Resources for School Librarians - Index

School Library Leadership

Importance of School Libraries in the Educational Program

These sites are useful when it becomes necessary to have a chat with your administrator about the role of the library.

• AASL Advocacy Toolkit - Materials such as handouts, sample letters, and brochures which will help you promote school libraries.
• AASL Information for Administrators - Here you will find manuals and other information for principals.
• School Libraries Work - A compilation of research on school libraries by Scholastic. This is in pdf format.
• Student Achievement and the School Library Media Program - Facts at a glance by School Library Systems Association of New York State, 2006. This is in pdf format.
• AASL Position Statements - On flexible scheduling, library staffing, the role of the school librarian, and others.
• School Library Program: A Handbook for School Administrators - Excellent handbook written by school librarianship students at the University of Prince Edward Island.
• Visions of Library Media and Technology Programs - Articles and other resources for principals and others concerned with building strong library programs. From Indiana Learns.
• Strong Libraries Improve Student Achievement - An article for school administrators from Education World stressing the importance of the school library. The article includes a summary of recent research findings about the effect of school libraries on student achievement.
• Why Share Your Library's Story? - If you are writing to a local or national official, make sure to personalize your story if you want it to be read. Congressional staffers say that they believe that half of the form letters they receive are sent without the knowledge of the person who is named as sending them.
• Demonstrating Impact - These articles from WebJunction will help you to show how important your library is.
• The White House Conference on School Libraries - This conference was held on June 4, 2002, and the proceedings are must reading for librarians, administrators, and teachers.
• The Value of Libraries: Impact, Normative Data, and Influencing Funders - Article by Stephen Abrams in SIRSI One Source, May, 2005. This article covers the impact of all types of libraries.
• The Impact of School Libraries on Student Achievement - A review of research by Michele Lonsdale for the Australian School Library Association, March, 2003. This review is international in scope and includes an extensive bibliography.
• Outdated School Libraries: What Can You Do to Update Yours - An article for school administrators from Education World.
• A Golden Opportunity - Why the No Child Left Behind Act is your chance to be indispensible. An article by Debra Lau Whelen in School Library Journal, Jan., 2004, details the steps you should take to help implement the Act in your school.
• Creating a Culture of Literacy - A handbook for principals to assist in the development of literacy in their middle and high schools. This handbook is available for free on the web, and may also be downloaded in pdf form.
• In Librarianship, Professionalism is the condition for success - Paper by Silva Novljan at the 1998 IFLA conference. The importance of having a trained librarian in elementary schools.
• Studies on the Effectiveness of School Libraries - Many studies have been done on the effect of school libraries on student achievement.
• Texas School Libraries : Standards, Resources, Services, and Students' Performance - A survey of school libraries in Texas, 2001. One of the findings is that students in schools with librarians did better on standardized tests than students from schools with no librarians.
• America's Most Literate Cities - Literacy ratings based on libraries, education, newspapers, periodicals, and booksellers in cities with populations of over 225,000. Minneapolis is the top rated city, and El Paso is at the bottom of the 79 cities rated.
• 2008 Book Prices - From School Library Journal.
• The Laura Bush Foundation for America's Libraries

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Leadership - Books

These books may be ordered in a secure online environment from Amazon.Com

• The Principal's Guide To A Powerful Library Media Program - by Marla W. McGhee and Barbara A. Jansen, Published by Linworth Publishing, 2005.
• Leadership for Today's School Library: A Handbook for the Library Media Specialist and the School Principal by Patricia Potter Wilson and Josette Anne Lyders. Published by Greenwood Press, 2001.
• Getting Lead-Bottomed Administrators Excited About Library Media Centers - by Timothy D. Snyder. Published by Libraries Unlimited, 2000.
• Public Relations for School Library Media Programs - 500 Ways to Influence people and win friends for your school Library Media Center by Helen F. Flowers. Published by Neal-Schuman, 1998

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This site is maintained by Linda Bertland, retired school librarian, Philadelphia, PA. Please address any comments, additions, or corrections to info@sldirectory.com.