Given that there are inevitable differences between a private school in another country and a government school in Oz, nevertheless there is food for thought in Dianne McKenzie's annual report for her school in Hong Kong. Blog entry is here, including a ten point rationale; link to the annual report is here. Whether or not you launch full-fledged into this, just going through the thinking/writing process for yourself would be a useful exercise and a way to begin.
Right now, we're in the middle of our school year: not, perhaps, a bad time at all to take stock of progress so far and make plans for the second half of the school year. I know we've achieved some things we planned, AND some things we didn't plan but ran with anyway (flexible is good); and still have things to do. It's good to reflect on achievements, consider the things that didn't work so well, and move on forward.
Cheers
Ruth
Showing posts with label library statistics. Show all posts
Showing posts with label library statistics. Show all posts
Monday, July 6, 2009
Thursday, June 25, 2009
GIFSL*: 36. Stats are your friend (2)
Now you've had some fun with maths and a calculator, here's another easy library stat to keep an eye on. In my library's OASIS library software, I can see each week's total number of loans. I can see the daily ones, too, but they can vary due to assorted things. But keep an eye on the weekly number. What was it at the same time last year? Same? More? Less?
I also compare the same term from last year with this year's term - the total number of loans, and the weekly average. Without in any way having a robotic enslavement to stats, it's motivating to know how things are going. To be encouraged to keep going, when they're going well. To be inspired to do better, when they're maybe down a little.
You can also check the impact of specific programs - the first couple of days of holiday borrowing usually produce a spike, and the last two weeks of term when we promote holiday borrowing usually have elevated figures compared to other weeks during that term.
This is by no means the only measure of your library's success; but it's a useful tool, for sure and certain. The stats I've mentioned here and in the previous entry are relatively basic ones, and library software should yield these to you without too much trouble. In OASIS Library (as found in NSW DET schools) I get this info from B2 (Circulation) then M1.
Again, if I was sharing these figures, I'd be inclined to % them rather than talking raw numbers, as that can be clearer (or less likely to be misinterpreted). But these are ones I mostly just check for my own knowledge of our progress, our 'sales'.
Cheers, Ruth
*GIFSL = Good Ideas For School Libraries
I also compare the same term from last year with this year's term - the total number of loans, and the weekly average. Without in any way having a robotic enslavement to stats, it's motivating to know how things are going. To be encouraged to keep going, when they're going well. To be inspired to do better, when they're maybe down a little.
You can also check the impact of specific programs - the first couple of days of holiday borrowing usually produce a spike, and the last two weeks of term when we promote holiday borrowing usually have elevated figures compared to other weeks during that term.
This is by no means the only measure of your library's success; but it's a useful tool, for sure and certain. The stats I've mentioned here and in the previous entry are relatively basic ones, and library software should yield these to you without too much trouble. In OASIS Library (as found in NSW DET schools) I get this info from B2 (Circulation) then M1.
Again, if I was sharing these figures, I'd be inclined to % them rather than talking raw numbers, as that can be clearer (or less likely to be misinterpreted). But these are ones I mostly just check for my own knowledge of our progress, our 'sales'.
Cheers, Ruth
*GIFSL = Good Ideas For School Libraries
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
GIFSL*: 34. Stats are your friend (1)
Me, I'm a humanities creature - stats aren't something to which I'm naturally drawn.
But library loan stats? They're a friend. Tough love friend, sometimes. Best buddy, sometimes.
With our computerised system (OASIS) and a calculator, I regularly do a wee bit of totting to see how our various programs to encourage borrowing and library use are influencing our loan statistics. I would never never say that this data is the only way to evaluate a library's success - and indeed some of our programs, in intent and execution, cannot be measured in this way. Nevertheless, checking our 'sales figures' does provide a snapshot of one area of library activity.
With our system, I get the figure on loan statistics - the number of items loaned so far this year, for example (A). I then set the parameters to give me the figure for the same date range for each of the last three years. I add up these three and divide by three to get an average (B). A-B = C, or the difference (hopefully a + number). C divided by B then % gives you your percentage increase (hope it's an increase!) in loans for the year. I would do this calculation at least once a week, sometimes more often if I'm interested to see the impact of something in particular (eg the first day of holiday borrowing).
An example with fake figures:
2009 400 loans (A)
2008 300 loans
2007 250 loans
2006 200 loans
Adding up 2008 + 2007+ 2006 = 750 divided by 3 = 250 (average) (B)
A - B = 150 (C)
150 divided by 250 then hit the % key = 60%. So loans in 2009 in Fake Library are up 60% on the average of the last three years.
If you want to just get the difference between the current year and the previous one:
400 - 300 = 100. 100 divided by 300 then hit % key = 33%. So loans in Fake Library in 2009 are up 33% on 2008.
Important: to those outside the library, I speak of percentages, rather than raw numbers. A primary school library, lending to every class every week, for instance, may well have much higher raw numbers than my high school. Schools, of course, vary in student population size. Raw numbers can be taken the wrong way. My goal is to do better here, at this school, my competition is our previous record and seeing if we can better our 'sales figures'. Saying, "our loans are up 70% on the average of the last three years" is instantly clear and useful. I am my own competition. If you convert your school library's loan 'sales figures' to a percentage, then it is easier for us to compare our progress than with raw numbers, when they can involve so many variables.
It's also a motivating thing to do - when there's a dip, you look and see why, and what you can improve. When there's a rise, we all feel good about books and resources being in the hands of kids and teachers to help them achieve, read, learn, enjoy, progress.
And when I checked last week's figures, we had managed to pass the 70% increase milestone - woohoo!
Cheers, Ruth
*GIFSL = Good Ideas For School Libraries
.
But library loan stats? They're a friend. Tough love friend, sometimes. Best buddy, sometimes.
With our computerised system (OASIS) and a calculator, I regularly do a wee bit of totting to see how our various programs to encourage borrowing and library use are influencing our loan statistics. I would never never say that this data is the only way to evaluate a library's success - and indeed some of our programs, in intent and execution, cannot be measured in this way. Nevertheless, checking our 'sales figures' does provide a snapshot of one area of library activity.
With our system, I get the figure on loan statistics - the number of items loaned so far this year, for example (A). I then set the parameters to give me the figure for the same date range for each of the last three years. I add up these three and divide by three to get an average (B). A-B = C, or the difference (hopefully a + number). C divided by B then % gives you your percentage increase (hope it's an increase!) in loans for the year. I would do this calculation at least once a week, sometimes more often if I'm interested to see the impact of something in particular (eg the first day of holiday borrowing).
An example with fake figures:
2009 400 loans (A)
2008 300 loans
2007 250 loans
2006 200 loans
Adding up 2008 + 2007+ 2006 = 750 divided by 3 = 250 (average) (B)
A - B = 150 (C)
150 divided by 250 then hit the % key = 60%. So loans in 2009 in Fake Library are up 60% on the average of the last three years.
If you want to just get the difference between the current year and the previous one:
400 - 300 = 100. 100 divided by 300 then hit % key = 33%. So loans in Fake Library in 2009 are up 33% on 2008.
Important: to those outside the library, I speak of percentages, rather than raw numbers. A primary school library, lending to every class every week, for instance, may well have much higher raw numbers than my high school. Schools, of course, vary in student population size. Raw numbers can be taken the wrong way. My goal is to do better here, at this school, my competition is our previous record and seeing if we can better our 'sales figures'. Saying, "our loans are up 70% on the average of the last three years" is instantly clear and useful. I am my own competition. If you convert your school library's loan 'sales figures' to a percentage, then it is easier for us to compare our progress than with raw numbers, when they can involve so many variables.
It's also a motivating thing to do - when there's a dip, you look and see why, and what you can improve. When there's a rise, we all feel good about books and resources being in the hands of kids and teachers to help them achieve, read, learn, enjoy, progress.
And when I checked last week's figures, we had managed to pass the 70% increase milestone - woohoo!
Cheers, Ruth
*GIFSL = Good Ideas For School Libraries
.
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