Transcript Collection Development in 2009 and beyond

Bronwen Parsons
Library and Information Services Manager
[email protected]
Belmont High School
2009
Literacy, individual school curriculum and ICT focus
policies, processes
 Mission statement
 Where we started
 Collection Management
 How to evaluate
 Collection size
 A Multimodal collection
 Weeding
 Budgeting
 Marketing
 Performance and Development and VIT registration
Library mission statement (BHS:2006)
 The library is a flexible learning space with a
multimodal collection which resources the current
curriculum at Belmont High School, and is accessed
through a dynamic learning management system.
 Co-operative teaching and learning based on POLT
will occur in an environment which fosters friendship,
discovery and a love of reading.
Where we started
 Reviews
 Physical environment; Technology and systems; Administration;
Resourcing the curriculum
 Gave the current team a focus
 SWOT analysis (strengths, weaknesses (internal), opportunities,
threats (external)
 Analysis
 Statistics – door counter; Library system statistics; teacher
requests; student book requests, budget reviews
 Reports – Programmed budget reports; School Council reports;
Parent reports; Newsletter reports
 Surveys – student opinion, staff opinion; library staff – ePotential
survey
First things first: an immediate impact
Explain the action to staff and students and follow through with the re-education
 Changed opening hours and the ambience of the library
 No Vertical File
 Focus on newspaper indexes
 Introduced student programs
 Videos
 Put everything on the one subject together under the Dewey
classification
 Bring all AV resources back into the library – some faculties had
their own collections listed in the library catalogue but not held by
us
 Physical changes –
 Rationale: to create a space which would accommodate a
multimodal collection and flexible learning
Collection Management – B.H.S. style
 The collection –
 Developed a policy
 Developed a BHS Cataloguing Style Guide
 Threw out – the vertical file, books; texts
 Bought/ replaced selected fiction e.g. Classics and
outdated books on topics known to be taught e.g. Robots
and Inventions
 Re- catalogued: all fiction and developed a Fiction
subject headings list
 Collection management priorities were Fiction, AV then
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Non-Fiction
 AV – pictures, kits, slides, audio tapes, CD’s
 Video on demand
Student I.D. cards – are now a must carry item
A door counter
Maximise space - VCE room and Newspaper room
conversion
Enhance our community links – The creation of the
Geelong Italian Language Resource Centre
Create an Historical and student archive room
Reference collection
 Placement – Over the windows!
 Size – 2 large reference stands – full of encyclopaedias
all bar the current World Book (3 sets) were old, Atlas –
some still in miles and a range of books that appeared to
be there because of their cost rather than their content –
Not for loan!
 Now one World Book in hard copy – the last hard copy
one we will purchase
 Language dictionaries, some music resources
 Now 4 shelves only – will go all together probably next
year and be interfiled on the non-fiction shelves
Entire Collection of
Multimedia, Fiction, Non-Fiction and Teacher Reference
Note: Excludes: Special
collections, Reference,
Class Sets and Magazines
(27% of the entire collection)
11%
12%
34%
16%
10 years old
15 years old
20 years old
25 years old
Collection size
 Learning for the future (1992) for my school of 1,146
students = 17250 items
 We have 23847 items - but putting individual AV
programs; equipment etc. onto the borrowing system
inflates the actual figure
 Now we have a dynamic collection of fiction –
current – up to date covers: promote. We have
decided to have a fixed size area for fiction – and
that we will weed vigorously and purchased wisely to
try and meet this aim
Fiction collection
7%
13%
42%
22%
10 years
15 years
20 years
25 years
Multimedia collection
8%
11%
50%
16%
10 years
15 years
20 years
25 years
Multimedia collections
 Issues to consider in your Collection Development
policy and your purchasing and production of these
materials
 Copyright
 Digital rights management
 Development – purchase, use, disposal
 Maintenance
 Weeding
 Format changes
Evaluation of resources
 Discussion
 Pre-use
 Observation – Shelving - what is read but not
borrowed
 Magazines – ad hoc purchase now
 Book boxes – discussion with staff – evaluation after
use – add with AV additions on VOD
 Does the current resource use reflect the needs of
the curriculum?
Evaluation of resources
 SCIS subject headings online – updates for paper copy
 http://www1.curriculkum.edu.au/scis/productinfo/supplists.htm
 Statistics use – under-used resources; 100 most popular books;
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book published after a chosen date i.e. 10 years old = insurance
listings
Reports from your system
Requests – staff and student
Bequests
Fiction subject headings
Accession dates – stock take results – what if anything has gone
missing = popular?
Non Fiction Collection
14%
23%
13%
13%
10 years
15 years
20 years
25 years
Weeding
 CREW
 Continuous; Review; Evaluation; Weeding (Segal,
1980)
 MUSTY
 Misleading; Ugly; Supersede; Trivial; Your collection
has no use for this item (Freeman, 1991)
 What to do with weeded items – see if items can be sent
O/S to developing countries through churches and
Service clubs; have a book sale – give away some, sell
some; recycle. Network with other school libraries –
perhaps they could utilise some of your materials =
different curriculum needs
Purchasing
 Where from?
 Local booksellers – new and second-hand – develop a
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good relationship with your book sellers, set accounts
with all the big booksellers or buy on holidays and be
repaid by your school.
Clouston Hall Booksellers, Canberra – catalogue and
regular sales in Melbourne
Cheap books
Book Fair - Sydney
How are choices made?
 review journals, recommendations, requests
Budgeting
 Budgeting – Forward planning – make the library
indispensible when it comes to accountability for
school resources.
 Use statistics to support $ next year.
 Split $ for resources with faculties and programs.
 Put in a request for a special budget for a new
program – Parents group; wider community and
use statistics to reflect success.
 Ask for a Teacher Reference budget and link it to
the Professional reading component of V.I.T.
registrations.
A sample
Electronic access
 “Meeting the Internet challenge for resources
provision includes providing tools that help students
and teachers to link Internet resources to curriculum
needs.”
Eisenberg, 1996
 The need for teacher instruction and help for
students in the research progress has been
highlighted by Ross Todd and Carol Gordon’s “Zones
of Intervention” model.
Information-to-knowledge journey
(Todd & Gordon) CISSL
Tasks
Initiation Selection Exploration Formulation Collection Presentation Evaluation
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------→
Feelings
uncertainly optimism confusion
clarity
sense of
satisfaction or
(affective)
frustration
direction/
disappointment
doubt
confidence
Thoughts
(cognitive)
Actions
(physical)
vague-------------------------------------→focused
-----------------------------------------------→
increased interest
seeking relevant information----------------------------→seeking pertinent information
exploring
documenting
Zone of Intervention: the critical point / need for instruction
Type in query and
enter then on the
results screen click on
Show Options
Click on Wonder
Wheel
Click on Australian
bushrangers
School portal resources – BHS
Marketing – Reflection of current practice
 How do you make the library attractive?
 What information flyers do you produce?
 How do the students find out about the features of the catalogue
 Which part of the collection is under-utilised?
 How do the users find out about new library services?
 Where do students find current information?
 How important are the staff and student library orientation
programs?
 How do you encourage staff and students to visit the library?
(From: The Connected Library: Suzette Boyd (2006) page 30
Marketing ideas from the B.H.S. experience
 Created the demand and an urgency of response so that staff
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want to get in first for displays, talks, programs etc.
Bribery – we offered wine and cheese to assist with the
weeding process but also to celebrate activities
English novels – online resources 7 to 12
Subject focus – Middle Years 7 & 8
Enhance notes
Brochures
House leaders = Home work groups
Asked to be on the Agenda for meetings
Coffee/wine and cheese (A.V. and text book reviews)
Community involvement -GILRC; Rats of Tobruk banner
Honour Boards, Archives (an old and new blend)
 Rearranged the physical environment to create an ambience that made staff
think of the library as their place of choice for performances, collaborative
activities, relaxation and interactive learning
 Created an open space – light with flexible seating and table arrangements;
moved shelving; blackout blinds purchased; sound system and mixer
installed
 Displays – student art – student activities – educational, emotional – Grand
final!!
 Ran Info series – part of our Professional Learning Teams (PLT’s)
 Jennifer Hall – iPods and PDA’s in the classroom (2006)
 Got it?...Got it! Reading program options for MY’s
 Researching 2gether; Making a difference; What a TL can do for you
 Online databases – public library/SLV; Online indexes – Echo; Age online
 Created new library programs for students
 Introduced lunchtime activities: last Thursday book club, chess etc.
 Made the library accessible – all day every day – available at night and
weekends for school functions.
 Open to any activities suggested by staff – almost! – Phys Ed. Team events,
band performances, speakers – Andy Thomas
Teacher Reference Collection
4%
8%
13%
73%
10 years
15 years
20 years
25 years
Invest in renewal constantly
 Review
 Change documents
 Work together
 Team work and organisation
 Read and review your collection
What’s ahead for the B.H.S. Library?
 Audio collection – transfer some tapes to CD
 Develop a podcast and CD collection
 Non-fiction collection recataloguing
 eBooks
 Further development of specific online resources
 Fiction re-evaluation
 Complete Video transfer to DVD and/or V.O.D.
 Digital recording of programs directly to a server for school wide
distribution - new collection and cataloguing guides required.
 Complete our library (theatrette) with a ceiling mounted projector and
spot lighting
 Digital archive of historical materials
 Laptop use (Rudd computer grant)
 Promotion, promotion, promotion
 “A good library makes interacting with texts of all kinds irresistible.
It’s comfortable and peaceful....It has humans in it!
 Libraries..are all about sharing: connecting people with others and
resources that might just feed a passion or spark an idea.
 Without a doubt libraries will continue to evolve. The purpose and
experience of libraries will change, and change again, in their
physical and virtual iterations. It’s daunting in many
respects......we’re best off when we assume that change is a
constant.
 Kevin Hennah’s lenses start us thinking about libraries as places for
showcasing “merchandise” in the same way as shops. Architect Paul
Katz and interior designer Tasmin Morgan give us the lenses of
professional designers, encouraging us to be critical of our library
spaces and creative in our approaches to design solutions for them.”
(from Praskash Nair and Annalise Gehline’s foreword to ‘Rethink! Ideas
for inspiring library design” (2007)
Resources
 What a teacher librarian can do for you - SLAV
 FYI – SLAV
 Synergy - SLAV
 SCAN - N.S.W. DEET
 The Connected Library: a handbook for engaging users
by Boyd. Melb; Utopia Press; (2006)
 Eisenberg 1996 (p.103)
 Rethink: ideas for inspiring school library design edited by
Susan La Marca. SLAV (2007)
 The New Yorker book of literary cartoons edited by Bob
Markoff. New York: Pocket Books (2000) pages 43 and 89