There are a number of challenges standing in the way of collection development and maintenance in Nova Scotia school libraries today, but the most significant is inadequate funding. The lack of funding places severe restrictions on school library collections, as members of the library staff need to work within a very limited budget to create a collection that is appropriate and relevant to a diverse group of students. However, there are also a number of possible solutions being discussed, including; creating strong collection policies, more collaboration with teachers and administration in collection development, and embracing new technology that will both reflect and attract the interests of the student population.
Funding:
Funding has always been a major challenge in the development and management of school library collections in Nova Scotia. A survey of Nova Scotia school libraries in 1987 showed that the annual funding available for a library collection ranged from $2 to $14 per student. This survey also indicated that the minimum amount that should be spent per student every year was $10, and that anything less should be considered “inadequate” (Nova Scotia School Library Association, 1987). As the prices of books and other materials have increased significantly since that time - to approximately $26 per book today – it would be reasonable to assume that the funding allocated to school libraries per student would also have increased (Doiron, 2003). Therefore, it is appalling to see that as of 2003-2004, the average funding allocated to Nova Scotia school libraries was only $8.06 per student (Coish, 2005). How can a school library be expected to develop and maintain a collection with this funding, considering they would need to pool together the funding for at least four students just to buy one book? It was also recommended in 1987 that schools should receive $2500 yearly funding for library collection development and maintenance, but the 2003-2004 survey showed that an average of $2123 was spent per year on library collections. This is not only low when compared to the 1987 standards, but also in comparison with other provinces at this time, as indicated in the table below (Coish, 2005):
It is clear that funding is a major issue for collection development in Nova Scotia school libraries, but there are some possible solutions being discussed, including the importance of developing strong collection policies and encouraging a better understanding of the curriculum and interests of the students through collaboration with teaching staff and administration.
Collection Policies and the Role of Teaching Staff and Administration:
Creating and following a strong collection policy in a school library is essential to its success, as both a lack of funding and possible challenges to current library materials can prove to be barriers to collection development and maintenance. A strong policy should serve to protect against both of these issues, as it is meant to guide the development and maintenance of the collection - including purchasing and weeding procedures, and protect the choices of the library staff in the acquisitions process, including a procedure for dealing with challenged materials (Doiron, 2002). A good collection policy should also focus on guiding staff in material selection when they have a limited budget, as this policy should encourage the “wise allocation of available funds for the maximum impact on student learning” (Doiron, 2002). A strong collection policy should not be created by library staff alone, but be done through collaboration with teaching staff and administration.
“A collection is developed to meet the curriculum outcomes of the school and to support literacy achievement and life-long learning goals. This means that collection development serves the instructional goals of the school library program and the classroom teachers' curriculum. These collections don't just happen with everyone throwing in a few resources; they must be planned and developed by someone with training and expertise, not only in finding and acquiring quality resources, but in integrating those resources into the school's curriculum.” (Doiron, 2002)
Classroom teachers should be recognized for their expertise in understanding the curriculum of the grades they teach, as they know what is appropriate for their reading level and “know what their students want to learn” (Hutchinson, 2002). For example, a high school library may provide service to students from grades 9 to 12 whose needs are incredibly diverse because of the various curriculum programs available, including International Baccalaureate (IB), French Immersion and individual programs plans (IPP), all of which require specific materials. Within these groups, there would also likely be significant variations in their reading interests. If the library staff were able to collaborate with the classroom teacher to find out what was required and what the students are interested in, this would save time, energy and very likely some funding, as their material selection could be guided by this information. Through collaboration with teachers and administration, the library should be able to reflect the curriculum and the interest of the students it serves.
Closely related to the idea of reflecting the needs and interests of the student is the role technology should play in the development and maintenance of a quality school library collection. While technology may have originally been seen as a threat to the “traditional” idea of the library, there is a now a more positive outlook on this issue, which tends towards looking at technology as a way forward for libraries, and a way to add variety to their collection.
Technology:
“Adding technology to a library media centre is like a strip mall adding a new store – all the stores get more traffic and higher use.” (Johnson, 2002)
Embracing new technology in a school library collection can offer some unique solutions to the challenges being faced, including supplementing the existing collection with a different kind of information and attracting students who may not have previously been interested in the library. The idea is not for technology to replace the existing collection, but instead for technology to work in conjunction with the traditional library collection. Johnson’s article (2002) discusses how finding information electronically – through internet, film, television – can sometimes lead a student to the print materials available in the library and therefore open them up to a completely different set of information. Therefore, the traditional print materials and the new technology can work together to create, “a vital combination of resources, curriculum, activities and professional expertise that helps students acquire not just information, but the skills and judgment to make good use of that information.” (Johnson, 2002)
Conclusion:
The most significant challenge facing Nova Scotia school libraries today is the lack of funding that is available, as this makes it difficult for library staff to provide a collection that will reflect and serve the diverse needs of their student population. However, not all is lost, as possible solutions to this problem are being discussed. While better funding is a key factor, there are also a number of recommendations being offered. This includes; the idea of building a strong collection policy to guide new purchases and protect against challenges to the existing collection, encouraging involvement from teaching staff and administration in developing the collection policy and choosing materials that are appropriate for the curriculum and interests of the students, and embracing technology – which can offer a new way of attracting interest and providing information to students. While these are not concrete solutions to the challenges, these recommendations suggest that there is interest in solving this problem and that, with a little creativity and hard work, Nova Scotia school library collections may once again be able to thrive and achieve their goal of being a valuable part of a student’s education.
Coish, D. (2005), Canadian School Libraries and Teacher-Librarians: Results from the 2003/04 Information and Communications Technologies in Schools Survey.
Culture, Tourism and the Centre for Education Statistics. Retrieved from Statistics Canada website: http://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/81-595-m/81-595-m2005028-eng.pdf
Doiron, R. (2002). An Administrator’s Guide to Collection Development. School Libraries in Canada, 21 (4), 18-21.
Doiron, R. (2003). Building better school libraries in Nova Scotia. Retrieved May 15 2010 from University of Prince Edward Island Faculty of Education, Ray Doiron website: http://www.upei.ca/~raydoiro/html/sch__libraries_in_ns1.html
Hutchinson, C. (2002). Collection Development: Bordering on Dysfunction. Teacher Librarian, 29(5), 54. Retrieved May 15 2010 from Academic Search Complete.
Johnson, D. (2002). Print & Electronic Library Resources – A match made in heaven. School Libraries in Canada, 21 (4), 5-6.
Loertscher, D.V. (2002). Digital & Elastic Collections in School Libraries: A challenge for school library media centres. School Libraries in Canada, 21 (4), 3-4.
Researched and written by Suzanne Hayes.
