Ranganathan’s Legacy and Implications of The Five Laws of Library Science on School Librarianship: An Exploratory Study

Abstract

The Covid-19 pandemic has challenged school libraries, affected their services and activities in many ways and led to changes, such as, for instance, reduced opening hours and services, library spaces transformed into a classroom, closures, but also the development of digital collections and delivery of remote services. In such a complex and ever-changing context, the school librarians’ educational role might have been challenged as well. A sound preparation both in education and library science constitutes a steady basis that helps face and overcome disruptions and change. The outstanding works of S.R. Ranganathan are widely recognized for their innovative contribution to library and information science, including school librarianship. In his book New Education and School Library: Experience of half a century (1973), Ranganathan points that the school library is central in the learning and teaching process; its program and several components promote reading, educate to information, inspire and enable users to become critical thinkers and responsible citizens. The Five Laws of Library Science apply to the field of education and school librarianship, too. This contribution aims at presenting an overview of Ranganathan’s legacy in the school library context and, in particular, the relevance of The Five Laws of Library Science in the nowadays’ school librarianship, based on the findings from a self-responding questionnaire, that was distributed through library associations’ list-servs and administered online in March April 2022. Although limited in number, the respondents (28 in total from different continents, except Africa) provided data, comments, and reflections that constitute the basis for further investigation and actions.