Letting your school community know what your school library does to advance our students’ learning is what school library advocacy is all about.
ABQLA members were invited to a Skype presentation by Debra E. Kachel on the challenges of school library advocacy. If you weren’t able to attend this presentation, there are some great resources on school library advocacy that are available at SchoolLibraryAdvocacy.org. In addition, Kachel’s two articles giving practical advice on advocacy are available at the links below:
Proactive Strategies for Maintaining School Library Programs
Reactive Strategies for Maintaining School Library Programs
You will also find links to brochures (for parents, teachers and administrators) videos, articles and blogs at SchoolLibraryAdvocacy.org. Whether it’s advice on how to make a more parent friendly library website or information on current research into the impact of school library programs on student achievement, you will find clear and practical suggestions provided by Debra E. Kachel.
For example, “Certified Teacher-Librarians, Library Quality and Student Achievement in Washington State Public Schools released April 1, 2015, includes new research linking strong school library programs and certified school librarians. Unique to this study is an examination of 5-year graduation rates and the creation and use of a “Library Quality Score” evaluative rating system (LQS). ”
The study says in Key Findings, “Students who attend schools with CTLs (certified teacher-librarians) and quality library facilities perform better on standardized tests and are more likely to graduate, even after controlling for school size and student income level.”
With the emphasis on increasing graduation rates, we can let our school communities know that research supports the importance of school libraries in this area. Advocacy lets teachers, parents, administrators know what our school libraries are doing and Kachel’s suggestions are sure to give you some new perspectives on how to raise awareness of what your library does for students.
