This document describes a teacher's action research project to encourage high school English students to use the school library more. The teacher implemented instructional strategies like displaying related books in the classroom and incorporating library resources into lessons. Data was collected on student library visits and program attendance. Findings showed increases in student attendance, library visits involving print materials, and attendance at a library program, indicating the teacher's strategies positively influenced student engagement with the library.

1. Becoming a School
Library's Best Friend
Bringing the library into
high school English literature lessons
Brooke Windsor

2. Becoming a School Library's
Best Friend
Research Question:
How can I use instructional strategies in my
high school English classroom to
encourage a positive attitude among the
students in using the school library and its
resources?

3. Who I am as a professional
• Received Bachelor of Arts from the
University of Memphis in 2008 with dual
major in anthropology and English literature
• Pursuing Master of Science in Instruction
and Curriculum with a focus in school library
media
• Currently residing in Kingston, Ontario to
complete Ontario teaching certification for
the secondary school areas of English,
history, and school library specialist

4. Context and setting of work
• Average Ontario secondary school in a medium-sized
urban area
• Two-semester school year with four blocks of seventy-two
minutes to create a total school day
• Currently teaching English for a variety of grades and
classes—grade 9 applied, grade 10 college, and grade 11
university which was the course on which my research
focused
• During my weeks of instruction I took over teaching the
grade 11 class that was alternating aspects of English
instruction during the week with 3 days focusing on writing,
grammar, and a collaborative project and 2 days
specifically for literature that focused on a specific novel
study which I took over for my research to meet with them
twice a week

5. Research relation to work
context
• Many teachers have a habit of ignoring the multitude
of their school libraries until they want a place to dump
their students
• Also, students tend to instantly sit down at the bank of
computers before browsing the bookshelves
• However, since classroom teachers (especially those
in the English department) are on the front line of
student interaction, they are primed for showing
students how useful the library can be once they
become familiar with the resources themselves and
support teacher-librarian and teacher collaboration
from their own side instead of waiting for the school
librarian to track down every teacher in the building

6. Professional knowledge base
• Lohmiller (2009) details the discrepancy between being
an English teacher and school librarian since many
students feel uncomfortable with the librarian who they
rarely see without their classroom teacher committing
to having a strong relationship with the library in order
to lead by example.
• Lance, Rodney, and Schwarz (2010) note that
collaboration between teacher-librarians and classroom
teachers makes a “demonstrable difference” in the
teaching of information, communication, and
technology standards as well as state reading and
language arts tests scores when it is valued in a
school's community enough to occur with consistent
frequency.

7. Professional knowledge base
• A recently conducted British Columbia study (2011) was
easily able to contribute to the expansive list for research
which details that a school library directly improves student
achievement on standardized tests when it is
professionally staffed, more accessible, and integrated into
school's community at large as well as classroom
instruction frequently.
• Yet, Brown (2004) notes that often teacher-librarians are
scrounging for classroom teachers with whom they can
collaborate since the teachers say that they are too busy,
collaboration is too difficult, or they do not see the benefit
to students. This means that it takes knowledge on the
part of both the school librarian and teacher to understand
the importance of working together and detailed
suggestions which vary in time and energy required for
such interaction.

8. Action Plan
• During my six-week action plan, I will be teaching a literature
unit of English during which the students will be reading a
novel.
• Most of the class will be reading The Kite Runner by Khaled
Hosseini, but a small group of five students had already read
the primary novel for entertainment. Therefore, the collection
of five were assigned Fifth Business by Robertson Davies.
• It was understood that the majority of reading would be
independent while the two classes each week would be focused
on overall themes from one or both of the books with most of
the lessons attempting to cover issues from the two novels then
a few specialized ones for Fifth Business (which would be held
in the library while the primary teacher led a quiet reading
session in the classroom for Hosseini's novel) and The Kite
Runner (which held everyone together since the other group
had still read that novel).

9. Action Plan
• Week 1: Establishing the idea of a library-resource-centered
literature unit and assessing the current views of the
students about their school library as well as libraries in
general
• Week 2: Introduction of “Awesome Extensions” display in
the classroom which featured print selections from the
school library that applied to themes covered by both novels
stylishly placed at the front of the room with signs and props
which will be changed before each lesson—meaning new
selections are offered twice each week
• Week 3: Continuation of “Awesome Extensions” and
implementation of one library resource specifically in each
lesson plan and the in-class assignments

10. Action Plan
• Week 4: Continuation of “Awesome Extensions” and
implementation of two library resources specifically in each
lesson plan and the in-class assignments
• Week 5: Continuation of “Awesome Extensions” and
implementation of two library resources specifically in each
lesson plan and the in-class assignments as well as the
promotion of library programming during class
• Week 6: Continuation of “Awesome Extensions,” integrated
information skills lesson plan, and use of non-print library
resources for in-class project

11. Data Collected About My Teaching
• Research journal
• Sign-in and sign-out sheet of my time in the
classroom
• Anonymous student feedback cards about
their attitudes concerning my lessons,
Awesome Extensions, and effectiveness of the
information skills lesson

12. Data Collected About Students
• Anonymous index card assessments to analyze
current visits and usage of the school library
• Anonymous written reflections about library
programs and difference between libraries and
bookstores
• Student attendance
• Tally record of students who visited the Awesome
Extensions display
• Tally record of students who requested more
information about library programming and the
students who actually attended the library program
during my research

13. Analysis of Findings About My
Teaching
• Research journal : used to keep track of Awesome
Extension selections, formulate ideas for
improvement, and record comments from students
that I heard during class
• Sign-in and sign-out sheet : used to demonstrate my
presence during lessons and time spent setting up
displays before class as well as answering student
questions after class
• Anonymous student feedback : used to analyze any
positives or negatives about my lessons, collect ideas
for improvement, and determine any necessary
modifications

14. Analysis of Findings About
Students

Anonymous index card assessments : used to monitor visits
to the school library and if those visits involved looking at print
collections

Anonymous written reflections : used to monitor changes in
student personal views about the school library in general in
addition to library programs and programming and
perceptions of the role it plays

Student attendance : tracked throughout the six weeks to
see if there was a dramatic change in the percentage of
attendance with the deepening of lesson interest through
library resources

15. Analysis of Findings About
Students
•Tally record for Awesome Extensions: used to record of the
number of students who made reference to the Awesome
Extensions during their class participation and the number of
students who independently visited the table both before class
and those who looked at the books after class
•Tally record for library programming: used to record the
number of students in my class who attended the graphic
novel and comic book library program during the fifth week of
my research

16. Findings of Data
• The increase in student attendance over the course of the six weeks can
demonstrate that the deeper and more intricate daily lessons made students wish
to attend class more often. The increase in the number of students who made
reference to the Awesome Extensions in class discussions as well as visited the
display before and after class shows that students became more comfortable and
interested in these changing additions as they began to be seen as a staple of the
classroom.

17. Findings of Data
• Giving my actions time to lead to change, I assessed student visitation to the library
and exploring of the print collections three times. The data shows that the number
of students visiting the library and a subset of that group were both increasing
during my research to show a positive relation between teacher support of the
library and higher student library interactions, especially for the print collection.

18. Findings of Data
• The investigation into a direct link between strong teacher support and student
attendance of school library programs during my research shows a strong connection
by the division of students in my grade 11 English class demonstrated in this chart
between the students who went to the comic book and graphic novel program, those
who chose not to attend, and those who were unable to go due to the scheduling of the
program—whether because they rode an early bus home or had a previous
engagement (such as athletics or clubs).

19. Findings of Data
• The heart of my action research rested with the ability of a classroom teacher to have a
positive influence on student views about the school library. Therefore, I asked my
students on the last day of my research if their views of the library had been altered at
all with my support through Awesome Extensions and program promotion. The
findings were very positive in showing that in-depth teacher involvement can certainly
open the eyes of the students about the wide world within the school library.

20. Intervening Variables
Since the novels were assigned reading, the early days of
reduced attendance could be a result of the students not yet
interested in the story or the assignment at large.
The lower average attendance on Monday lessons compared
to those on Thursday most likely are linked to the fact that
Monday is a common day to skip class—especially for grade 11
students who have their own transportation.
The end result of altered opinions about the school library
could be slightly skewed due to the fact that I was in an
academic course which is considered honor-based, meaning
many of the students most likely already have a relatively high
opinion of the library.

21. Project Conclusions
The use of library resources in daily English lessons can most
certainly encourage students to attend class with greater
frequency as providing a springboard for discussion and a
rewarding surprise to lead into the lesson.
The support and persuasion on part of an English classroom
teacher can make a world of positive practical difference for a
school library—whether for visitation, print material use, or
program attendance—as well as more abstract means in the
form of student views and feelings of value.

22. Next Steps
I would like to apply a similar form of action
research in an applied level or workplace
centered English course to see if there
could be a greater change for positive
views.
Also, I wish to carry out the hosting of a
library program which the students
themselves helped to form then compare
attendance rates and perhaps see if this
method is as effective in a history course
—which is my other teachable subject.