How ready is your school library for the future of learning?

Libraries have always been the instructional heartbeat of the campus. Once surrounded with rows of bookcases, racks of glossy magazines, and hushing librarians, libraries look quite different today. You may not even recognize the libraries in many of today’s schools. As technology has permeated education, libraries have undergone a dramatic transformation in how they function.

The modern library houses some of the latest technology on campus, with teachers and students able to check an array of devices. Digital tablets, 3D printers, and even drones make up some of the devices available for classroom use. The library is a usable space where students and teachers collaborate on learning projects.

Today’s librarians encourage this collaboration and lead instructional conversations as students work together in teams to solve problems.

How have libraries become future ready?

Transformational libraries do more than adopt the latest technology just because it looks cool.

Instead, these libraries identify the devices and software that will enhance and impact student learning. Librarians focus on collecting tech tools that extend learning opportunities and allow students to create deep connections in the topic being studied. Then they create the spaces for using the learning tools.

To create inviting spaces like this, future ready libraries and the administrators who support them do the following:

·       Encourage librarian leadership

The librarian in your school likely knows every student enrolled there. For this reason, librarians have the potential to impact student learning more than any other person on the campus. The library should be more than a repository for technology. It should be the center of instruction, and your librarian should lead the charge in improving student achievement and growth.

·       Make relationships a priority

The library may be full of reading material and technology, but it’s the people who matter most in any learning environment. Libraries are for people – the students, teachers, parents, and the community. By inviting all stakeholders to participate in identifying ways to create future ready libraries, librarians are more likely to have the support they need for creating dramatic change.

·       Connect beyond the confines of the building

Technology has made it possible to connect almost anywhere at almost any time with nearly anyone. When students can contact subject matter experts in any field, learning becomes both relevant and memorable. Future ready libraries are barrier-free spaces that reach well beyond the walls of the school.

You can also connect with Future Ready Librarians™ to learn how to identify and grow your leadership capacity in creating libraries of the future and preparing librarians to lead them.

In summary

The library you’ve always known has become a makerspace (also known as a hackerspace and fablab) where students collaborate on projects, create projects and work in a buzzing hive of activity. Technology and group work reign supreme in these libraries, but don’t think that the books are gone. They’re still there.

These instructional havens blend the old with the new, creating dynamic rooms for learning.

Future ready libraries are here now. Is your library one of them?