Strategic Directions and Newer Dilemmas for Teacher-Librarians and School Library Resource Centres

Abstract

Once a leader in the provision of effective school library services, the Vancouver (British Columbia, Canada) School Board has seen its intellectual and material assets diminish with growing confusion about the role of the teacher-librarian, particularly with regard to information technologies. The investigator reviewed the current status of school library resource centres, including staffing, resources and use, to identify "revenue-neutral" improvements based on research evidence and best practice. In the course of the review several dilemmas emerged that challenged conventional wisdom regarding the delivery of school library services; these dilemmas are the focus of this paper.