(BCTF E-news, Vol. 6, no. 5, December 11, 2006)
The minister of education has spent thousands of dollars sending letters to parents of all K12 students telling them their children are now eligible for a free public library card.
Most public libraries in the province provide cards free of charge already. Some people are upset at this enormous waste of money, especially in light of the number of school libraries that have been closed or had their hours reduced.
There is over fifty-years research showing that a well-stocked and properly staffed school library will improve academic achievement.
Monday, December 11, 2006
Friday, December 1, 2006
The teacher-librarian: A students’ best bet to acquire information literacy skills
(BC Teacher: 2006 November/December) by Lesley Edwards
One of the truly gratifying aspects of my job as a secondary school teacher-librarian is the work I do with teens helping them to become better at finding useful information on the Internet.
I remember the Grade 12 student who appeared in the library with panic written all over her face. "I spent all weekend searching the web for information for my project and couldn’t find a thing. The assignment is due in two days." I asked her what her topic was and immediately pulled up three great sites using a Google search. She looked at me incredulously. "How did you do that?" she asked. Now this was a hardworking, intelligent student and yet she was flummoxed by a simple search. She had no idea how to use keywords effectively.
I remember a class doing a project on substance abuse. They had been given clearly defined questions to answer and yet several of them were having difficulty. When I checked with them to see what keywords they were using for their search they replied, "Shrooms." With a little coaching they were able to come up with the term psilocybin, which netted them sites from sources such as Brown University’s health education page. They learned that a search using slang results in sites that offer unreliable or biased information. I then directed them to the links provided at the bottom of Brown’s page where additional reliable information could be found.
Without expert guidance, how many students will learn to use a directory like the Librarian’s Internet Index at http://lii.org/, or go beyond the first page of Google to discover how to do an advanced search? How many know about the great online databases that many schools and all public libraries subscribe to? How many know that even the creator of Wikipedia does not recommend it for student use? And finally how many know how to evaluate a web site for accuracy, authority, and reliability?
Try this at home. Do a Google search using the keywords "Martin Luther King." The first hit seems great, but closer examination shows that it is hosted by Stormfront, a white supremacist group. Similarly, the first result of a Google search for "In Flanders Fields" takes you to the American Arlington Cemetery site, the second is a Belgian museum with nothing about the poem. The eighth is hosted by a Canadian white supremacist group—the Canada First Immigration Reform Committee. There are great teaching and learning opportunities here, but those "teachable moments" are too often lost when teacher-librarians are not part of the research process.
Public librarians also offer great information services but are more likely to provide the answer teenagers need rather than teaching them how to find the answer for themselves. When a class comes to the school library to do research, I make sure that part of their session includes learning and practicing information literacy skills.
For me, teaching information literacy is all about the process, the skills of finding information, judging its quality and usefulness, paring it down to essentials, and recombining it in ways that challenge the user to employ higher-order thinking skills. It’s about using information ethically and with integrity. We don’t hand teenagers the keys to the family car without training them to drive, so why are we so willing to turn them loose on the Internet without strategies for navigating successfully and staying safe? Who better to provide solid Internet-use strategies than a teacher-librarian?
Lesley Edwards is a teacher-librarian at Seycove Secondary School, North Vancouver.
For further information, read the following:
• "The Crisis in Canada’s School Libraries: The Case for Reform and Re-Investment" by Ken Hancock at www.peopleforeducation.com/librarycoalition/Report03.pdf.
• A report prepared for the National Library of Canada, "Elementary and Secondary Schools: The Role, Challenges and Financial Conditions of School and School Library Resources in Canada" at www.collectionscanada.ca/9/14/index-e.html
• "School Libraries and Student Achievement in Ontario" at www.accessola.com/osla/graphics/eqao_pfe_study_2006.pdf.
One of the truly gratifying aspects of my job as a secondary school teacher-librarian is the work I do with teens helping them to become better at finding useful information on the Internet.
I remember the Grade 12 student who appeared in the library with panic written all over her face. "I spent all weekend searching the web for information for my project and couldn’t find a thing. The assignment is due in two days." I asked her what her topic was and immediately pulled up three great sites using a Google search. She looked at me incredulously. "How did you do that?" she asked. Now this was a hardworking, intelligent student and yet she was flummoxed by a simple search. She had no idea how to use keywords effectively.
I remember a class doing a project on substance abuse. They had been given clearly defined questions to answer and yet several of them were having difficulty. When I checked with them to see what keywords they were using for their search they replied, "Shrooms." With a little coaching they were able to come up with the term psilocybin, which netted them sites from sources such as Brown University’s health education page. They learned that a search using slang results in sites that offer unreliable or biased information. I then directed them to the links provided at the bottom of Brown’s page where additional reliable information could be found.
Without expert guidance, how many students will learn to use a directory like the Librarian’s Internet Index at http://lii.org/, or go beyond the first page of Google to discover how to do an advanced search? How many know about the great online databases that many schools and all public libraries subscribe to? How many know that even the creator of Wikipedia does not recommend it for student use? And finally how many know how to evaluate a web site for accuracy, authority, and reliability?
Try this at home. Do a Google search using the keywords "Martin Luther King." The first hit seems great, but closer examination shows that it is hosted by Stormfront, a white supremacist group. Similarly, the first result of a Google search for "In Flanders Fields" takes you to the American Arlington Cemetery site, the second is a Belgian museum with nothing about the poem. The eighth is hosted by a Canadian white supremacist group—the Canada First Immigration Reform Committee. There are great teaching and learning opportunities here, but those "teachable moments" are too often lost when teacher-librarians are not part of the research process.
Public librarians also offer great information services but are more likely to provide the answer teenagers need rather than teaching them how to find the answer for themselves. When a class comes to the school library to do research, I make sure that part of their session includes learning and practicing information literacy skills.
For me, teaching information literacy is all about the process, the skills of finding information, judging its quality and usefulness, paring it down to essentials, and recombining it in ways that challenge the user to employ higher-order thinking skills. It’s about using information ethically and with integrity. We don’t hand teenagers the keys to the family car without training them to drive, so why are we so willing to turn them loose on the Internet without strategies for navigating successfully and staying safe? Who better to provide solid Internet-use strategies than a teacher-librarian?
Lesley Edwards is a teacher-librarian at Seycove Secondary School, North Vancouver.
For further information, read the following:
• "The Crisis in Canada’s School Libraries: The Case for Reform and Re-Investment" by Ken Hancock at www.peopleforeducation.com/librarycoalition/Report03.pdf.
• A report prepared for the National Library of Canada, "Elementary and Secondary Schools: The Role, Challenges and Financial Conditions of School and School Library Resources in Canada" at www.collectionscanada.ca/9/14/index-e.html
• "School Libraries and Student Achievement in Ontario" at www.accessola.com/osla/graphics/eqao_pfe_study_2006.pdf.
Monday, November 20, 2006
Testing scheme doesn’t improve score
(BCTF E-news, Vol. 6, no. 3, Nov 20, 2006)
The BC Liberal government has been claiming it wants to improve student achievement, and by that it means test scores. Last year’s Grade 7 Foundation Skills Assessment reading scores are the lowest in five years, the same length of time the government has been in power.
When the education minister was questioned about the test results she said, “We have to ask ourselves, which [initiatives] are working and which ones are not.”
Closing school libraries and increasing class sizes haven’t helped students develop literacy skills. On the contrary, there is 50 years of research showing that a properly staffed and well-maintained school library is the best way to support academic achievement.
The BC Liberal government has been claiming it wants to improve student achievement, and by that it means test scores. Last year’s Grade 7 Foundation Skills Assessment reading scores are the lowest in five years, the same length of time the government has been in power.
When the education minister was questioned about the test results she said, “We have to ask ourselves, which [initiatives] are working and which ones are not.”
Closing school libraries and increasing class sizes haven’t helped students develop literacy skills. On the contrary, there is 50 years of research showing that a properly staffed and well-maintained school library is the best way to support academic achievement.
Monday, October 23, 2006
National School Library Day
(BCTF: 2006 Oct 23)
October 23 is National School Library Day. "School libraries help lay the foundation for lifelong learning and students read more when they have access to a variety of materials to enhance learning," says BCTF President Jinny Sims. "Student achievement is linked to access to school libraries and it’s important that schools are well-resourced with curriculum-based collections and strong library programs." The annual survey of school library learning conditions conducted by the BC Teacher-Librarians’ Association points to a drastic need to support school libraries. In light of the government's stated commitment to literacy, the erosion of school library staffing and resources simply does not make sense.
October 23 is National School Library Day. "School libraries help lay the foundation for lifelong learning and students read more when they have access to a variety of materials to enhance learning," says BCTF President Jinny Sims. "Student achievement is linked to access to school libraries and it’s important that schools are well-resourced with curriculum-based collections and strong library programs." The annual survey of school library learning conditions conducted by the BC Teacher-Librarians’ Association points to a drastic need to support school libraries. In light of the government's stated commitment to literacy, the erosion of school library staffing and resources simply does not make sense.
Sunday, October 1, 2006
BCTF salutes teacher-librarians
(BCTF News Release: 2006 October 19)
Teachers around the province are celebrating the work of their peers through their support and acknowledgment of National School Library Day, October 23.
The BC Teachers' Federation (BCTF) says this day highlights the connection between reading and learning. President Jinny Sims says, "We are concerned about the lack of specialist teachers such as teacher-librarians, who foster our children's love of books. School libraries help lay the foundation for lifelong learning and students read more when they have access to a variety of materials to enhance learning. Our school libraries are staffed with professional teacher-librarians who know what information will stimulate and engage students."
Sims says student achievement is linked to access to school libraries and it's important that schools are well-resourced with curriculum-based collections and strong library programs. "The government must fully fund school libraries," says Sims, "not only by ensuring the shelves are well-stocked with current and cutting-edge resources, but by staffing the libraries with full-time teacher-librarians. It's alarming that in BC, only 18% of school libraries have a full-time teacher-librarian."
The BCTF is heartened that the provincial government wants BC to be world's literacy leader, but Sims says, "in order for that to happen, we need sufficient funding. School libraries should be places for our children to expand their knowledge and to feed their love of learning. Instead, they have become the hallmark of budget constraints and many school boards have been slow in repairing the damage that years of budget cuts have done."
Sims says the BCTF applauds the hard work of teacher-librarians and recognizes the unique struggles they face.
Teachers around the province are celebrating the work of their peers through their support and acknowledgment of National School Library Day, October 23.
The BC Teachers' Federation (BCTF) says this day highlights the connection between reading and learning. President Jinny Sims says, "We are concerned about the lack of specialist teachers such as teacher-librarians, who foster our children's love of books. School libraries help lay the foundation for lifelong learning and students read more when they have access to a variety of materials to enhance learning. Our school libraries are staffed with professional teacher-librarians who know what information will stimulate and engage students."
Sims says student achievement is linked to access to school libraries and it's important that schools are well-resourced with curriculum-based collections and strong library programs. "The government must fully fund school libraries," says Sims, "not only by ensuring the shelves are well-stocked with current and cutting-edge resources, but by staffing the libraries with full-time teacher-librarians. It's alarming that in BC, only 18% of school libraries have a full-time teacher-librarian."
The BCTF is heartened that the provincial government wants BC to be world's literacy leader, but Sims says, "in order for that to happen, we need sufficient funding. School libraries should be places for our children to expand their knowledge and to feed their love of learning. Instead, they have become the hallmark of budget constraints and many school boards have been slow in repairing the damage that years of budget cuts have done."
Sims says the BCTF applauds the hard work of teacher-librarians and recognizes the unique struggles they face.
Friday, September 1, 2006
World Peace Forum: For the sake of the children
(BC Teacher: 2006 September) by Murray Corren
Following her riveting presentation at the World Peace Forum in June, I had the honour of interviewing children’s literature author, Deborah Ellis. "Deborah is that all too rare artist whose deeply rooted sense of social justice is manifest in writing that is lively, lucid, and highly entertaining. In settings as diverse as Afghanistan, Malawi, Bolivia, medieval Paris, and Regent Park in Toronto, her novels chronicle the lives of youngsters faced with enormous challenges," was the verdict of the Vickey Metcalf Award for Children’s Literature jury.
This extraordinary writer is a long-time women’s rights and anti-war activist who has authored socially engaging novels about children living in environments of violence, conflict, and earth-shattering calamities. However, anyone reading her work will also be deeply touched by the extraordinary and uplifting acts of courage by her child-heroes.
Of herself, Deborah says, "My books reflect the heroism of people around the world who are struggling for decent lives. It has been a real privilege for me to sit with people in many parts of the world and learn how their lives have been drastically altered by war or disease, and how they try to remain kind in spite of it all. This has taught me how fundamentally alike we all are."
All the royalties from many of her books, translated into numerous languages, are donated to the education of women and girls in Afghanistan, to Street Kids International, and to UNICEF.
When I mention these generous acts of kindness, Deborah responds with, "Oh, it’s nothing." To date, The Breadwinner and Parvana’s Journey alone have raised over $500,000 to support the women and girls of Afghanistan.
Winner of numerous children’s literature awards, Deborah Ellis works as a mental health counselor in a group home for women in Simcoe, Ontario.
How did you become involved in anti-bomb politics and in feminism?
I came of age in l978, when the world was about to blow itself up in an atomic war. I write about what interests me, which is how people move about in a world of cruelty, and find some measure of kindness in that cruelty.
When I was in high school in Paris, Ontario, some local volunteers involved in the antibomb movement came and gave a talk and I became interested in it and became involved.
Unfortunately, the guys who were there were very chauvinistic. Various organizations were connected to the antibomb political movement, one of them being a feminist organization. It was then that I became interested in feminism.
Tell me more about those measures of kindness you have witnessed.
I have seen so many acts of kindness, I hardly know where to begin. I have seen people in the Afghan refugee camps, who have lost their own children through war or illness, take in other children who have lost their parents and made them their own.
You spent time in Afghan refugee camps in Pakistan prior to writing the "Breadwinner" trilogy. What were the circumstances that brought you to do that?
I and some others were doing solidarity work with Afghan women after the Taliban takeover of Kabul in September l996. I went over to the camps to collect their stories to share with others, and heard about girls masquerading as boys in order to support their families.
Who were some of the people you met?
I met former teachers, principals, and doctors working in secret trying to get medical help to people inside Afghanistan. I met a woman who had been married at nine years old and was widowed at 10 when her husband was killed in the war. I met women who smuggled guns for the Mujahadine into the country to fight the Russians.
I’d like to turn now to the "Breadwinner" trilogy. The books portray events that some might say are too disturbing for children to read about and could take away their innocence. What do you say to those concerns?
The children I’ve met who have read my books, or lived in the situations I write about, are capable of knowing the truth of the world as it is presented to them, and, at the same time, believing in make-believe, in dreams, and in decency.
What message would you like children to get from those three books?
We often carry with us the books we read as children. If the kids who read my books remember them when they get to be decision makers, and their government says its time to go to war, hopefully they’ll remember that there are real people under those bombs, people like Parvana, and will think seriously before letting their government get away with killing them in their name.
The Canadian government recently announced an increased expenditure of $17 billion on the military. How else do you think that money might have been spent?
A teacher in Afghanistan earns roughly $750 a year. Seventeen billion dollars would hire a lot of teachers, build a lot of schools, put a lot of people back to work, give a lot of people a sense of future.
There are Canadians who think we should not be in Afghanistan in combat mode, that our soldiers are being injured or killed. The theme of the World Peace Forum is the futility of war and how conflict does not solve problems. What would you say to those people?
We should not be in Afghanistan in combat. What invariably happens is that innocent people will be in the way of the fighting and will be hurt or killed. War not only destroys buildings, it also destroys the social fabric of a people and leaves them with no way of putting their lives back together. What we should be doing as Canadians is bringing a whole other set of skills—building schools, hospitals, roads, etc.—setting up an infrastructure whereby people affected by the war can begin to re-establish a functioning social structure that gives them peaceful alternatives to war. For instance, I think it’s in the Congo where a very exciting program is happening, where people are being given bicycles in exchange for their guns and are being shown lots of different ways they can use those bicycles to make a living.
Apart from the "Breadwinner" trilogy, what other books have you written?
Other books of mine are: The Heaven Shop, a novel about children dealing with AIDS in Malawi, Our Stories, Our Songs, interviews I did with kids affected by AIDS in Malawi and Zambia, Three Wishes, Children of Israel and Palestine Speak, Interviews I did with kids in Israel and Palestine, A Company of Fools, a novel about the plague in the Middle Ages is my favourite because it was the most fun to write, Looking for X, a novel and some books in the "Our Canadian Girl Series."
Deborah, thank you.
For any teachers considering using Deborah Ellis’s books in their classrooms but who may wonder if their students are ready for such powerful stories, I would say that I have used Deborah Ellis’s books in Grade 4 and 5 classrooms and, without doubt, children have received and responded to them with maturity, insight, and compassion that would put many adults to shame. So, if you are an intermediate, middle, or secondary teacher, and you are looking for a writer who will engage, inspire, and inform your students, I can think of no better choice.
Murray Corren is district staff at Winslow Centre, Coquitlam.
Following her riveting presentation at the World Peace Forum in June, I had the honour of interviewing children’s literature author, Deborah Ellis. "Deborah is that all too rare artist whose deeply rooted sense of social justice is manifest in writing that is lively, lucid, and highly entertaining. In settings as diverse as Afghanistan, Malawi, Bolivia, medieval Paris, and Regent Park in Toronto, her novels chronicle the lives of youngsters faced with enormous challenges," was the verdict of the Vickey Metcalf Award for Children’s Literature jury.
This extraordinary writer is a long-time women’s rights and anti-war activist who has authored socially engaging novels about children living in environments of violence, conflict, and earth-shattering calamities. However, anyone reading her work will also be deeply touched by the extraordinary and uplifting acts of courage by her child-heroes.
Of herself, Deborah says, "My books reflect the heroism of people around the world who are struggling for decent lives. It has been a real privilege for me to sit with people in many parts of the world and learn how their lives have been drastically altered by war or disease, and how they try to remain kind in spite of it all. This has taught me how fundamentally alike we all are."
All the royalties from many of her books, translated into numerous languages, are donated to the education of women and girls in Afghanistan, to Street Kids International, and to UNICEF.
When I mention these generous acts of kindness, Deborah responds with, "Oh, it’s nothing." To date, The Breadwinner and Parvana’s Journey alone have raised over $500,000 to support the women and girls of Afghanistan.
Winner of numerous children’s literature awards, Deborah Ellis works as a mental health counselor in a group home for women in Simcoe, Ontario.
How did you become involved in anti-bomb politics and in feminism?
I came of age in l978, when the world was about to blow itself up in an atomic war. I write about what interests me, which is how people move about in a world of cruelty, and find some measure of kindness in that cruelty.
When I was in high school in Paris, Ontario, some local volunteers involved in the antibomb movement came and gave a talk and I became interested in it and became involved.
Unfortunately, the guys who were there were very chauvinistic. Various organizations were connected to the antibomb political movement, one of them being a feminist organization. It was then that I became interested in feminism.
Tell me more about those measures of kindness you have witnessed.
I have seen so many acts of kindness, I hardly know where to begin. I have seen people in the Afghan refugee camps, who have lost their own children through war or illness, take in other children who have lost their parents and made them their own.
You spent time in Afghan refugee camps in Pakistan prior to writing the "Breadwinner" trilogy. What were the circumstances that brought you to do that?
I and some others were doing solidarity work with Afghan women after the Taliban takeover of Kabul in September l996. I went over to the camps to collect their stories to share with others, and heard about girls masquerading as boys in order to support their families.
Who were some of the people you met?
I met former teachers, principals, and doctors working in secret trying to get medical help to people inside Afghanistan. I met a woman who had been married at nine years old and was widowed at 10 when her husband was killed in the war. I met women who smuggled guns for the Mujahadine into the country to fight the Russians.
I’d like to turn now to the "Breadwinner" trilogy. The books portray events that some might say are too disturbing for children to read about and could take away their innocence. What do you say to those concerns?
The children I’ve met who have read my books, or lived in the situations I write about, are capable of knowing the truth of the world as it is presented to them, and, at the same time, believing in make-believe, in dreams, and in decency.
What message would you like children to get from those three books?
We often carry with us the books we read as children. If the kids who read my books remember them when they get to be decision makers, and their government says its time to go to war, hopefully they’ll remember that there are real people under those bombs, people like Parvana, and will think seriously before letting their government get away with killing them in their name.
The Canadian government recently announced an increased expenditure of $17 billion on the military. How else do you think that money might have been spent?
A teacher in Afghanistan earns roughly $750 a year. Seventeen billion dollars would hire a lot of teachers, build a lot of schools, put a lot of people back to work, give a lot of people a sense of future.
There are Canadians who think we should not be in Afghanistan in combat mode, that our soldiers are being injured or killed. The theme of the World Peace Forum is the futility of war and how conflict does not solve problems. What would you say to those people?
We should not be in Afghanistan in combat. What invariably happens is that innocent people will be in the way of the fighting and will be hurt or killed. War not only destroys buildings, it also destroys the social fabric of a people and leaves them with no way of putting their lives back together. What we should be doing as Canadians is bringing a whole other set of skills—building schools, hospitals, roads, etc.—setting up an infrastructure whereby people affected by the war can begin to re-establish a functioning social structure that gives them peaceful alternatives to war. For instance, I think it’s in the Congo where a very exciting program is happening, where people are being given bicycles in exchange for their guns and are being shown lots of different ways they can use those bicycles to make a living.
Apart from the "Breadwinner" trilogy, what other books have you written?
Other books of mine are: The Heaven Shop, a novel about children dealing with AIDS in Malawi, Our Stories, Our Songs, interviews I did with kids affected by AIDS in Malawi and Zambia, Three Wishes, Children of Israel and Palestine Speak, Interviews I did with kids in Israel and Palestine, A Company of Fools, a novel about the plague in the Middle Ages is my favourite because it was the most fun to write, Looking for X, a novel and some books in the "Our Canadian Girl Series."
Deborah, thank you.
For any teachers considering using Deborah Ellis’s books in their classrooms but who may wonder if their students are ready for such powerful stories, I would say that I have used Deborah Ellis’s books in Grade 4 and 5 classrooms and, without doubt, children have received and responded to them with maturity, insight, and compassion that would put many adults to shame. So, if you are an intermediate, middle, or secondary teacher, and you are looking for a writer who will engage, inspire, and inform your students, I can think of no better choice.
Murray Corren is district staff at Winslow Centre, Coquitlam.
Celebrate school libraries!
(BC Teacher: 2006 September) by Rick Mulholland
Almost every school has some form of a school library. To paraphrase a quote by American novelist Shelby Foote, a school is just a group of classrooms gathered around a library. In the past few issues of Teacher newsmagazine, we have read a number of articles relating to school libraries, their programs, their personnel, and how important they are to the education of our students. Now we need to turn the attention to something that is rarely done for school libraries. It is something that many teacher-librarians find difficult to do—we need to promote ourselves—we need to celebrate! This is supported by a leading researcher in school librarianship, Dr. Ross J. Todd, who says it is "part of critically reviewing objectives in relation to learning, and ensuring that student learning outcomes are not only able to be identified, but are acknowledged and celebrated by the school community."
We can celebrate our programs by showcasing students’ projects in a number of ways, including displays in the library or office display cabinet and publishing written work in the school newsletter or on a web site. Why not approach the local newspaper to have students’ work published in the weekend paper? What about the local media showcasing the actual unit in action?
But the best way to celebrate school libraries is on the fourth Monday in October. International School Library Day was proclaimed in 1999 by then International Association of School Librarianship president Dr. Blanche Woolls and reaffirmed last year by the current International Association of School Librarianship president, Peter Genco. International School Library Day is an opportunity for school libraries to showcase their role in the promotion of reading and literacy skills as well as information literacy skills, which help to provide the foundations for lifelong learning. School libraries matter and make a difference!
In Canada, National School Library Day, which is celebrated on the same day as International School Library Day, was proclaimed by Roch Carrier, then National Librarian of Canada, at the National School Library Summit held in Ottawa in June of 2003. The first National School Library Day was held on Monday, October 27, 2003.
International School Library Day and National School Library Day provide the school community an opportunity to celebrate the importance of the school library. It is a day where teachers, students, parents, administrators, and of course teacher-librarians stand up and show the Canadian public that school libraries matter.
On Monday October 23, 2006, school communities around the world will be celebrating the 8th International School Library Day with the theme Reading. Knowing. Doing. This highlights the connection between reading and the application of knowledge. I urge every member of the BC school community to join their teacher-librarian in celebrating the important role that school library programs have in our education system today and in the future.
For more information, visit the following web sites: International School Library Day (www.iasl-slo.org/isld.html), National School Library Day (www.nsld.ca).
Rick Mulholland is a teacher-librarian at East Clayton Elementary School, Surrey.
Almost every school has some form of a school library. To paraphrase a quote by American novelist Shelby Foote, a school is just a group of classrooms gathered around a library. In the past few issues of Teacher newsmagazine, we have read a number of articles relating to school libraries, their programs, their personnel, and how important they are to the education of our students. Now we need to turn the attention to something that is rarely done for school libraries. It is something that many teacher-librarians find difficult to do—we need to promote ourselves—we need to celebrate! This is supported by a leading researcher in school librarianship, Dr. Ross J. Todd, who says it is "part of critically reviewing objectives in relation to learning, and ensuring that student learning outcomes are not only able to be identified, but are acknowledged and celebrated by the school community."
We can celebrate our programs by showcasing students’ projects in a number of ways, including displays in the library or office display cabinet and publishing written work in the school newsletter or on a web site. Why not approach the local newspaper to have students’ work published in the weekend paper? What about the local media showcasing the actual unit in action?
But the best way to celebrate school libraries is on the fourth Monday in October. International School Library Day was proclaimed in 1999 by then International Association of School Librarianship president Dr. Blanche Woolls and reaffirmed last year by the current International Association of School Librarianship president, Peter Genco. International School Library Day is an opportunity for school libraries to showcase their role in the promotion of reading and literacy skills as well as information literacy skills, which help to provide the foundations for lifelong learning. School libraries matter and make a difference!
In Canada, National School Library Day, which is celebrated on the same day as International School Library Day, was proclaimed by Roch Carrier, then National Librarian of Canada, at the National School Library Summit held in Ottawa in June of 2003. The first National School Library Day was held on Monday, October 27, 2003.
International School Library Day and National School Library Day provide the school community an opportunity to celebrate the importance of the school library. It is a day where teachers, students, parents, administrators, and of course teacher-librarians stand up and show the Canadian public that school libraries matter.
On Monday October 23, 2006, school communities around the world will be celebrating the 8th International School Library Day with the theme Reading. Knowing. Doing. This highlights the connection between reading and the application of knowledge. I urge every member of the BC school community to join their teacher-librarian in celebrating the important role that school library programs have in our education system today and in the future.
For more information, visit the following web sites: International School Library Day (www.iasl-slo.org/isld.html), National School Library Day (www.nsld.ca).
Rick Mulholland is a teacher-librarian at East Clayton Elementary School, Surrey.
Thursday, June 1, 2006
Teacher-librarians working and learning conditions survey
(BC Teacher: 2006 May/June)
Annually the BC Teacher-Librarians’ Association (BCTLA) surveys its members via its Working and Learning Conditions survey (W&L). The data gathered allows the group to track staffing and funding levels around the province and inform and advocate for teacher-librarians, school libraries, and school library programs. The 2005–06 survey marked the 25th annual survey of teacher-librarians of BC by the BCTLA. The online survey gathered a total of 852 responses from school libraries across the province. Responses were received from schools in all but two districts. In total, 50.7% of schools responded. The full report will be published with the Spring 2006 issue of The Bookmark and is also available on the BCTLA web site http://bctf.ca/bctla.
The research
According to Lance and Loertscher, Powering achievement: School library media programs make a difference: The evidence (2003), "In schools with well-stocked, well-equipped school libraries, managed by qualified and motivated professional teacher-librarians working with support staff, one can expect: capable and avid readers, learners who are information literate, and teachers who are partnering with the teacher-librarian to create high-quality learning experiences. Standardized scores tend to be 10 to 20% higher than in schools without this investment."
There are over 50 years of academic studies on the correlation between school libraries and student achievement. Most recent and notable include those completed in Alaska, Colorado, Pennsylvania, and Scotland. Similar results and conclusions were reported in all the studies: school library programs and teacher-librarians have a positive impact on student academic achievement.
Dr. Ken Haycock, in his recent report, "The Crisis in Canada’s School Libraries—The Case for Reform and Re-Investment (2003)," details the conclusions of a multitude of academic studies on the relationship between school libraries, teacher-librarians, and student achievement.
Haycock reveals a body of research evidence with a compelling link between student achievement and the presence of well-stocked, properly funded, and professionally developed school library programs and services.
School libraries in BC have a long way to go because of years of cuts and poor decision making.
Professional staffing
The BCTLA W&L survey results indicate that although there has been a marginal increase in the number of full-time equivalent (FTE) teacher-librarians in the province (this year there is one teacher-librarian for every 820 students instead of one for every 828 students as was the case last year), only 18% of school libraries have a full-time teacher-librarian.
This study found 95% of libraries had a teacher-librarian in charge. Just over 3% of libraries had a technician or clerk in charge and over 1% had another person (parent, volunteer or principal) in charge. Three schools did not have anybody in charge of the library.
The survey shows that the number of teacher-librarians, expressed in FTE/1,000 students has increased slightly at the elementary level to 1.45 FTE/ 1,000. Middle and secondary school levels teacher-librarian FTEs fall at 1.19 and 0.99 respectively. Previous studies have shown an overall decline in teacher-librarian FTEs of 0.28 per 1,000 students for elementary schools and 0.22 per 1,000 students for secondary schools between 1999 and 2003.
Funding
The funding allocation for BC school libraries generally falls short of the national standards. National standards from Achieving Information Literacy: Standards for School Libraries published by the Canadian School Library Association and the Association for School Libraries in Canada (2003) identify acceptable funding per student as being between $36 to $45 for secondary, $31 to $42 for middle, and $26 to $35 for elementary based on the average costs of materials in the year 2002. The BCTLA W&L survey revealed average provincial funding levels per student to be $12.33 at elementary, $13.38 at middle school, and $12.74 at secondary. Average school district budget allocations per student range from a low of $5.92 to $36.84.
School libraries can hardly be expected to maintain an up-to-date collection in good repair when funding with such inadequate budgets.
BC’s school libraries relying on fundraising to supplement core library budgets is cause for concern. Many schools turn to fundraising to attempt to fill the funding gap. The survey revealed that the amounts raised by parents, book fairs, bake sales, and other fundraising activities varies considerably by school, depending on the resources available and the wealth of the neighbourhood. The range of funds raised is further cause for concern given that it points to inequities in fundraising capacity and thus inequities in the provision of library services between schools. Data from the 2005–06 study, excluding those who did not report money from fundraising (117 out of 852 schools), show that the range of funds raised was from $50 at one small secondary school in the interior of the province to $45,000 for a school in the greater Vancouver region. This year, the provincial average amount raised per school was $2,410; last year it was slightly lower at $2,110.
Conclusions
The BCTLA welcomed the January 31, 2005 Ministry of Education news release that announced $150 million for school libraries, music, arts programs, and support for special needs students. It is not apparent, however, that this infusion has translated into substantive positive changes for school library programs and teacher-librarian staffing. The Ministry of Education web site identified that only 12 of 60 school districts indicated that they planned to use this funding for improving library and learning resources.
Although it is a goal of the government to make BC the most literate jurisdiction in North America by 2010, more attention must be given to funding and teacher-librarian staffing levels in BC public schools if this goal is to become a reality. BCTLA calls on the ministry to provide guidance for best practice by reviewing and revising "policies on school libraries and teacher-librarians based on best practice models" (The Crisis in Canada’s School Libraries, 39) to gain greatest return on the school library investment.
Annually the BC Teacher-Librarians’ Association (BCTLA) surveys its members via its Working and Learning Conditions survey (W&L). The data gathered allows the group to track staffing and funding levels around the province and inform and advocate for teacher-librarians, school libraries, and school library programs. The 2005–06 survey marked the 25th annual survey of teacher-librarians of BC by the BCTLA. The online survey gathered a total of 852 responses from school libraries across the province. Responses were received from schools in all but two districts. In total, 50.7% of schools responded. The full report will be published with the Spring 2006 issue of The Bookmark and is also available on the BCTLA web site http://bctf.ca/bctla.
The research
According to Lance and Loertscher, Powering achievement: School library media programs make a difference: The evidence (2003), "In schools with well-stocked, well-equipped school libraries, managed by qualified and motivated professional teacher-librarians working with support staff, one can expect: capable and avid readers, learners who are information literate, and teachers who are partnering with the teacher-librarian to create high-quality learning experiences. Standardized scores tend to be 10 to 20% higher than in schools without this investment."
There are over 50 years of academic studies on the correlation between school libraries and student achievement. Most recent and notable include those completed in Alaska, Colorado, Pennsylvania, and Scotland. Similar results and conclusions were reported in all the studies: school library programs and teacher-librarians have a positive impact on student academic achievement.
Dr. Ken Haycock, in his recent report, "The Crisis in Canada’s School Libraries—The Case for Reform and Re-Investment (2003)," details the conclusions of a multitude of academic studies on the relationship between school libraries, teacher-librarians, and student achievement.
Haycock reveals a body of research evidence with a compelling link between student achievement and the presence of well-stocked, properly funded, and professionally developed school library programs and services.
School libraries in BC have a long way to go because of years of cuts and poor decision making.
Professional staffing
The BCTLA W&L survey results indicate that although there has been a marginal increase in the number of full-time equivalent (FTE) teacher-librarians in the province (this year there is one teacher-librarian for every 820 students instead of one for every 828 students as was the case last year), only 18% of school libraries have a full-time teacher-librarian.
This study found 95% of libraries had a teacher-librarian in charge. Just over 3% of libraries had a technician or clerk in charge and over 1% had another person (parent, volunteer or principal) in charge. Three schools did not have anybody in charge of the library.
The survey shows that the number of teacher-librarians, expressed in FTE/1,000 students has increased slightly at the elementary level to 1.45 FTE/ 1,000. Middle and secondary school levels teacher-librarian FTEs fall at 1.19 and 0.99 respectively. Previous studies have shown an overall decline in teacher-librarian FTEs of 0.28 per 1,000 students for elementary schools and 0.22 per 1,000 students for secondary schools between 1999 and 2003.
Funding
The funding allocation for BC school libraries generally falls short of the national standards. National standards from Achieving Information Literacy: Standards for School Libraries published by the Canadian School Library Association and the Association for School Libraries in Canada (2003) identify acceptable funding per student as being between $36 to $45 for secondary, $31 to $42 for middle, and $26 to $35 for elementary based on the average costs of materials in the year 2002. The BCTLA W&L survey revealed average provincial funding levels per student to be $12.33 at elementary, $13.38 at middle school, and $12.74 at secondary. Average school district budget allocations per student range from a low of $5.92 to $36.84.
School libraries can hardly be expected to maintain an up-to-date collection in good repair when funding with such inadequate budgets.
BC’s school libraries relying on fundraising to supplement core library budgets is cause for concern. Many schools turn to fundraising to attempt to fill the funding gap. The survey revealed that the amounts raised by parents, book fairs, bake sales, and other fundraising activities varies considerably by school, depending on the resources available and the wealth of the neighbourhood. The range of funds raised is further cause for concern given that it points to inequities in fundraising capacity and thus inequities in the provision of library services between schools. Data from the 2005–06 study, excluding those who did not report money from fundraising (117 out of 852 schools), show that the range of funds raised was from $50 at one small secondary school in the interior of the province to $45,000 for a school in the greater Vancouver region. This year, the provincial average amount raised per school was $2,410; last year it was slightly lower at $2,110.
Conclusions
The BCTLA welcomed the January 31, 2005 Ministry of Education news release that announced $150 million for school libraries, music, arts programs, and support for special needs students. It is not apparent, however, that this infusion has translated into substantive positive changes for school library programs and teacher-librarian staffing. The Ministry of Education web site identified that only 12 of 60 school districts indicated that they planned to use this funding for improving library and learning resources.
Although it is a goal of the government to make BC the most literate jurisdiction in North America by 2010, more attention must be given to funding and teacher-librarian staffing levels in BC public schools if this goal is to become a reality. BCTLA calls on the ministry to provide guidance for best practice by reviewing and revising "policies on school libraries and teacher-librarians based on best practice models" (The Crisis in Canada’s School Libraries, 39) to gain greatest return on the school library investment.
Saturday, April 1, 2006
Cuts to teacher-librarians: Blame the schools
(BCTF: 2006 Apr. 11)
Deputy Education Minister Emery Dosdall is providing weekly government spin for administrators and trustees through his weekly "Report on Education." On April 7, 2006, he reported on the budget estimate debates in the legislature. He noted that the opposition raised the issue of the reduction in teacher-librarian staffing levels. His response?
"There was concern expressed that the number of teacher-librarians has been drastically reduced since 2001. The minister expressed her view that these staffing decisions and priorities were best determined locally. She said, '...we believe that schools have to make choices about what's best to serve their students in this province. I actually have confidence in educators and parents and teachers working together to determine how best to serve those students...We fundamentally believe that's the best way for us to manage the system.'"
Commenting on the opposition criticism that the accountability contracts were virtually identical from district to district, Dosdall said, "And yes, all districts have a goal focused on literacy, as they should."
Despite 50 years of research showing the strong relationship between a well-staffed and resourced library and high literacy levels, the deputy minister still thinks that testing is the key.
Deputy Education Minister Emery Dosdall is providing weekly government spin for administrators and trustees through his weekly "Report on Education." On April 7, 2006, he reported on the budget estimate debates in the legislature. He noted that the opposition raised the issue of the reduction in teacher-librarian staffing levels. His response?
"There was concern expressed that the number of teacher-librarians has been drastically reduced since 2001. The minister expressed her view that these staffing decisions and priorities were best determined locally. She said, '...we believe that schools have to make choices about what's best to serve their students in this province. I actually have confidence in educators and parents and teachers working together to determine how best to serve those students...We fundamentally believe that's the best way for us to manage the system.'"
Commenting on the opposition criticism that the accountability contracts were virtually identical from district to district, Dosdall said, "And yes, all districts have a goal focused on literacy, as they should."
Despite 50 years of research showing the strong relationship between a well-staffed and resourced library and high literacy levels, the deputy minister still thinks that testing is the key.
Wednesday, March 1, 2006
Bringing home the school library sea
(BC Teacher: 2006 March) by Kalen Marquis
Einstein stated that, "Imagination is more important than knowledge." This celebrated man of science knew that knowledge—whether acquired as facts or applied as skills—is not nearly as significant as what learners do with it. Einstein, who did his most important thinking visually, trusted the expansive and abundant imaginative process that transforms, transcends, and creates anew. He knew the importance of metaphor.
As a teacher-librarian, the picture I would like to paint is the school library as the ocean, the salt chuck, the sea. In its abundance, it is a marvel of sensory wonder, a book and resource collection that yields many timeless treasures. Whether archetypically "deep, dark, and mysterious" or meek, mild, and shallow, it mirrors the values and sensibilities, the wishes, wants, and dreams of each beholder. With each term’s beginning and ending, with every daily and weekly ripple created by staff and student borrowers, a sea of books and resources rises up, depositing carefully selected words and images in classrooms and in staff and student homes. One book at a time, borrowers literally bring home the school library sea.
In waves of fiction and non-fiction, the school library sea ebbs, pulses, crashes, erodes; it deposits and builds, creating and recreating each school’s cultural and educational heritage, the broadest and best of "old" and "new." From republished classics to the increasingly commercial contemporary, each book, poster, CD, and DVD advances and retreats, riding lunar tides of wind and water, before returning home—very often requiring a teacher-librarian’s replacement or repair.
Whether that teacher-librarian is perceived to be a meticulous seaside groundskeeper, a stealthy lifeguard, a knowledgeable ocean-park interpreter, a remote yet luminary lighthouse keeper, or even a much more fanciful, star-struck storyteller, depends upon the needs and priorities, the values and sensibilities of each school community.
Admittedly, after generations of decline that has left teacher-librarians on duty for just over one day a week in the average Canadian school, it is difficult to imagine a teacher-librarian with the time and resources to respond thoughtfully and lovingly to the minds and hearts of learners.
While current generations of students are trained in the narrow, equidistant lanes of highly chlorinated lap pools, complete with coaches, timers, and scoreboards to put them through their competitive paces, there is a growing call from the wisest, most seafaring families and educators: When will our children return to the more treasure-laden folds of the school library sea? Will we, with warm, daily welcomes and some requisite hand-holding, help children from land-loving families to move beyond smooth-bottomed wading pools and the narrow, directed confines of the lap pool? Will our children have the opportunity to seek the majestically shifting plains of sand and sea where they can venture out, swimming widely, deeply, and joyfully in every direction in the school library sea?
Setting sail in ships marked "Coalition for School Libraries" those bold seafarers know that the tide has been out for several decades and they must navigate in deep, dark, increasingly distant waters with the competing allure of a landlubber’s paradise. Their mission, on a nationwide scale, is to bring back the school library sea.
While teacher-librarians might be lured onto makeshift wharves to await these docking ships, their time is precious. As groundskeepers on litter patrol, lifeguards doing first aid, and interpreters preparing self-guided tours, their time is fragmented. They are distracted from their role as lighthouse keepers who salvage handfuls of fine books from across Canada and around the world—souvenirs of the Renaissance in children’s literature that no longer reaches school library shores.
As star-struck storytellers, they are often unavailable—too harried or hardened from hoping against hope that this year will mark the lowest ebb.
Like those on ships marked "Coalition," they are witness to a generation of seaside learners set loose with modern metal detectors to find treasures of a tinny kind, or lined up for a turn on high-powered hovercraft that skim across barren shores to reach a more distant worldwide sea. These exciting vessels do not come equipped with form-fitting life jackets, all-weather navigation equipment, or the depth sounder of a human mind and heart. They do not, as indeed they cannot, recognize the wisdom in Omar Bradley’s saying, "We need to learn to set our course by the stars, not by the light of each passing ship."
While study after study shows the importance of an abundant library sea with innovative, flexibly scheduled programs provided by an accessible and enthusiastic old salt, few decision-makers champion them. Knowledge, as Einstein knew, is not enough. Imagination—a starry-eyed picture and a lifelong educational vision—is desperately required.
Kalen Marquis is a fanciful, star-struck storyteller at Kanaka Creek Elementary School, Maple Ridge, and editor of Mr. Marquis’ Museletter, kwilville@shaw.ca.
Einstein stated that, "Imagination is more important than knowledge." This celebrated man of science knew that knowledge—whether acquired as facts or applied as skills—is not nearly as significant as what learners do with it. Einstein, who did his most important thinking visually, trusted the expansive and abundant imaginative process that transforms, transcends, and creates anew. He knew the importance of metaphor.
As a teacher-librarian, the picture I would like to paint is the school library as the ocean, the salt chuck, the sea. In its abundance, it is a marvel of sensory wonder, a book and resource collection that yields many timeless treasures. Whether archetypically "deep, dark, and mysterious" or meek, mild, and shallow, it mirrors the values and sensibilities, the wishes, wants, and dreams of each beholder. With each term’s beginning and ending, with every daily and weekly ripple created by staff and student borrowers, a sea of books and resources rises up, depositing carefully selected words and images in classrooms and in staff and student homes. One book at a time, borrowers literally bring home the school library sea.
In waves of fiction and non-fiction, the school library sea ebbs, pulses, crashes, erodes; it deposits and builds, creating and recreating each school’s cultural and educational heritage, the broadest and best of "old" and "new." From republished classics to the increasingly commercial contemporary, each book, poster, CD, and DVD advances and retreats, riding lunar tides of wind and water, before returning home—very often requiring a teacher-librarian’s replacement or repair.
Whether that teacher-librarian is perceived to be a meticulous seaside groundskeeper, a stealthy lifeguard, a knowledgeable ocean-park interpreter, a remote yet luminary lighthouse keeper, or even a much more fanciful, star-struck storyteller, depends upon the needs and priorities, the values and sensibilities of each school community.
Admittedly, after generations of decline that has left teacher-librarians on duty for just over one day a week in the average Canadian school, it is difficult to imagine a teacher-librarian with the time and resources to respond thoughtfully and lovingly to the minds and hearts of learners.
While current generations of students are trained in the narrow, equidistant lanes of highly chlorinated lap pools, complete with coaches, timers, and scoreboards to put them through their competitive paces, there is a growing call from the wisest, most seafaring families and educators: When will our children return to the more treasure-laden folds of the school library sea? Will we, with warm, daily welcomes and some requisite hand-holding, help children from land-loving families to move beyond smooth-bottomed wading pools and the narrow, directed confines of the lap pool? Will our children have the opportunity to seek the majestically shifting plains of sand and sea where they can venture out, swimming widely, deeply, and joyfully in every direction in the school library sea?
Setting sail in ships marked "Coalition for School Libraries" those bold seafarers know that the tide has been out for several decades and they must navigate in deep, dark, increasingly distant waters with the competing allure of a landlubber’s paradise. Their mission, on a nationwide scale, is to bring back the school library sea.
While teacher-librarians might be lured onto makeshift wharves to await these docking ships, their time is precious. As groundskeepers on litter patrol, lifeguards doing first aid, and interpreters preparing self-guided tours, their time is fragmented. They are distracted from their role as lighthouse keepers who salvage handfuls of fine books from across Canada and around the world—souvenirs of the Renaissance in children’s literature that no longer reaches school library shores.
As star-struck storytellers, they are often unavailable—too harried or hardened from hoping against hope that this year will mark the lowest ebb.
Like those on ships marked "Coalition," they are witness to a generation of seaside learners set loose with modern metal detectors to find treasures of a tinny kind, or lined up for a turn on high-powered hovercraft that skim across barren shores to reach a more distant worldwide sea. These exciting vessels do not come equipped with form-fitting life jackets, all-weather navigation equipment, or the depth sounder of a human mind and heart. They do not, as indeed they cannot, recognize the wisdom in Omar Bradley’s saying, "We need to learn to set our course by the stars, not by the light of each passing ship."
While study after study shows the importance of an abundant library sea with innovative, flexibly scheduled programs provided by an accessible and enthusiastic old salt, few decision-makers champion them. Knowledge, as Einstein knew, is not enough. Imagination—a starry-eyed picture and a lifelong educational vision—is desperately required.
Kalen Marquis is a fanciful, star-struck storyteller at Kanaka Creek Elementary School, Maple Ridge, and editor of Mr. Marquis’ Museletter, kwilville@shaw.ca.
Wednesday, February 1, 2006
The graphic novel
(BC Teacher: 2006 January/February) by Darinka Popovic
"I don’t want to read." "Reading is boring!" "There is nothing in the library that I like."
Do you hear this from your students? Unfortunately these are the type of comments drifting through every school library, classrooms, and in many homes. So move away from the traditional novel and try introducing a graphic novel!
Graphic novels are a combination of illustrations and words that are designed to appeal to the reluctant reader or the lover of comic books. Think of the graphic novel as the still version of a video clip with closed captioning.
There are three groupings of graphic novels. Most of us are familiar with the first type, a comic strip that has been compiled into a book. These include titles such as Calvin and Hobbs, Garfield, and Peanuts. Then there is the true graphic novel, a story with a continuous plot, which is supported by graphics and captions. The Pulitzer Prize-winning book Maus: A Survivor’s Tale by Art Spiegelman, which relates to the Holocaust, brought the graphic novel into the mainstream in 1991. The third format is the Japanese manga style of graphic novel, which is read from right to left. There are thousands of manga titles, often featuring a superhero.
Graphic novels are both educational and fun, but they can be very complex to decode. It is important that the reader take the time to look, absorb the images and then read the words that are presented. Children must read the words, and through the sequential artwork decode the meaning behind the illustrations and special effects such as the word bubbles. Illustrations can be colourful or are produced in black and white. The visual stimulation creates a situation where the reader must focus on the page to decode the necessary information. If a child or adult is having difficulty focusing on the coloured graphics try a novel that has black and white illustrations.
Teachers are able to use the graphic novel to encourage reading and writing in the school. You are able to use the graphic novel to teach literary techniques, create writing assignments and build bridges to the classic novel. For the child who desperately wants to read The Hobbit but is daunted by the length and readability, the graphic novel version opens a new world.
Though titles may be limited, there are graphic novels for every age group. For the younger child check out the books by Raymond Briggs such as The Snowman, Father Christmas or Ug: Boy Genius of the Stone Age. The Comic Adventures of Boots by Satoshi Kitamura and Little Buggy by Kevin O’Malley will appeal to children aged five and up.
The following titles will appeal to children ages nine and up: the Bone series by Jeff Smith, the Ultimate Spider-Man series by Brian Michael Bendis, the Akiko series by Mark Crilley, and Leave It to Chance by James Robinson. Delight the girls in your household with Jimmy Gownley’s Amelia Rules!, Amy Unbounded: Belondweg Blossoming by Rachel Hartman, and WJHC: on the air by Jane Smith Fisher.
If you want your child to delight in the joy of the classics then turn to copies of The Hobbit, Wind in the Willows, or The Adventures of Robin Hood.
For the older student check out the following titles: The Hobbit by David Wenzel, The Tale of One Bad Rat by Bryan Talbot, The amazing true story of a teenage single mom by Katherine Arnoldi, Persepolis 1 & 2 by Marjane Satrapi, Meridian 1 & 2 by Barbara Kesel, Promethea I & 2 by Jeromy Cox, The Books of Magic by Neil Gaiman, and Ghost World by Daniel Clowes.
The world of non-fiction is also available in a graphic novel format. A couple of examples included Jay Hosler’s, Clan Apis that tells about the world of bees or the biography by Raymond Brigg’s parents, Ethel and Ernest: a True Story.
Visit your teacher-librarian to see the wide array of product available for students of all ages. Graphic novels are available in a wide variety of genres such as science fiction, fantasy, historical, science, superheroes, and social studies. As you browse through the collection you need to be aware that not all graphic novels are suitable for the younger reader. Most graphic novels produced are geared for teenagers and adults. The material may be excessively violent, language may not be appropriate, and some books have an adult content. To assist the public, some publishers have a ranking system that is listed on some of the books. Age suitability may be listed but be aware, that there is no standardized method of rating material.
Looking for information on the web for children’s graphic novels? There is a site specific for the review these materials is called Sidekicks (for the younger reader) and No Flying No Tights (for the teen reader) at http://sidekicks.noflyingnotights.com/core.html.
Remember, the best way to raise literacy, is to expose your students to the wide variety of materials available. Have them read whatever interests them. Graphic novels might just do the trick!
Darinka Popovic is a teacher-librarian at Rock Heights Middle School, Victoria.
"I don’t want to read." "Reading is boring!" "There is nothing in the library that I like."
Do you hear this from your students? Unfortunately these are the type of comments drifting through every school library, classrooms, and in many homes. So move away from the traditional novel and try introducing a graphic novel!
Graphic novels are a combination of illustrations and words that are designed to appeal to the reluctant reader or the lover of comic books. Think of the graphic novel as the still version of a video clip with closed captioning.
There are three groupings of graphic novels. Most of us are familiar with the first type, a comic strip that has been compiled into a book. These include titles such as Calvin and Hobbs, Garfield, and Peanuts. Then there is the true graphic novel, a story with a continuous plot, which is supported by graphics and captions. The Pulitzer Prize-winning book Maus: A Survivor’s Tale by Art Spiegelman, which relates to the Holocaust, brought the graphic novel into the mainstream in 1991. The third format is the Japanese manga style of graphic novel, which is read from right to left. There are thousands of manga titles, often featuring a superhero.
Graphic novels are both educational and fun, but they can be very complex to decode. It is important that the reader take the time to look, absorb the images and then read the words that are presented. Children must read the words, and through the sequential artwork decode the meaning behind the illustrations and special effects such as the word bubbles. Illustrations can be colourful or are produced in black and white. The visual stimulation creates a situation where the reader must focus on the page to decode the necessary information. If a child or adult is having difficulty focusing on the coloured graphics try a novel that has black and white illustrations.
Teachers are able to use the graphic novel to encourage reading and writing in the school. You are able to use the graphic novel to teach literary techniques, create writing assignments and build bridges to the classic novel. For the child who desperately wants to read The Hobbit but is daunted by the length and readability, the graphic novel version opens a new world.
Though titles may be limited, there are graphic novels for every age group. For the younger child check out the books by Raymond Briggs such as The Snowman, Father Christmas or Ug: Boy Genius of the Stone Age. The Comic Adventures of Boots by Satoshi Kitamura and Little Buggy by Kevin O’Malley will appeal to children aged five and up.
The following titles will appeal to children ages nine and up: the Bone series by Jeff Smith, the Ultimate Spider-Man series by Brian Michael Bendis, the Akiko series by Mark Crilley, and Leave It to Chance by James Robinson. Delight the girls in your household with Jimmy Gownley’s Amelia Rules!, Amy Unbounded: Belondweg Blossoming by Rachel Hartman, and WJHC: on the air by Jane Smith Fisher.
If you want your child to delight in the joy of the classics then turn to copies of The Hobbit, Wind in the Willows, or The Adventures of Robin Hood.
For the older student check out the following titles: The Hobbit by David Wenzel, The Tale of One Bad Rat by Bryan Talbot, The amazing true story of a teenage single mom by Katherine Arnoldi, Persepolis 1 & 2 by Marjane Satrapi, Meridian 1 & 2 by Barbara Kesel, Promethea I & 2 by Jeromy Cox, The Books of Magic by Neil Gaiman, and Ghost World by Daniel Clowes.
The world of non-fiction is also available in a graphic novel format. A couple of examples included Jay Hosler’s, Clan Apis that tells about the world of bees or the biography by Raymond Brigg’s parents, Ethel and Ernest: a True Story.
Visit your teacher-librarian to see the wide array of product available for students of all ages. Graphic novels are available in a wide variety of genres such as science fiction, fantasy, historical, science, superheroes, and social studies. As you browse through the collection you need to be aware that not all graphic novels are suitable for the younger reader. Most graphic novels produced are geared for teenagers and adults. The material may be excessively violent, language may not be appropriate, and some books have an adult content. To assist the public, some publishers have a ranking system that is listed on some of the books. Age suitability may be listed but be aware, that there is no standardized method of rating material.
Looking for information on the web for children’s graphic novels? There is a site specific for the review these materials is called Sidekicks (for the younger reader) and No Flying No Tights (for the teen reader) at http://sidekicks.noflyingnotights.com/core.html.
Remember, the best way to raise literacy, is to expose your students to the wide variety of materials available. Have them read whatever interests them. Graphic novels might just do the trick!
Darinka Popovic is a teacher-librarian at Rock Heights Middle School, Victoria.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
