IASL Special Interest Groups - (SIGs)

The Special Interest Groups are as follows. Each SIG Web page has the name and contact details of the Coordinator and a brief description of the SIG's activities.

See also Articles 20 & 22 of the IASL Constitution.
See also Procedures:Special Interest Groups

|Contact Person | Background and Purpose | Further Information | Becoming a Member of a SIG |

SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS: CONTACT

The contact person is:
Dr Lesley Farmer, Professor of Librarianship, California State University Long Beach, 12062 Pine Street, Los Alamitos, CA 90720, USA.

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BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Special Interest Groups (SIGs) were established by IASL to give members with similar and particular professional interests in school librarianship the opportunity to exchange ideas and be informed about current developments in an area of topical interest.

Through the SIGs, members will have a topical forum for coordinating efforts and sharing practical and theoretical knowledge, discussing and debating professional experiences and issues, sharing information resources to support their professional endeavours, and sharing, developing and implementing strategies at local, national and international levels.

Membership of a SIG is only open to IASL members. It is a significant membership benefit.

It is anticipated that each member will participate in at least one group. Involvement in about three groups is a suggested limit for all except those who have enourmous time and energy. It is better to be active in a few groups rather than be a lurker in many.

The SIGs provide an important basis for ongoing discussions throughout the year. The IASL Annual Conferences will further provide opportunities for SIGs to meet on a personal basis. Members of each SIG will contribute to organising conference-related activities such as workshops and presentations and other meetings. To this end, meetings of SIGs will be scheduled as part of each IASL Conference. This is an important opportunity for members of SIGs to meet face-to-face, and to put plans and ideas together for the forthcoming year.

Giving the dynamic and rapidly changing field of school librarianship, it is anticipated that new SIGs will be initiated, and existing SIGs change or cease to be, continually reflecting the changes in the profession and the needs of IASL's members.

The IASL Newsletter, IASL School Libraries Worldwide and IASL-LINK will be the primary mechanism for communication, both to the whole membership of IASL, as well as for the members of each SIG. However, each SIG may develop additional channels of communication to meet their individual needs

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LOOK FOR FURTHER INFORMATION COMING ON IASL-LINK

It is anticipated that each SIG on IASL-LINK will function as an electronic listserv for the presentation and exchange of ideas, debates, and issues. If and when traffic on IASL-LINK becomes bothersome then SIG chairs will work with the Vice-President to establish a SIG specific listserv or forum.

The success of each SIG rests on the willingness of each member to be proactive and reactive, provocative and prepared.

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BECOMING A MEMBER OF A SIG

It's easy:

At the present time IASL members are automatically members of all SIGs. However, it is anticipated that this will change and that on membership payment/renewal members will nominate to join a number of SIGs. In the interim it is suggested that if you would like to get more involved in a particular SIG that you:

  • Contact the SIG chair (via post, email or fax) and provide the following information:
    1. Name and address details, including telephone, fax and email address.
    2. Brief description of your professional role.
  • Post a message to IASL-LINK and perhaps
    1. List some key issues / topics you wish your SIG to discuss
    2. Two useful web sites you have discovered
    3. Two new resources on the market which members of the SIG would want to know about
    4. Two national associations outside of school librarianship which may provide useful information to SIG members
    5. Some practical tips you've found successful

Last Updated 24 July 2006 (KSB)