Hi folks,
This is just something I do and it has helped as a visual aid when explaining how
important weeding can be. I keep a small, but "choice" shelf of weeded books that
I refer to as my "Shelf of Shame". These are things so ridiculously out of date,
politically incorrect or just plain awful that it illustrated the point better than
any words I could express. My current favorite is "Modern Archeology Today"
copyrighted 1930. I removed this from the shelves in 1994 when I was preparing for
automating -- I got pretty brutal towards the end, but this one was too bad to
actually send off! I did NOT keep "The Red Man in American" copyrighted 1908 -- it
was so racist it mademe ill!
Joanne Glasgow
Teacher Librarian
Evergreen HS Campus
Seattle, WA
________________________________
From: School Library Media & Network Communications on behalf of Jennifer Davidson
Sent: Fri 2/29/2008 12:13 PM
To: LM_NET@LISTSERV.SYR.EDU
Subject: Re: [LM_NET] TARGET and VENT: Weeding issues and "sentimental value"
My predecessor had never weeded anything as far as I could tell. She
was very well-liked and I was concerned that I would be stepping in it
if I didn't talk with my principal and staff about what I was going to
do and why. I found that going over the MUSTY information and talking
about how hard it is for kids to find the good books when there are so
many extras helped a lot with the faculty, some of whom would have been
quite resistant otherwise. We have done such a good job convincing
teachers of the importance of books that it does take some deprogramming
and explanation, IMO. It's hard for them to understand that not all
books are valuable. I had a hard time weeding books that I enjoyed when
I was a kid in the 70s and 80s, but that weren't attractive to kids
today.
To the extent possible, we allow the faculty to go through the discarded
books first, then allow the students to each choose one or two,
depending on how many are left. The books that aren't suitable to keep
in the building (seriously outdated nonfic, for example) are boxed up
and put in storage. This makes a difference in acceptance as well since
the teachers feel the books are going to a 'good home.'
I also found some very outdated books to use as examples, including an
old bio of Stephen Foster with the word "d*rkies" in it (not as part of
song lyrics, which would have been bad enough, but in the text!). My
principal shared these with the supe and he about came unglued when she
showed him the Stephen Foster book! For once, fear of being sued worked
out in a favorable way for librarians! He shared these books with the
board of ed. as well.
Jenni Davidson
Jenni Davidson
jdavidson@solomon393.k12.ks.us <mailto:jdavidson@solomon393.k12.ks.us>
Elementary Librarian/HS Spanish
Solomon USD 393
Solomon, KS
-----Original Message-----
From: Cora V. Huggins [mailto:cvh002@SHSU.EDU]
Sent: Friday, February 29, 2008 1:52 PM
To: LM_NET@LISTSERV.SYR.EDU
Subject: Re: [LM_NET] TARGET and VENT: Weeding issues and "sentimental
value"
>Dear Meagan,
I wish you well in your talks with the staff. You have made valid
points.
The library should serve the students and enhance the curriculum. I am
a
first year librarian and am working on my MLS degree. Like you, I work
in
a small school district with limited funds. Before I took the
position,
our library had been served by para-professionals for over a decade.
This
year alone, I have weeded over 650 books. I am still not done. (I call
Wednesdays "Weeding Wednesdays.") Sometimes I feel a pang when I
discard
a book, and sometimes I've noticed questionable comments from some of
the
faculty. However, the many weeding guidelines (MUSTY), etc. give me
confidence that I am doing the right thing. A collection must contain
current information or it will not serve students or teachers.
I hope that your school trusts you to use your professional skills to
determine what is best for your library. I bet that you will get many
responses from LM_Net that will help support your cause. Of course, you
may always rely on ALA documents for help also.
My advice would be to try to maintain positive relationships with your
co-workers. They probably have good intentions, but do not understand
the
importance of your decisions. Your professionalism will help educate
them.
Good Luck!
Cora Huggins (Librarian)
Centerville Jr/Sr. High
Centerville, TX 75833
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please note: All LM_NET postings are protected by copyright law.
You can prevent most e-mail filters from deleting LM_NET postings
by adding LM_NET@LISTSERV.SYR.EDU to your e-mail address book.
To change your LM_NET status, e-mail to: listserv@listserv.syr.edu
In the message write EITHER: 1) SIGNOFF LM_NET 2) SET LM_NET NOMAIL
3) SET LM_NET MAIL 4) SET LM_NET DIGEST * Allow for confirmation.
* LM_NET Help & Information: http://www.eduref.org/lm_net/
* LM_NET Archive: http://www.eduref.org/lm_net/archive/
* EL-Announce with LM_NET Select: http://lm-net.info/
* LM_NET Supporters: http://www.eduref.org/lm_net/ven.html
* LM_NET Wiki: http://lmnet.wikispaces.com/
--------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please note: All LM_NET postings are protected by copyright law.
You can prevent most e-mail filters from deleting LM_NET postings
by adding LM_NET@LISTSERV.SYR.EDU to your e-mail address book.
To change your LM_NET status, e-mail to: listserv@listserv.syr.edu
In the message write EITHER: 1) SIGNOFF LM_NET 2) SET LM_NET NOMAIL
3) SET LM_NET MAIL 4) SET LM_NET DIGEST * Allow for confirmation.
* LM_NET Help & Information: http://www.eduref.org/lm_net/
* LM_NET Archive: http://www.eduref.org/lm_net/archive/
* EL-Announce with LM_NET Select: http://lm-net.info/
* LM_NET Supporters: http://www.eduref.org/lm_net/ven.html
* LM_NET Wiki: http://lmnet.wikispaces.com/
--------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Please note: All LM_NET postings are protected by copyright law.
You can prevent most e-mail filters from deleting LM_NET postings
by adding LM_NET@LISTSERV.SYR.EDU to your e-mail address book.
To change your LM_NET status, e-mail to: listserv@listserv.syr.edu
In the message write EITHER: 1) SIGNOFF LM_NET 2) SET LM_NET NOMAIL
3) SET LM_NET MAIL 4) SET LM_NET DIGEST * Allow for confirmation.
* LM_NET Help & Information: http://www.eduref.org/lm_net/
* LM_NET Archive: http://www.eduref.org/lm_net/archive/
* EL-Announce with LM_NET Select: http://lm-net.info/
* LM_NET Supporters: http://www.eduref.org/lm_net/ven.html
* LM_NET Wiki: http://lmnet.wikispaces.com/
--------------------------------------------------------------------
LM_NET
Mailing List Home