Exploring Texas public elementary school librarians' instructional practices which enable elementary students to access and choose e-books in their elementary library collections

This cross-sectional online survey investigated the instructional methods/tools/aids used by Texas public elementary school librarians when teaching their elementary students to access and choose e-books from their elementary collections. Participants included 516 Texas public elementary school librarians, serving PreK-Grade 6, who posted their professional emails online. PsychData gathered and aggregated the survey data online. Data analysis results revealed that a majority of respondents (65%) opted for “Modeling e-access” as their first choice of instructional methods. Participants most often preferred two “instructional tools/aids” (21% each) in teaching e-access: 1) PowerPoint and 2) Directions posted on the website using text/screen shots. Three findings emerged from in-depth cross analysis of the data: 1) the tenure of librarians was statistically of little to no importance with regard to e-book availability, 2) the “Modeling” method of instruction registered as statistically significant with regard to “exceeds librarian expectations” in student e-book circulation, and 3) having an e-book link/icon on the library website or homepage also registered as statistically significant with regard to “exceeds librarian expectations” in student e-book circulation, illustrating that convenience is conducive to use.