Jami Biles Jones; Alana M. Zambone

Two fresh new voices from East Carolina University, one with a library voice and the other with a view from special education combine to create an expectation for reforming library media programs. They center their vision based on the needs of at-risk kids, an alarming problem in this country and getting worse under NCLB. However, they embrace the visions of NCLB and feel that we can as teacher librarians reach those who may or may not be reached in the classroom. To do this, they propose that a healthy set of dispositions or attitudes on the part of the teacher librarian is a critical element. Attitudes move from caring too much about the warehouse to caring for the young people who can benefit from its services and environment. We have observed that many teacher librarians who are discouraged with not getting into a close collaborative relationships with the faculty, often turn their attention and focus to building the best relationships they can with their clients, the students. They reason that if the library is an engaging place with meaningful inclusion activities, then the at-risk group will begin to respond and as they do so, we have a chance to make a difference in their education. We could not agree more that library media programs are only successful if the teacher librarian has the skills and disposition to connect to learners. It would be a major step forward if, in a lunch room test of attitudes about the library, young people around the table would report that the library is a relevant and engaging place. What a triumph that would be. However, as good as these author’s arguments are, there is a major element missing, we believe, and that is the world of technology that have engaged students into a social network that attracts their attention and seems like the real world to so many. We think these authors have a good first step idea, but it is not strong enough to engage many of the youth who currently consider school and libraries as irrelevant and boring. In any event, we thing this thin book/long essay deserves some attention. They target district library supervisors and those who train teachers. We think the rank and file teachers librarians should engage in this important, if not complete discussion of changing library programs into something regarded as essential. Recommended as a discussion piece.… (altro)