Guidelines for Thesis Techniques Used by Elementary Library Media Specialists to Teach Authors and Illustrators Carol A. Sabol

Current Research “The best readers showed a high level of author awareness” (Krieger, 1997, p. 5). Author awareness – the act of developing a sense of who wrote a story, how, and why (McCain & Merrill, 2001)

Problem Statement This study determined library media specialists’ perceptions of the role of author and illustrator studies in the elementary school library curriculum. It measured which techniques for author/ illustrator studies were most effective.

Purpose of Research Research Questions: 1. Did elementary school library media specialists view an author/ illustrator study as a useful component of the library curriculum? How widely was it used? 2. Which techniques to teach authors and illustrators were most effective?

Research Questions 3. Did elementary school library media specialists perceive an author/illustrator study as an important method to aid them in increasing student interest in reading more books? 4. How widely used were technological sources such as the Internet utilized by elementary school library media specialists to teach author and illustrator studies?

Literature Review Techniques for Author or Illustrator Studies: Author or illustrator visit Correspondence with author or illustrator Student presentation on author or illustrator Literature circles Files of biographical information LMS’ meeting with author or illustrator and sharing information and enthusiasm

Techniques Using Technology Virtual visits with author or illustrator – e-mail, virtual chat, webcam Online author or illustrator program VHS tapes, DVDs, or CDs

Case Studies of Author and Illustrator Studies Applebee, 1978 Jenkins, 1999 Carr, 2002 More studies need to be conducted on techniques used by elementary school library media specialists to teach authors and illustrators to determine effectiveness of author and illustrator programs.

Design of Research Project Descriptive and qualitative research with a paper-based survey of seven cloze questions and three open-ended questions mailed non-randomly to library media specialists who taught in public elementary schools in Camden and Gloucester counties, NJ (K-6 grades) Survey to determine how lms perceived role of author/illustrator studies in library curriculum and which techniques were most effective

Design of Research Project Variables: Amount of time for teaching weekly library classes Existence of written library curriculum If written curriculum included methods for teaching authors/ illustrators Amount of funds available for author/illustrator studies Use/ nonuse of technological sources

Data Collection Survey pre-tested in thesis class Written survey returned in sealed and stamped envelope via U. S. mail Data collected and analyzed using Excel computer program to display percentages of responses for answers to cloze questions Researcher compiled data for open-ended questions and drew conclusions 46 respondents of 89 mailed; 2 unuseable Response rate – 52%

Findings of the Study (n=46) 87% - regularly scheduled library classes 1x week 11% - every 2 weeks 2% - varied schedules 83% - written curriculum guide 17% - no written curriculum guide Of 83%, 64% include methods for author/ illustrator studies

Findings (n=46) How important are author/ illustrator studies? 55% - very important 36% - important 9% - somewhat important 0% - not important

Findings Methods used for author/ illustrator studies: 39 – book talks 36 – author/ illustrator visits (n=46) 35 – storytelling with short biographies 25 – picture files 20 – reference books 18 – shared meetings with author/ illustrator 9 – student correspondence 6 – literature circles

Findings Technological Sources 42 – Internet sites 33 – videotapes/ DVDs 13 – audiotapes, CDs 3 – e-mail No use of virtual chats or webcam visits

Findings Student Motivation to Read Books All 46 responses indicated positive influence in reading more books Students sought out books by authors/ illustrators studied Author/ illustrator studies seen as imp. components in library curr. to connect students to books

Recommendations for Future Study Review of more literature Repeat of study with larger sample population Follow-up interviews with lms for more depth on author/ illustrator studies Interviews with students to investigate knowledge of author/ illustrator studies Study with sample population of reading teachers

References Carr, E. A. (2002). It’s a hook. Michigan Reading Journal, 35, 36-41. Jenkins, C. B. (1999). The allure of authors. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann. Golant, G. (2004). An author in your e-mail. School Library Journal, 50, 37.

References Krieger, E. (1997). Developing reading and writing through author awareness. Boston: Allyn and Bacon. McCain, M. M. & Merrill, M. (2001). Dictionary for school library media specialists; A practical and comprehensive guide. Littleton, CO: Libraries Unlimited. Vandergrift, K. E. (2004). Learning about the author and illustrator pages. Retrieved November 29, 2004 from http://www.scils.rutgers.edu/~kvander/AuthorSite/