The document discusses strategies for creating a dynamic school library that is at the heart of the learning community. It recommends that librarians work closely with teachers and senior managers to develop library provision that supports teaching and learning. Effective school libraries have well-trained librarians who collaborate with staff, promote independent learning and reading, and help evaluate the library's impact on student achievement.

1. Creating a dynamic library at the heart of your academy Laura Taylor and Pauline Guiney Librarians, Academies Lead Practitioners for Librarianship City of London Academy and Capital City Academy

2. So which is your situation?

4. is at the heart of a school learning community. It can provide a flexible place for learning where project work, individual study and group research can take place. [It] can provide young people with the means to freely pursue subjects which fully engage them, and promote wider reading. Good libraries can also support teachers in adopting a broad range of teaching strategies. Charles Clarke Improve your library: a self-evaluation process for secondary school libraries (DfES 2004) A dynamic school library : ‘ It is important for headteachers, senior managers and librarians to work together to develop library provision that benefits the whole school and it’s pupils’ Miriam Rosen OFSTED’s Director of Education Good School Libraries; Making a Difference to Leaning (Guardian 21/3/2006

5. In the most effective schools: well trained specialist librarians had a positive impact on teaching and learning. librarians were regarded as key middle managers and encouraged to work closely with other members of staff. pupil librarians were also seen as an essential part of the best library teams. librarians used a wide range of effective strategies to promote reading , planned lessons alongside subject teachers and used different ways to evaluate the impact of the library on pupils’ learning. libraries were well funded “ Good school libraries: making a difference to learning ”(Ofsted, March 2006)

6. Weaknesses identified: funding for libraries varied significantly use by pupils once they entered key stage 4 declined too few opportunities for pupils to carry out research or work independently - many pupils struggled to locate and make use of information. Good school libraries: making a difference to learning ”(Ofsted, March 2006)

7. Actions to improve : increase use of the library by teachers and pupils throughout the day, especially Key Stage 4 pupils develop the quality and coherence of programmes for teaching information literacy to provide better continuity, challenge and progression in pupils’ learning promote pupils’ independent study by more effective use of the library improve evaluation of the library Those responsible for advising and supporting schools in developing their libraries (SLS?) need to work with SLT, as well as librarians, in order to develop provision and integrate developments with other whole-school priorities . “ Good school libraries: making a difference to learning ”(Ofsted, March 2006)

8. Which one are you?

9. Inspection teams in all parts of the UK are keen to see: Well staffed, resourced & used libraries Clear curriculum links between LRC and curriculum staff who work in partnership Effective use of library ICT Knowledgeable & motivated LRC staff actively promoting effective use, information literacy & reading LRC links to out-of-hours learning A library portfolio of evidence of LRC work: copies of policies, the LRC development plan, data from performance measurement, examples of work done by pupils who used LRC resources and guidance. “ Information Matters: developing information literacy skills through the secondary school LRC” SLA, 2005

10. “ The school library is ideally placed to bring reading for pleasure to life” Paul Kropp “The Reading Solution” 1995 Strategies: Create a Reading Culture

11. Creating a Reading Culture Why read? Gateway to learning, personal and social skills Develop imagination Stress relief Connects us to others Creative Helps you make sense of yourself and the world around you

12. Creating a Reading Culture PIRLS - Reading all over the world “ Children who read most frequently for fun were also those with the highest score on PIRLS” PISA 2000 - Reading for change “ Being more enthusiastic about reading and a frequent reader was more of an advantage, on its own, than having well-educated parents in good jobs.” Research shows that reading for enjoyment is “more important for children’s educational success than their family’s socio-economic status” (OECD, 2002) Progression in International Reading and Literacy Programme for International Student Assessment Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

13. Creating a Reading Culture School inspectors in 2006 highlighted the fact that a fifth of 11 year olds could not read properly- 150,000 children.These students are at a disadvantage in accessing the curriculum Although “Reading for Change” placed young people in UK seventh out of 33 countries surveyed in terms of functional literacy skills there was a decline in attitudes to reading as children get older and a long record of underachievement for those with reading difficulties

14. Very Poor Literacy Costs of crime Health Costs Educational costs: special needs support Educational costs: behaviour, exclusion, truancy Cost of unemployment and low wages

15. Reading Challenges Carnegie Shadowing and other Book Awards Book Boxes, reading mornings, review magazines, book sales, assemblies, rewards Bookweeks –Big Reads, World Book Day, and other national events Reading Clubs/Groups – staff and students, reading Buddies Creating a Reading Culture: How do you go about it?

16. Reading Challenges Portslade Community College Library KS3 Reading Challenge Our Lady's High School Reading Trail St Martin in the Fields High School “Hooked on Books” Library Lines B and D Publishing www.banddpublishing.co.uk

19. Library Lines

20. You will also need to use the Library Lines map which looks like this: Each line represents a genre (E.g. Horror, humour, etc) To complete your journey successfully you must select , read and review a book from each line. Your journey is complete when you have collected six stamps in your Travel Card.

21. Book Awards Carnegie/Greenaway: www.ckg.org.uk Red House www.redhousechildrensbookaward.co.uk Bookheads www.bookheads.org.uk Smarties/Guardian/Whitbread Blue Peter Local www.southwarkbookaward.org.uk

23. Bookweeks Sell books Authors, poets, storytellers Competitions High profile event across the school Big Read posters

24. Other national events Roald Dahl Day National Poetry Day Black History Month National Childrens’ Bookweek Swap a Book Day World Book Day

25. Reading Clubs/Groups www.readingclub.org.uk www.readinggroups.co.uk Joint staff and 6 th Form group Carnegie G and T Reading Buddies

26. SOME READING STARS!

27. Reading Buddies

29. Accelerated Reader “ Gets students motivated about books” “ Reading for fun” “ improves students’ critical-thinking and comprehension skills” “ guides students to appropriate books” www.renlearn.co.uk

30. Accelerated Reader Renaissance Learning promises to raise pupils’ reading scores by 2 years within 12 months. Star Reader test. ZPDs. Multiple choice on-line quizzes for which students receive points and a percentage score. Detailed diagnostic reports allow staff to identify which students need extra help, are reading at the wrong level etc. Books allocated levels from 1-12. Introduced to all specialist secondary schools and academies in England. Already used in 67,000 schools worldwide £10 per pupil

31. A diagnostic report looks like this. NB no code means good progress – shower your pupils with praise!

32. May 2008 Wow! Students in 7B have earned 655 points!

33. May 2008 Students in 7B have passed over 100 quizzes. Well done!

34. Advantages? Fiction and non-fiction texts - wide range 8,000 titles Networkable so accessible throughout the school May tie in with Library Management system Helps guide and motivate students to find books they will enjoy. Kids enjoy quizzes and computers. Levels now match NC levels You can write your own quizzes – or get students to do this Adds to a school’s Reading Culture? Encourages allocated time for reading in the school curriculum. Raises profile of the library.

35. Disadvantages? Lacking in quizzes for lower secondary years. Delay in writing quizzes for new books. More aimed at primaries Expensive as a package and in resources Need full involvement of English dept, tutors and Learning Support Labels the kids Some of the AR Book levels are questionable. Seems to be a purely mechanical assessment of each book based on words per line/per page rather than content/concepts Points allocated for different length/level of books seem unfair Short term rewards. Does it really motivate students? Is it just a tick-box exercise which appeals to teachers/educationalists dominated by assessment/levels etc

36. Issues to consider Time and cost setting up the scheme. Who will pay for it? Introduce in a small way or launch across the whole school? How many quizzes? Need to relaunch each year with new students and new staff? Launch via English dept or tutor system? Does it improve long term reading and critical literacy abilities? Might the money be better spent elsewhere?

37. Strategies: ICT “ Young people’s engagement with ICT facilitates and motivates literacy rather than displacing reading” ( Elaine Millard, Differently literate) Email and Video – conferencing Websites Accelerated Reader Blogs and wikis VLEs and intranets- forums, discussions, votes, quizzes, E-books and audio books podcasts

39. www.wordle.net

40. Some Web 2.0 tools to explore? www.philb.com- Phil Bradley- alias the guru! http://webtools4u2use.wikispaces.com http://schoollibrarylearning2.blogspot.com/- 23 things to try www.pageflakes.com http://delicious.com www.wordle.net www.voicethread.com www.rollyo.com www.slideshare.net www.flickr.com www.youtube.com http://issuu.com https://widgets.amazon.com/ www.kn.pacbell.com/wired/fil/ www.fronter.com/southwark

42. Blogs Stewart's Melville Library Holmesdale Technology College News Cumnock Academy Library Resource Centre Bramcote Hills LRC www.blogwithoutalibrary.net/links/index.php?title=School_libraries

43. A Hotlist of Book Websites www.kn.att.com/wired/fil/pages/listbookwebla.html A Hotlist of Word Games www.kn.att.com/wired/fil/pages/listwordgamla.html Boox – new website www.readingagency.org.uk/projects/children/boox.html

44. Strategies: Links with others: Primary Schools Transition starts before the end of Year 6 Postcards project and visits to feeder primaries by librarian and students. Visits, Reading Groups (Torchlight, Greenaway), reading buddies etc Summer Reading –The Reading Challenge and Reading lists Southwark Schools’ Book Award

45. Useful websites for Reading Promotion www.achuka.co.uk www.carnegiegreenaway.org.uk www.contactanauthor.co.uk www.applesandsnakes.org www.readathon.org www.4ureaders.net www.bookheads.org.uk www.cool-reads.co.uk www.writeaway.org.uk www.readingclub.org.uk www.readwritethink.org www.readingconnects.org.uk www.storiesfromtheweb.org www.readingmatters.co.uk www.mrsmad.com www.kidsreview.org.uk www.readingzone.com www.encompassculture.com www.teenreads.com www.roalddahlday.com www.worldbookday.com www.poetrysociety.org.uk www.nla.org.uk www.teachit.co.uk

46. Information literacy is the ability to know when there is a need for information, to be able to identify, locate, evaluate and effectively use that information for the task in hand. National Forum on Information Literacy, USA 2005 The school library offers learning services, book and resources that enable all members of the school community to become critical thinkers and effective users of information in all formats and media. IFLA/UNESCO School Library Manifesto STRATEGIES: INFORMATION LITERACY

47. The school library can: provide an environment suitable for group and independent research; provide a wide range of resources with opportunities to browse and discover; stimulate and support independent learning . take a lead role in teaching information literacy across the curriculum; collaborate with teaching colleagues to embed information literacy across the curriculum; provide targeted teaching for pupils and INSET for staff School libraries – Making a difference (DfES/www.schoollibrariesadvocacy.org.uk, 2004) INFORMATION LITERACY

48. Librarians can: Plan and run induction sessions- Yr 7, 10, 12 Work with teaching staff to help students improve research skills Planning research tasks in collaboration with teachers Produce website and resource lists to support teaching Work with individual pupils Encourage students to evaluate sources Lead lessons on plagiarism, referencing, bibliographies, citation methods for staff and students INFORMATION LITERACY

49. So how do you make the library dynamic and at the heart of your Academy? Work with others and enlist their support Support from SMT. Ensure the library appears in key school documents SEF, SIP etc Money- look for funding Seize all opportunities and don’t get left out of the loop. Become an expert and indisposable. Use teachers’ techniques - whole school assemblies, presentations Have a lot of energy and commitment! And a self belief!