Professional

Ideally a school librarian should hold qualifications in librarianship.

Click this link to visit the University of Malta’s courses related to Librarianship and Information Management

Teacher / Librarian

Ideally a school librarian should also hold qualifications in Education.

Potential of teaching, among others: library skills, research skills, information literacy and critical thinking.

Lifelong Learning

A school librarian should always be committed to self-evaluation and lifelong learning.

Follow the iLibrary Facebook page to keep abreast of courses and events.

Membership

Click here to visit the Malta Library and Information Association (MaLIA).
Click here to visit the Malta School Library Association (MSLA).

Full-Time

A full-time librarian makes the greatest impact.

Ensures that the library is also open for the whole school day, allowing use by students and teachers with groups or classes.

Involvement

Involvement of the school librarian in the school’s educational plan.

Importance for school management to understand and appreciate the role of professional school librarians.

Collaboration

Working with the school leadership team and the school educators at all levels as instructional partners.

Building Relationships

Building relationships with educators and staff inside and outside school.

Building relationships with students inside and outside school.

Staff Relationships

Build relationshipos with staff inside and outside school.

Deeper friendships and collegiality lead to greater respect and better collaboration.

Student Interactions

The librarian should take any opportunity to interact with students, even during assigned tasks not necessarily related to the library.

Friendly Discussions

Librarians can build relationships with students by being friendly and easy to talk to, and being open to giving time to talk and discuss with students, even on things not necessarily related to subjects, books and the library.

Librarians can get to know different aspects of their students in this way.

Volunteering

Attending or volunteering for extracurricular events helps build different and deeper relationships with the students, enabling them to interact more freely with the librarian.

Building these relationships often leads to more frequent visits by students to the library, even if only for a casual greeting or chat.

Mission & Vision

School librarians should create a mission statement and a vision for the library, in line with the school’s objectives and direction.

Extraneous Jobs

Graciously accepting extraneous jobs can help build respect and friendships, and highlight the many ways the librarian can contribute.

Contributing

Librarians can set meetings with the school leadership team to discuss and promote the various ways the librarian can contribute to the school’s education plan.

Staff Meetings

In collaboration with the school leadership team, librarians can present library policies aimed at students and educators during staff meetings.

This serves to highlight the ways the librarian and library can contribute to the education programmes.

Opening Hours

Have opening hours clearly marked on the library door or notice board, as well as announcements on official school platforms such as Microsoft Teams.

Proactive Help

Students may not always be aware of how the librarian can be of help. Some students will ask for help, but the librarian should be proactive and offer help.