“What library?" A survey of charter school leaders about school library services

Klein, Katherine

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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/123129 Copy

Description

Title

“What library?" A survey of charter school leaders about school library services

Author(s)

Klein, Katherine

Issue Date

2023-09

Keyword(s)

• Access to Reading Materials
• Charter Schools
• Education
• Information Literacy Instruction
• Information Practices
• Information Services
• School Libraries
• School Library Services
• Survey

Abstract

Although charter schools are a growing segment of the US education market, they are less likely than traditional public or private schools to have dedicated library facilities, staffing, or services. Currently there is little data about what services charter schools provide to support literacy, research, or technology skill building - services commonly provided by school libraries. Without these data it is unknown whether, how, or to what extent charter schools without school libraries ensure that their students have access to these crucial learning resources. This study collected data in 87 US based K-12 charter schools across 11 states using an online survey completed by school administrators. This survey addresses library services of charter schools both with and without school library facilities. The survey shows that most charters lack facilities and staffing to provide quality school library services. In charters that have a school library the data suggests the school benefits from more services to encourage reading for fun and information literacy instruction that can improve technology use and research skills. This study informs future research and advocacy for charter school libraries.

Series/Report Name or Number

Proceedings of the ALISE Annual Conference, 2023

Type of Resource

text

Language

eng

Handle URL

https://hdl.handle.net/2142/123129

DOI

https://doi.org/10.21900/j.alise.2023.1292

Copyright and License Information

• Copyright 2023 Katherine Klein
• This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).

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