Section 4

4.2 Promoting Information Services

Promoting the library and the information services it offers is important if the library is to have widespread use. Promotion of the library should be an ongoing process and can take many forms. It does not have to be limited to within the school, but can be promoted in the wider community also. The library should be viewed by staff and students alike as an exciting and dynamic environment central to the teaching and learning process within the school.

All school library staff should be conscious that every activity they carry out could be promoting the library services. For example, when cataloguing a new item to add to the collection, library staff should be aware of the access points and bibliographic descriptions they create. Good access points are made with the staff and students of the school in mind. For example, if teaching staff regularly request books that specifically contain coloured pictures, then catalogue records should be created that include descriptions as to the type and number of illustrations. If students regularly ask for horror stories or romances, then fiction should be catalogued with genre headings and arranged as a separate collection.

Processing and display of resources in the library should also be considered in the light of school library promotion. It is a good idea to plan the library space so it enables good visual display of materials. Books should be placed on shelves so that their covers are displayed, too. Library staff should endeavour to mount and publicise a new display at least once a month and careful planning and promotion should go into each display.

Apart from displays for Book Week and Christmas, popular displays that may encourage reluctant library users include:

AFL grand final displays - contact local sports stores well in advance to see if they have any football guernseys you can borrow. They should be happy to lend especially if you put a sign up in the library citing the source. Borrow some footballs from the P.E. department and try to borrow posters and other paraphernalia from the AFL clubs themselves
General sports displays - once again, use the P.E. department to borrow equipment and uniforms. Research the Internet to find some sports sites that you will feature during the sports month. Contact sporting heroes in the local area and ask them if they will come for a lunchtime visit or if they can lend some of their trophies and memorabilia. Which of the teaching staff have photos of their sporting prowess? You may like to have a guess the staff member display in conjunction.
Anzac day/Remembrance day - involve your local RSL branch in putting together a display. Use old family photos - you may like to have a competition to see which child can bring in the best family photo. These always prove popular with the students and staff alike and can encourage clients into the library. The Department of Veterans Affairs, Defence Department and Archives Offices may also be able provide resources.
Music and musical instruments displays - these are also popular and can be very stimulating. You may like to play popular music at lunchtime in the library and even have a guest DJ each lunchtime. Involve the music department and ask them to lend some musical instruments.

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When displays are mounted, posters advertising the display need to be put up at various access points in the school. These could include the school noticeboard, staff room, canteen or lunch area and outside the library (perhaps on the library door if no other space is available)

Listed are a number of other ideas for promoting the library and its services:

Brochures, pamphlets and posters explaining the services on offer and giving directions for obtaining more information. These can be distributed in the library, staffroom, meeting rooms and on notice boards. Beginning students should be given these brochures on their first visit to the school library.
Create and maintain a library website, not just on the Intranet, but on the WWW. Take a look at the school library websites that are available on the web from around the world and get inspired!
Guides and handbooks detailing how to use the services. These guides can be placed in the library, staffroom and curriculum files. All new staff and students should be provided with a tour of the library and a brief explanation of the collection and resources available.
Demonstrations on how to use equipment such as CD-ROMs, library catalogue, photocopiers and other equipment for staff and students. The demonstrations should be well publicised in the school newsletter and on posters displayed around the school. Demonstrations on using a digital camera or digital video projector are always popular but care should be taken to keep the groups small. If possible, limit the training sessions so that students of similar ability and ages are kept together
Reports outlining and giving details of services offered and events taking place in the library. These can go in newsletters and annual reports. The library staff should attend every staff meeting and provide a brief report on school library activities to the other staff.
Demonstrations and training sessions leading teachers and students to expert use of the State Library of Tasmania's website - Explore! - a repository of subject based web sites and other online services.
Presentations to explain, train, promote, lobby and report. These can be given at staff meetings, executive meetings and other relevant school committees.
Advertisement of products and services and special events. These can go in the school newsletters, on electronic newsletters, on notice boards and in the local newspapers.
Displays of new books and other materials. As well as displaying new resources, the school library should endeavour to publish a list of new resources acquired by the library at least twice a year. The list can then be circulated around teaching staff and displayed prominently in the school library
Library staff should endeavour to contribute regularly to the school newsletter. A brief paragraph on what's new in the library each newsletter will ensure that the profile of the library is maintained within the school.
Displays of works by the students themselves.
Library week, book week, book/resource sales.

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The following ideas for promoting library services were presented by teacher librarians attending the Senior Secondary Colleges Teacher Librarians Conference hosted in Hobart at Guilford Young and Elizabeth Colleges on 27 & 28 November 2002.

Fiction promotion

Invite students and staff to select stock from book representative displays hosted in the library. If you need to entice library users to participate, offer a lucky door prize of one of the books on offer (a small price to pay for a positive result!). The bookshop might be willing to supply the prize(s) if you negotiate with them. Staff might be able to receive a discount on personal purchases from the bookshop.
After successful author visits, purchase multiple copies of their titles. Budget for at least one author visit per year if you can.
Increase the fiction budget and buy, buy, buy.
Promote fiction in classrooms as well as in the library. This is extremely successful when library staff read as much of the stock as possible.

New resources

Notify interested clients whenever a resource has been processed, especially if they have helped choose it for the collection. This might be an email or note in pigeonholes but should be part of the processing flow for each resource.
Create regular newsletters to notify staff of newly processed items.
Maintain a permanent display space in the main staffroom to promote library events and new items.
Food and drink are great enticements! Host morning or afternoon teas (perhaps a wine and cheese gathering) to promote the library. At these occasions you might display all the titles purchased by the library during the term, or display titles for staff to borrow during the holidays, etc.
Also associated with the food idea, host morning teas for English teachers or interested staff. Invite them to read and share literature and use the discussion as a selection guide. The book discussion fosters an extra avenue of communication between staff.
Provide boxes of fiction for display in the staffroom at the end of every term. Choose titles that staff might be interested in borrowing for the holidays. Write down barcodes (if you have an automated circulation system) and enter them onto staff records when you return to the library. Teachers appreciate the service. Include all school staff in the offer.

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Library orientation

Staff who are new to the school need a library orientation session to learn about library services. Introduce them to the library and provide food and drink. They are bound to remember the library fondly...

Displays

Create at least one "wacky" display in the library every year. Use every available space - the floor, ceiling, walls, shelves, etc. Let your imagination run riot! Involve the students in creative writing and other activities based around the theme of your display.
Hold a photographic competition for the best photograph of a school staff member "caught" reading.

Celebrations

Dress up in fancy dress costume for celebrations (e.g. Halloween) or for no reason at all. Create a special week of your own.
To celebrate events such as International School Library Day, Australian Library Week, etc allow unlimited borrowing over the holidays (or during that week, etc)

On the web

Obtain coloured print-outs of library web pages and display in the staffroom. Staff can then see what services are offered without having to access their computers and may be encouraged to have a look for themselves.
Having a computer lab attached to the library available for class bookings increases traffic (and creates extra work but the benefits outweigh the increased workload).
If you manage a network or can influence the network manager, ensure that the library catalogue is the default page for all computers in the school.
Include a library news section on the school web page.

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Library use

Need to attract students to the library at lunch times? Try "Lucky Library Lotto" - issue each student with a raffle ticket as they enter the library and hold a draw each lunch time. Prizes can be as insignificant as a bookmark.
Increase teacher visits to the library by offering services that might be considered to be just outside the usual sphere of the library - centralise the whiteboard markers (self-service) or other vital stationery rather than storing these items in the office, house the photocopiers, etc.
Commit a portion of the library budget to purchasing high interest videos (eg extreme sports) for students to borrow.
Encourage staff meetings to be held in the library.
Carry out an information audit. Create a questionnaire to ask students and staff about their requirements. This can be done online or on paper.

Professional Learning

Offer Professional Learning opportunities for staff – how to search the catalogue, how to use databases that the school subscribes to, how to use software, Internet searching, how to use equipment, how to shop online, etc. Sessions can be very brief or longer depending on needs and interests. (If you don't feel confident about taking sessions yourself, you might be able to organise another "expert" to take the sessions for you).
Encourage teachers to use your library web page or intranet - set up online footy tipping! Once teachers see how easy to use and relevant computers can be, they will feel more confident in using them in classrooms.

Library management

Include a library news item on every school newsletter that goes home.
Having trouble getting teachers to return materials at the end of the year? Invent an alias for yourself and send emails typed in interesting fonts and to remind staff every day that the deadline is nearing...Have a consequence for non-returns (eg fake cobwebs in teacher pigeonholes!)

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