A Competency Model for Volunteer Storytellers in Public Libraries

Abstract

In recent years, public library administrators have actively promoted children’s reading services. Storytelling activities have a significantly positive effect on enhancing children’s interest and ability in reading. Due to the shortage of human resources in some public libraries, volunteers are required to provide storytelling activities. Public libraries should enhance the competencies of volunteer storytellers and provide appropriate training for maintaining as well as improving the effectiveness of storytelling activities. The study conducted interviews in order to build a multidimensional and theoretically grounded competency model for volunteer storytellers in public libraries. Interviews were designed based on the relevant literature. The study used in-depth interviews to obtain information on the experiences, ideas, and suggestions of 15 volunteer storytellers at Taipei Public Library. The results indicate ten facets of the competency model for volunteer storytellers: knowledge about readers; knowledge about story material; assisting in planning and organizing storytelling; expressing and interpreting story skills; children resource utilization instruction skills; information technology skills; oral and writing communication; volunteer team administration and management skills; professional literacy and development; and personal attitude and characteristics. These findings can be helpful in developing competency models and practices related to competency development among volunteer storytellers for public libraries. Finally, the results can serve as a reference for administrators of public libraries and other children’s reading education institutions to implement human resources strategies and practices concerning volunteer storytellers, including planning, recruitment, education, management, and performance evaluation.

Enhancing Project Performance through Effective Team Communication: A Comprehensive Study Integrating Project Management Quotient, Trust, and Management Information Systems

“…The performance of assignment managers in task control is carefully related to their skills (Garay et al, 2023;Ram, 2023;Sergeeva & Kortantamer, 2021). In their observation, Peng and Chuang (2020) established an effective correlation between Project Management Competence Retention (PMCR) and the assignment of overall performance fee of an enterprise. In a take a look at carried out with the aid of Fernandes, Domingues, Tereso, and Pinto (2021), it was proven that mission supervisor abilities play a vital role at some stage in extensive project modifications and are important for effective venture management.…”

Meaning of storytelling in volunteers' experiences at Pabukon Ngadongeng Community Reading Park

“…This understanding motivated volunteers to deliver stories with passion and creativity, stimulating children's imaginations and conveying moral messages naturally. Peng and Chuang (2020) Kiki Hamdani actively engaged children in listening to stories through traditional games that supported the storytelling process. In these activities, they used traditional tools like traditional games to bring story characters to life.…”

“…They have developed communication skills and improved their abilities in reading children's literature. Storytelling has enhanced volunteers' abilities (Peng & Chuang, 2020) However, storytelling volunteers faced some challenges, such as mastering stories from several children's books, which they performed through reading activities. Sometimes, reading children's stories was only done during activities at the Community Reading Park and had yet to be a routine activity.…”

“…In another study, Peng and Chuang (2020) Based on the findings of these four previous studies, volunteers play a crucial role in enhancing the performance of libraries or community reading centers through storytelling activities. Therefore, volunteers in libraries or community reading parks need to consider storytelling strategies that can be tailored to the needs of patrons from various segments of society.…”

Early literacy and family engagement: A cross-country analysis of caregivers’ perceptions of the public library's role in the digital age in Taiwan, Malaysia, and Vietnam

“…As librarians in this study explained, public libraries in the three countries provide activities, especially storytimes, to children in general; however, those activities may cover but not feature early literacy and school readiness. Furthermore, it is worth noting that in Taiwan, the majority of the storytimes are delivered by storytelling volunteers, and appropriate training is needed to improve the effectiveness of storytelling activities (Peng and Chuang, 2020). To this end, Mills et al (2018) suggest that training for storytime providers emphasise intentionality and interactivity in the planning and delivery of the early literacy content of storytimes, which may increase the early literacy content of the storytime and ultimately the children's observable early literacy behaviours during storytime.…”