Cultivating Learning Communities for Children and Caregivers in Public Libraries Through a Research-Practice Partnership

• In Event: Pursuing the Ideal: In Search of Equitable Early Learning Practices in Public Libraries

Abstract

Families who bring their young children to learning-rich programs like storytime at public libraries seek enrichment opportunities for their children (Cahill et al., 2020), but libraries also have an opportunity to engage families and foster an informative and supportive community for the parents and caregivers themselves from day one of their child’s life. This early family engagement and community building is important, particularly for families in underserved groups, as it can help to lower caregiver stress while increasing their knowledge around parenting and child development and learning (Cronin et al., 2015), potentially leading to more equitable early childhood preparation and increased school readiness levels (Halgunseth et al., 2009). While libraries are well equipped to support families in this way, given their access to caregivers and their work with underserved groups (Campana et al., 2022), it is possible that storytime providers may not have enough training and understanding of how to actively engage families and create and cultivate caregiver communities. Research-practice partnerships (RPP) are one method for potentially helping libraries implement new strategies, such as active family engagement and community building, that fall outside of their current expertise. RPPs are an established practice in the education field, characterized by long-term collaborations between researchers and institutions intended to build trust and to find innovative ways to solve problems (Coburn & Penuel, 2016; Coburn, Penuel, & Geil, 2013). However, RPPs are more emergent in the library science field (Subramaniam, Waugh, & Clegg, 2018), providing an opportunity for additional study as a way to impact practice.

An ongoing evaluation of a library-based, baby- and toddler-focused initiative is an example of how an RPP can have a positive influence in public libraries when working to support young children and their caregivers in their learning and development. To increase parent-child engagement and literacy for families with infants and toddlers in low-income communities, the initiative offers a variety of age-appropriate programming and materials for children ages 0-24 months and their caregivers. In 2020, researchers began an evaluation study of the initiative which over time evolved into an RPP, in which researchers worked to learn about current and ongoing practice, to listen to the library practitioners and develop meaningful and relevant professional development for them, and to engage in problem-solving moments together with the initiative administration.

The study has already revealed evidence of crucial early literacy concepts and behaviors in the Initiative’s programming, as well as the impact the initiative has had on staff confidence levels related to the content. The current area of analysis examines how the initiative is engaging families and building caregiver communities by examining data from family surveys, caregiver interviews, and program observations. This data provides insight into the effectiveness of the family engagement and community building efforts; the benefits these caregiver communities can offer for the caregivers themselves but also the children in their care; and effective, intentional community-building strategies. This study also helps to shed further light on the process of building RPPs and the value that can emerge from these collaborations.

Authors

• J. Elizabeth Mills, University of Washington

• Kathleen Campana, Kent State University

• Jacqueline Renee Kociubuk, University of Rhode Island