Title: School librarians in collaboration The focus of this text is to examine the collaboration between librarians and teachers and how this collaboration can help students achieve better results in school. The school library is often bypassed by teachers. In this lack of involvement and support lies a risk that the gain for students is less than it should be. The purpose of this study aims to investigate if there is any collaboration between the school librarians and the teachers and to what level. The theory used is Patricia Montiel-Overall´s Teacher and Librarian Collaboration (TLC). Seven interviews with school librarians was conducted. Due to being a small study, the material was transcribed into text and read through the perspective of the school librarians only. The findings show collaboration between teachers and librarians is present but to a low level and that administrators do not take such an active part in supporting the librarians. The study provides a glimpse into this field of research on collaboration between teachers and librarians.

Att påvisa vad skolbibliotekarier bidrar med är ett mål som finns inom biblioteksforskning. Idag finns det ingen fråga om att skolbibliotekarier har en del i elevers utveckling tack vare flertal studier som påvisar hur bemanning, arbetstimmar och utbildad personal har en positiv inverkan på elevresultat. Men att peka ut att utbildade skolbibliotekarier är en del av ökad måluppfyllelse och att peka ut vad utbildade skolbibliotekarier faktiskt kan och gör för att öka måluppfyllelse är två olika forskningsingångar. Det är i det sistnämnda området som den här uppsatsen kliver in. Syftet har varit att undersöka vilka kompetenser som utbildade skolbibliotekarier anser att de besitter och som urval har sju stycken gymnasiebibliotekarier intervjuats. Som det uppdagas är informationskompetens, källkritik, användarkunskaper samt viss dokumenthantering, delar som specifikt kopplas till en skolbibliotekaries utbildningsbakgrund. På grund av den korrelationen kan slutsatser tas om att de kompetenserna är en del av pusslet som ligger bakom utbildade skolbibliotekaries bidrag i måluppfyllelse. / To state what school librarians contribute within school systems is one objective within library science. As of today, there is no doubt that school librarians are a part of students’ development due to several studies which show that staffing, work hours and qualified staff has a positive influence over student achievement. But to present how educated school librarians are a part of student achievement and to present what educated school librarians actually know and do to achieve higher student scores are two separate research themes. It is in the latter area this paper commences. The aim has been to study which competencies educated school librarians themselves think they possess and as sampling seven upper secondary school librarians were interviewed. As the results show information literacy, critical thinking, user knowledge and specific record management, are competencies which are thought to originate in the school librarians’ educational background. Due to this correlation conclusions can be made to say that these competencies are a part of the puzzle that explains why educated school librarians have an impact on student achievement.

There is a lack of mutual definitions of what a school library and a school librarian really is. For that reason, teachers, and school management, can find it difficult to find the benefits of collaboration between school staff and the school librarian. Ignorance of what a librarian does contributes to the difficulty of understanding what collaboration would entail and how it would work between the school librarian and the teacher. In this study we are using Patricia Montiel-Overalls’ four TLC-models (Teacher-Librarian-Collaboration); coordination, collaboration, integrated instruction and integrated curriculum. The models describe how different levels of collaboration between school librarians, teachers and school management could work out. From basic levels to more advanced. These models helped us understand what different scientists in LIS (Library and Information Science). The study’s results, by analysing how the scientific discourses during the first twenty years of the 21st century has looked, show that over time has the view and practice of collaboration changed towards to be something to strive after and likewise essential in school activity. Often appreciated and understood how important it is, but as often something hard to maintain. Our conclusion is to get collaboration between school librarians and teachers functional there need to be awareness of each other’s expertise, good communication, time, and possibilities given by the principal. There is also a need of co-ordination of education for both librarians and teachers and further education for those who already work with school library activities.