Skills Act

Thanks Isobel for directing us to http://www.ala.org/ala/aasl/aaslissues/SKILLS_Act.cfm - an interesting US development to monitor:

" The SKILLs Act
On Tuesday June 26, 2007, Senators Jack Reed (D-RI) and Thad Cochran (R-MS) and Representatives Raul Grijalva (D-AZ) and Vernon Ehlers (R-MI) introduced the Strengthening Kids’ Interest in Learning and Libraries (SKILLs) Act that guarantees students across America will be served by highly qualified, state-certified school library media specialists and will have the library resources they need to succeed.

Requires school districts, to the extent feasible, to ensure that every school within the district employs at least one highly qualified school library media specialist in each school library;

Defines highly qualified school library media specialists as those who have a bachelor’s degree and have obtained full state certification as a school library media specialist or passed the state teacher licensing examination, with state certification in library media in such state;

Establishes as a state goal that there be at least one highly qualified school library media specialist in every public school no later than the beginning of the 2010-2011 school year;

Broadens the focus of training, professional development, and recruitment activities to include school library media specialists;

Ensures that funds will serve elementary, middle, and high school students; and

Requires books and materials to be appropriate for and engage the interest of students in all grade levels and students with special learning needs, including English language learners."

This text has been sourced directly from the website: http://www.ala.org/ala/aasl/aaslissues/SKILLS_Act.cfm