Information Literacy Practices in Brazilian School Libraries

Librarian Collaboration with Teachers

Abstract

Based on the assumption that collaboration of librarians with teachers is central to the concept of information literacy, this study aims to understand the vision of the librarian with regard to collaboration, if he/she realizes the difficulties in this collaboration and in what way he/she seeks to collaborate. A qualitative/interpretative methodology was used and data were collected through reports of experiences, interviews and group discussion. The sample was composed of 28 school librarians (14 from public schools and 14 from private institutions). Results show that librarians not only understand the need for collaboration with teachers for the success of their educational practice, but also engage themselves in concrete actions to achieve that collaboration, which reveals a pro-active attitude, different from the projected image of a professional isolated from school life. This attitude indicates that Brazilian school librarians are starting to build the foundations for their educational practice, which could pave the way for the establishment of information literacy programs in Brazilian schools.