AASL studies

 AASL’s final snapshot survey results found changes have occurred over the past year that will impact school librarian practice for years to come. Respondents noted that their role in their school district or building increased during the current school year. When asked how their practices have changed, technology troubleshooting, e-book promotion, virtual professional development, and step-by-step instructional material for use of online tools and databases received the most “doing more” responses.

AASL. (2021). Final school library snapshot survey results. Knowledge Quest. https://knowledgequest.aasl.org/final-school-library-snapshot-survey-results/

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New research published in AASL’s peer-reviewed online journal, School Library Research (SLR), explores three topics. SLR articles can be accessed for free at www.ala.org/aasl/slr.

1) Kammer et al. examined successfully completed collaborative projects at the elementary, middle, and high school levels. Each project used integrated instruction or curriculum and were analyzed within the context of “what strategies make collaboration successful? 

2) Burns and Dawkins explored the alignment of the Standards Framework for School Librarians from AASL’s National School Library Standards with the ALA/AASL/CAEP Preparation Standards. The research team’s goal was to identify overlap between expectations school librarians are presented with during their preparation for practice and the Competencies they are asked to demonstrate in practice.

3) Thpmpson et al. examined the difference in school librarians’ teacher self-efficacy among those who worked in elementary, middle, and high schools. The research team attempted to determine if elementary school librarians’ self-efficacy could be a predictor of reading scores for the schools’ overall average rates on the Virginia Standards of Learning assessment.

• Kammer, Jenna, Matt King, Allison Donahay, and Heather Koeberl. “Strategies for Successful School Librarian and Teacher Collaboration.”
• Burns, Elizabeth, and April M. Dawkins. “School Librarian Preparation and Practice: An Exploration of the AASL National School Library Standards and ALA/AASL/CAEP School Librarian Preparation Standards.”
• Thompson, Jessica, Michelle Barthlow, and Kelly Paynter. “School Librarians’ Teacher Self-Efficacy: A Predictor of Reading Scores?”

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Reading promotion strategies study

A study was conducted to identify the different strategies elementary and middle school librarians in Puerto Rico are currently using to promote reading appreciation. Some of the conclusions indicate that school librarians consider Library Week a key activity for the promotion of reading appreciation, and the Internet as a key resource for the implementation of the different activities they design. The conclusions also acknowledge that school librarians face different challenges, the most difficult being collaboration and support from the students’ parents. The school librarian as motivational agent and strategist for reading appreciation.
Dominguez, N. et al. (2016). The school librarian as motivational agent and strategist for reading appreciation. Journal of Librarianship and Information Science, 48(3), 236-246.