December 1998
Staff -- School Library Journal, 12/1/1998
"It pays to be a team player and avoid confrontation with administrators and parents."
Truth and Consequences
I am a middle school librarian as well as a reference librarian in a public library. I feel that there should not be any controversial materials in public school libraries that would offend or upset children and/or their parents. Public school librarians who ardently argue in favor of anti-censorship are only spiting themselves. For instance, Cheryl Ward, the former librarian at the Windsor Locks Middle School in Connecticut, is now teaching fifth grade at another school as a result of not cooperating and being insubordinate [ "Connecticut Librarian Sues School District over Transfer,"October 1998] if she is reinstated in the library, does one actually believe that she will ever be looked upon in a favorable light by administrators? Who really needs the headache?
It pays to be a team player and avoid confrontation with administrators and parents. After all, administrators are our bosses and parents pay our salaries!
Call me a conservative or call me a wimp, but I will always be well liked and employed as a librarian!
Media Specialist/Librarian
Orchard Valley Middle School
Sewell, NJ
Poetry Too Good to Miss, Too
I enjoyed reading "Sleepers: 100 Books Too Good to Miss" August 1998, the article included many fine recommendations. However, one thing that puzzled and troubled me was the obvious lack of poetry titles on the list. To be specific, I counted three poetry titles among the "100 Books Too Good to Miss". One book each by Karla Kuskin, Jack Prelutsky, and David McPhail.
As a poet, anthologist, and visiting writer, I know how popular poetry is with children. I can feel that whenever I work with kids and their teachers. And so it troubled me that your 10 reviewers/librarians found so few poetry books "too good to miss." I'm not sure what to think. If Wendy Lukehart is correct - and I suspect she is -- that "a book's popularity was directly related to her enthusiasm" in presenting it to kids, does your list indicate that your panel could muster little enthusiasm for poetry books? I can't believe that's true. Or do the reviewers feel that poetry is "covered"in the classroom as part of the curriculum and, therefore, does not need to be pushed as enjoyable recreational reading? I'm sure that's not the case. And yet, I can think of no other reason to virtually ignore poetry in a list of "100 Books Too Good to Miss."
I would be interested in hearing from the reviewers on your panel, as well as from other librarians or SLJ readers, who are willing to share their views of poetry and poetry books. (You can write to me at poetspeak@maine.com
Hebron, Maine
A Dewey Decimal Primer
Having been a media specialist for more than 15 years, I am keenly aware of how difficult it is to teach the Dewey Decimal System on the elementary level. A majority of our elementary school libraries still use this system, and the electronic catalog has not eliminated the need for knowing how the shelves are arranged. Up until now, however, most of the published programs designed to teach the Dewey Decimal System have been boring, inaccurate, or just plain stupid!
I was pleased to discover, therefore, that World Almanac Education has published a Dewey Decimal Kit that presents a refreshing and creative approach. The activities are fun! Clever graphics and poetry are used to enhance the lessons.
Although I have just begun to use the kit in my classroom, I can already predict that my students will learn more about Dewey this year, and that they will have fun doing it.
I just wanted to pass this hint on to other media specialists who are faced with the task of introducing the Dewey Decimal System to their elementary students. Thank you, World Almanac Education!
Media Specialist
Roosevelt Elementary School
Euclid, OH
Editor's Note
The Dewey Decimal Kit costs $119 and is available from World Almanac Education, (800) 321-1147; www.worldalmanac.com
Fact Happy
Thanks to Gayle Kirshenbaum for her superb coverage of our attempt to secure funding for New Orleans public school libraries ("In New Orleans, the 'Librarians Cadre' Sends a Message School Officials Can't Ignore,"October 1998). Critical to our partial success were the powerful statistics on school library funding compiled by SLJ, which allowed us to make national comparisons ("Small Change: Expenditures for Resources in School Library Media Centers, FY 1995-96," October 1997) As the old saying goes, "Facts Kick!"
Finance Chair, Librarians Cadre
New Orleans Public Schools
New Orleans, LA
Correction
In "In the Dark: What's Keeping Principals from Understanding Libraries?"(September 1998) the name of the school library media specialist at Armand Bayou Elementary School in Houston, TX, was misspelled. Her name is Linda Kizer.
The Limits of Lexiles
We read with interest the article about the Lexile Framework for Reading ("Company Touts System to Match Students and Books,"September 1998). As a leading publisher of school reading software, with years of experience using reading levels with teachers, we at Advantage Learning Systems wish to clarify a few points for your readers:
- The Lexile Framework is a round readability formula, but it's just one of many. None of them can "help teach students to read"; teachers do that. All readability formulas use similar principles to analyze text, and all produce largely comparable results. All, for example, can be used to create thematic units at different levels.
- The most popular formulas are those that provide teachers with grade-level measurements. Our experience with educators in 38,000 schools shows that they find grade levels essential. The Lexile formula does not produce grade levels, so educators have difficulty relating Lexiles to other measures of student ability and progress. Ultimately, since grade-level measures appear throughout reading materials and curricula, educators using Lexiles find themselves having to juggle two different standards at once -- a waste of time that should go for instruction.
- Everyone's goal should be to match students with appropriate books to foster maximum growth in reading. Readability numbers are useful in that process, but they're just a start. The vital factor in improving instruction is a teacher who knows her students and how to use readability, while also gauging the many variables not measured by any current readability scheme: interest level, subject matter, genre, coherency, student's prior familiarity with the subject, and so on.
- Other readability formulas are free to both publishers and educators. Lexiles are available only through one company, for fees that are paid directly by publishers and indirectly by schools. This implied "mono-poly"is disturbing to many educators.
Chief Executive Officer
Advantage Learning Systems
Wisconsin Rapids, WI
Editor's Note
Advantage Learning Systems sells the Accelerated Reader, a computerized reading management program.
