Presentation at ESERA, 2009, Turkey

BUILDING SCHOOL CAPACITY USING THE SCHOOL LIBRARY AS A CENTRAL HUB FOR SCIENCE TEACHING

Jan Sølberg, School of Education, University of Aarhus, Denmark

ORAL PRESENTATION

BUILDING SCHOOL CAPACITY USING THE SCHOOL LIBRARY AS A CENTRAL HUB FOR SCIENCE TEACHING

Abstract

This article focuses on four Danish schools participating in a development project aimed at developing lasting partnerships between school libraries and science teachers in order to improve science education. The impact of the development project on school capacity was assessed using a school culture perspective to identify key factors that either facilitated or hindered long term development of science teaching. Research revealed that in all four cases, the school libraries held a central position both physically and organisationally prior to the development project. This facilitated the development of science teacher/school library partnerships which affected school culture positively indicating that such partnerships hold an important potential for school capacity building.

Background and Purpose

It has become widely accepted that creating and maintaining professional learning communities to promote student (as well as teacher) learning is a matter that goes beyond individuals and requires a broad approach to educational development. One strand of research focuses on building school capacity by which is meant “a complex blend of motivation, skill, positive learning, organisational conditions and culture, and infrastructure of support. Put together, it gives individuals, groups, whole school communities and school systems the power to get involved in and sustain learning over time” (Stoll, Bolam, McMahon, Wallace, & Thomas, 2006, p. 221). The ability to create sustainable development initiatives that are not limited by constraining timeframes, one-time resource allotments or too heavily dependent on the efforts of dedicated individuals etc. is critical for overcoming some of the many challenges facing science education.

This article studies changes to school capacity in four Danish schools participating in a development project aimed at forging lasting partnerships between science teachers and the school library in order to improve science education locally. Project initiatives included involving the school libraries in

-  acquisition, organisation and production of engaging teaching materials,

-  facilitation of access to local resources (e.g. private enterprises or field trip sites),

-  making science more visible to the public as well as administrators, students, parents and other teachers of the school through school library activities and exhibits.

The development project was initially only funded for one year (Phase 1) and the following concerns changes to school capacity in the first year of the project, however, further funding has made it possible to continue the project and research continues.

Framework

Building school capacity is a complex issue that remains to be fully investigated. However, a number of researchers, not limited to the field of science education, have begun to shed some light on the organisational aspects of educational development (e.g. Stoll et al., 2006; Giles & Hargreaves, 2006; Hord, 1997). One of the emerging key concepts is school capacity, which (depending on the author) signifies the many factors that influence teaching and the possibility of developing teaching. Newmann et al. proposed that a school’s capacity could be summed up in five dimensions, ranging from teachers’ individual knowledge, skill and disposition to the schools’ technical resources such as books, science labs, computers, work-spaces, assessment instruments etc. (Newmann, King, & Youngs, 2000).

Following a similarly holistic approach to school development and in concordance with Danish science education strategies (Arbejdsgruppen, 2008; Andersen, Busch, Horst, & Troelsen, 2003), an instrumental model focussing on local science school cultures rather than school capacity has previously been described (Sølberg, 2007). The model was used in this study to identify key factors that either facilitate or hinder long term development of science teaching. In this regard, the cultural approach presented is similar to other school capacity research. However, by emphasising school culture rather than school capacity, the model focuses on the importance of understanding the complex social mechanisms involved in changing behaviour in the long term. This focus represents an alternative perspective on school change compared to school capacity studies. The model proposes that key factors that influence the local school culture and thereby the building of school capacity can be identified within two major categories:

-  The key actors of the school

-  The relationships between key actors.

In concordance with actor network theory (based on Law, 1992), key actors include not only people, but also the practical context of science teaching. This includes the geographic, economic and physical setting of the school. The second category of factors pertains to developing the relationship between key actors. This category includes issues of power, forms of communication, social hierarchies and organisational arrangements.

Methods

Four schools were selected out of six original applicants by the project management for their “potential for development”. However, all four schools had already developed their school library concept over a number of years and could be considered to be what might be called “moderately effective schools” requiring only a little external support to fortify their pre-existing efforts (Hopkins, Harris, & Jackson, 1997).

Towards the end of the first year (Phase 1) data were obtained through (1) ethnographic observations made during school visits as well as (2) a total of 15 semi-structured interviews with 26 key stakeholders distributed evenly across the four schools. In addition, (3) each school contributed with data through a Wiki-type Website designed for that specific purpose, thereby allowing participants to supplement the collected data. The first two sets of data were coded and organised thematically in relation to the emergent characteristics of each school based on an analysis of the key actors and the relationships between them as described above. The third category of data was used to confirm parts of the main analysis where applicable. Data from the four case schools were then compared to each other to see which factors seemed to transect schools or be isolated in single schools.

Results

The science teacher/school library partnerships produced many initiatives that affected science teaching in each case school. Among these initiatives were science exhibits in the library that included live animals, plants and other science related artefacts. These exhibits provided opportunities for students as well as teachers to talk about science both in and out of regular classes. The library groups also developed teaching materials designed to facilitate field trips and thereby the utilisation of local resources such as forests, lakes and in one case a large lime pit containing fossils as part of science classes. These and other teaching materials were stored in the library in order to allow the library group to assist science teachers in the planning and utilisation of the equipment.

The four schools exhibited large variations in prior conditions for integrating science into school library activities. However, at the commencement of the project all the studied school libraries had strong leadership support, good financial conditions for concept development, well-established relationships between the library and the various subject groups of the school, and had a history of educational innovation. Also, in each case the school libraries already held a central position (both physically and organisationally) prior to the development project. In addition, in all four cases the library staff included at least one science teacher at the beginning of the project, which was a requirement for project participation. Thus, the schools were not representative but rather already primed for development, which helped to explain the abundance and quality of school culture impact produced in Phase 1.

Conclusions


Results from Phase 1 indicate that there may be many benefits in a strong connection between the school library and science teachers. The project provided good examples of innovative ways for school libraries to support science teaching that clearly demonstrate a potential for school capacity building. However, from a cultural perspective the schools in this investigation had already established productive relationships between many of the key actors, which may explain the positive changes to school culture.

Bibliography

Andersen, N., Busch, H., Horst, S., & Troelsen, R. (Eds.). (2003). Fremtidens Naturfaglige Uddannelser. Naturfag for alle - vision og oplæg til strategi (Vol. 7). København: Undervisningsministeriet, Uddannelsesstyrelsen.

Arbejdsgruppen. (2008). Et Fælles Løft - Rapport fra arbejdsgruppen til forberedelse af en National Strategi for Natur, Teknik og Sundhed. København, Danmark Undervisningsministeriet.

Giles, C., & Hargreaves, A. (2006). The Sustainability of Innovative Schools as Learning Organizations and Professional Learning Communities During Standardized Reform. Educational Administration Quarterly, 42(124).

Hopkins, D., Harris, A., & Jackson, D. (1997). Understanding the School's Capacity for Development: growth states and strategies. School Leadership and Management, 17(3), 401-412.

Hord, S. M. (1997). Professional Learning Communities: Communities of Continous Inquiry and Improvement. Austin, Texas, USA: Southwest Educational Development Laboratory.

Law, J. (1992). Notes on the Theory of the Agency Network: Ordering, Strategy and Heterogeneity. Retrieved July 20th, 2006

Newmann, F. M., King, M. B., & Youngs, P. (2000). Professional Development That Addresses School Capacity: Lessons from Urban Elementary Schools. American Journal of Education, 108(4), 259-299.

Osborne, J., & Dillon, J. (2008). Science Education in Europe: Critical Reflections. UK: The Nuffield Foundation.

Stoll, L., Bolam, R., McMahon, A., Wallace, M., & Thomas, S. (2006). Professional Learning Communities: A Review of the Literature. Journal of Educational Change(7), 221–258.

Sølberg, J. (2007). Udvikling af lokale naturfaglige kulturer. Danmarks Pædagogiske Universitetsskole, Aarhus Universitet, København.

5