An Exploration of U.S. School Librarians' Beliefs About and Implementation of Culturally Responsive Literacy Teaching

Abstract

Public-school student enrollment is ever changing. Therefore, school librarians must adapt their instructional practices to meet the needs of culturally diverse student populations. This study employed a survey to explore U.S. school librarians’ beliefs about culturally responsive teaching (CRT), as well as the CRT practices used within their learning environments. Therefore, my research questions were: 1.) What do U.S. school librarians believe about culturally responsive teaching? 2.) In what ways do U.S. school librarians learn about culturally responsive teaching? 3.) What culturally responsive teaching practices are most frequently used by U.S. school librarians? 4.) Is there a relationship between what U.S. school librarians believe about culturally responsive teaching (CRT) and the frequency of implementation? 5.) How do U.S. school librarians implement culturally responsive literacy instruction in their school? 6.) What barriers do U.S. school librarians see for implementing culturally responsive literacy instruction in their library media center? The 159 U.S. school librarians were recruited through the American Association of School Librarians (AASL) ALA Connect forums and Facebook groups for school librarians. The structured survey instrument collected close-ended and two open-ended responses. The close-ended survey responses underwent descriptive and inferential data analysis. In addition to quantitative measures, the open-ended responses were analyzed qualitatively. The results suggest the participants endorsed the belief that culturally responsive school librarians challenge the everyday ways of knowing, promote social justice, validate diverse populations and learning styles, connect home and school knowledge, and maintain high academic expectations. While it can be assumed that a higher level of endorsement for these CRT tenets will be reflected in more frequent implementation, this was not always the case. Open-ended responses illuminated factors standing in the way of school librarians implementing culturally responsive literacy instructional practices, such as limited training, funding, and access to information about families and student home lives. The findings from this dissertation add to the growing body of empirical research focused on culturally responsive teaching within the context of school librarians and their role in literacy instruction.