Letters

School Library Journal welcomes letters up to 300 words. They may be edited for clarity and length. Please include a daytime telephone number. Write to the Editor, School Library Journal, 360 Park Avenue South, New York, NY 10010; fax (646) 746-6689; or e-mail slj@reedbusiness.com.

We in North Dakota read the article "Ohio Sets School Library Standards" in the April 2003 SLJ (p. 18) with interest. We applaud the Ohio Department of Education for its efforts in launching statewide standards-based guidelines for school library media programs. In like manner, we draw your attention to the North Dakota State Library/Technology Literacy Standards, which were published in January 2003. These standards are posted on the North Dakota Department of Public Instruction Web site at www.dpi.state.nd.us/standard/content/tech.pdf.

Our standards design team was made up of library/media specialists and directors, technology specialists, and staff from educational agencies across the state. What we believe makes our Library/Technology Literacy document unique is that it combines library and information technology into an information literacy model. Our standards document is at the core of the state's Teaching With Technology (TWT) initiative. Efforts are continuing that will align curricular content standards with the new Library/Technology Literacy Standards. Our benchmarks are given at the K–4, 5–8, and 9–12 grade levels.

While our standards design team researched national library/media and technology standards, it found Information Power, published by the American Library Association, and the National Educational Technology Standards for Students, published by the International Society for Technology in Education, most relevant.
--Kathleen Hill, Library/Media Director, Red River High School, Grand Forks, ND

First I would like to thank you for all the reviews of our products that you published in the May 2003 School Library Journal. However, I feel that an important omission was made in the review of the video Abstinence First: Teen Birth Control Decisions(Version A), (p. 73).

We sent two versions of the video for review, Version A and Version B, reflecting the different philosophies of local community standards as they pertain to teen sexual behavior. Version A is the conservative version, which does state that the expected standard for sexual intercourse should only be in the context of marriage. For many school districts this is the only acceptable way to teach birth control or sexuality. However, for more liberal school districts this language is absent, and what we present is the basics of birth control including abstinence. The reviewer complains that this "gets tiresome and even condescending at times," yet she does not mention that schools have a clear choice. We felt the two versions was a very unique way to approach this too often divisive subject.
--Stacey Johnson, Marketing Assistant, Human Relations Media, Mt. Kisco, NY

Our Reviewer Replies

After reviewing ABSTINENCE FIRST: Teen Birth Control Decisions (Version B), I was pleasantly surprised. This version provides substantial information regarding abstinence, but does not belabor the subject as in Version A. Both versions do answer important questions about birth control, but Version B is more detailed and includes more diagrams and description. Version B appears to be more thorough, and is certainly more respectful of the intelligence level of teens.

I understand why Human Relations Media would want to accommodate both conservative and liberal audiences by providing two versions of this video, and I applaud them for their efforts. In my opinion, however, Version B does a better job of providing information on this subject without alienating teen viewers. Version B is a film that I would recommend for purchase by schools and public libraries.
--Kimberly Paone, Teen Services Librarian, Elizabeth Public Library, Elizabeth, NJ

Correction: The August issue's obituary for author-illustrator Robert McCloskey (p. 18) gave an incorrect date of death. He died June 30, 2003.

Addendum: The September 2003 News article "NEH Book Giveaway" (p. 27) stated that NEH would consider a second round of applications if it received an insufficient number of applications in the first round. NEH says that a second round will be held regardless of the response during the first application period.