This statistical analysis report from the National Center for Education Statistics examines the current state of school libraries in the United States and how they have changed. The primary source of data in this report is the 1993-94 Library Survey, the first federally sponsored survey of library media centers and head librarians in elementary…

District library media directors face dual demands including competition for limited educational dollars and the need to meet increasingly sophisticated student research requests. To solve these dilemmas, many districts are automating their schools' library media centers. Quality Education Data (QED) is an education research firm providing…

A study examined the impact of state funding on school library programs in Indiana. Subjects included 1,479 city, suburban, and rural schools which completed survey forms. Results indicated that rural schools had the highest number of books purchased, highest circulation, and highest reading scores. Findings suggest that an average purchase of two…

Describes a public library service that offers booktalks to middle school students in their classrooms and includes two sample booktalks. Discusses building good relationships with teachers and library media specialists; circulation statistics; ordering enough copies of books for the school and the public library; scheduling booktalks; teen…

Discusses document delivery and the rise in periodical requests in school libraries. Problems with union listing tools, system protocols and procedures, interlibrary loan charges, and copyright procedures are described; cost effectiveness and time efficiency are considered; equitable school library services are discussed; and collection…

Discusses the use of quantitative collection development and use studies as research tools to evaluate the quality of children's library collections. Four studies, conducted in school and public libraries, that involve analyzing data with statistical tests are reviewed to show how data already being collected can be developed into research…

The California State Department of Education conducted a special study of the condition of library media centers in the state's schools during the 1985-86 school year. Coordinated with a concurrent nationwide study conducted by the U.S. Department of Education, this study surveyed a random sample of 1,560 elementary, intermediate, and secondary…

The first part of a two-part review of research related to school library media collections summarizes studies with implications for budgets and collection size, the selection process, collection policies, and the librarian as censor. A table compares data on holdings and expenditures for schools providing high-level library service with national…

The sixth in a series of "School Library Journal" reports on trends in school library expenditures for program development shows that commitment to the teaching and motivating of reading is in conflict with fascination with technology and that access to books is being seriously curtailed by the deteriorating state of school library collections.…

Presents findings from the "School Library Journal" survey of school library expenditures for FY 1997-98. Data include: budget allocation; salaries; library collection; technology; staff and certification; access to basic electronic resources; library policy; planning and communication between library media specialists and teachers; and…

Examines how data is useful in three integral areas of media center management and decision making: collection development and budgets, including circulation data and media center usage; curriculum integration and information literacy, including the types of instructional support librarians offer teachers; and staff development and staff skills.…