Library=more than just a room where books are kept

Continuing with the theme of the changing role of the librarian, I think that this is a very exciting time to be entering the field of school librarianship. In the past, such as when I was in high school, the library was a quiet place used by a very limited number of students, occasionally, perhaps during study halls. There were only three computers and I don't recall anyone ever taking out a book. We used the library maybe once for a class assignment, and we were all afraid the 90+ year-old librarian wouldn't make it through the lesson. Now, less than ten years later, things have changed drastically.

In several of the high schools I visited for field experience, the libraries were very busy -- all the time. As the popular destination for study hall, students were limited to visiting the library once a day, and, in some places, the library doors were closed after the occupancy limit was reached. Of course, this wasn't necessarily due to a radical change in the role of the library, but more so because of the access to computers, free printing, and a place to talk with friends. However, there are many more opportunities for libraries to be a central place in the school now that certain technologies exist. I heard at least one librarian talk about how excited she was to try out podcasting with the students in her reading group. She wanted them to produce book talks and ads to play with the announcements. Unfortunately, I was not able to see this implemented, but it was nice to see her enthusiasm for the project. In another school, the librarian monitored several different writing and reading groups that met in the library after school. This would be a perfect opportunity to introduce some of the Web 2.0 technologies that we have covered in this class. Imagine sharing writing on a blog, collaboratively writing a story with Google Docs, or creating a comprehensive wiki for an imaginary world.

There are so many "extras" I can imagine hosting in the library, both using emerging technologies and some of the good old features of the library. Study sessions, presentation previews, test prep, original work publication, talent showcase, creative writing workshop, giant crossword puzzles...