Use of school libraries byteachers in Singapore schools

Intan Azura Mokhtar and Shaheen MajidDivision of Information Studies, School of Communication and Information,

Nanyang Technological University, Singapore

Abstract

Purpose – This paper presents the findings of a study that explores the use of school libraries andtheir resources by teachers, their level of collaboration with their school librarian, and the problemsfaced by them in using these libraries.

Design/methodology/approach – A questionnaire survey was conducted and 76 teachers fromseven schools in Singapore participated in the study.

Findings – The results showed that teachers generally did not use their school libraries and variousinformation resources effectively, mainly due to the inadequacy of their school libraries in terms ofeducational materials. In addition, teachers typically did not collaborate with their school librarian inplanning their lessons or other academic activities.

Research limitations/implications – The study only managed to involve 76 teachers from sevenschools. A larger number of respondents would have been more desirable. However, these 76respondents represented teachers with teaching experiences that ranged from less than 3 years to morethan 20 years. The study provided an insight into the situation of school library use by teachers inSingapore and their related factors. This insight could in turn yield initiatives on various aspects ofschool library research, such as the role of the school library in the school curriculum, and how schoollibrary usage by teachers or school librarian-teacher collaboration can be improved.

Practical implications – The study proposes that teachers be familiarised with the role of schoollibraries and librarians through in-service and pre-service teacher training courses and through schoollibrary outreach programmes.

Originality/value – The paper highlights the importance of the school library in the schoolcurriculum, presents the elements that can contribute to or work against the use of the school libraryby teachers, and most importantly, proposes strategies that can be implemented to improve thesituation as revealed in the study.

Keywords School libraries, Teachers, Singapore, Resource management

Paper type Research paper

IntroductionSchools, which have the continuous task of educating the nation for the future, have tokeep up with both the immediate and impending changes that permeate society.Education has now shifted from being teacher-centric to student-centric – in otherwords from directed instruction to active learning and knowledge discovery andconstruction. Thus, due to the new demands that the current information age places onindividuals, schools no longer have the prime objective of helping students to read.Instead, they are expected to inculcate skills that go beyond that basic ability to read.Students now need to be trained and groomed on how to think and think creatively andcritically. Tried, tested and workable ways of doing things are not attractive or desiredanymore. Teachers need to use a variety of information sources in their lessons so as tokeep their students interested and their lessons current and informative. Everybody is

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Received May 2004Reviewed June 2004Revised July 2004Accepted November 2004

Library ReviewVol. 54 No. 2, 2005pp. 108-118q Emerald Group Publishing Limited0024-2535DOI 10.1108/00242530510583057

looking for different, new and innovative ways of performing the same tasks; similarly,students who are now more information technology (IT) literate prefer a morenon-traditional approach to learning.

To complement the new functions and objectives that schools have to accomplish,school libraries also have to undergo certain changes. School libraries are required toprovide access to local and remote electronic information resources, and schoollibrarians need to assume a more instructional role in order to develop competency inproviding access to information effectively and to cultivate information literacy instudents (Craver, 1995). In addition, the school library is also responsible for theorganization and provision of information for the purpose of increasing students’knowledge, and the integration of information skills into the curriculum (Hannesdottir,1995). Davies (1998) noted that in Canada, school libraries had shifted from aclassroom-like environment with mainly print materials to become multimediaresource centres with numerous digital materials, sophisticated technology and remotecomputer access. As the world moves into the digital era, school libraries in manycountries worldwide have also transformed from traditional to hybrid libraries orresource centres, so as to pave the way for a more modern, dynamic, interactive andintegrated school learning environment.

The UK Library Association (now CILIP) has published guidelines for secondaryschool libraries, which essentially highlight five main roles school libraries andinformation services should assume (The Library Association, 1998). Firstly, theschool library is a central learning resource that supports the culture and curriculum ofthe school, while at the same time promoting an interest in lifelong learning.Secondly, the school library is an important and indispensable part of teaching andlearning in the school. Thirdly, the school library is at the core of information skillsdevelopment in the school. Next, the school library fulfils its traditional role ofproviding opportunities for students to quench their thirst for reading and gainingknowledge. Finally, the school library also provides a vital place in the school forstudents to meet their recreational and leisure needs. As Smith (2002) mentioned, theschool library should function as the “physical and philosophical centre of the school”.In addition, the American Library Association landmark publication “InformationPower: Building Partnerships for Learning”, detailed the important role that the schoollibrary plays in the school, specifically in the programmes that it administers(American Library Association and Association for Education and CommunicationsTechnology, 1998). According to Stripling (1996), the heart of the school library lies inthe programmes that it offers. The quality of these programmes will in turn directlydetermine the value of education that the school presents. As such, school librarieshave to implement and integrate effective programmes into the school curriculum so asto provide a more holistic learning experience for the students.

Foo (1999) stated that the school library plays a critical and crucial role in“supporting the new age education”, and that this is even more so in the newmillennium when the nation (Singapore) propels itself towards a “truly informationsociety”. He also recommended that adequate emphasis and attention should be placedon school libraries so as to ensure that they have sufficient staff, resources andopportunities for development, growth and expansion. Lance (2002) conducted a study,which showed that when school libraries have higher levels of professional and totalstaffing, larger collections of print and electronic resources, and more funding, their

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students tend to perform better in reading tests and achieve higher scores. Thus, thecentral and fundamental role and function of the school library cannot be denied norundermined, especially where teaching and learning is involved.

However, school libraries or school media resource centres, as many of them arenow known, have long been underused and detached from students’ learningenvironment. In addition, librarians traditionally have little contact with teachers andtheir classroom objectives, except to locate books and other reference materials, orbaby-sit students who use the library (Manzo, 1997). By integrating the use of schoollibraries into the curriculum, teachers can improve the quality of time that studentsspend in the library as well as enrich their own lesson units. However, with today’stight budgets, schools readily sacrifice school library programmes and services forother priorities or activities (Barton, 2003). Barton quoted Mike Eisenberg, one half ofthe legendary duo who created the Big6 Skills, who said that extensive informationresources would go to waste in just three to five years if a professionally qualifiedschool librarian or well-planned school library programme is not adopted in the school.Thus, in order for schools not to devalue students’ learning experience, a well-stockedand well-staffed school library and a collaboratively designed school libraryprogramme, seamlessly integrated in the school curriculum, need to be in place.

The amount of research and literature on the role and importance of school librariesworldwide is substantial and plentiful. In fact, most schools now regard the schoollibrary as an integral learning centre in the school (Rodney et al., 2003). However, inSingapore, only a limited number of studies have been conducted to examine the role ofthe school library in the school curriculum (Sim, 2001; Tan, 2003) and the extent of itsuse by teachers. One significant detailed study in particular, investigated the status of13 school media resource libraries (SMRLs) in Singapore (Majid et al., 2002). The studydiscovered that these school libraries did not have full-time professionally trainedlibrarians. Instead, the head of department for IT and SMRL were in charge of theschool library, and more than three-fifths of them were without any professionallibrary training. It was thus proposed that for SMRLs to play a more integrated role inthe school curriculum, several strategies should be implemented. Among the proposedinitiatives were additional training for the library heads or coordinators, and morecollaborative collection management policies within and between schools. That studyalso revealed that very few students and teachers used the SMRLs for class projects orassignments. Thus, an investigation ought to be done to determine the factors thatcontribute to this low use of SMRLs by students and teachers.

This study explores the library use patterns of school teachers in Singapore, andtheir collaboration with their school librarians for planning lesson units. The findingsare intended to help identify factors that hinder teachers from using their schoollibraries and library resources effectively, and from actively collaborating with schoollibrarians. Consequently, corrective necessary measures should emerge, capable ofimproving the overall educational environment in Singapore schools.

MethodologyA survey questionnaire was used to collect data for the study. The first part of thequestionnaire dealt with the general profile of the respondents and collectedinformation about their gender, teaching experience, and academic and professionalqualifications. The second part of the questionnaire investigated various aspects of the

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use of school libraries by teachers, such as the frequency of use of the school library,the type of library resources used and for what purposes, and the perception ofteachers of the usefulness and adequacy of their school library resources. The last partsolicited information about the collaborative relationship between teachers and theirschool librarian, and the problems faced in their collaboration efforts.

The questionnaire was pre-tested on four individuals who had education or schoollibrary work experience. All the four individuals had very little or no problem incompleting the questionnaire. However, some minor adjustments were made in theinstrument to accommodate their suggestions. Copies of the questionnaire were sent tothe selected schools and their principals were requested to distribute it to all teachers inthe school. The questionnaire was also made available on a survey web site, mainly tocater to those teachers who preferred replying via online surveys. A total of 76 teachersfrom seven schools participated in the study. The survey was conducted over a periodof three months during the first quarter of 2003.

Results and discussionPersonal profile of respondentsOut of 76 respondents, three-quarters of the respondents were female, while the restwere male (Table I). Slightly over 63 percent of the respondents were teachers atsecondary schools. The remaining 37 percent were teaching in primary schools.

Table II shows that a majority of the respondents (36 or 47.4 percent) had five orfewer years of teaching experience. A good proportion of the respondents (17 or 22.4percent) had more than 20 years’ of teaching experience. It appeared that a majority ofthe respondents had adequate teaching experience and were probably in a position toprovide good feedback regarding their collaboration with their school librarian.

The main bulk of the respondents (65 or 89 percent) had either a Diploma or aPostgraduate Diploma in Education (Table III). The respondents who had a Certificatein Education were more experienced teachers (with more than 20 years teachingexperience) as these certificates were awarded by the then Teachers’ Training College,

GenderSchool level Female Male Total

Primary 21 7 28 (36.8 percent)Secondary 36 12 48 (63.2 percent)Total 57 (75.0 percent) 19 (25.0 percent) 76 (100 percent)

Table I.Gender and affiliation of

the respondents

Teaching experience No. of respondents (percent)

#5 years 36 (47.4)6-10 years 15 (19.7)11-20 years 8 (10.5)$21 years 17 (22.4)Total 76 (100)

Table II.Teaching experience of

the respondents

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the precursor to the National Institute of Education (NIE). Three respondents did notindicate their professional qualifications.

The respondents were asked whether they had ever served as library teachers orlibrary coordinators (library teachers or coordinators are trained teachers who aretasked with supervisory library duties, in addition to their regular teachingassignments – they are, however, not professionally trained school librarians). Thepurpose of this specific question was to investigate whether those teachers who haveprior experience in library work or involvement, were more prone to use their schoollibraries and integrate its use in their teaching. It was found that 27 (35.5 percent) of therespondents had earlier worked as library teachers or library coordinators.

Use of school librariesThe respondents were asked about the frequency of visits to their school library. Themajority (59 or 77.6 percent) of the respondents reported using the school library onlywhen it was necessary (Figure 1). This proportion was consistent regardless of therespondents’ teaching experience, educational qualification or school affiliation(primary or secondary school). Nearly 15 percent of the respondents indicated that theyvisit their school library at least once a week. It was interesting to note that threerespondents indicated that they had never visited their school library. On the whole, itappeared that a majority of the respondents have not been visiting their schoollibraries regularly.

However, an interesting relationship emerged between respondents’ prior librarywork experience and the frequency of school library use (Table IV). It should be noted

Professional qualification No. of respondents (percent)

Diploma in Education 35 (47.9)Postgraduate Diploma in Education 30 (41.1)Certificate in Education 3 (4.1)Degree in Education 2 (2.7)Further Professional Diploma in Education 2 (2.7)Master of Arts (in Education) 1 (1.4)Total no. of respondents 73 (100)

Table III.Professional qualificationof the respondents(N ¼ 73)

Figure 1.Frequency of use of schoollibraries

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that in addition to their normal teaching workload, certain teachers in Singaporeschools are assigned to work as teacher librarians. Thus, for each school, there areoften between two and five teacher librarians who assume library duties in addition totheir teaching duties. It was observed that five (18.5 percent) of the respondents withlibrary work experience visited their school library at least once a week compared tosix (12.2 percent) of the respondents without such experience. Similarly, 22 or 81.5percent of the respondents who had prior library work experience used the schoollibrary as and when necessary, compared to those without such experience (37 or 75.5percent of respondents). It appeared that those respondents who have some experienceof working in the school library used it comparatively more frequently than thosewithout such experience, probably due to the fact that library work exposed theseteachers to the school library resources and facilities.

Three respondents indicated that they had never used their school library. Afterfurther cross-tabulations and analysis, it was discovered that this group of threeexhibited some common characteristics. Two of them have taught for less than a year,whilst the remaining one had taught for fewer than six years. In addition, they were allbasic degree holders (graduates), were teaching at the secondary school level, and hadno prior library experience. One probable reason for the common trend in this group isthat the relatively new teachers might not have found the need to utilise their schoollibrary thus far. In addition, being secondary school teachers, they might not need touse the library for any lesson preparation or activities. As Disinger (1987) claimed, it iseasier for primary school teachers to arrange for “out-of-the-classroom” activities,mainly due to the absence of rigid time frames for instruction in specific subjects. Headded that the primary school teacher is more of a “generalist” than the secondaryschool teacher. These “out-of-the-classroom” activities may refer to lessons that areheld in the school library or lessons that require the use of school library resources.

Usefulness and adequacy of school librariesRespondents were asked about the usefulness of their school library in preparinglessons and other tasks assigned to them. It was found that 56.6 percent of therespondents felt that their school library was “somewhat useful” (Table V). However,four (18.4 percent) of the respondents pointed out that their school library was “notuseful”.

Respondents were also asked about the adequacy of their school library resources inmeeting their information needs for different activities. It was interesting to note that alarge proportion of the respondents perceived that their school library was “adequate”for leisure or light reading (36 or 48 percent of respondents). Between 35 and 38 percentof the respondents felt that their school library resources were “adequate” for planning

Use frequency With experience (N ¼ 27) Without experience (N ¼ 49)

Almost daily 1 (3.7 percent) 2 (4.1 percent)Once or twice a week 4 (14.8 percent) 4 (8.2 percent)Once or twice a month 0 3 (6.1 percent)As and when necessary 22 (81.5 percent) 37 (75.5 percent)Never 0 3 (6.1 percent)

Table IV.Relationship between

prior library workexperience and frequencyof use of school libraries

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lessons and other academic purposes, for students’ projects, and for personaldevelopment (Table VI). It was also found that a fairly equal proportion of therespondents indicated that their school library resources were “somewhat adequate” inmeeting the five stated purposes. However, there was a substantial proportion ofrespondents who indicated that their school library resources were “inadequate” forCo-Curricular Activities or CCA (26 or 36.1 percent of respondents), for planninglessons (16 or 21.0 percent of respondents) and for students’ projects (14 or 18.7 percentof respondents).

Problems faced in using school librariesRespondents were also asked about the type of problems that they face in using theirschool library. Only 14 respondents answered this question. From Table VII, it can beinferred that out of those respondents who answered this question, the majorityindicated that they faced problems such as the library not having appropriatematerials or equipment, and that the library was noisy. Ten respondents (71.5 percent)

Usefulness of school library No. of respondents (percent)

Useful 19 (25.0)Somewhat useful 43 (56.6)Not useful 14 (18.4)Total 76 (100)

Table V.Perception of usefulnessof school libraries

No. of respondents (percent)Purpose of use Adequate Somewhat adequate Inadequate Total for row (percent)

For leisure/light reading 36 (48.0) 33 (44.0) 6 (8.0) 75 (100)For planning lessons and otheracademic purposes 29 (38.2) 31 (40.8) 16 (21.0) 76 (100)For students’ projects 28 (37.3) 33 (44.0) 14 (18.7) 75 (100)For personal development 27 (35.5) 36 (47.4) 13 (17.1) 76 (100)For CCAs 14 (19.4) 32 (44.4) 26 (36.1) 72 (100)

Table VI.Relationship betweenpurpose of use andperception of adequacy ofschool library resources

No. of respondents (percent)Problem Most of the time Occasionally Never Total for row (percent)

Not enough appropriate materialsor resources 2 (14.3) 12 (85.7) 0 14 (100)Not enough appropriateequipment 1 (7.1) 11 (78.6) 2 (14.3) 14 (100)Resources and materials aredisorganised 2 (14.3) 10 (71.4) 2 (14.3) 14 (100)Not easily accessible, far from thestaff room or classrooms 2 (14.3) 2 (14.3) 10 (71.4) 14 (100)Noisy 3 (21.4) 5 (35.7) 6 (42.8) 14 (100)Congested, furniture arranged in acluttered manner 0 3 (21.4) 11 (78.6) 14 (100)

Table VII.Problems faced byrespondents in usingschool libraries

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indicated that they “occasionally” found library resources and materials disorganised.A small proportion of respondents (3 or 21.4 percent) found the library to be congestedor that its furniture was arranged in a cluttered manner. The low response to thisquestion was probably an indication that a majority of the respondents were satisfiedwith the resources and facilities offered by their school libraries. However, anotherinference that can also be made from the low response rate is that due to the largenumber of respondents that have been visiting the school library infrequently, theymay have been unaware of such problems in using their school libraries.

Collaborative relationship and activitiesOut of 71 respondents who answered the question related to their collaboration withthe school librarian for planning lesson units or other academic activities, a rather largegroup of respondents (52 or 73.2 percent) replied that they have never done so. It wasinteresting to note that out of the 35 respondents with 5 or fewer years of teachingexperience, only six (17.1 percent) respondents have some collaboration with the schoollibrarian (Table VIII). There was, however, a higher proportion (7 or 43.8 percent) of therespondents with more than 20 years’ of teaching experience, who have collaboratedwith their school librarian. Data analysis suggests that chances of collaborationincrease with an increase in teaching experience.

An interesting relationship emerged when prior library work experience wascross-tabulated with library collaboration of the respondents (Table IX). It was foundthat almost one-half of the respondents with library experience have collaborated withtheir school librarians. On the contrary, only 7 (15.2 percent) of the respondents withoutlibrary experience have such collaboration. It appeared that those teachers who hadonce served in their school libraries were more likely to collaborate with their schoollibrarians. This might be attributed to their exposure to library resources and positiveexperience of using library services.

Those respondents who indicated that they have collaborated with their schoollibrary staff were asked to elaborate on the type of collaborative activities undertakenby them. Table X shows that there was a rather equal distribution of respondents for

No. of respondents (percent)Teaching experience Collaboration done No collaboration

#5 years 6 (17.1) 29 (82.8)6–10 years 4 (28.6) 10 (71.4)11–20 years 2 (33.3) 4 (66.7).20 years 7 (43.8) 9 (56.2)Total 19 (26.8) 52 (73.2)

Table VIII.Relationship between

teaching experience andcollaboration

No. of respondents (percent)Prior library experience Collaboration done No collaboration

With experience 12 (48.0) 13 (52.0)Without experience 7 (15.2) 39 (84.8)Total 19 (26.8) 52 (73.2)

Table IX.Relationship between

prior library workexperience and

collaboration

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each of the four suggested activities. However, it was found that for almost allcollaborative activities, a majority of the respondents have only occasionallycollaborated with their school librarians. It appeared that those respondents who oncestarted collaborating with their school librarians would extend this collaboration toinclude a range of activities.

ConclusionIt was found that a higher proportion of the teachers who had prior library workexperience used their school library more often than those without such experience. Ingeneral, there was an overall lack of interest in the use of school libraries by teachers.One factor that might have contributed to this low utilisation could be due to limitedawareness about the role that school libraries can play in the school curriculum. Oneway to alleviate this problem is to ensure that pre-service and in-service teachertraining exposes teachers to the central role of school libraries in the school curriculumand in students’ academic performance.

An information literacy programme for trainee and practising teachers needs to bedeveloped to provide them with a basic set of skills in identifying, locating, accessing,evaluating and using information. They can also be trained on how the use of theschool library can be integrated into teaching, students’ projects, extra-curricularactivities and other related tasks. Sample lesson plans that incorporate extensive use ofthe school library could be developed and shared to demonstrate the contribution of theschool library in enhancing the quality and effectiveness of lessons and othercurriculum activities. In addition, the benefits of collaboration with the school librariancould also be highlighted to the teachers.

Another way to improve the use of school libraries is to ensure that all schools inSingapore employ full-time and adequately trained professional school librarians.Currently, a majority of the schools do not have positions for professional schoollibrarians, and often teachers without proper professional library training managetheir libraries. As these teachers are also expected to take full teaching load, theycannot devote enough time to the school library. The full-time school librarian wouldbe able to play a more proactive role in promoting the use of school libraries inteaching, extra-curricular activities, student projects and leisure reading. Aprofessional school librarian can also help improve the information literacy skills ofteachers and students.

Another factor leading to the low utilisation of school libraries could be theinadequacy of resources for meeting the school’s curriculum needs, as perceived by theteachers surveyed. To address this, school management should develop acomprehensive school library programme, ensuring that the school library iswell-stocked with materials and resources, well-staffed by professional school

No. of respondents (percent)Collaborative activities Most of the time Occasionally Never

Plan lessons, projects and other activities 3 (15.8) 11 (57.9) 5 (26.3)Identify useful resources for lessons 4 (21.1) 13 (68.4) 2 (10.5)Discuss and decide on library resources 6 (31.6) 13 (68.4) 0Identify materials for personal use 4 (21.1) 13 (68.4) 2 (10.5)

Table X.Relationship betweencollaborative activitiesand frequency ofcollaboration (N ¼ 19)

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librarians and well-integrated into the school curriculum (Lance, 2002; Rodney et al.,2003). In addition, the school librarian can involve teachers in evaluating the schoollibrary collection as well as in selecting new resources. Such a collaborative resourcedevelopment and evaluation effort can help minimise or even eliminate perceptions ofthe inadequacy of library collection, services and facilities.

Being a country without any natural resources, Singapore is heavily dependent onthe capabilities and skills of its human capital. Well-stocked and well-staffed schoollibraries would help realise the ultimate goal of Singapore to develop knowledgeable,creative, independent and dynamic future citizens who are ready to thrive and prevailin the digital age of the 21st century. Such individuals would help Singapore to staycompetitive in the global knowledge economy, and to ensure her continued growth andsuccess.

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Rodney, M.J., Lance, K.C. and Hamilton-Pennell, C. (2003), The Impact of Michigan SchoolLibrarians on Academic Achievement: Kids Who Have Libraries Succeed, available at:www.michigan.gov/documents/hal_lm_schllibstudy03_76626_7.pdf (accessed 10 May2004), Library of Michigan, Lansing, MI.

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Further reading

Haycock, K. (1999), “School libraries and reading achievement”, Teacher Librarian, Vol. 26 No. 3,available at: www.teacherlibrarian.com/tltoolkit/what_works/works_v26_3.html(accessed 5 May 2004).

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