Have you ever wondered about the people teaching the next generation of school library professionals? You probably know that they prepare course outlines, set assignments, and mark papers. They might present at your local or state conferences, or perhaps you know them from their work on committees that promote the new AASL Standards. Maybe you…

When school librarians are hired, most of them will find positions as the only librarian in the school. Their training, their ideals, and what was once a clear vision of the profession can become murky when removed from their classrooms, their professors, and their peers. New school librarians can look for help in the district policies and…

During a six month contract with the Royal University of Bhutan, the author was required to develop the initial stages of a first library qualification to be offered in Bhutan. Questions raised by this project included: is a first qualification in librarianship needed in Bhutan? What are the potential student numbers in such a programme? What…

Today's students find it difficult to develop an understanding of what it is they need to know, and more importantly, why they need to know it. Framing this "need to know" has been called by various names, such as "inquiry," "inquiry process," "essential questions," "knowledge construction." Inquiry, however, goes much deeper than casual…

Thanks in part to technology, the boundaries of library positions are dissolving. It is no longer practical to discuss the profession in terms of traditional library types, and in today's library, the relationship between librarians and technology is stronger than ever. In this informative volume, veteran author Laura Townsend Kane interviews…

In this article, the author profiles Carolyn Brodie, winner of this year's Scholastic Library Publishing Award. One can be completely charmed by Brodie's soft-spoken Arkansas accent, warm demeanor, and genteel manners. While the graciousness is authentic, the woman behind it is fearless, with a clear vision for youth services, remarkable tenacity,…

Library advocacy in one of two directions is the top priority of both Camila Alire and J. Linda Williams, the candidates campaigning to capture the 2009-10 term as president of the American Library Association (ALA). Alire, dean emeritus of the libraries of both the University of New Mexico and Colorado State University, will push for enhancements…

In 2003 at the American Association of School Librarians (AASL) 11th National Conference in Kansas City, the AASL Task Force on Recruitment for the Profession noted that 68 percent of school librarians will retire by the year 2015. They also reported extremely severe shortages of school librarians in ten states and severe shortages in 30 states…

The purpose of this publication, part of the AASL Bottom Line Series, is to provide guidance for school library media education faculty who are preparing a curriculum folio for review by representatives of AASL as part of the accreditation process conducted by the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE).

All libraries surveyed report that their own library school graduates and faculty wives hold positions on their staffs. Both advantages and disadvantages to such appointments are expressed by respondents to the survey. A trend toward the elimination or curtailment of appointment of local library school graduates to the staff was revealed. (4…

Flexible scheduling of school library media is accepted notion in major library school associations and the classes meet in the library media center based on instructional and curricular need instead of fixed scheduling of school library in which classes have specified library times each week. The controversy regarding fixed and flexible school…

Twenty-one case studies, representative of an area of concern in school library administration, are presented as a classroom technique for students of school library management. Analysis and interpretation of these cases by students provide a vehicle for teaching library administration. (AB)

Alternatives are presented which aim to produce leaders in the school library field who will assume leadership roles in large school libraries, in school districts, and at the regional, state, or national level. (29 references) (MM)

This article describes how the author changed a gloomy and outdated library into a cheery and welcoming place for teaching and learning. When the author was hired as the new library media specialist at Tri-County Career Center Library in Nelsonville, Ohio, the library was antiquated, uncomfortable, and not geared for the present-day hills of…

Submitted for the purpose of maintaining registration of St. John's Master of Library Science degree for School Media Specialists with the New York State Board of Regents, this report describes the following aspects of the masters program: (1) its conceptualization, (2) requirements for entrance, (3) competencies, (4) assessment, (5) student…