Morris Iemma’s Government recognises teacher librarians are essential teaching partners in implementing the teaching and learning program of schools. A re-elected Iemma Government will: ·

• continue to recognise the right of the NSW Teachers Federation to represent the industrial rights of teachers, including teacher librarians.
• remain committed to protecting teachers, including teacher librarians, from Canberra’s WorkChoice laws;
• keep the NSW industrial relations system, which safeguards the award conditions of teachers;
• keep the NSW Industrial Relations Commission as the independent umpire to resolve industrial disputes between the Department of Education and the Federation.

1. Do you believe the learning needs of students are best met by professionally trained teacher librarians being deployed as relief teachers? Or do you support the restoration of the second hour of release from face-to-face (RFF) staffing allocation which was cut in 1989?

Following discussions between the Department of Education and Training and the NSW Teachers Federation, a memorandum Teacher Librarians was issued in July 2005 clarifying arrangements about release from face-to-face teaching for teacher librarians in primary schools:

• Classroom teachers are entitled to two hours relief from face to face teaching each week and teacher librarians are allocated two hours of class free time each week.
• One hour of this release from face-to-face is provided within the school’s staffing entitlement, specifically identified as relief from face to face, and the other hour is allocated from the school’s supplementary staffing entitlements, including the part-time allocation and the teacher librarian allocation.
• Principals are responsible for determining the most effective way to organise the provision of release from face-to-face in primary schools.

2. Are you aware of research which concludes that professionally trained teacher librarians working collaboratively with teachers on the teaching of information literacy skills in context, instead of in isolation, leads to a marked increase in student learning outcomes?

The Department is aware of the research into teacher librarianship, information literacy and student learning outcomes and uses this research to inform support provided to teacher librarians. Support for teacher librarians provided by the School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit of the Curriculum K-12 Directorate is given on the basis that teacher librarians achieve best teaching results when working collaboratively with classroom teachers.

3. Do you support adequate school library support staffing so that professionally trained teacher librarians are free to collaboratively plan and teach? To wit: Secondary: That there be a minimum of two full time school assistants where the school population is 800 or more. That there be a minimum one full time school assistant where the school population is fewer than 800. Primary: That school assistants be employed to match teacher librarian allocation on a 1:1 basis, that is 4 hours teacher librarian = 4 hours school assistant, 6 days teacher librarian = 6 days clerical.

The memorandum Teacher Librarians states that the distribution of school administrative and support staff within a school is made by the principal, who takes into account all of the duties which need to be performed and the level of resourcing that is possible within the allocation provided by the formula entitlement.

In doing so, principals should ensure that school libraries are provided with adequate support to enable the teacher librarian to fulfil teaching and library management responsibilities. School administrative and support staff in the library provide valuable assistance in supporting the delivery of the school’s information literacy and other learning programs.

4. Do you support teacher librarian staffing for support classes?

Teaching staff in NSW government schools are allocated in accordance with formulae based on student enrolments and special needs. These formulae have been established to distribute staff equitably across the State.

Both the classroom teacher and teacher librarian staffing entitlements are based on student enrolments, not the number of classes. Support student enrolments are included in determining the teacher librarian entitlement for schools.

5. Do you support a policy for a proportion of the school global budget to be designated for the school library, in order to guarantee a minimum funding base?

All NSW government schools are provided with annual global funding allocations from which they are expected to meet the cost of school operations. These allocations are based on historical figures and formula driven calculations using available staffing and student numbers.

Significant benefits of the global funding system include the provision of greater flexibility in the utilisation of funds and increased autonomy in decision-making at the school level. Each school principal in conjunction with the school finance committee determines how available funds are applied to meet the school’s educational priorities and curriculum requirements, including the purchase of library resources.

6. Do you support the restoration of an adequately staffed school library consultancy to supplement the excellent services of SCIS and Scan?

The Department provides a school library consultancy service through the School Libraries and Information Literacy Unit.

With teacher librarians now well established in the teaching profession, support through workshops and conference presentations ensures that their knowledge is current. Other support provided by the School Library and Information Literacy Unit can be successfully and efficiently delivered with up-to-date technology, including email and a web site, rather than in person or at the school.

7. Do you support the preservice teacher training of information literacy, the role of the teacher librarian, and cooperative planning & teaching?

The Institute of Teachers has responsibility for setting the requirements for universities for initial teacher education programs and takes advice from key stakeholders. I am advised that the Department has advised the Institute that courses should include information about specialist teachers, including teacher librarians.

There are no current pre-service initial teacher education programs specialising in teacher librarianship. Qualified teachers taking up an appointment as a teacher librarian in a New South Wales government school enrol in a postgraduate course in teacher librarianship to qualify as a teacher librarian.

The Department supports the training of teachers who take up a position in a school library through the Teacher Librarian Retraining Program, by payment of course fees and provision of study time and mentoring support.

from Kristina Keneally, also available as a Word attachment