Back to School

Whether we are going back to school or not, most of us sense new beginnings in the air. And whether we are in a school library or not, we are all part of the educational process.

Literacy and learning start before school. Every Child Ready for School: Helping Adults Inspire Young Children to Learn is a case study for a library-based school readiness program developed by Carroll County (Md.) Public Library. It is based on the premise that “libraries can motivate adults to inspire children to learn” (p. 14) and derived its inspiration from the ALSC/PLA Every Child Ready to Read program. The authors, Dorothy Stoltz and Connie Wilson, both librarians, and Elaine M. Czarnecki, a literacy consultant, review why it is important to train adult caregivers and how training for adults should be designed. They provide a step-by-step guide to a training package, with sample agendas, scripts, and other resources.
INDEXED. ALA EDITIONS, 2013. 160 P. $47. PBK. 978-0-8389-1125-9.

Mirah J. Dow, former member of the AASL Legislation Committee, has assembled a set of bibliographical essays addressing the key components of why school libraries are important to the education of our youth. School Libraries Matter: Views from the Research looks at 10 facets of school library excellence. Each chapter, written by a researcher in the specific discipline, provides an overview of recent research that can be used for advocacy with school administrators or the broader community in promoting the value of school librarians essential to the learning process of today’s students. The threads—on project-based learning, collaboration, language development, information seeking behavior, and academic achievement—are brought together in the final chapter with 10 statements on why school libraries matter.
INDEXED. LIBRARIES UNLIMITED, 2013. 173 P. $50. PBK. 978-161069-161-1. (ALSO AVAILABLE AS AN EBOOK.)

According to the National Council of State Legislatures website, most states mandate some sex education in public schools. Sex in the Library: A Guide to Sexual Content in Teen Literature will go a long way in helping school librarians provide age-appropriate, informative, and accurate materials to support the curriculum. Its origins are the book talks the authors, Mary Jo Heller, a school librarian, and Aarene Storms, a public librarian, offered in their town. They provide tips for book talks that support the curriculum, particularly Common Core, for avoiding the “giggles,” and for gaining administrative and parental approval. There are topical lists of suggested titles, references to reviews, and annotations, with age and content indicators to guide selection.
INDEXED. VOYA PRESS, AN IMPRINT OF E L KURDYLA PUBLISHING, LLC, 2013. 190 P. $40. PBK. 978-1-61751-028-1.

Time management is a critical skill, whether you are in an elementary school library where days are filled with instruction as each classroom visits the library for one period a week; a public library where there is always another reference question beckoning as you try to plan a literacy event; or a college library where meetings with faculty are balanced with reviewing the collection and developing new instructional units. Time and Project Management Strategies for Librarians, edited by Carol Smallwood, Jason Kuhl, and Lisa Fraser, provides an array of tips and tricks for managing one’s own tasks, scheduling those of others, and managing projects so that they don’t overwhelm. Not all suggestions will work for everyone, but this “Lifehacker vade mecum” should inspire at least one new (or renewed) practice to become more efficient.
INDEXED. SCARECROW PRESS, 2013. 308 P. $55. PBK. 978-0-8108-9052-7. (ALSO AVAILABLE AS AN EBOOK.)

Two revised editions round out our back-to-school library. Enhancing Teaching and Learning: A Leadership Guide for School Librarians, 3rd edition, by Jean Donham, covers the complexities of being a school librarian, from the local governance questions about building the collection and collaborating with the other faculty to understanding program evaluation and assessment of student learning. This edition has been updated to include the role of standards, the influence of media, and the changing reading habits and educational needs of millennials.
INDEXED. ALA NEAL-SCHUMAN, 2013. 400 P. $70. PBK. 978-1-55570-887-0.

Information Literacy Instruction That Works: A Guide to Teaching by Discipline and Student Population, 2nd ed., edited by Patrick Ragains, addresses post-secondary-level student instruction, beginning with developing an ongoing relationship with teaching faculty and collaborating with various audiences on campus. Most essays are subject-specific, though there are separate discussions on teaching students with disabilities and distance learners.
INDEXED. ALA NEAL-SCHUMAN, 2013. 360 P. $85. PBK. 978-1-55570-860-3.

KAREN MULLER is librarian and knowledge management specialist for the ALA Library.

Latest Library Links

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Joe Árvai writes: “As artificial intelligence (AI) creeps further into people’s daily lives, so do worries about it. At the most alarmist are concerns about AI going rogue and terminating its human masters. But my own research as a psychologist who studies how people make decisions leads me to believe that all these risks are overshadowed by an even more corrupting, though largely invisible, threat. That is, AI is mere keystrokes away from making people even less disciplined and skilled when it comes to thoughtful decisions.”

The Conversation, Apr. 12
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Tess Prendergast writes: “As someone who teaches contemporary children’s literature, I have been following the surge of picture books about climate and environment topics for several years. While there has been some great scholarly research about such books, I have devised a simple framework for grouping these kinds of books. This four-tiered categorization may help you decided what to read, suggest, or display in various scenarios and for different audiences.”

ALSC Blog, Apr. 11
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Max Eddy writes: “It’s a nightmare scenario: You’ve protected all of your online accounts with two-factor authentication (2FA), but then your phone is broken, lost, or stolen, and you’re locked out of everything. Past You’s effort to protect Future You has made Present You’s life a living hell. 2FA is supposed to keep attackers and scammers out of your online accounts, but what if something happens to your second factor? With a little planning, you can reduce that risk and still keep your accounts safe.”

New York Times Wirecutter, Apr. 12
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Nik Altenberg writes: “About 100 librarians and their supporters rallied outside San Francisco Public Library’s Main Library on April 9 to demand the city hire security guards for every branch. Workers decried a lack of security at most of the city’s branches and said they are often forced to de-escalate volatile situations and step into the role of providing security themselves. The rally is the latest in a series of union actions [from 10 unions representing more than 25,000 city workers across city departments] seeking to draw attention to what they say is a pervasive understaffing crisis.”

KQED-TV (San Francisco), Apr. 9
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“Two years after Brooklyn Public Libraries’ (BPL) launch of Books Unbanned, an initiative to protect the freedom to read for young people, In Their Own Words: Youth Voices on Books Unbanned gives new insight into the impact of censorship on teen and young adults across the US and how restrictions and other barriers to access build upon and reinforce each other. The new report, published April 11 by BPL and Seattle Public Library, analyzes 855 stories shared by young people who signed up for a free Books Unbanned ecard from April 2022 through December 2023.”

Seattle Public Library, Apr. 11
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Samantha Guss, Sojourna Cunningham, and Jennifer Stout write: “Recruitment and retention are both critical to diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts in academic libraries, and failing to improve retention has and will continue to derail these initiatives. Research that addresses retention tends to focus on proposed strategies, such as stay interviews (structured interviews aimed at strengthening employee and employer relationships) and mentorship programs. But there is no agreed-upon definition of retention that would allow us to assess these strategies. We should recognize that involuntary staying can be just as negative an outcome for the individual and the organization as leaving, setting the stage for legacy toxicity.”

In The Library With The Lead Pipe, Apr. 10
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Jackie Edwards writes: “As spring rolls around, seasonal allergies can flare up among library workers, resulting in symptoms like sneezing; runny or stuffy nose; itchy eyes, ears, and nose; coughing; and asthma. Not only are these symptoms detrimental to well-being and productivity, but they can also mean you’re less able to provide excellent customer service to library users. Fortunately, by purifying the air, preventing mold, and keeping your work area clean, you can improve indoor air quality and combat allergies in your library.”

Library Worklife, Apr.