The Extinction of School Librarians

As the Chicago Public School strike comes to an end, school librarians were in the spotlight. They as just one of the many demands made by the Chicago Teachers Union. In all of the Chicago Public School system, there are only 108 school librarians. Many see librarians as non-essential staff so when the going gets tough, the extinction of school librarians begins.

It’s easy to find similar situations in many school districts, as staff such as nurses, librarians, counselors and “specials” teachers are forced to travel between schools where their attention is divided among many more students and services are only available for part of the day.

Philadelphia

A recent Philadelphia Inquirer article just highlighted what a few volunteers are doing to make a difference at one elementary school in the district. With just nine Philadelphia schools having school librarians on staff, children are missing out on vital aspects of education.

The John B. Kelly school in Philadelphia has a school library because an individual in the community believed the importance of a school library and created a volunteer-run library accessible to the elementary school students. Open just four hours a day, the library is staffed solely by volunteers. And isn’t even computerized – everything is still circulated by hand. But, the school has a library and for the kids, many of which come from low-income households, it’s a place to connect with books, to find that character that speaks to you.

Is this the answer? Not at all. As kind-hearted and helpful as volunteers are, they cannot replace a trained and certified school librarian. But, they can make a difference and that’s why they do it. Because the kids deserve a school library. And with a broken system that allows principals to budget tor a school librarian, but can’t actually afford one, what can they do? This is the best option right now.

School Librarians

School librarians are the best of both worlds – they have a teaching and library background. They instruct students on best practices for doing research, for identifying bias, and about the importance of primary sources. Many school librarians often teach technology courses as well as running the school library. And above all, school librarians help connect kids with the books they want and need. The extinction of school librarians is not something I ever want to see.

Studies show that schools with a school librarian on staff have higher test scores. But, what about the stuff that can’t be measured? An adult in a child’s life that cares about them deeply, that understands exactly what book will make them feel seen. As more and more schools focus on social-emotional learning, reading fiction can teach kids empathy, kindness, and so much more. In a world filled with “fake news” who better to teach kids about how to recognize bias and search for facts than a school librarian?

My Thoughts

I don’t necessarily like responding to articles without providing my own “answers”, but this isn’t an easy problem to solve. I’d love to see the Department of Education at the state or federal level require school librarians in every school. Wouldn’t it be great to see schools that have a budget to purchase new material? Plus, the need for support staff to be hired so that the library can be run effectively and efficiently? I’d love to see school librarians be seen as a vital part of the community. To work closely together with public libraries to keep kids interested in books all year round.

This isn’t a new topic and sadly it’s not getting better as I wrote a post about the way back in 2012. I don’t have all the answers, but I do know that we are doing these kids a disservice by not giving them all the possibilities in this world to be successful in school and grow to be successful, kind, educated adults.