Canberra Students Create Films for National Students Need School Libraries Campaign

A Year 12 Media Studies project at Lake Tuggeranong College has turned into the ultimate ‘real world’ learning experience for former Lake Tuggeranong College students Andrew Ford, Luke Marriott and Marcus Sutton.

Andrew, Luke and Marcus, in collaboration with project leaders Teacher Librarian Holly Godfree and Media teacher Stefan Kussy, have completed 17 short films examining what it means to have an effective school library.

Children’s Laureate, Morris Gleitzman, and local authors, Jackie French and Jack Heath, participated in the project along with teacher librarians, students, classroom teachers and many others to describe their personal and professional experiences with school libraries.

The 17 films are the centrepiece of a new national campaign called Students Need School Libraries. The campaign will officially launch on 16 October. It will target parents and caregivers and is being coordinated by a coalition of Australian school library associations.

In an era of fake news and alternative facts, well-resourced school libraries prepare students for the future by giving them skills like finding information quickly and identifying trustworthy sources.

The services provided by school library staff impact on the teaching and learning of every student and every teacher by helping them navigate effectively in an information-overloaded world.