When school started back after Winter Break our
Instructional Partner, Kristi Combs, presented a great professional development
session on Equity. It got me thinking
about our library services and whether we were providing equitable services to
our 1800+ students.
This had been a gnawing question at the back of my brain
since our library support staff transition in October but I had never really
been able to ferret it out and work with it.
What was bothering me was how students had claimed certain areas of the
library as theirs and how others had claimed areas in the library and turned
them into a satellite lunchroom. These
were the two main things gnawing at me.
These students were preventing other students who needed to use the library
to study, work on computer, read, etc. from being able to access these
services, especially during our Refuel Hour.
Spurred to action by the Equity PD, Ms. Laura Smith (ACCESS
Teacher/Media Teacher), Ms. Sharon Rowland (EL Teacher), and I set about rearranging the
library into zones. When we started
discussing the layout for our zones we realized that if we left any of the
furniture in the same place it had been before Winter Break students would
simply fall right back into their set routines. Thus, we moved every single
piece of furniture that wasn’t bolted to the floor or walls! We also made the collective decision that,
although we liked students being able to eat in the library, students were
taking advantage of this privilege and misusing the library as an extension of
the cafeteria, therefore, we now do not allow food or drinks in the
library. This decision was also one that
addressed time, resources and COST. Our
library is carpeted and spills are a commonplace thing with food and drinks.
Each time the carpets are cleaned it costs the school $600. Each day it costs the library staff valuable
time cleaning up trays and food left behind, wiping down library tables, chairs
and sofas, and vacuuming.
Zone areas were determined more or less by unspoken student
voice. Over the course of the school
year I had observed students and seen frustration at not having a quiet place
to study and access computers as well as students looking for a place to just
“chill” with their friends, check their phones, or even pull a hoodie over
their face and “meditate” for a little while.
Based on these observations we created three distinct zones
in the JCHS Library. The Quiet Study
Zone includes the computer area and four round tables for spreading out
textbooks, papers, and notes. A “Chill
Zone” for students who just want to chill.
And the MakerSpace Zone where students can discover, create, tinker,
learn, and build. We kept the board games, card games and puzzles in the Chill Zone and reserved the MakerSpace for our more technical equipment like the 3D Printer, the Carvey, and our new sewing machine.
I then created signs to rotate on the TVs located around
the school as well as a type of PSA to be read with the morning announcements.
Students, we invite you to visit the library either before eating or after eating during Refuel and to refrain from taking food into the library. The library is a unique space where you can use the computers, socialize, check out books and use the MakerSpace to create, explore and learn. Since only the library has these unique opportunities, we want to ensure that it is being used for these specific purposes. We ask that you eat in other designated eating areas, and not in the library. Thank you for your cooperation.
The response
from students has been overwhelmingly positive, except for the no food
rule. Once we explain the $600 cost to
clean the carpet the kids grudgingly agree that food isn’t the best idea in the
library.
While our new
zones have only been in place for a few days we have already noticed an
increased usage of the resources that are only offered in and by a school
library. We have even had students thank
us for the changes because they said they didn’t come to the library because
they couldn’t access the resources they needed because of the areas that were
being claimed by groups of students.
I am happy that
we made these changes for the kids but will continue to observe their behavior
(LOL! This is where I feel like Jane Goodall) and how they interact with the
zones. If it becomes obvious that more
changes need to be made to accommodate student needs we will definitely make
those changes.
When was the
last time you changed the configuration of your library?