When I say “school librarian” what do you think? A stern old lady who sits behind a desk telling pupils to be quiet, while stamping books? School libraries are so much more than an isolated room in the corner of a school, where pupils come in occasionally to borrow dusty old books.
School libraries in the information age are more relevant now than ever, as we equip our young people with the skills necessary to move forwards into the ever-changing world of work. When faced with so much information, school librarians can act as a guide, so that the task of finding the right, accurate content is much easier for our young people.
In 2015 I came to St George’s School, Ascot as head librarian and my objective was to take charge of a stunning, brand new, purpose-built library. From the outset it was essential that the entire school community recognised that the library had so much more to offer than “just books”. A school librarian must make their presence known across many areas of a school in order to develop relationships and opportunities for collaborative work.
“There is often the misconception that the school library is purely the domain of the English department.”
In my first term I found myself taped to a wall for a charity event and this certainly set the tone for many future interactions with the school community. If there is an event happening it is vital to think “How can I, and the library, support this?”
Each time a school librarian promotes the services on offer from the school library it raises the profile of the service. Whether it is running a research skills class with the history department or a session with a film studies A-level class on how to create an annotated bibliography, the work we do has the potential to cover all areas of the curriculum, and beyond.
There is often the misconception that the school library is purely the domain of the English department, and this can be reflected in the line management structures within a school. I am fortunate enough to be managed by our deputy head (academic) so my outreach and perspective crosses all departments and subjects. Relationships with staff in all areas of the school is vital; those informal discussions that take place in the staff room or over lunch can lead to fruitful cooperation and fantastic new ideas.
There have been a number of other opportunities for me to get involved across different areas of the school, and in my first year I became a head of house. We take our house competitions very seriously and the girls in my house recently won house debating. I like to think that my role as school librarian helped guide them towards victory, as I encouraged them to research the topics thoroughly and apply critical thinking and analysis to try and anticipate the arguments from the opposition.
“Many people do not realise the incredible pastoral role that a school librarian has.”
As I live on site, I work evenings and weekends in a boarding house that caters for the girls in Years 7 to 10. The number of times I have conversations in the evening or at bedtimes about books is testament to my daytime role.
During a recent open morning I overheard a pupil saying: “That’s our librarian Ms Kennedy over there, she knows absolutely everything”.
Many people do not realise the incredible pastoral role that a school librarian has. We are available at all times and my open door policy means that any girl can come to me with a query, question or problem. It is essential that young people feel listened to and can learn about anything in a non-judgemental environment. The minute a pupil walks through your door they are your priority, the emails and invoices can wait.
One of my other roles in the school is Extended Project Qualification (EPQ) Coordinator. It is a role that complements librarianship perfectly, as it is a research based qualification.
“The main force that leads to the success of a school library is its librarian.”
Undoubtedly there are many children who struggle with reading, as they may have a Special Educational Need (SEN) or English as an Additional Language (EAL), or they may simply not have connected with that one book that will change their outlook. When I started at St George’s, I decided that it was vital to develop a collection that would engage EAL pupils, and reluctant or struggling readers.
I am also a huge advocate for the role of the graphic novel in reading for pleasure. Some have the attitude that if it has pictures then it is not really reading, but I would argue that this is wrong. Any reading is important reading, and if we can get young people into the habit early, then does it really matter if they begin with graphic novels? They still need to actively engage in the story, empathise with characters and follow dialogue.
So many graphic novels also explore other cultures and creating this cultural bridge can open up whole new worlds for young people. The key thing is that graphic novels are also seen as “cool” and not the embarrassing easy readers that can highlight that a pupil is a little behind in reading level.
To conclude, I need to stress that the size of your library and standard of facilities are not the most important things. While a good environment can help, the main force that leads to the success of a school library is its librarian. We work tirelessly to integrate the library into all areas of the school in order to benefit each and every pupil whatever their interests or needs are.