How the School Library Promotes Independent Learning

Although school libraries’ role is shifting in the digital age, they are still a critical resource for students in fostering the skills for independent learning.

The Internet has changed how information is consumed, and some have even questioned whether libraries still have a role in the modern school system. However, libraries have and continue to adapt, offering critical support for student success. In fact, a well-equipped and staffed library is a key differentiator of the most successful schools.

Libraries continue to be important for student success because they don’t just offer access to books and resource materials—they also help students become independent learners.

 

What is Independent Learning?

As defined by Brightside, independent learning is “when an individual is able to think, act and pursue their own studies autonomously, without the same levels of support you receive from a teacher at school.”

In other words, independent learning is the ability to learn on one’s own, without outside support.

 

Why Does Independent Learning Matter?

When a child becomes an independent learner, limits on their education begin to dissolve. An independent learner is free to discover new books and pursue what they are curious about, from bugs to baseball to why the sky is blue.

This can, in turn, reinvigorate the learning process for students, even in the classroom, and turn them into lifelong learners who will continue to grow and learn long after they graduate.

These are critical life skills that will help their grades in school, their job performance in adulthood, and overall life enrichment.

 

How do Libraries Support Independent Learning?

To start, libraries offer access to a wide range of books and materials, both print and digital. Studies have shown that students are better, more avid readers when they have a wide range of engaging materials available to them.

Perhaps even more importantly, librarians help students become critical researchers. Mainstream search engines tend to produce results based on what a person has searched for and clicked on in the past. This means that search results reaffirm the searcher’s bias. But a school librarian can help students learn to apply strong research methods, evaluate the quality of provided information, and seek out balanced resources.

In a digital world, these are important skills not just for the classroom, but for life.

 

A Skill Set to Get Ahead

An independent learner is motivated, curious, and able to overcome challenges. These are qualities that would serve every child well and help them reach their potential. School libraries have a big role to play in developing this skill set in children, and schools can help their students get ahead by supporting them.

Do Strong Libraries Boost Student Achievement?

In a time when budgets are tight, every aspect of education is assessed for its value, and school libraries are no exception. Do school libraries contribute significantly to student achievement?

Research into the answer to this important question dates to the 1960s. And for just as long, a strong correlation has been found between library resources and student success.

Here are seven research findings that reflect the importance of libraries for student achievement:

  • Studies in the early 1960s found a correlation between elementary schools with centralized school libraries staffed by certified school librarians, and increased average test score gains. An ever-growing body of research has backed up her findings since.
  • A study of schools in Colorado showed that students had better reading scores on standardized tests when they had access to a school librarian, even after controlling for outside factors like poverty.
  • In a 2004 assessment of existing research, a correlation was found between access to good libraries and children who read more and performed better on reading tests. This was particularly true in areas of poverty, where libraries are often children’s only access to books.
  • In a 2003 comparison of schools with and without librarians, students at high schools with a librarian performed an average 8 percent better in reading achievement, and students at elementary schools with a librarian performed 35 percent better.
  • The more time librarians spent collaborating with teachers, taught information literacy, and provided in-service teacher training, the higher students scored on tests, according to a 2000 study.
  • When teachers collaborate with librarians, they were three times more likely to rate their literacy program as “excellent,” in a 2009 study.
  • A study of third, fourth and fifth graders showed that students with a full-time librarian had 4-5 percent higher scoring proficiency. These schools also had a lower number of students who scored “unsatisfactory” by 2-3 percent absolute difference. (The same results applied for programs with one and a half FTE library staff.)

Because every school system, body of students, library, and librarian is a little different, assessing exact impacts of a given program on students can be complicated. But even across many different assessments over many different years and across several different states, the correlation between school libraries, trained librarians, and student success remains consistent.

The bottom line is clear: Strong libraries make for stronger teachers and stronger students.