School Libraries – The Final Frontier

Image via Wikipedia

School Libraries – The Final Frontier

School library media centers have certainly changed over the past decade with the major alterations in education as well as the technology boom. The world has been opened to librarians and now they tend to serve more as a dam for the community in which they work to keep everyone else from drowning in information. My previous experience, particularly in two major metropolitan libraries, has given me the following ideas for the foundation of a good high school library program by means of personal experience with certain library policies and views that I have adopted from the feedback of young adult patrons through both casual interviews and anonymous notes following special programs.

The idea that the library is merely a place to store resources and work in complete quiet is still present in today’s society, but it is certainly waning in popularity, particularly among teenagers. With such a wide variety of literature and book-related materials available, teenagers are starting to read more than ever. However, they tend to shy away from the library in favor of bookstores with bright colorful displays, comfortable places to sit and browse, and the intoxicating scent of coffee floating in the air. Any library that is going to be successful in this modern age is going to have to take a deep breath and shift more into the casual realm of a bookstore rather than the age-old idea of a spartan room full of dusty volumes guarded by a senior citizen.

Young adult fiction has really seen a boom as of late, and reading is becoming increasingly popular. Therefore, books from the 1960s that have the name of students’ parents in the back are not going to do the trick. With so many specialty bestseller lists available, sticking to items that are clearly popular with teens is going to be a good path to take considering the low budgets of most school library programs. Also, a school librarian should not be afraid of adding different types of resources to the standing collection either. With so many new television channels, shows, and educational DVDs, the students can be truly immersed in the learning process. Some teachers still utilize VHS tapes on which they recorded a program from PBS that was produced in the 1970s. However, this does not have to be the case in a modern library where there are such educational videos as Discovery Channel’s MythBusters and the History Channel’s Battles B.C. are available.