Impact of school libraries on the reading literacy acquisition at primary school in Spain: an approach based on PIRLS 2016

In this paper, we explore the impact of school libraries on students' reading competence at primary school in Spain. The influence of the school library on four dimensions of reading competence is further analysed: comprehension of literary texts and informative texts, competence in retrieving information and competence in interpreting and evaluating information. The paper explores the impact of different library resources and activities, alongside the teacher-librarian, on the pupils' reading literacy. A mixed methodological approach, i.e., a combination of quantitative and qualitative data is performed. We used the datasets released from the PIRLS 2016 international study to perform the statistical analysis. Then, using a qualitative approach, we explored the impact of school libraries, as perceived by the educational context, in particular, by the teachers-librarians. The qualitative data was collected from a provincial network of school libraries and from one of their schools. The results confirm that the school library positively influences the four dimensions of reading skills. Integrated access to all library resources and activities enhances autonomous learning, develops reading habits and socialises reading. The effect is greater if pupils are encouraged to use the library more autonomously, and if the pupil enjoys coming to the library and feels confident there. The positive influence of those teachers trained in library issues on pupils' reading literacy is confirmed. This influence is greater when they use the library as an integrated resource linked to specific projects and tasks. A comparison is suggested with pupils from secondary school and also with other regional school library networks. Finally, it is recommended to introduce more inputs concerning the role of the school libraries in further international surveys.