Hit: Restricted shelves in elementary schools

[Carolyn Mattern <CMATTERN@VM1.STIER.ORG>]

*** Resending note of 10/31/95 15:21
FROM: Carolyn Mattern
To: LMNET   --CMSNAMES

FROM: Carolyn Mattern

I never thought the first question I raised via this source would receive the r
esponses that it did.  My 'problem' has still not gone away, however my convict
ions have held steadfast.  I received a variety of responses--some were against
restricted shelves, some for restricted shelves.  Here goes:

1-Someone suggested putting the book on a parent or teacher shelf.  I decided a
gainst this, since the book was not written for a parent or a teacher.

2-Someone suggested recataloging the book, so that it would be shelved higher a
nd out of young children's reach, I checked the cataloging and it is cataloged
properly in the 300's so this did not seem reasonable either.

3-I received many notes from librarians, stating they would not purchase a book
 of this time, because of the possible furor they might cause.  This was even l
ess of an option, because the librarian is selecting materials based on possibl
e discussions with parents over content.  Censorship--by the media specialist t
hemselves.

4-(the suggestion I went with and seemed the most reasonable) was to support my
 purchase and my professional judgement on selection.  Call ALA and get support
 from the Intellectual Freedom committee.  For those of you who are interested
ALA does not support restricted shelving.  THe person to contact is Cynthia Rob
inson (Cynthia.Robinson@ala.org)  She not only sent me the ALA position papers,
 but also information from other districts that had formal complaints on the sa
me book.  But also, copies of reviews of the book.


What happened next--I had a conversation with the new asst. superintendent and
explained my feelings about restricted shelves and how this could lead to stude
nts being embarassed to ask for materials.  He understood my philosophy but que
stioned kindergarten students getting material that is really more grade level
appropriate for fourth and fifth grade students.  I explained I would handle it
 the same way that I handle kindergarten students and the material they check o
ut on every other subject in the library.  For instance, if a student in kinder
garten were to take out a book on Native Americans that was 200 pages long, no
pictures and a fifth grade reading level.  I would access whether the student h
ad help at home to conquer the material, could do so on their own, or perhaps
needed material written in a simplier format.  I would explain to the child tha
t perhaps another book on the same subject would be better for them, and I woul
d take them back to the shelves to look for a more age/reading level appropriat
e book on having babies, sex, or the American Indian.

We in the schools do have the ability to match students to books for their inte
rests, grade level, and reading level.

I personally believe that it is a parent's responsibility to know what their ch
ild is reading and to make their child aware of their personal beliefs.  It is
not my responsibility to police what the children in my school read.  It is my
responsibility to provide a variety of materials in a variety of formats, that
meet the individual and school reading needs of all the children in my building
.  This is written in our selection policy.

I hope this will help those of you with similiar problems.  And perhaps get tho
se of you with restricted shelves to think again.  Wishing all of you the best
of luck with your challenged materials.  Thanks for all your help and suggestio
ns.  I'm going to defend the material on an open shelf--and if I am told by adm
inistrators to place it on a restricted shelf--I'll find someone to fill out a
form and challenge that decision--I already have a parent in mind.  Carolyn