February 1998

Staff -- School Library Journal, 2/1/1998

"Invisible" Librarian Hits Home

Kudos to Professor Gary N. Hartzell ("The Invisible School Librarian: Why Other Educators Are Blind to Your Value," SLJ, November 1997, pp. 24-29). At last, someone is "telling it like it is," getting down to the nitty-gritty.

I have been a school librarian for 25 years. Only once in those 25 years has a classroom teacher collaborated with me on an assignment. It was in 1995. An American history teacher was totally dissastisfied with the term papers her students were producing. So we got together and developed a lesson plan that called for a five-page term paper, typewritten, with a minimum of five sources, of which only one could be a general encyclopedia. Footnotes were also required. Each had to have the topic pre-approved. This assignment was repeated in the second semester, with the same topic required for each semester's paper.

Professor Hartzell suggests that school librarians become visible. I have always been very visible. I was a building rep in my teachers' union for several years, I was a vice-president of my local teachers' union for two years, and I was the lead teacher-negotiator for my union in contract talks with the school board for two years. Each position was an elected office. I also organized several district-wide parties for the teachers I worked with during this same period of time.

Yet, during the six years described above, not one teacher collaborated with me on their lessons!

At another school, I was on every committee there was. I was the coordinator for one year of the North Central Association evaluation and accreditation of my school. I was also on the Faculty Advisory Committee -- an elected position. One teacher at this school collaborated with me.

My point: a school librarian may be beloved; however, classroom teachers will still not pray at the school librarian's altar! I have also belonged to almost all the professional associations listed in Professor Hartzell's article. I have not written articles, yet, however.

Unless and until classroom teachers -- prodded by their school's administrators -- decide to use their school's library and librarian as intended, and as described in the professional literature, then I will continue to be a highly-paid clerk.

Thanks again, Professor Hartzell! Let's hope we school librarians read your article, "take the bull by the horns," and give school libraries and school librarians the chance they deserve in the world of learning.

When I first saw the cover of the November issue of SLJ, I recoiled at the perception the picture presented of the "old-fashioned" librarian. I had such a librarian in college (1962). However, there is not one media specialist who looks like this in my school district today. Some of us wear mini-skirts, Bermuda shorts with matching tights, and the latest in clothes fashions. Our hair is not pulled back in a bun, and we wear modern glasses or contact lenses.

Gary Hartzell's article was also not an accurate or current account of how our media specialists perform in our district. We are women of the '90s, who are very vocal for our profession both in our district and state of Vermont. We also have state representation at the ALA Conference every year. We are pushing for a higher profile in the education field on a regular basis. I am sure we are not an exception in this regard.

Although dismayed by the cover picture (which appeared two more times in the article!), the currency of Hartzell's article was also very disturbing. The most recent reference had a 1993 copyright date. The other references ranged in currency from 1977-1989, or, in plain terms, were nearly 8-20 years old. There was no Web reference.

Whenever I help students with research, I insist they check copyright dates to be sure they have the most recent information on a topic. By publishing Hartzell's article, you did more damage to our profession than you probably will ever know, especially since SLJ is so widely read. The library media specialists who are out there working in the trenches deserve better treatment and more thoughtful consideration.

Thank you for presenting Gary N. Hartzell's article. Here in Oregon, it is particularly timely, as our districts wrestle with budgetary problems. I hope my experience of 27 years can be of help to others.

I have had the strong support of the teaching staff in my building, as well as good support from my administration and board. A number of factors enter into this. Our library and its resources are heavily used, and as budgets have decreased and curriculums changed, teachers are more dependent on the variety, timeliness, and depth of the materials we have. We maintain a friendly, welcoming atmosphere for students, and encourage individual and small-group work, as well as regular classes. Almost any school library should boast the same, but that is only part of the story.

Librarians are also advocates for education in general. In Oregon, these are highly demoralizing times for all educators. We have been characterized in vicious terms in political ads, and even our Speaker of the House used a bestial image to characterize teachers in our major newspaper. Vast amounts of anonymous money fund a well-staffed organization dedicated to defunding all public endeavors. Teachers need to know that the old "Nation at Risk" canard is largely a myth, that schools do a good job.

The school librarian has access to information correcting the misconceptions about education, and can use it in a number of ways. I have made copies of relevant articles available for our teachers, administrators, and our school board. I have responded to misinformation about schools in letters to the editor, written letters to support educational levies, and written articles supporting various aspects of education.

Librarians need to be advocates for teachers. Participation in the local professional organization is important. That will serve as a reminder that you are a colleague and helps assure that all staff are treated fairly.

Librarians need to be advocates for school libraries. We are familiar with post-Sputnik research, with Elaine Didier's work in Michigan, with the Colorado study of its school system, and with SchoolMatch's findings. We need to point out the results of these studies to our colleagues, site councils, and administrators with memos, demonstrations, and presentations. School libraries are totally ignored in most educational research. I was distressed at our last state evaluation when my facility and program were entirely overlooked.Teachers, parents, administrators, and boards of education work hard to respond to the educational needs of our students. If they are to make rational decisions, they must know the facts. It is up to us to see that school libraries gain the recognition they deserve.

I have the feeling that the cloak of invisibility that covers many school libraries (and many public libraries, too) is possibly due to the fact that most teachers, like most Americans, don't get real pleasure from reading. A teacher of future reading teachers in a disheartening recent letter to SLJ noted that most of her students did not enjoy reading. Ken Auletta in the New Yorker (Oct. 6, 1997) quotes a publisher who says that "[book] publishing has always been more like theatre than film...[the book] buying public is about...12 million or so...."

In my personal experience at a public library, a minuscule percentage of our readers were teachers. Thinking about it now, I conclude that for many teachers, reading was not important in their own lives, so they naturally didn't think about reading and libraries for their students.

In his article, Gary N. Hartzell gives many good ideas to school librarians. Hartzell got me to the possible dismal conclusion that as a nation we have entrusted the K-12 school years largely to people for whom reading is a chore to be endured.

Making school librarians visible, to my mind, ultimately depends on recruiting more people to the teaching profession who know the power and joy of reading.

Readers are important to America. I view America as an inverted pyramid, with the small number of readers at the point informing others above them of the thoughtful views of the writers they read.

Every librarian should be an advocate for reading in every possible forum -- letters to PTA bulletins, letters to newspapers, appearances on local TV, etc. Especially important is making reading a joyful experience for their students.

I have the impression that the joy of reading for most people must be "learned" early if it is to be "learned" at all.

Applause for SLJ Online

I just wanted to let you know I really like SLJ Online. I am a librarian and receive the print version every month at my middle school. The online version is set up nicely and has a lot of great sites to look at. I especially like the Site of the Month.

Keep up the good work in helping us stay informed. I will continue to look at both the print and online versions of SLJ. Thanks again.