Engaging Reluctant Readers - SLANSW Webinar (February 2025)

The School Library Associaton of NSW (SLANSW), commenced its monthly webinar series this week. The theme was Practical ways to engage reluctant readers and featured contributions from Allison Tait (Author), Jade Arnold (NSW Premier’s Program Officer – Reading and Spelling) & Amanda Craig (Teacher Librarian - Telarah Public School)

I attended because I facilitate a READ group at school for students in Years' 10-12 that struggle to actively participate in the daily 20 minute session, where all students engage a time of silent reading, and wanted to be informed of some strategies applied to by others to encourage reluctant readers to add to my "tool kit".

I know two other READ groups that provide additional support to students in my school, and I should invite those groups to borrow during READ time. I have a small group already, and with my session in the library, I can open up the space to invite groups to borrow during that time and provide the opportunities that my group has access to, such as the lounges and beanbags to encourage them to relax. This would support the suggestion to make all students in a class borrow a book, unless there is a book of their own that interests them.

Reading goals are essential as well to encourage reluctant readers. I applied this strategy with general class groups e.g Litgym at MLC School (2014), but should use this to both groups as well. It has worked for me with regular groups and I cannot see why it would fail with both groups.

Book labels also arose, and I didn't realise the impact they could have on reluctant readers, given that genre labels can guide students in selecting related texts or reading particular stories that interest them. I have been involved in the setup at my school. While it has consumed time and resources, it is a good investment, even if it's not a financial one because my goal is to have students borrowing and reading books that interest them. If students borrow and read more, I will be happy, and feedback from the wider student body will be favourable to date. 

SLANSW Professional Learning Summit: Digital Design & Delivery: Using Digital Technologies to Support Reading Programs

The School Library Association of NSW (SLANSW) held its second professional learning summit for 2021 and was not left disappointed by what was offerred and what I learnt from it.

I was introduced to three elements that before attending I lacked familarity with in terms of research but upon reflection was already applying or experiencing it without noticing:

• Digital ecology of teen reading
• Fan Fiction
• Micro-credentialling

The digital ecology of teenage reading focused on the use of social media platforms to promote literature. Reflecting on it, I had identified at least one situation where I had already applied it in practice - Starting a Goodreads Group for students at the MLC School in 2014. 

I think promoting and sharing content is straightforward, especially if it is curated and can be embedded into a wide reading lesson. My recent completion of the Apple Teacher courses for Macbook computers and iPads opens up scope for content to be created by the students. My view has been that recommendations by peers are more likely to encourage others to read. I should select students to record their content and then provide it through a suitable channel e.g. YouTube.

I may not have known the concept of "FanFiction" in research but have been practicing it. I consider my decisions to order literature tied to popular media e.g. Star Wars and Minecraft. I agree that it bridges popular media/culture and reading. If a person has a particular interest, it is that interest that should be used to motivate them to read.

Micro-credentialling also interested me, especially in terms of information literacy skills development because I can create a program e.g. incoming Year 7 cohorts and they can complete activities to earn certificates and attain skills in an area. I would like to investigate it further. I had also encountered tools that could support this such as badgr while undertaking a Google Fundamentals Course through Catholic Online Learning recently. 

I am currently a member of the SLANSW Management Committee and this month was re-elected for a two year term at the recent Annual General Meeting. 

Inclusive School Libraries

I have been working on the Advocacy Sub-Committee of the School Library Association of NSW (SLANSW) a flyer with strategies to develop a school library that is inclusive of the learning needs and interests of students, focusing on students with disabilities or additional learning needs.

This has built up on the OLT courses on Autism and Personalised Learning that I have undertaken with Sydney Catholic Schools. It has given me scope to learn and reflect on what I have learnt from those courses and what I can do within a library capacity. This was supported by drawing on.academic literature.

As the flyer is a benefit available to SLANSW members, I can only reflect on it briefly.

What I can point out is that I realised that I was already doing it in practice, even in a mainstream capacity such as acquiring high interest literature but contains text with low/limited vocabulary and knowing interests and needs. Visual signage can make a big difference as well but also the approaches to signage. It was broadened further. 

For students with learning needs, they love having a special or responsiblity and encouraging them to step up to roles can make a bigger difference than a student who is mainstream.

The Laureate & The Literacy Leader - SLANSW Summit

Last Saturday (March 13), the School Library Association of NSW (SLANSW) presented its first blended summit where attendees could either attend in person or online. Instead of the State Library of NSW, it was hosted by The Kings School. 

For those who enjoy attending face to face, it was the first time in one year that we could gather in person for a summit or conference. Last year, SLANSW were fortuante to have one face to face summit prior to COVID-19 Restrictions and presented an online speaker series instead of a second face to face summit.

Providing it online enabled those in regional areas to participate or for those in the city, participate from the comfort of their own home. 

Karen Yager was fantastic in explaining how we can use Australian literature to encourage students to improve their writing by focusing on landscapes then collaborating actively on creating lists of resources to share with English Teachers.

Ursula Dubosarsky (Author & Australian Children's Laureate 2020-2021) shared her insights in the role of libraries in engaging children with reading and how we can support them. I asked her a question based on experiences where schools do not have a wide reading program and students have presented statements such as "I don't like reading" and "I don't read" and what we could do. She admitted that she could not answer the question, but she had her concerns about schools that have not encouraged a positive reading culture. I for one have concerns for schools that do not have a wide reading program or encourage reading for pleasure. Ursula and I have common ground on this.

Also we had an opportunity to discuss different wide reading intiatives and programs applied by different schools and I was encouraged by the opportunity to share within a small group some of my successes to date with wide reading programs and the interest attendees within that group had.

I hope to comment further once resources are finalised but found the day to be well engaging. 

I am a currently a Metropolitan Representative on the Management Committee of SLANSW. If you wish to join, please feel free to contact me at fabian.amuso@syd.catholic.edu.au

Library Warriors@Evans High

I was reading the Winter 2015 edition of Learning Hub (SLANSW) when I came across an article by the Vice-President of the School Library Association of NSW - Tamara Rodgers.

It interested me how Tamara's experiences have tied in with some of my recent experiences this year. While I have finished the block at Georges River College - Hurstville Boys' Campus (back at Waverley College as an acting Teacher Librarian this term), I will admit that the article should have come out earlier because it could have guided me through that time and perhaps shaped some ideas in making a positive learning culture within the library.

I remember speaking with my library assistant about how to label the library monitors. She proposed "library boys" as it was a less formal tag and would make the work look "cool". I think "Warriors" sounds just as great because it can install a sense of responsibility yet make the work looking appealing.

Both of us had also raised the role as part of a school service program with the Head Teacher - Welfare at the school to try and get the kids to pursue activities in which they can contribute to the school community and building up a structured scheme for the "library boys". Even encouraging activities like a chess club were floated around to encourage the boys to pursue their interests but also provide them with a safe place to do it.

There was a group of Year 9 boys that I recall that were loitering and behaving inappropriately in the library at times, yet if you gave them something to do you'd find that they would get a sense of ownership and pride. I got to see them in another light, and in a positive way. This was needed when books to be weeded had to be relocated and organised in a sorting area. I could actually give praise to these kids, instead of referring them onto Head Teachers or the Deputy.

I think I may have a good model in terms of managing a library monitor system at whatever school I may be at, now or in the future.

With establishing a learning culture, the boys were never provided with a proper self-service printing system which other schools had. I was able to lobby for a printing system to be established and will be installed soon. Being boys, they love to leave things to the last minute and when they need to print, the library is often the only place to do it. They would have to approach my library assistant and pay 20 cents per page for printing from a printer within our staffroom. This took time away from her ability to work productively. I have planted one of the first seeds in making it a learning centre because boys will start to use it for learning, even if it is for printing.

One of our collections (Graphic Novels) had been previously stored in the staff room. Boys love their graphic novels. I managed to find some spare shelves and put them there. The loan rate for Graphic Novels has soared, though I hope to see that collection grow in the years ahead.

There are probably other comments to be made. One I won't comment though is the behaviour referrals. They were quite high and this not the place to bring it up.