Re: Librarians = Is End Near???

["Roberta J. Ponis" <rponis@JEFFCO.K12.CO.US>]

Dear Dick,

1.  Don't see the death of school libraries - but do see the evolution of
libraries that includes whatever the "technology du jour" has to offer students.

2.  It's not just an Indiana happening.  Here in Colorado, districts are
scrambling to upgrade their technology with the same amount of resources
as they had last year, so are looking for funding and people to
accomplish the never-ending black hole needs of an ever expanding, ever
changing industry. Knowing they can't fund a technology specialist for
each 136 schools in our district, they look for existing personnel who
can do the job.  Guess who in each building already has some technology
expertise (because they've had to learn library automation, CD-roms and
the Internet)?  What happens then is that school librarians will then
have two full time jobs and be able to do neither well.  There is no doubt
but that technology in schools needs support and management, but I maintain not at 
the sacrifice
of the school library program.  Anyone who believes that all research can
be done adequately and efficiently on the Internet has a limited view of
research.  Perhaps we need to do a better job of communicating our role
vis a vis technology and student learning.

BTW: Did anyone else read Ted Oppenheimer's article in the recent
Atlantic Monthly challenging the claims that computer learning especially
for primary students is positive?

3.  Yes, you betcha, we should be concerned.  We are holding a Summit on
the Crisis in School Libraries this fall in Colorado.  For some of us in
Colorado, the crisis is the lack of qualified candidates and the
elimination of some positions, for others like us - the largest district
in Colorado - the crisis is the takeover of the library position by the
computer techies who see only the electronic delivery of information as
the wave of the future.  Other steps we can take include:  ensuring that
there is an higher ed. institution that provides an endorsing program for
folks wanting to pursue it (and this program reflects today's needs of a
school librarian);  actively recruiting quality folks to get their endorsement;  
communicating the differences to administrators,
Board members, purse string holders, and parents between the technology
and the students' interaction with information delivered by the medium,
whatever it is.

Roberta Ponis
Library Services
Jefferson County Public Schools
Golden, Colorado
rponis@jeffco.k12.co.us