Preparation of School Library Media Specialists in the United States
Recruiting and preparing the next generation of school library media specialists (SLMSs) is a growing concern nationwide. School library media preparation programs are critical to meeting the current shortage of SLMSs in the United States. To determine the status of professional preparation programs for SLMSs, surveys were sent to forty-eight American Library Association (ALA)-accredited library education programs and 155 programs that prepare SLMSs but are not accredited by the ALA. Specifics related to the percentages of students and faculty in this specialization, the fulland part-time status of students, and the numbers of students enrolled were addressed in this survey. The survey further sought to determine the status of distance education opportunities, the internship as part of the school-media curriculum, and recruitment efforts of school library media preparation programs, school districts, state departments of education, and professional organizations.
Introduction: A Gentle Manifesto on the Relevance and Obscurity of School Libraries in LIS Research
One area in many library and information science (LIS) education programs consistently occupies the far end of the prestige spectrum: school librarianship. As Evelyn Daniel wrote in the Reader in Library and Information Services, “School librarianship [is] frequently regarded as a low status and alien activity by both the education and library professions” (1974, p.57). To gain necessary recognition and continue to develop as a field, she concluded, awareness and understanding of the complexities of school libraries must come from library and information science educators, practitioners, and researchers (Daniel, 1974). The intent of this issue of Library Trends is to begin to shift staid conceptions of school librarianship in the LIS academy to the idea of dynamic educational informatics in schools; this shift in perception can have tremendous impact upon preparation curriculum, professional practice, and research trajectories in all areas of library and information science. At present, few opportunities to encounter school library-related research exist in the information science community. School librarianship has only two peer-reviewed journals, School Library Media Research and School Libraries Worldwide. Research articles about school libraries appear infrequently in information and library science periodicals aimed at a broader audience.
Library Education and Youth Services: A Survey of Faculty, Course Offerings, and Related Activities in Accredited Library Schools.
Enquete menee aupres de toutes les ecoles specialisees dans l'enseignement des sciences de l'information adherente, a l'ALA, pour determiner la position des bibliotheques a l'egard des cours de formation concernant les bibliothecaires specialises des services jeunesse