It’s been another exciting year for SCIS!
Following the launch of SCIS Data in 2017, we have continued our commitment to innovation and system enhancements into 2018. Check out some of our exciting highlights of 2018.
Making the implicit explicit: reactions to chemistry report writing and collaborative learning
Jessica Cross, science teacher at Southland Boys High School, shares her recent experience collaborating with her school librarian to develop students’ science literacy skills.
Image by Senga White, Senga’s Space (CC BY-NC-SA)
SCIS Data case study: Chris Archbold, Riccarton Primary School, NZ
‘SCIS makes a consistent catalogue. If all the primary schools around New Zealand are using SCIS, they are all getting the same information. This means that students can move from school to school and know that they are still going to get good, consistent search results.’
School: Riccarton Primary School Type: Government school for years 1–8 Enrolment: 284 Cataloguing subscription: SCIS Data Library management system: MUSAC Size of collection: 4,200
Chris Archbold opens her library each morning at 8.30 am to an enthusiastic crowd of library-goers, and she relishes in the buzz created by students. Chris is the library manager at Riccarton Primary School in Christchurch, in New Zealand’s South Island.
This buzz is the telltale sign of a school community enthusiastic about their library. ‘We are buzzing here in the morning and again at lunch times,’ Chris says. ‘Some kids are having chat sessions, some kids are borrowing books, and some kids are reading books. To be able to sit at the OPAC and find what they are looking for is really important, so to have the best possible search options is fantastic.’
Chris has been using SCIS for her library cataloguing for more than 10 years, which helps her save time and make library resources discoverable to Riccarton Primary School’s enthusiastic staff and students. Students are able to access the catalogue containing more than 4,000 titles from the library and all classrooms within the school. With the help of SCIS Data, students can easily search for relevant titles before locating them in the library.
Continue reading SCIS Data case study: Chris Archbold, Riccarton Primary School, NZ
Introducing SCIS Series Authorities
We are pleased to announce that SCIS Authority Files now include access to series authorities. This means that titles within a series can be grouped together consistently, and can encompass a number of potential series title variations. Continue reading Introducing SCIS Series Authorities
Students’ brilliant ideas: how the Nagle College Library website started
Ernesto Gutierrez Jr, College Library Coordinator at Nagle College in NSW, recently worked with his students to develop a library website. Its content is created for and by the students, and ranges from well-considered reviews to student-produced videos. Ernesto shares how the website came to fruition.
Continue reading Students’ brilliant ideas: how the Nagle College Library website started
SCIS Data case study: Caroline Roche, Eltham College, UK
‘Yesterday, a student asked for a book on Emmanuel Macron. It will be delivered today, and I will be able to catalogue it within five minutes because SCIS is quick. I’ll have it in her hands this afternoon.’
School: Eltham College Type: Independent school for boys (aged 7–18) and girls (aged 16–18) Enrolment: 850 Cataloguing subscription: SCIS Data + Authority Files Library management system: Accessit Size of collection: 11,780 in junior library; 22,665 in senior library
Eltham College, a high-performing independent school in South East London, focuses on the core business of school libraries: providing access. Librarian Caroline Roche works in the senior school library, supported by a library assistant and a school community enthusiastic about the library’s role. Spread over three floors, Eltham College’s senior library provides space for students to study, read and gather during break times. In a library that prides itself on immediate access, SCIS Data contributes to their fast-turnaround workflow.
Continue reading SCIS Data case study: Caroline Roche, Eltham College, UK
Taking reading for pleasure beyond the library
In this blog, Lucy Chambers shares with us some of the successful reading promotions that she has held in her schools. Lucy presented them as part of her workshop on school librarians sharing good practice, held at the CILIP School Libraries Group Conference in April.
Continue reading Taking reading for pleasure beyond the library
Enhance your library collection with digital content
Most subscribers use SCIS Data to download records for books and other physical items that they would like to make available in their library catalogue.
But, with over 100,000 records available for websites, apps, ebooks, audiobooks, and digital videos, it is also the perfect tool to help build your digital collection.
This blog post looks at the benefits of including digital content in your library catalogue, and how SCIS supports this.
Continue reading Enhance your library collection with digital content
The ‘teacher’ in ‘teacher librarian’
Teacher librarian Tania Sheko highlights the teaching aspect of teacher librarianship, and how she facilitates learning in her school.
Let’s not think of libraries as gifts, but as wise investments
Fleur Morrison writes about the importance of libraries, whether in our cities or schools, for the future of our communities.
There are plenty of things that young people feel aggrieved about being saddled with. Climate change and a long-running war in the Middle East are two that leap immediately to mind.
But there are other things handed down by previous generations that seem to suggest extraordinary generosity and vision. One is libraries.
Continue reading Let’s not think of libraries as gifts, but as wise investments
