School libraries moving into the 21st Century

Although there is plenty of evidence to show that TLs have an enormous effect on the quality of education provided to children, it is evidenced in Haycock's 2003 report that the Canadian government continues to slice away at funding for school libraries. Library services in Canadian schools are dwindling away, so much so that in 59% of schools in Ontario parents raised money for library books. The picture Haycock paints is one of desperation. I finished reading this article feeling disbelief that the government of a progressive nation like Canada could neglect its children's educational needs.
Herring's reading very clearly laid out the roles expected of a TL. The multi-faceted role of the TL visualised in Figure 2.1 took a while for me to absorb at first. It is daunting to think that one teacher could wear so many hats. I felt relieved when I then went on to read Herring state that "It is clear that no teacher librarian could fulfil all of these roles at the same time ...". He says that in order for TLs to meet the needs of their school community, they need manage their time effectively. This is definitely something I need to address in my current position, as I spend far too much time performing clerical tasks and not enough being involved in the important roles, the ones which clearly make a difference on the learning taking place.
Haycock's recommendations to avert the crisis in Canada's school libraries are sound ideas (in my opinion) and if I had to pick one to begin working on now it would be no. 11. I can see that when school begins again in August that I will need to work hard to raise my profile. Although the library itself is a centre of activity in my school and the children and teachers love coming in, I realise that I have many more skills to offer to teachers to improve the learning going on and one of these skills is not my ability to check invoices!
I intend to strive towards Hay's message of school libraries being places where "students, teachers, teacher librarians, resources and technology come together to create engaging and meaningful learning experiences for all".