Tillgång till skolbibliotek i glesbygd
School LibrariesSparsely Populated AreasThe New Education ActAccessibilityIdeasSkolbibliotekGlesbygdDen nya skollagenTillgångFöreställningar
This is a two years master?s thesis in Archive, Library and Museum studies, which purpose is to find out what ideas there are about school libraries and to get an idea of how informants interpret the new Education Act, which requires all students to have access to school libraries. Another intention of this paper is to highlight the potential rural-related attitudes of the responents. The study includes the sparsely populated municipality of Krokom and is based on interviews with librarians, the school director, principals and politicians who work there. The theoretical basis for this paper is Loertscher?s model för school libraries and a centerperiphery perspective. Study results show that there are different conceptions of what a school library is and that there are some tendences related to the informant?s professions. All in all the school library is the hub of the school, a knowledge base or a room with a wide range of books, many different kinds of texts and access to online resources. The school librarian is important for the school library, as well as collaboration and integration with other school activities. Access to the school library is about longer opening hours, opportunity to visit a physical room with literature and access to use qualified librarians. The new Education Act is interpreted as indistinct and needs to be clarified. It is considered to be directed to schools in larger cities. There is an awareness of the specific rural conditions prevailing and the informants take their arguments into account and some of them give suggestions on rural alternatives such as a mobile library, a digital library or school libraries in each school district instead of at each school.