Rant Supported by Research

photo from Library Research Services

After my recent rant about the effects of cutting school libraries, I was gratified to hear Keith Curry Lance talking with Bob Edwards.  It turns out my passion was supported with solid, irrefutable data (I love it when that happens).   

Lance is a sociologist from the University of Colorado who has been conducting research on school libraries for almost 20 years since he founded the Library Research Service.  The LRS provides an amazing repository of facts and data for schools, library, the media and, even lowly bloggers like me, to use in support of their humble opinions.  

For instance, in 2006, before the recession hit, library use was steady and trending downward.  By 2008 library use began to rise and visits per capita at libraries in Colorada grew by 5% a year.  The same trend was apparent with library circulation and attendance at library programs.  Library computer use during the recession grew a whopping 11%.  The website puts all the data together in attractive flyers with colorful graph and charts that are just perfect for posting,  handing to your town councilman or mailing to your state senator.

The heart of Lance’s research are studies he conducted first in Colorado and then around the country to determine the impact of school libraries on student achievement.  If you’d rather watch than read, you can check out the 7 part video at the LRS website (wouldn’t these clips be great at a school board meeting?)  

The original Colorado study found that the size (in staff and collections) of the library was a direct predictor of student’s reading scores.  Wow.  I’m not a PHD but I think it would be safe to say that eliminating the librarian and leaving the collection to gather dust would also have an impact on test scores?
The indirect predictors were professional librarians who played an instructional role, higher levels of library spending and socio-economic factors.

What else has an impact on library quality and student acheivement?

• collaboration between librarians and teachers
• student / librarian ratio
• library spending
• active librarians who are school leaders
• librarian that help students and teachers find the best materials
• computers with remote access to library resources

Before you blame the results on pure socio-economics, you should know that after the original study, Lance and his team designed controls in their findings for poverty, demographics, teacher quality, parent education, student/teacher ratios and spending per student.

What can a good librarian, with a great collection do to make a difference in student’s lives?  Here’s one of Lance’s examples:

Barbara St. Clair,  from Urbandale High School in Iowa, tells this story about her job as librarian:  

“During the second week of school I visited every 9th grade classroom. I introduced students to the library and booktalked all 16 Iowa Teen Award books for this year. I keep them in a special place and as soon as one comes back it is checked out again, which makes me very happy. I gave each student a bookmark with the titles and each English teacher a poster about the books. Another English teacher at a different level said that he had heard that I gave really good book talks and asked me to pick out some books to present to his basic English class.”

Dedication, caring and knowledge add up to librarians who make a difference in the lives of our kids.

Would You Rather be Unemployed or in Jail?

Kids love  the  “would you rather” game.  I actually find it pretty entertaining myself and not a bad way to foster communication and creative/critical thinking skills.  It goes like this:

“Would you rather swim with crocodiles or step on a scorpion?”
“Would you rather freeze to death or be set on fire?”
“Would you rather be stranded on a desert island alone or with someone you hate?”
(feel free to stop reading this entry and answer more questions on the Make It blog.)

The current school library crisis reminds me of this game - except no one’s playing and we are gambling with the future of our children.  In my own district we went from cutting a dedicated library period with a certified librarian to a 10 minute weekly book exchange with a part time librarian to nobody.  All our elementary school librarians were cut.  I assume that next year classroom teachers will be responsible for helping kids find materials and checking out books in our alotted 10 minutes library time.   

In Fernanda Santos New York Times article, School Eliminating Librarians as Budgets Shrink, she tells the story of Lancaster School District in Pennsylvania.  The district is in ‘Pennsylvania Dutch Country’, an area known for its slower pace, covered bridges and ‘Amish-themed attractions’ (it actually says this on the Lancaster County website.  How would you like tourists to pull into your driveway expecting to see a ‘yuppie-themed attraction’ or, in my case, a ‘frenetic mom-themed attraction’?  

Lancaster, former one day capital of the American Colonies, when the Continental Congress fled Philadelphia,  on September 27, 1777, now struggles with high unemployment and a poverty rate (21 %) that is twice the state average.  Lancaster is nicknamed ‘Spanish Rose’ for it’s high Puerto Rican population; 31% of the city’s population is Hispanic.  It is estimated that more than 900 students in the school system are homeless.   

States that don’t mandate librarians are cutting librarians faster than the administrators can pass out pink slips, leaving libraries in the dark and kids to their own devices.

Pedro Rivera, Lancaster’s superintendent, said that he had to make a choice, “it was either library or kindergarten.”  He gathered his staff and asked them what they valued most.  The leadership team placed priorities on class sizes, physical education, art, music and pre-k.  The only things left were kindergarten and library.  As a kindergarten teacher, English major, parent and obsessive reader, let me just say that this is not a choice, it is a joke.  

If American children are going to be successful in the 21st century, they need kindergarten and library.  They need to learn how to read and they need the books to do it.  If kids get out of school and can’t read well, they will not be successful - it is a simple, proven fact.

I haven’t been to Lancaster, but I have been to and worked at a lot of schools during my lifetime.  If I had to play ‘would you rather’ I might ask:

Would you rather have library or someone to empty the garbage every night?
Would you rather have library or someone to answer the phones?
Would you rather have library or someone to monitor the children while teachers get a break?
Would you rather have library or landscaping in front of the building?
Would you rather have library or another administrator pushing papers around the office? (this is an especially tough question since I’m finishing up my administration certification)

Those are the questions that we don’t ask because we don’t really value reading, librarians and the library.  Our actions speak louder than words and reveal what we value. And yes, I do value office staff, custodians, landscapers and administrators.

And if you think reading scores, graduation rates, unemployment and crime are bad now, just wait and see what happens when our population is illiterate.