Discipline

[Jennifer]

I often tell my friends that I just want to sit and buy books all day, but it seems that more and more of my job is spent disciplining students which leads me to believe I am doing something wrong.

I work in a small school of 400 with a library that can hold about 70 kids and I am full daily. We have two rooms, one for silent individual study and one for group collaboration. I continuously walk around and tell students to take out work, read their book, quite down, throw away their food, go gossip outside, please find a seat. . . Sometimes i think they just don't care about rules in the library because i do not have the "power" to fail them. Our Dean encourages us to handle as much discipline as possible on our own.

For those veterans who have their students in tip top shape in the library how to do you do "classroom management?"

[Emily Auerswald]

You don't have the power to 'fail' them - but can you send them out of the Library and back to study hall, or wherever else they came from?

[Jennifer]

I do send kids outside. But the next day its the same thing. I don't know. Maybe that's just the business. I can't help but feel there is a better way. I suppose its unrealistic to think students will come in, throw away their food, sit down, take out their work, push in the chair, and leave.

[Susan Harris]

I'm afraid I'm not very strict about what the students do. As long as they're not disruptive and respect those around them who are trying to work, I don't mind if they gossip, or facebook, or watch videos. I only throw them out if they become too loud or active. The bottom line is that I like to encourage the students to come into the library and spend time. Sometimes they even pick up a magazine or stumble upon an interesting website.

[Richard Beaudry]

Hi Jennifer,

I have been having some of the same issues that you are having and they are partly due to a district reconfiguration of schools and policies that I enacted last year when I started at my present high school.

After some discussions with staff and students in the fall of 2007, we agreed that I would open the library to let students and staff bring in food and drinks. It was a bit sloppy at first but after a few weeks things turned for the better and the policy seemed to work.

This year, things have changed because of a school reconfiguration at the district level. One of the local high schools went from a 8-12 format to a middle school format 6-8. Our school went from an 8-12 format to a 9-12 format. The population of the school went from 840 students to over 1,100 students. Last year we had a lot of space in the school for students to hang out but this year every inch of school space is being used and we have some additional portables that have been added.

Because of this reconfiguration, there are no more places for students to lounge around in the school. The cafeteria could accommodate the student population we had last year but this year it doesn't. This leaves only one area of the school for students to hang out during their study periods and that is the library. In some blocks, upwards of 120 students have a study period. About sixty usually find their way to the library. Add to the mix students and staff coming to the library for reserved time to use the computers and or resources and the library becomes a busy place indeed.

Add to the mix a number of students who regularly skip classes and the library was becoming the school lounge and this was not my intent when I started the policy last year.

My focus this year has been less on working with staff and students to one of library management based on the influx of students with free periods. I have lists of students supposed to be on study blocks and I have challenged students to confirm that they are supposed to be there. After a few weeks, a majority of those who were supposed to be in class had moved on but this still leaves me with too many students in the library. The administration does come in to check on the students on a rotating basis but I am still stuck with a situation where a percentage of these students are simply hanging out.

The best asset I have for now is a staff that understands the changes that have occurred due to the reconfiguration process and the support of teachers who come and work in the library during the day. I should say that with some many students and staff, the library is pretty much booked all day every day.

I agree that it is harder when they know that you can't affect their school marks but I have been having talks with the parents group of the school and they are supporting any possible solutions we can come up with.

Richard Beaudry
Librarian

[Jennifer]

I like that you have been meeting with the parent board. I have not thought of that. thank you. I will see what they say.