But the topic I settled on is how children's library services has changed over the years. I am taking an online course (Infopeople's Fundamentals of Children's Services) and found a number of the titles from the bibliography from the first week's readings. I opened one this morning (Work with Children in Public Libraries by Effie L. Power, published by ALA in 1943). After tracing the early history of children's services (where in 1835 the best children's library in Massachusetts was the result of a $100 bequest...in the beginning of summer I placed an Amazon order for children's paperbacks that totaled over $600 and didn't increase my collection by much!) She goes on to describe quiet afternoons of children reading quietly together and the typical reference questions a children's librarian might have to answer. Impressive stuff especially considering these early librarians did not have Google or even a catalog that they could search on their desk top!
My library is rarely ever quiet. I do spend a fair amount of my day answering questions but it is mostly specialized readers advisory, or help in finding materials on a specific subject for a specific assignment. We have storytimes and other programs, and a play area where parents and their children can socialize afterwards. We are a community center with a focus on literacy. It really is a pretty sweet place to be.
It is not without its problems though. I spend some time every afternoon monitoring computer use by kids. Reminding them to sign in, helping them find sites, and shooing away rowdy kids who are harassing kids playing on the computer or yelling out suggestions or tips to "beat the level." At least once a week I have to settle some dispute over computer use. I wonder what Effie would have to say about those activities!
The worst thing is that I feel that I am witnessing the slow death of reading for pleasure, even in young children. The school district that surrounds my library is so focused on lexiles and reading scores, that kids are being told that they must read only books within a specified lexile range. As a librarian, the very thought of lexile level being the basis of book choice, makes me want to scream. The conversations that all too often end in tears, or stony silence that include phrases like, "your teacher won't let you read this it is not in your lexile range and we are not taking that home, your teacher said it is too (easy/difficult) for you..." make me feel as angry and frustrated as the kids and their parents. Lexiles are so artificial, and have such a chilling effect on children's enjoyment of books and reading.In the very eloquent words of Karen Szymusiak and Franki Sibberson in Beyond Leveled Books:
Reading can't be distilled to a reading level, a basket of books, or a test performance. All these efforts to "improve" reading too often tighten the parameters, limit growth, and give children an artificial perspective of what reading is all about.Lexiles seem to take away a child's reading choices and turn reading into just another school "chore." As a librarian, I want to create life time readers; people that love books and reading and look forward to time spent with a book, not merely vewing time spent with a book as something that is assigned to them; something they have to grit their teeth and get through. I'm sorry, while I will do my best to support my patrons in their quest for books based on lexile, I will still do my best to fan the flame of reading in my young patrons and try to instill a passion and love for books for story's sake that will last them a life time.
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