Date of Award

12-13-2023

Document Type

Dissertation

Selected Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.

Degree Name

Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) in Educational Leadership for Diverse Learning Communities

Department

Education

School

School of Education and Human Services

First Advisor

Tricia Kress

Second Advisor

Gayitri Kavita Indar

Third Advisor

Leigh Patel

Abstract

Traditionally, school libraries are assumed to be spaces of positivity and inclusion free from bias and discrimination. However, school libraries have not remained untouched by harmful school policies and state educational laws. Recently, new policies and laws have begun to restrict the role of librarians and library spaces are continuously being eliminated from school districts across the United Sates. One issue is the library profession has examined the library as a room but not the concept of what a library space is or can be. One approach to addressing this gap is by examining school libraries through the lens of culturally sustaining pedagogy. This perspective can help one understand how school library spaces can exist as antiracist spaces particularly for students of color. In addition, elementary school children are rarely given the opportunity to make major decisions concerning their schooling. This study utilizes youth participatory action research to enable elementary children to examine their school library and determine if the library is a culturally sustaining space for the student population in their school. This study chronicles the youth participatory action research process and highlights the major changes that elementary students made to school library policies. The findings from the study show 1. The youth participatory action research process allowed the young co-researchers to choose the direction of the research study which diverted from the researcher’s original intentions. 2. The young co-researchers created and added a culturally sustaining element to the library space. 3. Without proper evaluation, school libraries can perpetuate oppressive practices that hinder students. Based on these findings school libraries need student input in order to establish culturally sustaining spaces as the children themselves are best positioned to determine what and how the library sustains them.

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