Madam, – The confirmation from Minister for Education and Skills Mary Coughlan that the contracts of a number of school librarians will not be renewed this year is deeply disturbing and we are appealing to both Ms Coughlan and Minister for Finance Brian Lenihan to reverse this decision.
The school libraries under threat are part of the hugely successful Junior Certificate Demonstration Library Project, which was established in 2001. This programme has been carefully implemented and closely monitored and has extensive quantitative and qualitative evidence showing its success.
These libraries have been fundamental in improving the reading and literacy levels of large numbers of students. Research has shown that a library guided by a professional librarian have improved the reading abilities of more than 90 per cent of pupils. In one case study, a 12-year-old boy improved his reading age from less than 10 years to 15+ (the maximum tested), after two years of the programme.
Both the Minister for Education and the Minister for Finance have recently visited two of these libraries and have seen for themselves the impact they can have. Last month, Ms Coughlan visited St Aidan’s Community School, Tallaght and Mr Lenihan visited Riversdale Community College, Blanchardstown.
While we welcome the continued funding to the libraries themselves, without the services of a librarian to ensure every pupil gets the most from this valuable resource and to fully integrate the library with the school community, the real and tangible benefits of this pioneering initiative will be lost. – Yours etc,