April 1999
RSSStaff -- School Library Journal, 04/01/1999
"Architects need to get out and talk tothe people they are servicing."
Librarians' Designs Disregarded
I have just read with great interest Ms. Fenton's article["Architectural Follies,"February 1999] regarding how to work with an architect to design a new library. She left out a very important point. Principals and district-office folks rarely bother to let the lowly librarian have such input! Having just gone through this, I was never asked for my ideas. In fact, I met the architect only accidentally -- once. The only person who was asked was the district media person, who is predominantly a technologist -- not a librarian! She fought for a lot of things we needed, but was shot down by the powers-that-be.
The design I ended up with is visually gorgeous. It is also a nightmare to try to teach in: tons of wasted space in the vaulted ceilings, no place for bulletin boards, no blackboards, too few shelves that are too high, lights that take 25 minutes to come on, no outside windows, four doors that open onto the only space large enough for a classroom, and people wandering through the teaching area without regard to what is going on.
In short, I thought the article was well stated -- too bad we are not allowed to offer the kind of advice Ms. Fenton suggested we have at the ready! This happens in other industries as well, not just libraries. I was never asked for input when the hospital at which I was the food-service director decided to redo the kitchen. It was beautiful to look at but a nightmare as far as work patterns and traffic flow were concerned.
Architects need to get out and talk to the people they are servicing if they want truly beautiful and functional spaces.
T.K. Cassidy
Librarian
Sand Ridge Elementary School
Swansboro, NC
Reject Accelerated Reader
Michael Baum's assertion [Letters, January 1999]that "the most important element in readability, as it is throughout education, is the trained and dedicated teacher and librarian" would be laughable -- if it were not so sad and infuriating.
This statement comes from the head of a company whose Accelerated Reader computerized reading management program has so obviously not been willing to employ qualified persons to compile its book lists. These lists are presumably to be of use in helping students and librarians determine appropriate reading levels for the books in question. But even the most cursory glance at a few of the lists reveals books labeled with reading levels that defy understanding. Just a few cases in point: Brock Cole's The Goats (Farrar, 1987), a middle school standby for years, is awarded a lowly 3.8; Jenny Davis's Sex Education (Orchard, 1998), a challenge for the average eighth grader, is awarded a 4.8, but Forrest Carter's The Education of Little Tree (Delacourt, 1976), intended for a clearly younger audience than Sex Education, is awarded a 7.2; Cynthia Voigt's Wings of a Falcon (Scholastic, 1993), a grim and difficult marvel of a book for high school students, receives only a 6.5, while Vivian V. Velde's Dragon's Bait (Harcourt, 1992), little challenge for a sixth grader, receives a 7.6. Tom Clancy's Hunt for Red October (Naval Institute Press, 1984), clearly an adult book, is on a list "designed to appeal to readers in upper grades,"but the highest reading level given to any book on the list is an 8.9.
The reality is clear: the process used by Mr. Baum's company to determine reading levels is gravely flawed and often yields seriously misleading results. In spite of this, they are often taken as gospel by administrators and teachers who know little about the books they ask their students to read. "There's a sucker born every minute,"Mr. Barnum observed so many years ago, and we seem to still be proving him right.
Chuck Schacht
Children's Librarian
Romeo District Library
Romeo, MI
Students Deserve More
When I read Mr. Indriso's letter to the editor [December 1998], I kept waiting for the punch line, sure that his comments were a joke. When I realized he was serious, I saw red. I was going to dash off a letter to you, but I was too busy helping my students find and use materials that Mr. Indriso would probably find controversial.
Where did this man get his library degree? Has he ever looked at the titles people have found objectionable over the years? I'm sure some of those titles are in his collection. He thinks he will always be well liked. Does he realize how many enemies he has made among school librarians?
Mr. Indriso feels he should avoid confrontations with administrators. I'm sure his teacher's union appreciates that sentiment. Those suffering the most from this Nazi mentality, though, are the students in his middle school, who will not be able to read quality books because he has decided they may offend or upset them or their parents.
I sure hope he is not a member of the American Association of School Librarians. I'm surprised he even reads SLJ. Doesn't he find some of the articles controversial? Save us from librarians like him. In the September 1998 issue, you had an article, "In the Dark: What's Keeping Principals from Understanding Libraries?" One is a librarian like Frank Indriso.
Diane Pozar
Library Media Specialist
Wallkill Middle School
Wallkill, NY
Correction
In "Up for Discussion"(February 1999), after the initial mention of the "Brown Paper School"series (Little, Brown), the second reference should have read "Brown Paper Preschool"series (Little, Brown).
