2011 pennsylvania school library study

2011 PA School Library Study

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The 2011 Pennsylvania School Library Study

Mary K. Biagini

Associate Professor

Director, School Library Certification Program

School of Information Sciences

University of Pittsburgh

House Resolution 987 of 2010

On October 5, 2010, the Pennsylvania House of Representatives

unanimously adopted House Resolution 987, which encouraged the State

Board of Education to undertake a quantitative study of the state of

school libraries in Pennsylvania. The resolution charged the State

Board to conduct a study of school library resources and services for

students in kindergarten through grade 12, measuring and comparing

funding, facilities, access to print and electronic resources,

professional support and instruction in the use of information and

research among the Commonwealth’s public school districts and

evaluating how funding and resources are allocated for school library

services in relation to student and community circumstances.

House Resolution 987 also urged the State Board to conduct at least

three public roundtables to receive input on a draft of the study and

its recommendations. To solicit comments about the draft study, the

State Board of Education’s Ad Hoc Committee on School Libraries

conducted three roundtable meetings that were open to the public:

September 13 at Parkland High School in Allentown, September 15 at

Susquehanna Township High School in Harrisburg, and September 20 at

Northwest Pennsylvania Collegiate Academy in Erie. A copy of the

draft report and feedback from the three public roundtable meetings

also was presented to the full State Board at its meeting on September

21. The Board approved the draft report and the recommendations and

will forward the document to the Education Committee of the House.

The Pennsylvania School Librarians Association received a commendation

from the American Association of School Librarians for the successful

passage of this resolution and completion of the study.

The University of Pittsburgh came into the study in the second act.

Mary Kay Biagini was awarded the research contract from the PA State

Board of Education to analyze the results of the survey and make draft

recommendations based on the analysis and on comments from the


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roundtable meetings. Patrick Hickey, Sally Myers and D’nis Lynch

assisted in the analysis of the survey results and the report.

PA publicly funded schools by the numbers:

500 school districts

3,125 schools in 500 PA school districts

142 charter schools, including 12 cyber charter schools

14 Comprehensive career and technical centers

Note: These numbers do not include parochial or independent schools

A Benchmark: First comprehensive study of PA school libraries:

389 of 500 school districts across PA participated: 78%

2,180 of 3,125 schools across PA participated: 73%

In Allegheny County, 32 of 42 districts participated: 76%

In Westmoreland County, 14 of 17 districts participated: 82%

There were very few responses from charter schools or CTCs

Philadelphia is a world unto itself:

o Largest number and % of schools with no libraries and

largest number of schools with libraries but no librarians

in PA

o Of 185 Philadelphia schools in survey, 103 did not have

libraries

o For 2011-12, only there are only 48 librarians for 248

schools

There was accurate proportional representational of elementary

(2/3), middle and high schools (1/3)

90% of surveys completed by librarians

The problem of dirty data: 20% of total submissions could not be

used; there were also incorrect codes, incomplete entries, duplication

entries, unusable answers, data that could not be compared

The mission of the school library program

To ensure that students and staff are effective users of ideas and

information. The school librarian empowers students to be critical

thinkers, enthusiastic readers, skillful researchers and ethical users

of information. (AASL. Empowering Learners, 2009, p. 8.)


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What makes a difference in student achievement?

Pennsylvania school library programs can make a difference supporting

the efforts of schools to measure up to standards. Pennsylvania System

of School Assessment (PSSA) reading scores increase with increases in

the following characteristics of school library programs: staffing,

information technology and integration of information literacy into the

curriculum. In addition, as library staffing, information resources

and information technology rise, so too does the involvement of school

librarians in teaching students and teachers how to find and assess

information. The relationship between staffing and test scores is not

explained by other school or community conditions. (PA Lance Study,

2000, pp. 6 and 9.)

The results of the survey:

Having a library is a given:

128 schools in PA have no libraries; 103 of these schools are in

the School District of Philadelphia.

In Allegheny County:

Pittsburgh Public Schools: 10 schools with no libraries

Propel charter schools: 2 schools with no libraries

Montour School District: 2 schools under renovation

Why no libraries? Most common reasons are space needed for other

purposes and staffing and budget cuts.


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Factors that have a positive effect on student

achievement: Staffing

Having certified school librarians and aides emerged as the most critical

component of the library program at all school levels to increase student

academic performance. (Smith, Wisconsin Study, 2006, School Libraries Work!,

2008, p. 15.)

1,972 schools have a certified librarian.

School librarians are “solo” librarians for the most part:

Few schools have 2 librarians (6%), not necessarily full-time

Only North Penn High School in 2010-11 had three full-time

librarians, but in 2011-12 has only 2 librarians

5% of schools have no librarian

10% of schools had a decrease in librarian staffing in 2010-11;

3% of schools had an increase in librarian staffing. (See the new

PSLA study of 2011-2012 staffing changes.)

How many hours per week do PA librarians work?

Not every librarian is a full-time librarian

About 44% work 35+ hours per week; 23% work 30-35 hours; 23% work

fewer than 19 hours per week

Mystery of certification could not be solved:

How many “Praxis-test” librarians are there?

How many librarians have more than one area of certification?

Why paid support staff? The presence of support staff allows the

school librarian to focus on the critical responsibilities of

collaborating with teachers and motivating students to read. Library

aides carry out the many routine, daily tasks in a busy school

library: circulation, attendance, processing resources, and record

keeping.

60% of school libraries have support staff; 9% of these libraries

have more than 1 staff person

31% have no support staff

55% of support staff work between 20-39 hours per week

23% of support staff work 10-19 hours per week

Volunteers:

74% of libraries have no adult volunteers


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24% have 1-10 volunteers—most are elementary schools; of these,

72% work an average of 1-9 hours per week

Key Responsibilities of School Librarians

Collaboration with teachers:

62% of librarians had no time allocated in their schedules for

collaborating with teachers.

Number of hours librarians spent planning with teachers:

61% spend less than one hour

28% spend 1-2 hours

Elementary school students with the most collaborative librarians scored

21% higher on Colorado Student Assessment Program (CSAP) reading scores than

students with the least collaborative librarians. (Colorado Lance Study,

2000, School Libraries Work!, 2008, p. 10.)

How much time per week do librarians instruct? 58% of librarians

instruct 6-20 hours per week

The more often students receive information literacy instruction from

librarians, the higher the test scores. (Alaska Lance Study, 2000, School

Libraries Work!, 2008, p. 10.)

The information literacy curriculum should be sequenced K-12, board-

approved and revised in past five years:

52% of librarians have such a curriculum

17 % have a sequenced curriculum but it is more than 5 years old

13% have no curriculum

12% do not have a sequenced K-12 curriculum

The ‘keystone’ finding is the importance of an integrated approach to

information literacy teaching. For school library programs to be

successful agents of academic achievement, information literacy must be an

integral part of the schools’ approach to both standards and curriculum. (PA

Lance Study, 2000, p. 6.)

Number of student group visits to library per week (i.e., classes or

small groups):

32%: 11-20 groups per week

32%: 21-30 groups per week

Flexible scheduling continues to exert a positive effect on test scores

regardless of per pupil spending, teacher-pupil rations or student


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race/ethnicity. Fifth graders in Illinois elementary schools with flexibly

scheduled libraries performed 10% better in reading and 11% better in writing

School Libraries Work!, 2008, p. 20.)

Type of scheduling for library:

55%: Fixed

28%: Flex

18%: Combo

Reading is a foundational skill for learning, personal growth, and

enjoyment. The degree to which students can read and understand text in all

formats (e.g., picture, video, print) and all contexts is a key indicator of

success in school and in life. (Standards for the 21st

-Century Learner, p. 2.)

How much time do librarians spend engaging and motivating students to

read?

32% spend 1-5 hours per week

27% spend 5-10 hours per week

How many hours per week are librarians assigned non-library duties?

35% are assigned less than one hour

19% are assigned between 1-1.75 hours

19% are not assigned other duties

Across grade levels, better-performing schools tended to be those whose

principals placed a higher value on having their school librarian serve on

key school committees. (Indiana Lance Study, 2006, School Libraries Work!,

2008, p. 17.)

Are librarians serving on building and/or district leadership

committees?

40% serve on grade level/departmental committees

29% serve on a variety of “Other” committees, such as anti-

bullying

26% serve on technology committees

23% serve on curriculum committees

Are Librarians given annual opportunities to participate in

professional development?

77% of librarians have opportunities

23% of librarians do not have opportunities


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achievement: Access

How many hours are libraries open per week and staffed by certified

librarians?

55% of libraries are open and staffed 35+ hours per week

17% of libraries are open and staffed between 10 and 29 hours per

week

23% of libraries are open 1-9 hours and not staffed by a

librarian

50% of school libraries are not open before or after the student

school day

How many libraries have an automated online catalog that faculty

and staff can access throughout the building and remotely?

91% have access to catalog throughout the school building

70% have access remotely from home


achievement: Collection of Resources

The extent to which books are borrowed from school libraries shows a strong

relationship with reading achievement. (School Libraries Work!, 2008, p.

12.)

Resolved, that the U.S. National Commission on Libraries and Information

Science (NCLIS), respectfully advises Congress that: Schools be provided

with adequate resources to provide up-to-date print and non-print materials

in all school libraries. (NCLIS, 2007, School Libraries Work!, 2008, p. 3.)

How large are book collections?

36% are between 10,000 and 15,000 volumes



How many volumes per student?

20% are between 16-20 books per student



Guidelines for Pennsylvania School Libraries (2011, p. 32.) recommends

20 volumes per elementary school student as a minimum, 25 volumes as a

standard and 30 volumes as exemplary. For secondary school students,


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the recommendation is 15 volumes as a minimum, 20 volumes a standard

and 25 volumes as exemplary.

How about electronic resources?

76% of libraries reported having no eBooks

47% of libraries reported 1-5 databases in addition to POWER

Library

28% of libraries reported no additional databases

Magazines are underrepresented in collections:

33% of libraries have 10 or fewer subscriptions

27% of libraries have between 11-20 subscriptions

14% of libraries have no subscriptions

What is the currency of the collections?

34% of libraries collections have an average age between 1990-94

26% of library collections have an average age between 1995-99

24% of library collections have an average age between 1985-89


achievement: Funding

How much are districts spending on school libraries (not counting

salaries and benefits)?

39% of districts spend between $1-$10 per pupil

21% of districts spend between $11-15 per pupil

16% of districts spend between $16-$20 per pupil

In Guidelines for Pennsylvania School Library Programs (2011, p. 30),

a quantitative benchmark for funding is established that represents a

dollar amount per pupil rather than a fixed dollar amount:

$41 per pupil for elementary schools

$45 per pupil for middle schools

$50 per pupil for high schools


achievement: Technology Infrastructure

The most important components are currency of equipment and networking

access from school and home


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Recommendations from the Study

Every decision maker and stakeholder can build on the empirical

evidence amassed in research studies conducted since 1992 in

Pennsylvania and in 21 other states across the country (Alaska,

California, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana,

Iowa, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Jersey, New

Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Texas, and Wisconsin)

concluding that

. . . students in schools with good school libraries learn more, get

better grades, and score higher on standardized test scores than their

peers in schools in schools without libraries. (School Libraries

Work!, 2008, p. 4.)

The results of this survey of Pennsylvania school libraries in the

2010-2011 school year show that not every student in a publicly-funded

school has access to a quality library program in their school that

is:

Staffed by both a full-time certified school librarian to

collaborate with teachers and an aide;

Open throughout the school day and beyond the student school day;

Supported by an adequate collection of current and useful print

and electronic resources; and

Provisioned with needed technology networking infrastructure,

current computing equipment and software to access information

electronically.

Recommendations for the Pennsylvania Department of

Education and Updates on Actions Taken:

Consider the academic benefits that would accrue to all students and

teachers by:

Restoring the Division of School Library Media Services in the

Office of Commonwealth Libraries and appointing a director with

appropriate education and library credentials to provide leadership

and professional development for school librarians through

publications and workshops for professional development and to

provide guidance to school districts and to librarians attempting

to assess the effectiveness of their school library programs.

Approved by PDE and to be implemented in Spring 2012


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Spearheading a working committee of PDE staff, school librarians,

and officers of state professional associations to develop a model

information literacy curriculum for school library programs to help

align the 2007 Standards for the 21st

-Century Learner of the

American Association of School Librarians with the 2010 Common Core

State Standards for English Language Arts and any additional

standards that Pennsylvania may add to the Common Core. (The

former Division of School Library Media Services played a

leadership role in the early 2000s in helping librarians develop a

model information literacy curriculum for their school districts.

Now that new academic standards are being implemented and new

information literacy standards are in place the need for an updated

model information literacy curriculum is a high priority.)

Approved by Commonwealth Libraries and to be implemented in summer

2012

Encouraging district and school participation in the assessment of

school library programs on an annual basis. This can be

accomplished most easily by becoming an official state partner in

School Libraries Count!, the longitudinal survey of the status of

school libraries sponsored annually by the American Association of

School Librarians.

Work with Commonwealth Libraries to have questions about library

programs be a part of annual PIMS survey

Distributing to chief school administrators through Penn*Link the

2011 Guidelines for Pennsylvania School Library Programs published

by the Office of Commonwealth Libraries. The Guidelines provide

each administrator benchmarks to use as guidance in assessing the

effectiveness of the district’s K-12 library program.

Providing specialized guidance and assistance to school districts

in identifying, evaluating and using adaptive technologies needed

for students with visual disabilities to access library resources.

Providing specialized guidance and assistance in identifying and

evaluating resources in languages other than English for English

Language Learner students.


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Recommendations for School Entities:

Consider the academic benefits that would accrue to all students and

teachers by:

Assessing the adequacy of support provided to district and school

library programs for professional and support staffing, collections

of resources, and technology infrastructure and computing

equipment. Over a ten-year period, library budgets have decreased

in purchasing power because of the increased cost of resources and

licensing during this period.

Developing and implementing in all schools a written, K-12

sequenced information literacy curriculum that is aligned with K-12

subject area curricula and with the state’s academic standards and

that is approved by the school’s local governing board. Just as

each subject area has a sequential, vertical curriculum for grades

K-12, so to should the library program have such an information

literacy curriculum that correlates with subject area curricula and

academic standards and is integrated into subject learning

activities.

Considering a move to a flexible schedule for libraries in

elementary schools to allow for the all-important time needed for

teachers and school librarians to plan together and to teach and

assess student learning collaboratively.

Assessing the currency, usefulness and scope of the total

collection of resources, including current magazines and

newspapers, available to students, especially those who are English

Language Learners.

Making open-source eBooks available to students through open-source

access tools such as the International Children’s Digital Library.

Investigating sources of grant funding from community groups and

from outside agencies and working with librarians to apply for

applicable grants.

Planning fund-raising activities within the schools and with school

and community groups. For example, the number of school libraries

sponsoring book fairs is rising. Students benefit from having more

books to read, and the library earns funding that can be used to

purchase new resources.


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Planning school-wide activities that relate to reading motivation

throughout the school year to encourage students to have reading

success and enjoyment. Reading competitions among grades, book

clubs, author visits, book fairs and “drop everything and read”

campaigns are examples of such activities.

Considering the use of volunteers in the library to assist the

librarian by completing routine tasks and encouraging community

members to volunteer.

All stakeholders have a responsibility to work together to provide

effective school library programs for every student in every publicly-

funded school in Pennsylvania so that all students can meet academic

standards and succeed.

2011 pennsylvania school library study

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