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This paper will examine a wide range of studies related to the factors that support the development of exemplary school library programs and then focus on the context for Ontario, Canada. In 2003, the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (as cited in IASL, 2008) reviewed research studies to answer the question "What effects do school libraries have on student achievement?" and they concluded that "school library characteristics may account for up to 8 percent of the variance in reading-related test scores" [emphasis added] (p. 1). Consequently, it is important to identify the characteristics that make a school library exemplary although they are not always indicative of student achievement and learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research indicates that there are a growing number of socio-economically-disadvantaged students who are caught in a pattern of changing schools frequently in North America. These mobile or transient students often struggle in school. This paper describes a study whose purpose was to support the literacy growth and development of mobile students in an urban community school in Canada. The study sought to build excitement for and engagement with school literacy through collaboration among a researcher, classroom teacher and a teacher-librarian. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Teacher-librarians are interested in learning new things to be better able to meet the needs of the students and teachers in schools and school libraries. This paper reports the findings from a survey of Canadian teacher-librarians about their recent professional development experiences. While many teacher-librarians reported relevant professional development experiences at the school and district level (e.g. assessment, inquiry, information and communication technology, literacy, etc.), almost 20% of the respondents to this survey felt that they had received no professional development that helped them in their work in school libraries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we describe the process of an often experienced, but rarely documented, process of shaping a new research focus. Specifically, we report our initial work in planning a collaborative research initiative between educational institutions and libraries in Canada and Ethiopia. Using multiple qualitative methods for collecting a variety of information from different sources, and employing hermeneutic perspectives to begin to understand the context and challenges of literacy education and libraries in Ethiopia, we conclude with a framework for research questions centered on expanding basic literacy to digital literacy and the role of libraries in that endeavour. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]