It's easy to imagine no gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, or questioning (LGBTQ) students are at a given school, and, therefore, no need exists to court controversy and potential challenges by providing LGBTQ materials. LGBTQ students are everywhere, though, and they are at increased risk for a host of issues, including bullying, assault, and…

The exponential influx of digital content and mobile devices into schools begs for school librarians to engage in discussions and decision making about the selection, classification, management, and distribution of content ranging from e-books to open educational resources. As information professionals, school librarians should channel their inner…

As knowledge brokers, librarians are living in interesting times for themselves and libraries. It causes them to wonder sometimes if the traditional tools like the Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC) system can cope with the onslaught of information. The categories provided do not always seem adequate for the knowledge-discovery habits of…

Keeping a uniform, basic arrangement of the school library is essential if students are to be comfortable finding resources in other libraries. Two questions that must be answered if a new system were to be devised are: Who would decide on the particulars of that system? What criteria would be used to make the decision to ensure that use of the…

Librarians, teachers, authors, video game designers, corporate executives, in fact all providers of information struggle with the dilemma of how to get consumers of information engaged with their message. School librarians know that engaged students learn more and retain the information longer; authors and game designers want their readers and…

Having a child come into the library--whether on his/her very first visit or one of many visits--means that school librarians have the incredible privilege--and responsibility--to make that child feel welcome and to support his/her learning process in every way they possibly can. Whether a child is officially labeled as being "differently able"…

Focuses on the library service principles of multisensory thinking, respect for the question, and respect for the questioner as they relate to people with learning disabilities and all users. Discusses reading difficulties of people with dyslexia, along with audiotape and computer technologies that libraries can use. Presents approaches to the…

Presents findings of a study that examined the impact of a model urban library system in Philadelphia (Pennsylvania) on children's literacy development, particularly for poor, minority families, and its relation to reading achievement. It is concluded that libraries are vital for children's achievement and developing informational needs. (MES)