May 08 2009
Open letter to SLN Members
This is a message that I sent to SLN on Friday – it actually arrived on the list on Saturday evening as it had to go through moderation. This is because I left the list and re-joined a few days later.
Dear Colleagues,
This is most probably the very last time that I will write to you via SLN. You probably thought that I had left anyway, but I have been reading the posts on the Yahoo site for some time. I make no apologies for what I am about to say – I think that someone needs to say it. As I am well known for sticking my neck out, I will do so as I feel so strongly about SLN and all the support that it has given me over the ten years that I have been a member.
A large group of committed, professional and passionate school librarians is a wonderful thing. We support each other in a way that I think very few other professions do. We care about each other and try to help. We welcome new members to our profession and do everything we can to assist their development in what I believe is one of the most important roles in education.
Over the years I have been a member of SLN, members have given me so much – I don’t think that I could have achieved what I have without you. I have tried to repay that by sharing my own experience and expertise as much as I can. I hope people agree that I have been generous with my own ideas and knowledge gained through many years of experience, professional development and education. I have also joined in some of the fun stuff on SLN and feel that many of you are more than professional colleagues – we have a comradeship and friendship that has lasted for many years.
So, it is with great sadness that I have to write this. Today I am embarrassed to be a member of SLN. For the last few weeks a large group of members have been discussing off-list just how SLN has descended to a completely trivial and unprofessional level. There is a very large and wide membership including professional librarians from many sectors, commercial interests, international colleagues. It is totally shocking that they see UK school librarians discussing insect bites, Dewey numbers, and other low-level trivia!
Many of us are also shocked at how easily colleagues “give away” their hard earned knowledge and expertise. Before Easter, I was attacked on the list for suggesting that school librarians should have proper training to do their job. Professional qualifications were rubbished by one member. Yet, the list relies on a large group of expert librarians who readily share their professionalism with others. Let me state my belief firmly and unequivocally – school librarians need training! Yes, there are some brilliant people who do not have formal librarianship qualifications – but all of the best school librarians have had training of some kind – courses from SLA, SLG, local SLSs. Anne-Marie, Ingrid, Nikki – have all had some training!
This is from the description of SLN from the Yahoo site: “We aim to promote the professional standing of the school librarian, and encourage all unqualified school librarians to develop their skills and knowledge through relevant courses and qualifications. SLN is not itself a substitute for proper training.”
So why do so many of you continue to support SLN members who have no intention of doing any training? Why are you allowing their schools to get away with employing people with no knowledge of librarianship and then training them on SLN for free?
At the very least – have colleagues no fear that their headteachers will see this as the way forward? Are you all that secure in your jobs?
Good, committed and able school librarians are leaving this list in some numbers, others are now posting very infrequently. Is this what members want? If the main topics on the list are so trivial, the expertise will be driven away to other places where we can raise the level.
Those are my thoughts.
Farewell
Anne
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Dear Anne
I share your sadness. When I came into school libraries 4 years ago after, over 20 years of working in Public and Higher Education Libraries, I found the SLN list an invaluable source of expertise. Many of my professional skills were transferable but it was so good to share advice and ideas with fellow school librarians.
I now find the list shockingly trivial and I also feel unable to subscribe to it any longer
Nicola McNee
Yes – I have been following with growing concern this descent over recent weeks and am one of those whom, as you mention Anne, are rarely posting any longer. I have been a member of sln for 10 years and have found it a wonderful support but increasingly I have found less and less that was of direct use to me. Whilst I have always been happy to support colleagues in an atmosphere of mutual support , knowing that I would benefit just as much as they did at various points with advice, suggestions, ideas, initiatives etc this has become less so.
It is not that I have nothing to learn -we are all hopefully life-long learners and we all know how the job is changing and developing all the time- but it is evident that many of the key figures in the school library world – those who have trained, studied, read, gone on courses, spent hours of their own time developing their knowledge and expertise, etc are no longer feeling that their contributions have a place on sln. I have asked for advice/suggestions on a few matters in recent months and received few if any responses . If there was a response it was easily lost amongst matters that do not interest or concern me with the list returning to discussions of a non-professional nature.
There clearly is a place for these sorts of discussions but it is just not for me anymore. Time to move on I think. I do not have time or desire to respond to some of the basic enquiries posted knowing that there will be yet another such request to follow with little in return that is of any benefit to me or my professional development. Selfish? Perhaps- but I have a responsibility both to my school and to my own professionalism. My school invests in me – pays me an excellent salary and supports my professional development. They have mad a commitment to the school library and its librarian. I don’t think my Head would be too happy knowing other schools were continually benefiting from my qualifications without some financial recompense. Effectively some schools are getting their library expertise for free!
Thanks Anne, for saying what needed to be said. And thanks also, Laura, for so eloquently expressing exactly my thoughts. Personally, I’m not sure whether this will actually have any effect on sln itself. But I too feel that it’s of little use to me now, so I’ll not spend lots of time.
However, I’m not ready to unsubscribe – probbaly for sentimental reasons more than anything else. And so, there may be the odd post from me yet… Watch out!
Our esteemed colleagues have summed up my feelings very well Anne. I am not going to unsubscribe at this moment as I don’t actually have any messages sent to me anyway and only log on when I feel like it but I have found little of benefit recently. Like Laura I rarely post now and feel very sad – but happy that we have the ning for professional collaboration.
I agree to a certain extent with Anne’s comments. The number of postings on sln can be large and it takes time to sort them all out …. even just deleting those not relevant without reading them takes time … and often you can never be really sure if something is relevant or not until you’ve opened and read it.
The change in nature of sln is, I think, partly due to the increase in peoples’ use of the internet and social networking sites in general. With facilities like sln, Facebook, Twitter, etc. being used every day by many people, it is easy to let the ethos and atmosphere from one spill over into another. So that you post in a fairly humourous, lighthearted way on Facebook but then move to sln and carry that sort of comment with you. Also some people only really use sln and so it has become not only their professional webboard but also a social networking site for them.
I guess it is all a matter of balance. We do need to remember what site we are on when posting comments, and to try and keep them relevant to that site. But at the same time, it is, perhaps, the humour and idiosyncrasies of our work that stop the site from becoming too worthy and bland.
As for discussion of trivial matters ….. I guess if you are an experienced librarian then where to put a particular book may seem trivial but to a librarian with little experience, it isn’t. And I have to admit that even now, after working in school libraries for almost 20 years, I still come across the occasional book that totally stumps me and I have no idea where to place it on the shelves. If I had an assistant I could discuss it with them but I don’t …. and so rely on other librarians on sln. Again …. a matter of balance.
I will continue to subscribe as I feel it can be a useful and valuable resource but perhaps if people posted to individuals rather than the group (and I’m assuming that they know how to …..) then it would reduce the number of “unprofessional” posts.
This sort of thing happens over on LM_NET quite frequently (even worse than ‘newbie’ questions are those from MLS students who have been told to post by their instructor with no other guidelines!).
I don’t mind questions about DDC – it *is* confusing. I don’t mind questions about a book, or how people are making a new idea work, etc. I do mind questions that someone paying attention during their training could answer, or someone trying to use the list in lieu of proper training.
Part of me feels that I’m being mean-spirited (shouldn’t we all be supporting each other’s learning, I was once a newbie, blah blah blah) and part of me resents having spent years and much money learning and getting to where I am, while others are getting a seemingly free ride. For that reason, I tend to lurk and let my blood pressure rise… perhaps more guidance/mentoring from the list owners in terms of appropriate/inappropriate use of the list and more pressure to get trained, get qualified from school administrators would help.
Thanks for all of the thoughtful comments so far. I expect I will get a negative backlash on SLN itself eventually, but I felt that I had to make a stand.
When I realised that SLN has potentially over 900 members, I was really horrified to think of the impression professional colleagues would be getting of the standard of school library staff in the UK.
This profession has been my life, my vocation and my passion – I care so much that we move forward.
I am actually angry and resentful of SLN a lot of the time nowadays. I feel the de-professionalisation of the sector, and therefore lack of opportunities, promotion, respect from other sectors and non-transferable skills in the eyes of other sectors, are the reason I have had to retrain as a driving instructor to take on another job simply to survive.
I spent a long time (and a lot of my parents money) qualifying, and have continued to train as part of required CPD as a Chartered Librarian and because it is vital to the job, and have been happy to encourage others to grow in qualifications and training. I even trained as an NVQ Assessor in order that 7 fellow school librarians in Doncaster could take their NVQs (all at level 3). This whilst heavily pregnant, AND I set up, with help, the regional branch of the SLA and have chaired it ever since (finishing after this term as it is time for new faces). So no-one can accuse me of being precious or ungenerous.
But it is making me so angry that by being so generous we may have sold ourselves down the river, and that we have to continually defend ourselves as such professionals for fear of offending those who are not trained or qualified but ’still do a good job’.
Like others have said I’m not ready to give up on SLN yet, but maybe the ning is the way for us to continue supporting and sharing. I feel awful for Elizabeth as this is so not what the intent of the group is and she does such a fabulous job.
I’d agree wholeheartedly with what Lynne and Barbara have said. Although I do still enjoy receiving (most) SLN posts (and I have to confess to sometimes responding to trivia) I certainly get much less of professional benefit than I used to and other sites such as the SLNers Ning are much more useful professionally. It all seems to have happened rather suddenly; was there a big influx? And people do seem to take umbrage rather easily about issues such as the need for qualifications and training.
I think you will get a huge backlash Anne so I hope you have your bullet proof vest on, and remember you have many people on ‘your side’ or who at least concur with much of what you say!
I am obviously very sorry that Anne and others are feeling that sln has deteriorated so far.
One partial solution is to move to the LM-NET model of having all replies go to the sender rather than the list, unless people actively choose to send to the list.
This is something we have discussed in the past and rejected as it tends to stifle good discussions.
However, I think it worth trying and have set sln accordingly.
I shall also look at providing more guidance for members, new and old, on what and how to post to the list, though I think that will need more thought.
Hi Anne,
Hey it is Mothering Sunday aka breakfast-in-bed day!
I hope you had a really great day! Jan
PS, I could get all professionally serious because what is going on here is very serious indeed, but solutions? Lets see what happens! (Bujold fans will reccognise Gregor’s favourite saying). J
Anne, Elizabeth and others, sln has been the most significant venue for me in the past 10 years. I joined in the first year, left after a while and then rejoined. I did so because the TARGET/offline responses/HIT process of LMNET and OZTLNET was unsatisfactory. So many good questions which begged serious discussion, yet if this did occur, it was directed at a single person – the poster. Recently I posted a question on outcomes-based library practice in Australia.
I had 20 replies (huge) and some international. Several asking for this to be discussed at the forthcoming ASLA conference and a TL from Holland asking for it to be developed at IASL level. However it cannot be discussed openly on that list! I can post a hit. But the development of the topic has not taken place and I am still not clear about what I think about outcomes-based practice. Now imagine a good meaty question on sln… you guys would all be out of the woodwork in a second!
We have experienced serious professional discourse, and this discussion is demonstrating how important it is to us and how we do not want to lose it.
It would be a pity to lose it for a negative and not professional reason.
The question is, how can we save professional discussion? We all need it!
Jan (again)
I’ve thought long and hard about joining into this discussion. As you know Anne I left SLN long before you did mainly because I am so busy at work that the only time I can log in is in the evening and I was finding that there were other places on the web where I was able to find more consistent professional stimulus. As to contributing to the development of others….as you also know I do a bit of training of librarians and in that way come across a variety of school librarians, both qualified and unqualified. I offer my training to both and so I could be accused of contributing my expertise to people who are taking jobs away from qualified people. The difference (to ease my professional conscience) is that at least these people recognise their need for training and are actively trying to do something about it.
What is at the root of all the concern I believe is the quality of information service provided in our schools. What I find is different between qualified and non-qualified staff is the awareness of a bigger management role of a school librarian. It is not about being kid-friendly (although that is essential for anyone working in schools!) but about supporting the teaching and learning of every member of the school, staff and pupil alike. It is essential to that job that the school librarian is seen as a middle manager who can help to influence school vision and policy, who can lead new initiatives etc. In my experience very few unqualified staff have that kind of role in schools. Headteachers hire unqualified staff to run libraries because they do not have the personal experience of working with a professional library manager in their schools. It is essential that we demonstrate to them what they are missing by not hiring a professional. Keeping a library room open and running is very different from managing an information service across a whole school.
I would like to offer a personal analogy to schools hiring unqualified teaching staff to deliver the curriculum and the effect that has. Three years ago I was asked if I would teach a class of students the AS in Critical Thinking. The logic behind this decision was that Critical Thinking is a natural extension of the Information Literacy work that I already do in partnership with teachers right across the curriculum. So it was ‘my area of expertise’…that plus the fact that none of the teachers felt they had sufficient understanding of the new course to deliver it. So it fell to me. Initially I was really excited at the prospect. It has been the hardest thing I have ever done in my life! The subject content is challenging enough but what I have come to realise is just how little I know about the art of teaching. I have picked up bits and pieces from watching others, reading books, etc. but just like our unqualified colleagues in school libraries, I know I am only skating over the surface. My exam results (thank goodness) are on a par with my teaching colleague who has the other set. But that is not the point. If I really want the best for my students, is it right for me to continue in this role? It is something I shall be bringing up in my performance management review. I suspect that from the headmaster’s point of view as long as the exam results are good, it ‘ain’t broke so don’t need fixing’. But am I not guilty of taking a job away from a qualified teacher by continuing to deliver this course? Am I not guilty of doing exactly what I see others doing in school libraries running with unqualified staff???