School Libraries and Resource Centers Section
Strategic Plan
2006-2007
Mission
The Section of School Libraries and Resource Centres promotes improvement and development of school libraries and resource centres worldwide. The focus of its work is on promoting qualified and adequate staffing and sufficient budgets to enable quality library and information services in schools. It provides an international forum for exchanging ideas, experiences and results and lays the foundation for discussions of the aims of school libraries and the means by which those can be achieved.
Goals
1. Promoting the role of the school library and resource centre in literacy, reading, information literacy and lifelong learning
(Professional priorities: (a) Supporting the role of libraries in society; (b) Defending the principle of freedom of information; (c) Promoting literacy and reading)
Actions
- Organising sessions at future conferences which highlight school library activities, literacy and information literacy; identifying and inviting appropriate speakers
- Organising joint programs and joint activities with other IFLA Sections and other institutions or organisations
- Publishing a new Section brochure
- Promoting and providing support for International School Library Day
- Providing appropriate information on the World Wide Web to promote the Section and school libraries
2. Defining the role of the school librarian and highlighting best practice
(Professional priorities: (i) Promoting standards, guidelines and best practice)
Actions
- Promoting the IFLA/UNESCO School Library Manifesto and the School Library Guidelines
- Translating the IFLA/UNESCO School Library Manifesto and the School Library Guidelines into as many languages as possible
- Developing an Advocacy Kit for promoting the IFLA/UNESCO School Library Manifesto and the School Library Guidelines
- Developing strategies to identify and promote examples of best practice
- Enabling regional workshops that promote best practice in school librarianship
3. Supporting school librarians in their professional development and promoting pre-service and in-service professional education programs for school librarians
(Professional priorities: (h) Developing library professionals)
Actions
- Developing a plan to meet this goal, including the identification of appropriate strategies
- Work with Section on Reading to mount papers from Oslo pre-conference workshop 'literacy for life' to CD.
- Organising a Pre-conference in Seoul in 2006 on policy development.
4. Advocating the importance of libraries and information literacy in teacher education programs and curricula
(Professional priorities: (a) Supporting the role of libraries in society)
Actions
- Developing a plan to meet this goal, including the identification of appropriate strategies
5. Promoting, identifying and disseminating research in the field of school librarianship
(Professional priorities: (a) Supporting the role of libraries in society; (b) Defending the principle of freedom of information; (c) Promoting literacy and reading; (d) Providing unrestricted access to information; (f) Promoting resource sharing; (i) Promoting standards, guidelines and best practice; (j) Supporting the infrastructure of library associations)
Actions
- Supporting a major international research project on "Information Policy in Schools"
- Promoting and disseminating the professional report of the research project "Principals and School Librarians in an Information Literate School Community"
- Developing a plan to assess the impact of Section projects and activities
- Identifying topics on which research is needed, and encouraging research on those topics
6. Supporting and promoting the establishment of school library associations or school library sections within library associations or such associations as they support the mission of the Section.
(Professional priorities: (j) Supporting the infrastructure of library associations)
Actions
- Organising activities in conjunction with other associations and institutions
- Developing a plan to further meet this goal, including the identification of appropriate strategies
