Abstract

During this period of radical change in the field of information technology there is

evidence of confusion about the role of school library media specialists in the implementation,

and the administration of emerging information technologies in Wisconsin public schools.

This study sought to answer the question what is the role of the school library media

specialist (SLMS) in Wisconsin public schools?

In-depth interview methodology was used to discover role expectations for workers in the

area of information and instructional technologies. Among the sub-questions to be answered

through the use of interview methodology were (a) what roles/services are expected exclusively

of media specialists, (b) what role/services were expected to be shared with other personnel?

There was reason to believe that role expectations for SLMS may vary by the instructional level

at which they serve. Therefore, school library media specialists, at the (a) elementary, (b) middle

school, and (c) high school levels were interviewed.

Eight school library media specialists in two medium-sized school districts in south

eastern and south central Wisconsin participated in the interviews. Among other things, the

interviews revealed that school library media specialists at the elementary level preferred the role

of Teacher as defined by Information Power (1998). At the secondary level, school library media

specialists were found to prefer the role of Information Specialist as defined by Information

Power (1998).