Library Evaluation

Background
Directions for Beginning the Evaluation
Tips to Complete the Evaluation
Start the Evaluation
2021-22 Evaluation Response Special Thanks
Evaluation Participation and Responses

Background

California Education Code Section 18122 directs local governing boards to report to the California Department of Education (CDE) on the condition of school libraries. CDE created this online data collection evaluation tool to meet the Education Code requirement and to develop an accurate picture of the condition of school libraries across the state.

The annual online evaluation is now open to collect information from individual schools about their libraries in the 2022–23 academic year. It will be active through Saturday, August 31, 2024. Prior year evaluation responses are available as well.

For district or county downloads, or to schedule a training, contact Renée Ousley-Swank at 916-319-0449 or ROusleySwank@cde.ca.gov for assistance.

Directions for Beginning the Evaluation

Note the information being collected is about the 2022–23 academic year. If records were not kept, please answer as best as possible, and begin to collect the data for next year.

• Our suggestion is that you print a copy of the entire evaluation to use as a worksheet before you enter the data online. Evaluation Questions (DOCX) printable copy of all questions asked in the 2022–23 evaluation.
  
  
• Once you have assembled your information on the printed worksheet, you can come back to enter the data online. We estimate it will take you 15 minutes to enter your worksheet data online. You do not need to complete the whole evaluation at one time. Each section is saved automatically as you advance to the next section.
  
  
• A password is again required. For password assistance, contact Renée Ousley-Swank at (916) 319-0449 or ROusleySwank@cde.ca.gov.
  
  
• You may return to the evaluation at any time to make changes until August 31, 2024, when the evaluation will be closed.
  

As you answer the questions, the information for your school goes directly into a database. You will be prompted to correct an entry if it cannot be "read" by the database.

• Each school has a record in the database. At this time, we are collecting information from individual schools, including juvenile court and charter schools, but not from districts, county offices, or private schools. To find the record for your school, use the drop-down menus to select your county, district, and then school.
  
  
• Your answers are recorded in our database when you use the Next and Submit buttons. Please do not attempt to use your browser's Back button.
  
  
• The evaluation is divided into five sections, incorporating the California Model School Library Standards, and assesses the type and extent of library services schools provide.
  

Tips to Complete the Evaluation by Section

The Fresno County Office of Education has created informational videos on key areas.

Library Staffing

The questions focus specifically on the school site for which you are completing the evaluation. For purposes of answering questions referring to staff working in the library, stop and think about how the library staff was paid. If staff is paid an annual set salary, then they are likely on a teacher contract, and if staff is paid an hourly wage, then they are likely a classified employee. Questions include training of classified library staff, if any, and at how many different libraries the staff work. Staffing hours are calculated by Full Time Equivalent (FTE)––you enter the hours worked at this school site, and the FTE is calculated for you. New this year is a question about library volunteers (other than students).

For more information on who can provide library-related services, see the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing – Authorizations for Librarian Services chart .

Library Access

• Library Service Hours in a Typical Week – this section of questions includes asking for the typical number of the hours the library is open per week.
  
  
• Library’s Physical Space – we ask for details about the size of the space and how it is utilized, including as a makerspace . Follow the link for more information on makerspaces.
  
  
• Library’s Virtual Presence – questions focus on the school library’s social media and online presence.
  
  
• Computers/ Devices – questions focus on computers in the library, districts’ filtering software, and when students are allowed to use their own devices.
  

Resources

• Overall Collection – questions about size of collection and print subscriptions to magazines and newspapers. New this year is a question about the library management system and if you have access to run reports. Depending on your answer, some of the questions will be skipped, and we have added a new response that allows you to move forward in the evaluation if you are not sure of an answer.
  
  
• Age of Collection – copyright question. For at least one more year we are gathering data on Dewey sections for Native Americans and are asking for the average copyright date of your largest section of Native American informational titles (typically cataloged somewhere in the 900s). We also ask for the average copyright date of the whole collection. Note – if you do not have an automated library management system and you have no method to determine the average age of the collection, then answer 0000. At the end of the evaluation, include a brief explanation of why you were unable to provide the age of the whole collection.

Licensed Databases – in this section we ask about databases you subscribe to, and if you are providing access to California’s K–12 Online Resources – Encyclopaedia Britannica, Pro-Quest, TeachingBooks, and Gale.

2022–23 Budget

In this section we ask about how your library is funded and if your library program is written into your Local Control Accountability Plan (LCAP). If you are not sure about how the library is funded or if the LCAP includes the library, talk to your administrator or office staff. We have added answer options that will allow you to move forward in the evaluation if you are uncertain of the answer.

Curriculum and Instruction

There are three subsections. We expect to see a natural correlation between the level of staffing (certifications and FTEs) and the level of library services being provided. Schools staffed by one FTE teacher librarian and one FTE classified staff are anticipated to offer more services versus a school staffed by a single person (either certificated or classified) split between sites. Please report the specific library services provided on a regular basis.

• General Programming – questions focus on your program in general, asking about library policy/procedure manual, job descriptions, and how often library staff met for planning and professional development.
  
  
• Basic Services – questions about general services and basic instruction which might be performed by any and all library staff regardless of credential and/or title. Some questions ask about activities that occurred in a typical class visit, how many classes are seen in a typical week, and how long the class visit lasted.
  
  
• Teaching Approaches – questions are designed to look in more detail at teaching, collaboration, and management of the library program and are activities typically associated with holders of the Teacher Librarian Credential. Answer as honestly and accurately as possible. Questions 48–52 ask you to select the best answer from a range of choices: More than once per week; Once per week; 2–3 times per month; Once per month; Less than once per month; Never, With guidance and support from district librarian, and Not part of my job description. Some questions ask about the type of classes taught, and if the teacher librarian provides professional development.
  

Library Program Impacts – these questions are new and based on feedback shared in the 2021–22 evaluation. It is clear from the comments that you are doing many things within your workday as well as outside your workday. Some of these activities/duties have a direct positive impact on your students and school community, while others take time away from working directly with students and teachers. Questions include management of assets and estimated time devoted to tracking assets, if staff was pulled from the library to cover in other areas, and variety of ways you might be supporting literacy and if these activities or extras are part of your workday or if you volunteer time to offer these services.

• Open-ended Question provides a space to share information that was not asked in the evaluation. This is a space where you might like to share something you are most proud of, provide an explanation of funding, or perhaps a description of splitting your time between sites.
  
  
• Respondent Information – we ask you to provide the contact information for the person who completed the evaluation and the name of the person at the district responsible for library services in case we need to contact you to verify any responses.

Tip for submitting – make sure you follow the directions at the end, and select submit evaluation and not simply save. When you have successfully submitted the evaluation, you will receive a thank you email.

Thank you for taking the time and effort to complete this evaluation. Your answers are invaluable to us as we develop a picture of library programs across the state, and you now have much more detailed data to look closely at your school library program.

Start the Evaluation

School Library Evaluation

2021-22 Response Special Thanks

The following districts had a 100 percent response rate for the 2021-22 evaluation.