ERIC ED400528: Libraries & Reading: Indispensable Partners.

30 Pages·1996·0.56 MB·English

by  ERIC

DOCUMENT RESUME
CS 012 640
ED 400 528
Libraries & Reading: Indispensable Partners.
TITLE
Middle Grades Reading Network, Evansville, IN.
INSTITUTION
-Lilly Endowment, Inc., Indianapolis, Ind.
SPONS AGENCY
PUB DATE
[961
NOTE
30p.
Viewpoints (Opinion/Position Papers, Essays, etc.)
PUB TYPE
Evaluative/Feasibility (142)
Reports
(120)
MF01/PCO2 Plus Postage.
EDRS PRICE
Adolescents;. Elementary Secondary Education; Futures
DESCRIPTORS
(of Society); *Library Collection Development;
*Library Collections; *Library Role; Library
Standards; Middle Schools; *Reading; Reading
Improvement
*Indiana
IDENTIFIERS
ABSTRACT
Attention to school libraries must be at the heart of
literacy. Excellent school
any comprehensive plan for improving youth
libraries are essential if young people are to have access to the
reading resources to help them gain the level of literacy achievement
vital to meeting the challenge of the twenty-first century. Sections
of the booklet discuss facing the challenge of the twenty-first
century; the role of school libraries; the "sad state" of school
libraries in Indiana; how much should be spent on books for middle
grades school libraries; how long it will take to rebuild school
library book collections; what needs to be done now to make a
commitment to school libraries; and school libraries and young
Hoosiers. Contains eight references and the Reading Bill of Rights
for Indiana's Young Adolescents. Appendixes present a library books
inventory form, a chart indicating library inventory by copyright
date, a library endowment plan, and a form for a library media center
monthly report.
(RS)
*******************************************************************
Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made
*
from the original document.
***********************************************************************
Libraries
INDISPENSABLE PARTNERS
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Office of Educational Research and Improvement
PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE AND
EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION
DISSEMINATE THIS MATERIAL
CENTER (ERIC)
HAS BEEN GRANTED BY
This document has been reproduced as
received from the person or organization
originating it.
Minor changes have been made to
improve reproduction quality.
Points of view or opinions stated in this
document do not necessarily represent
TO THE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES
official OERI position or policy.
INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC)
w
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BEST COPY AVAILABLE j
Advisory Board
University of Illinois
Richard C. Anderson
W. K. Kellogg Foundation
Leati Meyer Austin
Richmond Community Schools
Eileen Baker
Morehead State University
Cathy Barlow
Indiana Department of Education
Linda Cornwell
University of Pittsburgh
Tony Eichelberger
William Penn Charter School
John T. McGovern
University of Pennsylvania
Norman Newberg
San Francisco Unified School District
Kenneth R. Romines
Technical Educational Research Center
Judith Davidson Wasser
Education Development Center
Judith Zorfass
Network Staff
Director
Jack W. Humphrey
Administrative Assistant
Sue Hennessy
Administrative Assistant
Julie Johnson
Consultant
Carolyn Scavone
Middle Grades Reading Network
University of Evansville
1800 Lincoln Avenue
Evansville, Indiana 47722
Telephone [phone]
Fax [phone]
E-Mail [email protected]
Funded by Lilly Endowment Inc.
L raries
eading
INDISPENSABLE PARTNERS
Current,
Interesting, and
Attractive School
Library Book
Collections Are
Essential for
Healthy Middle
Grades Reading
Programs
4
BEST COPY AVAILABLE
Indiana:
Indiana's young adolescentsat the
crossroads of their lives between childhood
Facing the Challenge of
and adulthood and at the crossroads be-
the Twenty-First Century
tween two eras, a nationalized industrial/agri-
cultural economy and a global transnational
economyface particularly great challenges.
NAFTA, GATT, global trade, information
Their future lies in a world that is only now
highway, and research parksthese are
coming into focus, and their past lies in a
terms we hear frequently today in the news.
They point to the emerging era of com-
merce and economic development of the
If they are lucky, during these
twenty-first century. This is an era that will
years young adolescents will read
be vastly different from the industrial and
broadly and deeply
. . .
.
agricultural world of the earlier part of the
twentieth century, when factory jobs were
plentiful and farming was a family affair.
world that is quickly fading from focus.
Even in the last decade of the twentieth
They, and their parents, are caught in
century, these conditions are no longer
the middle, often unsure of how best to
present. Indiana, like many other places, is
proceed.
feeling the change.
These middle years are critical in many
The beckoning economic era is global,
It is a time when young people
ways.
It requires a
rather than national, in scope.
make important life decisions that will open
highly skilled workforce, with individuals pos-
It is also an impor-
or close future doors.
sessing the flexibility to train and retrain
tant period in the development of reading
many times over the course of their lives.
skills that will help them in transition to fu-
Gathering and processing information are
ture opportunities. If they are lucky, during
vital skills in this world, as computers and
these years young adolescents will read
their accompanying electronic formsE-mail,
broadly and deeply, learning to use reading
CD-ROM, and databanksbecome essential
as a tool for gathering information, making
tools for negotiating the world. This is a
decisions, and exploring new areas of
work world requiring very literate workers.
Not all of the changes of this new era
are restricted to business; civic life, too, is
affected. To participate fully in a modern
democracy, citizens need broad literacy and
communication skills. Politics today are
more global; at the same time, they are more
local. Televised town hall meetings, E-mail,
and other forms of media put us in closer
touch with politicians and issues. On the
other hand, because of the complex manner
in which politics, economics, and culture are
now intertwined, local events may have un-
expected ramifications on what were once
considered foreign issues. Again, a literate
AO`
Ji10.§
citizenry will be essential if informed demo-
cratic decisions are to be reached.
5
ages. Research shows that students
who do a lot of reading "on their own"
become better readers because inde-
pendent reading:
enhances their reading compre-
hension;
provides them with a wide range of
co,
background knowledge;
accounts for one-third or more of
their vocabulary growth; and
promotes reading as a lifelong
activity. (p. 1)
In addition to increased comprehension
and vocabulary, there is also strong evi-
dence that independent reading improves
writing style, spelling, and grammatical de-
knowledge. We hope they will also come to
velopment (Krashen, 1993).
see reading as pleasurable, exciting, and
Surprisingly, although television is often
It is during these years that
meaningful.
blamed for the lack of interest in reading
lifelong reading habits are formedor not
among young people today, Krashen re-
formed, as the case may be.
ports that "the culprit seems to be the
How will Indiana face the challenge of
absence of good books" (Krashen, 1993,
the twenty-first century? Whatever paths
p. 83). Access to books is essential if
the state pursues, it is clear that high lev-
young people are to engage in indepen-
els of literacy will be essential for future
dent reading, as well as in the reading
Hoosiers. This literacy achievement cannot
necessary for their school studies.
be attained without the foundation for lit-
Access to books is a broad, encom-
eracy provided by excellent school libraries.
passing concept. It means that young
people must have reading materials avail-
Reading Is Critical:
able to them in number and variety. Books,
The Role of School
magazines, and other materials should be
Libraries
up-to-date and appealing in their format
and in the way they are displayed. Young
people need encouragement to select ma-
Developing strong, competent, indepen-
terials that are challenging and about topics
dent readers is really a very simple thing if
with which they may be unfamiliar as well
you remember one adage: the more you
as those that are at comfortable reading
read, the better you read. The Center for
levels and about familiar topics.
the Study of Reading at the University of
There is overwhelming evidence that
Illinois finds that:
school libraries make a difference in provid-
ing young people with access to books.
Independent silent reading is one of
And the better the school library, the better
the most important activities for the
the results for young people's reading
reading development of students of all
2
6
The Sad State of
achievement. School libraries which have
School Libraries in
larger, quality collections; which are avail-
able to students more hours; which provide
Indiana
comfortable and relaxing reading environ-
ments; and which are staffed with qualified
In 1994 the Indiana Media Journal pub-
school librarians produce students with
lished a study of school library media pro-
higher reading achievement (Krashen, 1993).
grams that was conducted by the Associa-
"The closest correlation to high scores on
tion for Indiana Media Educators (AIME).
college entrance exams is not per-pupil ex-
Their findings should sound an alarm. This
penditure for instruction, teachers' salaries,
report states that in Indiana, the per pupil
or textbooks. Instead, by a wide margin, it
investment in the library media center is "5
is the local tax dollars spent per pupil on
to 8 years behind the national average"
library media centers" (New Jersey School
(Callison & Knuth, 1994, p. 109). The Indi-
Board Association Newsletter quoting
ana State Reading Association concurs. It
William Bainbridge, School Match President,
reports that Indiana's school libraries are
March 21, 1995).
underfunded, only purchasing a quarter of
Excellent school libraries are essential if
the books they need to keep their collec-
we are to ensure that all young people
tions current ("Indiana State Reading Asso-
have access to the reading resources that
ciation Resolution to Increase Funding for
will help them to gain the level of literacy
Books," 1994). AIME recommends that
achievement vital to meeting the challenge
school libraries purchase two books per
of the twenty-first century. While we wish
pupil per year if collections are to be ad-
that they would also find books and en-
equately sustained, and three books per
couragementfor independent reading in
pupil per year if collections are to grow to
their classrooms, in after-school programs,
meet independent reading and curricular
and at home, we cannot be sure that
these other sites will do the job. The one
needs.
Junior high school collections in Indiana
place charged with this mission is the
rank twenty-seventh nationally. The AIME
school library, and this is where we should
study found that there was "no growth in
focus our attention. Attention to school li-
braries must be at the heart of any com-
junior high school book collections and even
a decline in the book collections in senior
prehensive plan for improving youth literacy.
Adliaik
I
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Poor school library collections not only
deny young adolescents knowledge of the
world, they also deny them critical informa-
tion needed to make career choices. The
Indiana Workforce Legislation mandates that
all students in grades 1 through 12 receive
career awareness instruction, but our school
libraries are not adequate for the task. The
many out-of-date volumes on the shelves
of middle school libraries can be counted
on to present restricted career options for
women (secretary, nurse, or teacher) and
may fail to provide depictions of a multi-
cultural work force. Many of the occupations
that young people should be considering
today were not even in existence in 1970.
There are several reasons why school
libraries in Indiana are not being funded at
high schools" (Callison & Knuth, 1994,
the necessary level. One is that while
p. 134). While we engage in rhetoric about
school library budgets increased little be-
school reform, our middle grades library
tween 1980 and 1990, the cost of books
collections decline, even though we have
doubled. Out of these same budgets,
clear evidence that the size of a school
school libraries must now also eke out the
library's staff and collection is the best
cost of such large ticket items as comput-
school predictor of academic achievement
ers, CD-ROMs, and VCRs (Humphrey, 1990).
(Lance, Welborn, & Hamilton-Pennell, 1992).
Hoosiers have also failed to value
School library collections are not only
school libraries. Although Indiana has only
failing to grow, they are also aging. This
2 percent of the nation's population, it has
is a serious problem for nonfiction book
18 of the 20 largest high school gymnasi-
collections. In Indiana's junior high
ums in the country (Hoose, 1986). Not
schools, 58 percent of the nonfiction titles
only gyms but also computer resources re-
are over 15 years old, and of those, 30
ceive more support than school libraries.
percent have copyright dates that are 25
In 1994 one Indiana school corporation,
years or more old. Copyright dates of
with less than 1 percent of the state's
1970 or earlier would disqualify most books
students, announced it would spend $24
for classroom use. For middle school stu-
million to improve computer resources in its
dents studying contemporary social or sci-
schools.
In 1994 the entire state of Indi-
ence issues, this is a serious problem. In
ana spent only $7 million on library books
such dated texts, they will find no refer-
for the 1,907 schools (964,352 students) in
ences to eye, heart, or lung transplants,
the state. The primary reason that gyms
pocket calculators, or the end of apartheid
and computers receive funding, when
in South Africa, not to mention the fall of
school libraries do not, is the Capital
the Soviet Union. In fact, Nixon, our Presi-
Projects Fund. This critical source of
dent in 1970, will not have visited China
school revenue cannot be spent on books.
yet (Callison & Knuth, 1994).
4
Part of the reason that school libraries
With Hoosier school library book collec-
are overlooked in district plans is that they
tions in such dilapidated condition, the
are "invisible." Although the improvement
special efforts of teachers and librarians to
of school libraries is critical to any systemic
promote student reading often go for
reform effort, libraries have never driven a
naught. For instance, the Indiana State
reform effort. Focused as we have been
Department of Education annually distrib-
on improving school management, achieve-
utes a list of ten excellent Read-Aloud titles
ment, curriculum, specific disciplinary ap-
appropriate for use with middle grades stu-
proaches, and the like, we have not clearly
dents. Unfortunately, Indiana schools serving
young adolescents possess, on the average,
To build excellent school libraries,
only 3.4 of these titles. Few schools pos-
we must purchase at least two
sess over half of the recommended titles.
The Young Hoosier Book Award Program
books per pupil per year.
presents a similar problem. For this award,
students read 20 nominated titles and vote
stated the link to the school library. As a
for their favorites. However, the average
result, we have not studied the quality and
number of Young Hoosier Book Award titles
functioning of school libraries as we have
available in middle grades school libraries
other issues. At school and district levels,
is again low at 13.3. This is upsetting
administrators are often not aware of the
news, because the Read-Aloud titles and
library's needs, nor do they have a plan to
the Young Hoosier Book Award titles repre-
address them.
sent the best new trade books of the year.
An exciting contrast to this dismal pic-
In other words, no matter how hard dedi-
ture is that offered by Maconaquah School
cated teachers and librarians promote good
Corporation just north of Kokomo. There,
reading choices, if the materials are not
after studying school library conditions, they
there, young people cannot read them.
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5
9
learned, to their surprise, that "in this cor-
will have current book collections in ten years.
poration of 2,000 students, only 19.4 percent
In addition to the collections, good school
of the library books are current and only
libraries must be staffed by professional
slightly above one-fourth book per student
school librarians familiar with the books
per year is being purchased" (Holland, 1995,
young people like and trained in ways of
p. 1). As a result, the school board created
introducing young adolescents to reading
a library update plan, voting to spend
material. Masters of information systems,
$450,000 to implement it. While $450,000
school librarians must also be knowledgeable
may initially seem like a high price tag to
in assisting young people to learn how to
many districts, it may actually be little com-
use the resources of the library. Also im-
pared to social costs if young people do not
portant are the clerical staff who assist
have access to better school libraries. The
school librarians in the multitude of duties
Maconaquah example foreshadows the work
required to keep a school library functioning
that lies ahead for schools, districts, and
smoothly so that it can serve young people.
communities. (See appendixes for inventory
School libraries should be the heart of
forms, plans, and usage report developed
a school's life. They provide support for
by the Maconaquah School Corporation to
every area of the curriculum. They are
increase acquisition and circulation of books.)
a resource to students and faculty alike.
If we are to prepare Indiana's young
School librarians should be in close contact
people with the literacy skills they need to
with their colleagues at the local public
pursue their future optimistically, we need
library, connecting these two resources to
school libraries that have excellent fiction
better help young people.
and nonfiction collections. There is no sub-
Improving Indiana's school libraries re-
stitute for books. Without access to books,
quires knowledge and commitment. Schools
reading achievement suffers. Starving school
need to study their library services and
libraries is, in the long run, only robbing
design plans for the future. Adequate
Peter to pay Paul. To build excellent school
monetary support for the plan needs to be
libraries, we must purchase at least two
allocated, whether that comes from district,
books per pupil per year. At this rate, we
state, federal, or private funds.
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