the titles, and Brewster called this massive amount of information the “dead zone” of publishing.  Many of these are the orphan titles that we’ve heard so much about related to the Google Book Settlement – where no one even knows how to contact the copyright holder.  (To all of my friends in publishing, if you let these statistics sink in for a minute, your head will start to spin).

• Brewster went on to talk about how for any digital ecosystem to thrive, it must support not just the free availability of information, but also the ability for a consumer to purchase, or borrow books as well...

• The last demonstration was not a new one to me, but Raj came back on and he and Brewster demonstrated how using the Adobe ACS4 server technology, digital books can be borrowed, and protected from being over borrowed from libraries everywhere.  First Brewster demonstrated the borrowing process, and then Raj tried to borrow the same book but found he couldn’t because it was already checked out.  In a tip of the hat to Sony, Brewster then downloaded his borrowed text to his Sony Reader.  This model protects the practice of libraries buying copies of books from publishers, and only loaning out what they have to loan. (Contrary to many publishers fears that it’s too easy to “loan” unlimited copies of e-Books from libraries).

It's not a matter of if, but when, all our libraries become radically different places because of this project, Google Scan the Book, and others that will follow. David Loertscher has been a critic of libraries as warehouses as long as I can remember. Does this nail the lid on the coffin of this concept? Are we prepared as a profession to help students find and download relevant materials on a variety of reading devices (I know I'm NOT.)

Projects like Kales are tough on librarians, but good for humanity.

Oh, from his BookServer website:

Who Benefits?

Authors find wider distribution for their work.
Publishers both big and small can distribute books directly to readers.
Book sellers find new and larger audiences for their products.
Device makers can offer access to millions of books instantly.
Libraries can continue to loan books in the way that patrons expect.
Readers get universal access to all knowledge.

Working in teams - the good, the bad, the effective

My library hero, Walt Crawford, has a great set of resouces on making the most of a team on his Library Leadership wiki called Teamwork checklists.

While I come off sounding pretty much like the grouchy old man I am, there is some excellent information here from a variety of more credible sources.

I am writing this post, mostly so I can find the site again myself!