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School libraries transform
By SLANZA (School Library Association of New Zealand Aotearoa)
Issue 115, Term 4 2020
School libraries across New Zealand are supporting a nationwide campaign to ensure that every child has access to a well-resourced library with a specialist librarian who can help them develop a lifelong love of reading. Many children in schools in Aotearoa do not have that right. SLANZA (School Li
Students Need School Libraries (and teacher librarians)
By Cherie Bell
Issue 128, Term 1 2024
Students Need School Libraries is a volunteer-run campaign with the purpose of enabling and enthusing relevant stakeholders to advocate for higher quality, well-staffed school libraries in their communities. The committee – which is small in number but mighty in experience – is dedicated to educati
The fourth age of libraries
By Sean McMullen
Issue 92, Term 1 2015
for modern librarians, some of whom even turned up in costumes based off my work. Fifteen years later, many of these librarians are now wondering if libraries will still exist in twenty years, let alone two thousand. The past holds some clues about the future of libraries. What did people do for
School libraries and sustainability
By Katalin Mindum
Issue 113, Term 2 2020
With the current focus on climate change and the impact we are having on the environment, many of us are wondering how we can make a real difference. Libraries are quite naturally places that people turn to for ideas as well as answers. They tend to be positive, proactive and full of amazing, commun
A thank you to libraries and ELR
By Mem Fox, Nicole Richardson
Issue 102, Term 3 2017
What role have libraries played in your life? I grew up in Zimbabwe, Africa, so libraries didn’t play a huge role in my early life. But at high school I spent a lot of time in the Bulawayo Library (our major city library) which was very well endowed at the time, and full of excellent non-fiction
School libraries supporting literacy
By Stephanie Ellis
Issue 99, Term 4 2016
factors in effective library programming: teacher collaboration. Below is a summary of the activities and strategies that were shared. How school libraries can support literacy Book of the week Promote a selected book either using your library management system, or by making a quick and easy
The importance of school libraries in the Google Age
By Kay Oddone
Issue 98, Term 3 2016
g the internet (ABS 2016). With such widespread access to information comes the commonly asked question: now that we have Google, do we still require libraries and librarians? This question is particularly being pressed in schools, where smartphones mean that both teachers and students carry a wealt
School libraries enhancing student wellbeing
By Jackie Child
Issue 105, Term 2 2018
home, playground and classroom. It is a safe place where students can come to chill out, meet, talk, study, make and play. For many students, school libraries have always been a place of refuge from the playground or extreme weather. School libraries, like so many public libraries, are changing.
Leigh Hobbs on school libraries and storytelling
By Leigh Hobbs
Issue 100, Term 1 2017
What role, if any, did school libraries play in developing your love of storytelling? When I was a child at school — in the pre-computer and internet early 1960s — the school library was my centre of exploration and discovery. I had friends of course and liked mucking around in the school yard, b
Students need great school libraries
By Nicole Richardson
Issue 109, Term 2 2019
In the face of widespread budget cuts and the reduction in qualified staffing of school libraries across the globe, 2018 saw the formation of two grassroots campaigns — Australia’s ‘Students Need School Libraries’ and the UK’s ‘Great School Libraries’. Both campaigns set ambitious, yet important, g
TikTok and libraries: a powerful partnership
By Kelsey Bogan
Issue 115, Term 4 2020
yone to do their due diligence and thoroughly research and review any new app before choosing whether to use it themselves. What is the benefit for libraries? It is my opinion that libraries benefit from a robust and engaging social media presence. Our library’s social media presence has been on
The magic of school libraries
By Belinda Cameron
Issue 115, Term 4 2020
ff member are on display. They delight even the most avid Harry Potter fans. With COVID-19 momentarily halting the usual community events in school libraries all over the world, we have had to cancel our Harry Potter Evening. However, as Dumbledore reminds us, ‘Happiness can be found, even in the
School libraries then and now - in the digital environment
By Lance Deveson
Issue 120, Term 1 2022
Once again I feel very privileged to have been invited by the Connections staff to write an opinion piece. This time it is on how school libraries have changed over the past 30 years and how they might look in the rapidly evolving digital environment. How time flies when you’re having fun! Thirty
Morris Gleitzman on the uniquely contributive role of school libraries
By Morris Gleitzman
Issue 109, Term 2 2019
s — something I have been doing for about 30 years. I speak to lots of school library staff, because of my long-held interest in the health of school libraries. Over the last 18 months, this has been particularly so because my predecessor, Leigh Hobbs, made the health of school libraries a specific
New Zealand school libraries respond to COVID-19
By Glenys Bichan
Issue 114, Term 3 2020
no-one can enter it? The lockdown made us all reflect on our practice and on the questions, ‘Who are we?’ and more importantly, ‘Why are we?’ School libraries are a place of transformation for our students and our staff. Students can flourish, grow and explore there. How do you provide that space w
The positive potential of ebooks within school libraries
By Trish du Temple
Issue 113, Term 2 2020
urced and under pressure, struggling to service the increasing number of students seeking help, and at risk of burnout themselves. I believe school libraries can help. They have an opportunity to provide resources to improve students’ mental wellbeing, strengthen resilience and better equip them w
Working together to ensure student access to high-quality school library services
By Holly Godfree
Issue 113, Term 2 2020
ents and teachers to higher achievements. Right now, in a time of fear, change, doubt, and division around the world, we can argue that strong school libraries are a balm and a bolster to proactively help young people and educators to best meet the challenges we face. And, yet, high-performing, spec
Easy access to library services: public and school libraries working together
By Adie Johansen
Issue 116, Term 1 2021
munity and embracing change. Our vision is simple: to be ‘the best little library in New Zealand’. A library is more than just an avenue for books. Libraries are community hubs where you can learn, create, feel safe and engage with others. To achieve our vision we set four goals: • Leading the way
Unique libraries: The School of St Jude in Tanzania
By Rebecca Hansford
Issue 119, Term 4 2021
The School of St Jude is a unique school that is home to three unique libraries. St Jude’s is located in Arusha, Tanzania. The school provides 1,800 bright students from poor backgrounds with free, quality education. Established in 2002 with just three students, St Jude’s now stretches across thr
School libraries: miracles and madness
By Jackie French
Issue 104, Term 1 2018
The first school I went to burnt down. This was not my fault. The library didn’t burn down, because there wasn’t one — just a classroom with a shelf of books. I won third place in the lottery to read one of the two or three new books donated each year: The Magic Pudding . Three weeks later, it was