| The purpose of this study was to investigate the perceptions and priorities of elementary teacher-librarians with respect to the importance of their programs and services, and to compare these perceptions with current practice. Further, this study was designed to identify those factors that could affect the delivery of school library programs and services. Twenty-eight teacher-librarians participated in the questionnaire portion of the study, and six of the respondents took part in a semi-structured interview. An informational questionnaire addressed teacher-librarians' educational qualifications, teaching experience, and library staffing. A survey questionnaire asked teacher-librarians to rate role statements as to their degree of importance, and the extent to which they were practiced. The data were analyzed by calculating the difference in frequencies between perceptions and priorities. For all items, frequencies of importance were rated higher than frequencies of practice. Those factors believed to affect programs and services were analyzed according to practice frequencies. The semi-structured interviews were analyzed qualitatively and recorded in narrative form.;The findings indicated that a majority of teacher-librarians believed most programs and services were important or very important. Equally, a majority revealed they were not providing instructional programs, and consultant or advocacy services, to any great extent. The interview data confirmed that lack of time, due to inadequate staffing patterns, was the factor most likely to restrict the teacher-librarians' ability to provide quality programs and services. |
