Shortlisted nominees from both public and private schools will be judged on the library’s role within the school and wider community

Dubai, Sept 20, 2021: Nominations for the sixth UAE Annual School Librarian of the Year Award are now open. The last day to file nominations is November 10, 2021. The announcement of the winner will be made in February 2022. 

The award is given by The General Secretariat of Executive Council of Dubai and Emirates Literature Foundation to those who have shown exceptional commitment in championing literacy in their schools and sharing their passion for books. The award will be given in two categories, school librarians working in public (government) schools in the UAE and school librarians working in private schools. 

Nominations

Nominations can be put forward by any individual, including colleagues, head teachers, students, governors and parents. Self-nominations are also welcome and encouraged. Librarians will be assessed by a panel of judges through a sifting process and the shortlisted nominees will be visited in their school libraries. All nominees will be offered Professional Development opportunities.

Eligibility Criteria

All schools are eligible, whatever their language, but nominations must be entered online in either Arabic or English. Shortlisted nominees from both public and private schools will be judged on the library’s role within the school and wider community in line with the following criteria:

• How does the library environment promote reading?
• Does the library make the best use of the resources available to it (including the physical library collection and use of technology)?
• What is the librarian’s and the library’s role in raising academic and literacy standards in the school?
• How does the librarian promote reading for pleasure?
• What is the library’s role within the school and the wider community?