Guidelines and Policies

ALIA Schools

Guidelines for the Time Allocation of Teaching and Librarianship for Teacher Librarians 

Each of the three education sectors: Government, Catholic and Independent, in each state and territory has its own set of Awards and or Agreements which determine the working conditions for teachers and support staff. For many years  teacher librarians have discussed or contemplated how much of their full time equivalent allocation, within the library, can be given to undertake teaching and library tasks.  

The ALIA School Library Advisory Committee has created a new resource titled: Guidelines for the Time Allocation of Teaching and Librarianship for Teacher Librarians which can assist principals, school administrators and teacher librarians in the appropriate allocation of that time.  

Recommended Minimum Information Services Staffing Levels

It is expected that school libraries provide quality services, effective resourcing and relevant skill development for all learners in their community. To achieve these goals, it is essential that school libraries are well staffed. An exemplary school library is underpinned by professionally qualified library staff using their knowledge, core skills and expertise to support the learning and teaching as well as provide for recreational reading. 

Recently updated, we present the Recommended minimum information services staffing levels Table 6 Revised, which provides a guide for schools when making decisions about staffing their libraries. This table replaces the original from Learning for the future: developing information services in schools 2nd ed. 

A Manual for Developing Policies and Procedures

The revised edition of A Manual for developing policies and procedures for Australian school library resource centres aims to develop the policies and document the procedures that are essential for exemplary management practices. The implementation of these policies and procedures will ensure that there is equitable access to resources for all users. A school library resource centre that is well managed is in the best possible position to offer the range of library programmes and services that are essential to the endeavours of the school community. 

The Manual contains nine sections, a glossary, references and appendices. Each section comprises two parts, that for the policy and the second for its procedures. There are two versions of the Manual, one that includes images and one that is text only. To accompany the pdf versions is a template document, in Word, that can be used to update or prepare your own school library copy.

A Manual for developing policies and procedures for Australian school library resource centres, 2nd ed. – text and images

A Manual for developing policies and procedures for Australian school library resource centres, 2nd ed. – text only

The Template