Frequency of National Center for Education Statistics Data on School Libraries

Concern: State libraries and education departments need accurate, timely, comprehensive data in order to assess their school libraries.

United States Code Title 20. Education, Chapter 76. Education Research, Statistics, Evaluation, Information, and Dissemination, Subchapter Education Sciences Reform, Part C. National Center for Education Statistics, Section 9543, Duties, 1 states, “The Statistics Center shall collect, report, analyze, and disseminate statistical data related to education in the United States and in other nations, including (1) collecting, acquiring, compiling (where appropriate, on a State-by-State basis), and disseminating full and complete statistics”

Paragraph 1 states, “the existence and use of school libraries” shall be a set of data collected, and

Paragraphs 4 states that the Statistics Center mandate includes “assisting public and private educational agencies, organizations, and institutions in improving and automating statistical and data collection activities, which may include assisting State educational agencies and local educational agencies with the disaggregation of data and with the development of longitudinal student data systems;

Staff from numerous state library agencies and state departments of education have created a standard set of data elements and definitions in expressed intent to conduct an annual report of all school libraries; this standardized annual school library report project fits within the mandate of the Statistics Center.

Action: The Affiliate Executive Committee did not approve this concern for submission to the Affiliate Assembly body.