Modern School Library

[Práxedes Jamal]

Knowingeven more growth was on the horizon, DeForest Area School District needed the flexibility to adapt to different age groups and fluctuating numbers across four schools: Yahara Elementary School, Harvest Intermediate School, DeForest Area Middle School, and DeForest Area High School. They also needed a future-focused team who could collaborate with Eppstein Uhen Architects on spatial design, selecting complementary products and finishes, and creating a cohesive aesthetic across many different spaces in multiple schools. That team was Demco.

When EHS embarked on a multi-year project to upgrade several spaces, including remodeling a historic building and updating the library and study areas, they chose Demco as their partner. The teams worked together to create engaging spaces for teens to collaborate, choose the right easy-to-clean and comfortable furniture, add configurable pieces that could be regularly rearranged, and most importantly, make EHS a place where teachers and students want to be.

In light of the unprecedented boom, and with two new buildings on deck, LUSD needed a partner who would take ownership of the learning space design process and communicate proactively every step of the way.

You have a vision of creating modern learning spaces for your students, but how do you garner support for that vision? Learn tips for creating an effective communication strategy that will turn your staff and your community members into your biggest champions.

Biophilic design, or integrating nature into the classroom, has been proven to boost student performance. Learn more about the benefits and how to incorporate natural elements into your own learning spaces.

Modern school libraries provide support for a wide variety of learning styles and activities. In order to do this, they need to be flexible, interactive, and feature areas for collaboration. Get ideas on how to create and sustain these types of spaces in your library.

Libraries play an important role in providing informal learning opportunities outside the classroom. Learn how furniture, space design, and technology play a part in creating spaces that support collaboration, ideation, and social interaction.

Active learning environments promote critical thinking, inclusivity, and higher levels of engagement. Find out how to support this approach through classroom experiences and flexible learning environments.

Form a committee or task force.Involve representatives from all stakeholder groups in the planning process,including the media specialist, teachers, administrators, students, andparents.

Prioritize your ideas.Once you have a comprehensive list of suggestions for how your modern schoollibrary might be used, arrange them into three categories: high priority (usesthat are non-negotiable), significant (those that would be nice to try if youcan make it work), and low priority (uses that are luxury items or even pipedreams).

Invite public comment.Before you move any further, give all stakeholders a chance to comment on yourideas. Invite public feedback through a variety of channels, such as in aschool or district newsletter and on social media.

School systems nationwide aretransforming their library media centers to support 21st centurylearning more effectively. The modern school library is a dynamic learning hubwhere students are creating, collaborating, and learning essential 21stcentury skills.

Recently I was fortunate to receive the 2021 School Library Journal School Librarian of the Year Award. I recognize this puts me in a position where my advocacy efforts on behalf of school librarians in Louisiana might actually have some weight with my district and state officials. I immediately invited state leaders and officials to visit my school library to showcase what a modern school library looks like and ask for support. In the past few weeks, I have had school visits from our Louisiana State Superintendent of Schools, leaders from the Louisiana Department of Education (LDOE), two school board members, three members of the Louisiana House of Representatives, and district officials. These visits have given me an opportunity to showcase my school library and discuss concerns I have on leadership and funding.

After explaining my concern to LDOE officials about the lack of professional development (at the state level) for school librarians, there is now talk of planning a state-wide school librarian PD day at the annual Louisiana Teacher Leader Summit. When speaking to my school board this month, I was able to convey my concern that administrators often bog down school librarians with non-librarian tasks, making it difficult to run an effective school library. I urge all school librarians to reach out to district and state leaders and invite them to visit their libraries.

K.C. Boyd once said we need to transition from advocates to activists for our school libraries and I could not agree more. We need to be proactive so we are not forced to be reactive. If we do not actively take steps to advocate for our positions now, we could find our positions and programs on the funding chopping block. Listed below are resources to help you on your own journey from advocate to activist. The time is now!

Congratulations on your new space(s) and increased circulation! Your positive, flexible, innovative approach is really impressive. Where did this open concept library idea originate? I wonder if it is the wave of the future.

Hi Colleen,

This was such a great overview - thank you! I am hesitant on the next step of our new elementary school, as it's being built without a specific library, too. My concerns are the organization and overview of it - not sure how it will work with younger students. I'd love to hear how you are doing instruction and maintaining the collection. (I have been suggesting our new school includes a reinstated certified LMS - it's being currently managed by library aides.) Thank you again!

I would definitely suggest there be a certified LMS for instruction, as the aides might have to dedicate full time to management of the collection. I am in separate classrooms for the 4 blocks I teach and students either self-check out if they have found the book they want, or come to me during the blocks I am at my desk. Elementary libraries have such large collections compared to secondary libraries it will definitely take a solid vision and a great sense of organization throughout the process.

In this episode, we hear from Ryan Bani Tahmaseb, author of The 21st Century School Library: A Model for Innovative Teaching & Learning, published by John Catt Educational. Ryan is a first-time book author, but is an experienced writer and, in his role as Director of Library Services at the Meadowbrook School in Weston, Massachusetts, is no stranger to books of all kinds.

As you listen to the interview, think through the following questions and consider how enhanced collaboration between teachers and the school librarian or library media specialist can support better learning for students:

In the landscape of modern education, school libraries are undergoing a revolutionary transformation. Evolving from their traditional roles as book-centric storehouses, they are now vibrant, multi-functional hubs that nurture collaboration, creativity, and digital fluency. This shift mirrors the broader move towards a student-centered learning model, wherein engagement and learning outcomes are significantly enhanced through interactive, technologically enriched environments.

Procurement decisions in educational institutions are critical and can have serious implications for cybersecurity. A notable example involves a district that suffered a ransomware attack due to poorly chosen software.

We are librarians. Own it. You must believe even when others do not. For every doubter, hater, or naysayer, there are children and teachers whose lives and classrooms a school librarian has impacted for the good, and there is no longer room for those who do not put community, service, and people first. Let us not shrink from what that means and what it can mean, but instead, strive to grow the successful models of school librarianship that DO exist and DO make a real difference because they have a librarian whose work, struggles, passion, and collaborative efforts with teachers and students do matter in helping students compose their own narratives of learning.

I have always called myself a librarian. We can educate students, colleagues and the public in the crucial role that librarians play in print and digital culture, critical thinking, information literacies, etc., without resorting to cutesiness or betrayal.

Thanks to strong progressive teacher-librarians from the past and from our current staffing, we have tried hard to develop and secure instructional services and nurture participation and collaboration for my large (1800 gr10-12) high school. We have become a valid vibrant learning commons that students, teachers and admin all support but we have a culture to build on that made the library program important. We have 1.6 TL and 1.0 Clerical and ongoing budgeting and engagement but the landscape of the school library is changing so fast we cannot keep pace. Policy, pedagogy , demographics and much more have changed beyond our ability to lead. We do our best and we are strong but change outstrips our abilities and energies. Therefore, when I read in SLJ the role as technology coordinator I rather snickered with cynical zest because that is a role I have evolved into from the start. We are the technology, information AND pedagogy hub. That said, we are given less influence and participation in the policy making and decision-making than we once had. As the demands and needs changed we responded but now the system is too fast and too top heavy to truly DESIGN process or practice. We have become a digital triage center. The irony is that our community still SEES us as a content place. We have not reduced or slashed any sector of our school library anatomy but rather have tried to cope by adding on more limbs and bionic parts. Like HAL we may be losing our sanity. thanks BJH, Al Smith @literateowl

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