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Hi All, The PISA 2000 research on literacy is an international study that supports libraries and reading fiction - this study found a direct correlation between academic success, literacy levels and students who read fiction and read widely. No surprises really. In fact the mass of evidence and body of evidence from around the world - US, UK, Canada and Australia is telling us that well-resourced and professionally staffed libraries and academic achievement go hand-in-hand. The Ohio Studies have been re-run in Australia by Lyn Hay at Charles Stuart Uni. The results were reported at the Hong Kong IASL conference in 2005 and the simliarities between the results were astounding to say the least. If we are going to raise the status of the profession we all need to conduct evidence-based research, using rigorous methods. This means going back to study and becoming very pro-active at conferences, in our Associations and at other conferences so we are spreading the word. :) BC Convenor for the Transforming Information and Learning Conference http://www.chs.ecu.edu.au/TILC Barbara Combes, Lecturer School of Computer and Information Science Edith Cowan University, Perth Western Australia Ph: (08) 9370 6072 Email: b.combes@ecu.edu.au "Whatever the cost of our libraries, the price is cheap compared to that of an ignorant nation." Walter Cronkite This email is confidential and intended only for the use of the individual or entity named above. If you are not the intended recipient, you are notified that any dissemination, distribution or copying of this email is strictly prohibited. If you have received this email in error, please notify me immediately by return email or telephone and destroy the original message. -----Original Message----- From: School Library Media & Network Communications [mailto:LM_NET@LISTSERV.SYR.EDU] On Behalf Of Laura Brooks Sent: Friday, 3 November 2006 3:20 AM To: LM_NET@LISTSERV.SYR.EDU Subject: [LM_NET] Validity of Library Research Hi all, At the risk of rankling all of my colleagues, I'm going to assert that the truth lies somewhere between Dr. Friedman's analyses and Shonda's heartfelt response. I think we have to be aware that all research contains biases and that good researchers publicly acknowledge this and do not let it color the results or interpretation of data. Furthermore, I'd admit that I've been hesitant to use the "state studies" we so heavily purport as the gospel truth because I <gasp> do not feel that they are statistically significant enough: either they use too narrow a pool of subjects (students from primarily only poor socioeconomic groups) or they are too broad in scope. The MI report finds that students who score the highest on the state standardized were 4 times more likely to have a flexibly scheduled library- is that at the elementary level? In my district, I am an elementary media specialist, we are on a very rigid fixed schedule, and the students score in the 90th percentiles on tests. The average IQ of our 3rd graders is 120. We have a very affluent community with a high level of parental involvement. Sad to say, but I don't always think we can take a huge amount of credit for results like this. Do these studies account for anomalies such as this? I just don't think there is a concrete correlation between media specialists and student achievement except for high need districts. We need to face that the research summaries like "School Libraries Work" have their own agenda and biases just as Dr. Friedman does. To be taken seriously as professionals, we need to own this and start conducting more statistically significant (larger scale) studies that take into consideration the "nurture" variable. Just my 2 cents. Laura Brooks Library Media Teacher Northville, MI brooksla@northville.k12.mi.us -------------------------------------------------------------------- Please note: All LM_NET postings are protected by copyright law. You can prevent most e-mail filters from deleting LM_NET postings by adding LM_NET@LISTSERV.SYR.EDU to your e-mail address book. 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