Documents

Documents, Articles & Papers Available on the Internet

This collection includes links to a variety of documents related to school libraries. There are policy statements from other school library associations, bibliographies and lists, conference papers, periodical articles, and other documents of interest. Of particular importance are the documents from IFLA and UNESCO. The list is divided into two sections: policy statements and official documents, and other documents.

Policy Statements and Official Documents

IFLA / UNESCO School Library Manifesto
The Intergovernmental Council of the UNESCO General Information Programme approved the text of the School Library Manifesto at its meeting in December 1998 and it was ratified by the UNESCO General Conference in November 1999. It was approved by the IASL Annual General Meeting in August 2002. It is now available in a number of languages.

IFLA / UNESCO School Library Guidelines
Released by IFLA in August 2002 as a document to accompany the IFLA/UNESCO School Library Manifesto (see above).

Standards of Professional Excellence for Teacher Librarians
This 2005 Australian document is a result of a collaboration between the Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA) and the Australian School Library Association (ASLA).

Proceedings of the White House Conference on School Libraries
Papers from a conference held in June 2002 at the instigation of the First Lady of the United States, Laura Bush.

The Summit on School Libraries 2002
Papers from a meeting held in May 2002. Presenters included Ross Todd (School Libraries: Rearranging the Jig Saw Pieces or Creating the Picture? A Holistic Model of Information Provision for Schools), Keith Curry Lance and David Loertscher (School Libraries: What the Research Shows), Rose Dotten (The Reach for National Standards), Roch Carrier (Preferred Futures for Library Information Services in Schools), among others.

The Glasgow Declaration on Libraries, Information Services and Intellectual Freedom (IFLA)
Approved at the IFLA conference in Glasgow in August 2002, this Declaration is now available in a number of languages.

Intellectual Freedom Statements
A page on IFLANET, the official Web site of IFLA, with links to intellectual freedom statements from around the world, including the Australian Statement on Freedom to Read and the Library Bill of Rights from the United States.

The IFLA Internet Manifesto
This document is now available in a number of languages.

IFLA Statement on Libraries and Sustainable Development

IFLA Guidelines for Library Services for Young Adults
This document is also available in a number of languages.

An Analysis of Information Literacy Education Worldwide by Penny Moore
A white paper prepared for UNESCO, the United States National Commission on Libraries and Information Science, and the National Forum on Information Literacy, for use at the Information Literacy Meeting od Experts, Prague, The Czech Republic. The paper includes a substantial list of references. Dr Penny Moore is IASL's Executive Director. The white paper is available here as a PDF file.

Standards and Guidelines
A page created by the American Asssociation of School Librarians (AASL), of links to school library standards and guidelines from American states and from other associations. Among them are the Standards for Missouri School Library Media Centers, the Texas School Libraries: Standards and Guidelines, and the Essentials of a Model Library Media Program, Kentucky Department of Education

Information Studies K-12 (OSLA)
This document is the Ontario (Canada) School Library Association's Curriculum for Schools and School Library Media Centers, 1998. Major sections cover "Inquiry and Research", "Information Technologies", and "Information and Society", with "Expectations" and "Scope and Sequence" charts for each grade level, and a number of appendixes.

The School Library in the 21st Century
This document is a policy statement from the School Library Association of the Republic of Ireland (SLARI), 2004.

School Libraries for Tomorrow, Canada
"Forging Forward: National Symposium on Information, Literacy and the School Library in Canada" was held in Ottawa, Canada, in November 1997. This statement on school libraries was one of the outcomes of the symposium.

Basic Information Science Syllabus, Ministry of Basic Education and Culture, Republic of Namibia
An official national syllabus for information science/information skills instruction in Namibian schools.

The Australian School Library Association (ASLA)
This Association has the full text of several policy statements on its Web site, including the Policy Statement on Information Literacy and the Policy Statement on Electronic Information Literacy.

Providing Books and Other Print Materials for Classroom and School Libraries, Position Statement of the International Reading Association: "IRA calls for increased funding for libraries. In many schools, libraries now have few books for each child; the condition of the books and the staffing of the libraries is deteriorating. This has serious implications for children's literacy.."

Other Documents, Papers and Articles

Investigating the Provision of Careers Information in Schools
A report by Sarah McNicol, University of Central England, Birmingham, of a short research project to "investigate how careers information (in the library and elsewhere) can be provided most effectively in schools to ensure it is accessible and useful to students and assists them in making decisions about careers and further education". based on case studies in four English schools, the research showed that students were "generally happy with the careers information available to them. However only those students who are conscientious and have clear career plans are likely to spend time outside lessons thinking about and researching careers. Most want information easier and quickly without a great deal of effort."

School Libraries Work!
This is a Research Foundation Paper published by Scholastic Library Publishing; it brings together research findings from almost ten years of school library-related research. The preface notes, "A substantial body of research since 1990 clearly demonstrates the importance of school libraries to students' education. Whether student achievement is measured by standardized reading achievement tests or by global assessments of learning, research shows that a well-stocked library staffed by a certified library media specialist has a positive impact on student achievement, regardless of the socio-economic or educational levels of the community."

Teach Them to Copy and Paste: Approaching Plagiarism in the Digital Age
Paper by Sue Scott and Jill Midolo for the 2003 "Island Journeys" conference in Australia. "This presentation provides rationale and ideas for using the Values outcomes to develop ethical behaviour in students when using the Internet for reasearch. It also emphasises that when students understand the rights they have to their own intellectual property the more likely they are to respect the property of others."

Why Should Principals Support School Libraries?
This ERIC Digest, written by Gary Hartzell in November 2002, reviews the research on school library effectiveness and its relationship to student achievement, and indicates the ways in which school principals can support school libraries. This Digest is ERIC document number EDO-IR-2002-06.

Essential Connections: Schools, Parents and Public Libraries
A paper from Alan Bundy in Australia about the impportance of the relationship between school and public libraries.

Joint-Use Libraries -- The Ultimate Form of Co-operation
There is information in this Australian paper about forming a joint-use library with the local council/shire and the school. Available on the Library Web site of the University of South Australia.

Elementary and Secondary Schools: The Role, Challenges and Financial Conditions of School and School Library Resources in Canada
A report, from September 2001, available through the Web site of the National Library of Canada. It covers school library funding, staffing, collections, access, information technology penetration, and the role of the teacher-librarian. The report is available on the Web and in PDF format (for downloading and printing). Appendices and Tables provide detailed statistical information.

With a little help from our friends...
Donkeys help provide multi-media library services and Camels help provide library services.

Evaluating Web Sites for Educational Uses: Bibliography and Checklist
This bibliography, with an accompanying short evaluation checklist, was compiled by Carolyn Kotlas of the Institute for Academic Technology as one of the IAC Information Resource Guides.

Evaluating Information on the Internet
High Speed Internet provides a range of articles on topics such as getting a better connection, optimizing computers for faster speeds, comparing services, etc. 'Evaluating Information on the Internet' is a sample for your consideration.

The Librarian is Dead, Long Live the Librarian
An article by Clay Hathorn in the Web-based journal of Web design and technology, PreText, October 1997. Hathorn says, "The onslaught of digitized information ... is fundamentally shifting the way librarians ply their trade...".

Child Safety on the Information Highway
This is the online version of a brochure that is designed to help parents, teachers, and school librarians to guide children in their exploration of the Internet.

Forming and Informing Powerful Partnerships: School Library Teams and Evidence Based Practice
A Keynote Address by Penny Moore for the School Library Association of New Zealand -- SLANZA -- conference in Christchurch in 2003.

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Last Updated 29 April 2005 (LAC)