British and International and School and Library How to blend these into something meaningful? Let me introduce myself first: I am Marjan Slaats, Senior School (Secondary School) librarian at Dulwich College Shanghai. We are a British international school, part of the Dulwich College International group, with our mother school, established in 1619, in London. In my presentation today I will look at the library in a British international school. • I’ll start with the perception of school libraries: the discrepancy between what we as librarians think we are doing, and what the wider world thinks we are doing. • After that I will look at the challenges of integrating the library into the British curriculum. • Then I will share how we at Dulwich Shanghai try to move forward. • And after it all I hope to learn from you: the solutions you came up with in your schools – what went well, what should we all avoid doing, so that we can all take things home to work with. Well, perceptions first: Well, perceptions first: As school librarians we probably all have heard this: “This is our library, it is the hub of our school.” “The library is a selling point of the school, prospective parents love it!” The latter is wonderful of course. Or not, as a former colleague of mine who moved back to a school in the UK experienced last year. Her school wanted her – the English teacher, thus knowledgeable about books and libraries – to compile a list of books to buy and put on the shelves in a room that then could be shown to prospective parents as being The Library, as ‘that is what parents like to see’. She was horrified: it only had to look look like a respectable and impressive showroom English library, there were no plans to manage it, use it, or let it play a role in the curriculum. Schools (British, IB, international) have had libraries forever. The role of a school librarian is clear – to the librarians at least. It is a challenge to make others aware of it, not only in British schools.
Librarians have only very recently managed to get their role officially recognized by the IBO: It’s only about 5 years ago that the words ‘Library’ and ‘Librarian’ were first mentioned in an IBO guide: the MYP Humanities guide. Big excitement in the international librarians community: we exist! And not only exist but “…play a vital role in collaborative curriculum development and implementation.” (IBO 51). We do “unit planning and resourcing”, “ATL skills development”, have “a role in teaching”, and “resource the curriculum” (51). So, the librarian is a specialist on learning and reading, and teaches information literacy and learning skills. British librarians working in the UK are conceptually aligned with the IBO vision. The School Library Association (SLA) and CILIP (Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals) in the UK say this: “The School Library Association believes that the School Librarian has an essential and unique specialist role to play in supporting pupils’ learning and their development into effective, independent learners and readers.” (SLA) “Responsibilities include teaching information literacy skills, and encouraging and assessing reader development … .” (CILIP) So: ‘learning’, ‘learners’, and ‘information literacy skills’ are mentioned before ‘reading’. In a 2016 BBC article on the closure of many school libraries in the UK a Department for Education spokeswoman was quoted: "We want all children to read widely and well and believe school libraries can play a vital role in fostering that love of reading.” In the same article someone mentioned that “One head teacher decided "all reading can be done on iPads,” …”. It seems there is a problem with understanding the role of school libraries and librarians: books versus skills – if the people still see us as the keepers of the books, and the books as the major element of the library, how do we get ourselves into the equation as information specialists?
I see that in my own school as well. Every couple of years I ask my Year 7 and 8 students to brainwrite on the statement: “The library is a place to...” That is easy, I get plenty of sticky notes with often very original entries and make it into a wordle: For the Year 9s I have a more challenging question: “What do you want to learn in the library?” That is hard. Also for the teachers – one of them confessed he wouldn’t know what to write down. Of course I hope that they want to learn how to do research, strategies to find and access information, asses the sources, etcetera, but alas, most entries are linked to books and reading, and the practicalities on library use. The number of times Academic Honesty, referencing, and related issues were mentioned most recently? Seven. As clear a message as they come that there is work to be done Books are a part of our job, and we treasure reading, we know it’s very important for everything, and we promote it, but we also know we should and have to do more. We have: • The Library as a Place, with the librarian as the manager and promoter of the place and it’s content • The Library as a Centre for Learning – the ‘Hub’, with the librarian as information specialist
In order to promote and raise awareness of the second role, we have to step up. The i The ideal situation according to Marjan Slaats deal situation according to Marjan Slaats My guiding priciple in teaching is that skills have to be learned at just the right moment. This means that effective information literacy and research skills lessons are: linked to what happens in the classroom - ensuring that the skills are put to use and are practiced immediately - and are felt to be meaningful and/or useful. - Based on this I will never plead for ‘library classes’ as yet another separate subject. This only invites a further fragmentation of the outlook on the world, while we aim at integrating the skills we teach into every single subject. The skills we as information specialists could/should teach: - doing research - finding, selecting, and assessing sources of information - academic honest behaviour, including citing and referencing In my ideal world a school has a culture where these basic skills are part of everything done in the classroom: inquiry based, searching for information not being spoon-fed, basic report/essay writing skills (starting with writing you name on everything you produce), academic honesty, proud to cite and reference properly, reflect and learn how to do things better next time: that it’s not wrong not to be perfect or to make mistakes, as that’s how you learn. This puts the teachers in the driver's seat, with the librarian as the supporting expert.
Integrating library in the British curriculum Integrating library in the British curriculum So, what is the situation if you are a British international school? Let’s have a look at the British education structure: Traditional UK International British international schools either follow the A-level structure or go for the IBDP. As you can see the A-level structure means three successive years of doing exams, and the DP option two exam years – Year 11 and 13. Obstacles to tackle Obstacles to tackle The major problem in a British school like ours is preparing our students for the IBDP years. After their IGCSE exams in Year 11 they have knowledge of the subjects they’ve studied, but do not always have the skills needed to succeed in the IBDP, or at least to make these two years a bit easier. At the start of Year 12 we have to work like mad to get them started on their Extended Essays, teaching the basics, all from scratch. Basic research, essay and report writing skills, citing and referencing, and reflection skills are not yet integral part of subjects taught in the British curriculum. It is up to the individual teachers to work on them. There seems to be an unspoken expectation that it will be taught by 'someone', or that the students acquire these skills automatically 'somewhere'. I was asked to play a role in that: “Perhaps you can do a session on how to use databases?” “… and then do a whole Year session on doing research?” Mmm: One session? A lecture for 100 students? Well, with skills that have to be practiced and mastered by doing it, this might not be the right approach.
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