How it all began...
1894:
"School collections have... been excavated which date to the Old Babylonian period" (Buchanan, 2012, p. 58). In 1894, Archaeologists found a ground plan for a school with a room full of tablets many showing proof of being used for exercises (Buchanan, 2012, p. 58). There were no other tablets in any of the other adjoining rooms pointing to this site being one of the earliest school libraries (Buchanan, 2012, p. 58).
1900:
While there is evidence that school libraries have been in existence for hundreds of years their numbers were few and access was limited mostly to the elite. In 1900 many schools did not have libraries on school grounds, but instead relied upon the public library to fulfill the literacy needs of their students (Wiegand, 2007, p. 58).
1920:
It wasn't until the 1920's and the end of World War I that the National Education Association began pushing for separate school libraries and developed standards for their management (Wiegand, 2007, p. 58).
"School collections have... been excavated which date to the Old Babylonian period" (Buchanan, 2012, p. 58). In 1894, Archaeologists found a ground plan for a school with a room full of tablets many showing proof of being used for exercises (Buchanan, 2012, p. 58). There were no other tablets in any of the other adjoining rooms pointing to this site being one of the earliest school libraries (Buchanan, 2012, p. 58).
1900:
While there is evidence that school libraries have been in existence for hundreds of years their numbers were few and access was limited mostly to the elite. In 1900 many schools did not have libraries on school grounds, but instead relied upon the public library to fulfill the literacy needs of their students (Wiegand, 2007, p. 58).
1920:
It wasn't until the 1920's and the end of World War I that the National Education Association began pushing for separate school libraries and developed standards for their management (Wiegand, 2007, p. 58).
Some of the highlights from the Standard Library Organization and Equipment for Secondary Schools of Different Sizes in 1920:
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- Requisites of a high-school library (p. 11- 24):
- Housing and Equipment:
- A trained librarian should assist in the planning and selection of the room and equipment
- Well-lit, ventilated, and planned for reference and study
- Pupils should have free and direct access to bookshelves
- A separate reading room should exist with "plenty of light and sunshine" and only be used for library use, not meetings
- "All possible surface downward from a point 7 feet above the floor should be utilized for shelving"
- Built-in furniture with heights specified in the text.
- Librarian workroom, library classroom, and committee rooms for group work
- Librarian:
- Skills of teacher and librarian
- Librarian to be head of the library department and equal to other department heads
- Trained assistants for every 1,000 students
- "Instruction of students in the use of reference books and library tools"
- Educational and vocational guidance
- Scientific selection and care of books and other material
- Instruction in the use of books and libraries:
- Library instruction should be taught in the courses of English, Latin, Language, and Science consisting of 12 lessons and required for graduation. Lessons would be in the use of books for educational guidance, as tools, and for amusement, the handling of books, and relation to the public libraries.
- Housing and Equipment:
While these were the standards set forth by the National Educational Association, many schools failed to meet them and still are failing by these standards today. These standards have been provided to give you a sense of where school library ideals originated in comparison to today's typical library scenario.
Where have we gone from there...
1946:
"American school libraries expanded their collections to include nonprint media" (Wiegand, 2007, p. 58). As technology advanced, so did the need for an expanded collection of materials.
1965:
"Great Society legislation including the Library Services and Construction Acts, the Higher Education Act, and the Elementary and Secondary Education Act" which increased funding for school libraries (Wiegand, 2007, p. 58). As the United States was in the midst of the Cold War and the Great Space Race more importance was placed on education and libraries benefited.
"American school libraries expanded their collections to include nonprint media" (Wiegand, 2007, p. 58). As technology advanced, so did the need for an expanded collection of materials.
1965:
"Great Society legislation including the Library Services and Construction Acts, the Higher Education Act, and the Elementary and Secondary Education Act" which increased funding for school libraries (Wiegand, 2007, p. 58). As the United States was in the midst of the Cold War and the Great Space Race more importance was placed on education and libraries benefited.
1981:
Many libraries were still using library card catalogs and it was the beginning of the transition to a computerized system (Lamb, 2016). 1985: 93 percent of public schools now had school libraries (Wiegand, 2007, p. 59). 1990's: "During the 1990s, technology changed rapidly. Electronic databases became common information resources and the Internet was a major tool in information sharing (Lamb, 2016). 2000: "[A] second generation of the Internet was introduced. Known as Web 2.0, the expansion of Internet technology allowed easy access to dynamic websites, interactivity, and social technologies" (Lamb, 2016). |
Changes in education and what they mean for libraries...
Libraries evolved for many different reasons over the years including technology and political changes, but one of the main goals of a school library is still to deliver instruction. Keeping this in mind, in order to understand where libraries need to go next, we must also look at the change in educational practices. Gone are the days of direct instruction and silent study halls as we make a shift to the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) across the United States.
Implementing the Common Core State Standards calls out 10 initiatives teacher librarians should take to support the CCSS:
Notice the mention of a participatory culture which encourages social interaction to promote learning. Fostering creativity, innovation, play, building, and experimentation points to the need for students to have access to more interactive environments and tools. These are all changes in the way we teach and learn.
Implementing the Common Core State Standards calls out 10 initiatives teacher librarians should take to support the CCSS:
- Building reading, writing, speaking and listening skills together across the curriculum.
- Building appreciation of the best literature and informational materials together across the curriculum as a part of a literate culture.
- Creating a school-wide participatory culture.
- Building co-taught research projects in blended learning experiences.
- Promoting interdisciplinary real-world problems, projects and learning experiences that take advantage of rich information resources and useful technology tools.
- Using technology to boost teaching and learning together.
- Creating cultural experience across the school, community, and across the world.
- Fostering creativity, innovation, play, building, and experimentation.
- Assessing the results of collaborative learning experiences.
- Managing the integration of classroom, school library learning commons, and technology tools (Achieve & AASL, 2013, p. 12).
Notice the mention of a participatory culture which encourages social interaction to promote learning. Fostering creativity, innovation, play, building, and experimentation points to the need for students to have access to more interactive environments and tools. These are all changes in the way we teach and learn.
References
Achieve, & AASL. (2103, November). Implementing the Common Core State Standards: The Role of the School Librarian. Retrieved March 15, 2017, from http://www.achieve.org/files/CCSSLibrariansBrief-FINAL.pdf
American Library Association. (n.d.). Standard library organization and equipment for secondary schools of different sizes : report of the Committee on Library Organization and Equipment, C.C. Certain, Chairman. --. Retrieved March 15, 2017, from http://archive.org/stream/standardlibraryo00nati#page/n1/mode/2up
Buchanan, S. (2012). Designing the Research Commons: Classical Models for School Libraries. School Libraries Worldwide,18(1), 56-69.
EduScapes. (n.d.). History of Libraries [Black and white photo of an old library]. Retrieved March 16, 2017, from http://eduscapes.com/history/contemporary/hutch.jpg
Flickr. (n.d.). Student using the card catalogue in the library, 1981 | Flic... [Black and white student at card catalogue]. Retrieved March 16, 2017, from https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2535/4029696820_db1f0ec163_z.jpg?zz=1
Lamb, A. (2016). History of Libraries. Retrieved March 16, 2017, from http://eduscapes.com/history/contemporary/1980.htm
Wiegand, W. A. (2007). The Rich Potential of American Public School Library History: Research Needs and Opportunities for Historians of Education and Librarianship. Libraries & the Cultural Record,42(1), 57-74. doi:10.1353/lac.2007.0019
American Library Association. (n.d.). Standard library organization and equipment for secondary schools of different sizes : report of the Committee on Library Organization and Equipment, C.C. Certain, Chairman. --. Retrieved March 15, 2017, from http://archive.org/stream/standardlibraryo00nati#page/n1/mode/2up
Buchanan, S. (2012). Designing the Research Commons: Classical Models for School Libraries. School Libraries Worldwide,18(1), 56-69.
EduScapes. (n.d.). History of Libraries [Black and white photo of an old library]. Retrieved March 16, 2017, from http://eduscapes.com/history/contemporary/hutch.jpg
Flickr. (n.d.). Student using the card catalogue in the library, 1981 | Flic... [Black and white student at card catalogue]. Retrieved March 16, 2017, from https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2535/4029696820_db1f0ec163_z.jpg?zz=1
Lamb, A. (2016). History of Libraries. Retrieved March 16, 2017, from http://eduscapes.com/history/contemporary/1980.htm
Wiegand, W. A. (2007). The Rich Potential of American Public School Library History: Research Needs and Opportunities for Historians of Education and Librarianship. Libraries & the Cultural Record,42(1), 57-74. doi:10.1353/lac.2007.0019