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Confession: I like actual, physical, tangible books. Sure, e-books and audio books are great. I commute more than 3 hours each day, 3 days a week to get to the Junior Kindergarten through Grade 8 school where I have volunteered at the library since 2014. Without Jim Dale or Lauren Fortgang or Andy Serkis narrating my favorite stories, I would go mad idling in my tiny car on the 90/94. I sit on the local library board for my community, and witness the ease and excitement created by new library technologies such as remote locker pick ups & Artificial Intelligence-aided search tools. I coach middle school students who want to chat about the latest TikTok trends and anime shows before we launch into talking about books. I get it. Quiet, static, non-linked, single modal books can barely compete with the hyperlinked blog, the viral post (look how I blog for the first time...very demure, very mindful...), the Google search engine.
Still, I like books and I love being the gateway dealer of books with all their messy, radical, upsetting, soothing, passionate, uplifting contents. My clients are kids. I find common ground with those students who also love books and who eagerly join our school's book clubs and throw themselves into competitions like the Chicago Public School's Battle of the Books. But it is even more satisfying, gives me even more life, when I help find that perfect book for the student who hates books in September, yet can't put a particular book down and can't stop talking about it by December. Two years ago it was Lindsay Currie's Chicagoland horror story, Scritch Scratch. Last year it was John Lewis' graphic novel, March.
In addition to my affinity for books and my mission to get more kids to read them, there is another piece to what I have to admit is my wariness when it comes to incorporating technology in the school library: I am not a native speaker. I don't fluently speak tech. My Gen Z son & daughter do and, bless them, are just a text away when I need their help. My Gen Alpha students most certainly do. And since I need to communicate with them and eventually with the generation that will come after them, I need to get as fluent in tech as I am with English, and even more comfortable with it than I am with Mandarin.
Technology belongs in the school library because kids belong there. In fact, school libraries staffed by librarians are the most important thing in promoting literacy for young people and raising scores in both reading and math. Moreover, the school to prison pipeline cannot be broken without the existence of lively, modern, technology-rich school libraries where students feel comfortable to explore books and other media, with the assistance of the latest innovations, thereby promoting literacies of all kinds.
But the link between literacies (reading/math/media/information/social emotional/etc) and school libraries is a discussion for a different post. If we simply assume that kids need libraries, then we have to assume that librarians need to speak their languages, including the many languages of technology. And if that's the case, then so do I.
This was lovely, Maria. Your advocacy for libraries is admirable. I also appreciate that you recognize you need to stay tech-fluent to stay relevant to your students. Not everyone has that mindset. I'm looking forward to learning more with you this fall. And I love real actual books too :)
ReplyDeleteThanks Nicole! I have become rather passionate (if not obsessed) about libraries especially school libraries. I really want to become better and more comfortable with technology so I'm excited (and a bit nervous) about this class. My goal is to become both tech fluent and to get a working knowledge of Spanish during my MLIS years.
DeleteHi Maria-
ReplyDeleteIt is great to be in class with you again! Like you, I much prefer physical books. However, you make a very strong argument for why it is important for even more digitally wary librarians to embrace technology for the benefit of our students. I'd be interested to know if you have found success with any particular technologies within your school library? Thank you for sharing your thoughts, and I look forward to taking another course together!
Hello & nice to see you again too! I hope your life & studies are all going well. My librarian is tech savvy while also committed to teaching retro things like cursive writing and key boarding. We are launching attempts to record and share videos of students making book talks, first for the book club students, with the intention of expanding to all library classes. We use pretty basic apps like Kahoots and other quiz apps which the kids like. I'd love any suggestions you might have, especially as we are making this the year to explore and incorporate more tech to engage students!
DeleteHello Maria! It's very nice to meet you!
ReplyDeleteI loved reading your post, I thought you gave a wonderful, thoughtful perspective on the matter of integrating technology into classrooms and school libraries. From your writing, it comes across clearly how much you love your kids and students, only wanting the best for them. I thought you gave a very compelling argument about the importance of embracing technology for the benefit of children's education, and to encourage their love of reading. And I agree with you, I love physical, paper books too!
I understand and share similar wariness about modern technology, it always seems to be changing day by day. But I really like your argument about how "Technology belongs in the school library because kids belong there." This line really stands out to me, as I think it really highlights how valuable incorporating technology into schools, libraries and the workplace is for future generations' well-being, learning and growth. As librarians, by learning the technology ourselves and integrating it into institutions, we are helping our future patrons find what they want and need most in terms of material and library services in the long-term. I would like to ask what benefits you see in physical, paper books versus electronic books? Such as how when you know when to recommend physical books or electronic to a patron instead?
I look foward to reading more about your thoughts and opinions this Fall semester, Maria! I think you have great insight on the class subject matter! Have a wonderful school year!
Hi Lizzy,
Deletethank you for. your kind comments! I do love working in the library and learning from the students. I hope I can do it full time (and paid!) someday in the not too distant future.
Great question about physical vs. electronic books. We do not yet have it set up for the students to borrow books electronically although I know that is possible via CPS. We are a charter school but do have some Chicago Public School resources. That is something I should encourage the librarian to get us hooked up with. For me, personally, I find I remember books better when I read them on a paper page rather than on a screen. I wonder why that is? For our book club, we get donated volumes of the books that book club members can borrow. Also, the West Englewood library carries them. But certainly students could get access to them electronically. I will look into that. Some of the books are also available on audio, though most are not because they tend to be brand new. I like to do both: listen and read.
Thanks for your post!