Renaissance Delayed: Supporting Beginning Teacher-Librarians in British Columbia, Canada

• In Event: 43.074 - Aspects of Teacher's Work and Learning in Canadian Schools

Abstract

The Province of British Columbia, Canada, is currently experiencing a widespread public-school teacher shortage, resulting in the recruitment of a significant number of specialist teachers, including school librarians, with limited or no previous specialist training or experience. In response, the British Columbia Teachers’ Federation (BCTF) conducted an action research study of early career Teacher-Librarians’ initial work and professional learning experiences. This paper aims to address an acknowledged data gap for informing government recruitment and retention policies through thematic analysis of teacher perspectives gathered from practitioner-led research interviews and focus groups. The paper proposes four resulting recommendations towards creating enabling working and learning conditions for Teacher-Librarians.

Authors

• Anne Catherine Hales, British Columbia Teachers' Federation

• Andree Elizabeth Gacoin, British Columbia Teachers' Federation

• Larry Kuehn, British Columbia Teachers' Federation

• Michal Rozworski, British Columbia Teachers' Federation

• Leisbet Beaudry, British Columbia Teacher-Librarians’ Association