The Demise of School Libraries

While it seems evident to me that libraries of all sorts suffer from factors like funding and staffing, another aspect that seems to affect school libraries more severely is censorship, and I believe this is the most detrimental reason that has caused its demise. Whereas the public library has the ALA Book of Rights to stand behind, school libraries at often at the mercy of school boards and concerned parents.

In a case study in which a school board restricted access to the book Harry Potter in school libraries, DeMitchell, professor of Education and Justice Studies, and Carney, professor of Reading, both at Univ. of New Hampshire, Durham, discuss the consequences of restricting student reading. The school board and parents argued that it encouraged misbehavior, rebellion in school setting, and witchcraft. However, in similar cases, students have sued against this same reason, citing the Constitution’s First Amendment and reasoning that ideas cannot be suppressed or restricted from being presented.

Maybe I prefer to look at the situation is too simplistic a manner and encourage that children read material that get them excited to read because that was how I was raised – with no boundaries to the literature I chose to read. But this ideal is what makes access and reading so beautiful to me and I so far I haven’t suffered from it, even if I am romanticizing the notion.

DeMitchell, T. A., & Carney, J. J. (2005). Harry Potter and the Public School Library. Phi Delta Kappan, 87(2), 159-165.

Libraries and the Digital Divide

I work in a public library in a city investing millions of dollars to advance in the technological field, but I work with a segment of the population that does not have access to at-home computers, let alone Internet access. I see the every day challenges that are brought upon these patrons – particularly elementary-high school aged children – who are unequipped to complete tasks on the computer because they are not comfortable with the technology. In a report titled “Rural Public Libraries and Digital Inclusion: Issues and Challenges,” researchers found that urban public libraries are 40.6% and suburban libraries are 60.0% of the time the only Internet provider to patrons. In my personal opinion, and because of the clientele we see in the library and have to help day-in and day-out, it’s obvious how severe the negative impact on these people is without regular computer and Internet access and the detrimental effect it has on their potential to advance in their academics or find employment.

I live in a rural area (about 30 miles from where I work), where Internet access is provided by a 1-man operation and you literally have the guy’s cell phone number to call up whenever you have an issue – no wait tone, awesome! But if I thought the percentage of the population was already high in the city, I was pretty incredulous when the same study found that rural libraries provide 70.3% of the population with its only free Internet service. These institutions are on average staffed by on average 0.75 of a librarian with a master’s degree, 1.9 librarians, and 4 staff members (full- and part-time).

There’s a large divide between where I work and where I live, but this “digital divide” exists wherever there are people that for whatever reason, – “whether based in socioeconomic status, education, geography, age, ability, language, or other factors” – do not have access to a computer and/or Internet access. With the combination of public libraries experiencing budget and staff cuts and for-profit companies aiming to make the best profit from highly-populated areas, this really leaves rural libraries in an ever-widening technological gap.

Real, Brian, John Carlo Bertot, and Paul T. Jaeger. "Rural Public Libraries And Digital Inclusion: Issues And Challenges."Information Technology & Libraries 33.1 (2014): 6-24. Academic Search Premier. Web. 15 Apr. 2015.

Libraries as Social Hubs

Writing from the standpoint of a health professions campus librarian, Harris points out that “—faculty, staff, and students are frequently focused on their schools or programs rather than on the greater campus community,” on her campus. Having personally attended a science and medical school myself, I came across the same isolation from any sort of community that existed because faculty and students were engrossed in academics – especially as a Literature and Writing student ;) I stood out quite a bit.

Harris surmises, “It is not always clear who is ultimately responsible for introducing and championing new technologies, supporting relevant or topical campus or community cultural activities, or even providing education in, and support for, scholarly communication activities that appeal to the entire community. This kind of outreach can fall within the philosophical, educational, and leadership mission of librarians.” I thought this quote was especially important because the responsibility has yet to be claimed by any agency, but there do exist specific clubs that welcome people who belong, but for a commuter like me, I needed an environment that was welcoming and convenient while I had the time to be on campus. So Harris came up with a plan to reach out to students: take the time to plan, develop a promotion plan, find partners, and have fun.

Sure, it seems pretty simple and like an easy recipe to follow, but when the duty doesn’t fall on the library to create this, no one will take the time to dedicate attention to the void that seems natural.

Harris, R., Mayo, A., Prince, J. D., & Joan, M. (2013). Creating shared campus experiences: the library as culture club. Journal Of The Medical Library Association, 101(4), 254-256. doi:10.3163/1536 -5050.101.4.005

Libraries in the Digital Age

One of my biggest aspirations is to some day work in an academic/research library in a role that allows me to work directly with students and aid in research methodology. This subject is personally very important to me because of the struggle I had with resource knowledge when I began college. As a first-generation college student, I didn’t know the difference between lower- and upper-division, let alone that the library was chalk-full of research databases or how to use them. In her article “Collaborations Between Librarians and Faculty in a Digital Age” Campbell quotes “Students need to be taught how to use research tools so they can turn information into knowledge.” Students are going to Google and being overwhelmed with the amount of information they receive and unaware as to how reliable or relative it is – they are settling for mediocre information to create ideas.

Campbell writes about the idea of “librarians as co-teachers,” where librarians work with teachers to create research techniques that specifically apply to their class. As an intern at Palomar College Library, I have been able to see instruction being taught first-hand by the faculty-librarians. The most basic of ideas like searching with effective keywords are being taught to students, many for the first time. Another new concept that is being introduced to students is the wide variety of research databases the library provides to students – for free! (Still blows me away that I had no idea about these while in college.)

Having suffered from my own ignorance while in college, I hope to one day have an influence in creating resources and introducing to as many students as possible, maybe in a similar situation, who could really use the help.

Campbell, M. (2010). Collaborations Between Librarians and Faculty in a Digital Age. Education Digest, 75(6), 30-33.