Today's new media tools are incredibly powerful communication vehicles that allow organizations to connect and engage with many different audiences. With more than seven million users, Twitter is growing at an annual rate of 1,382 percent, Facebook boasts over 250 million active members, and aspiring writers have started more than 133 million…

Generating excitement about poetry is often a challenge with high school patrons. While some teens have discovered the cathartic and aesthetic qualities of poetry, many have never experienced the joy of poetry. A course the author took in 2003 at The University of Georgia with Dr. JoBeth Allen, "Poetry in the Classroom," ignited a…

It seems that fear of Web 2.0 is in full force. There are two concerns that resulted in a national panic concerning Internet Web 2.0 tools: pedophiles luring children via the Internet and corruption of youths through exposure to hard-core pornography or other vile material. Administrators, no doubt, are thinking in terms of saving themselves from…

Founded in 1982, Banned Books Week is celebrated annually during the last week in September and will be observed from September 26-October 3 in 2009. The event acknowledges Americans' right to read the books of their choice regardless of whether the ideas, language, or images are controversial. This annual observance of banned books is a good…

On January 19, 2009, the day before his historic inauguration, President Obama and his wife, Michelle, commemorated Martin Luther King Day by volunteering for various community service projects around the Washington, DC, area. A record number of Americans also participated in the King Day of Service, joining in over 13,000 projects, more than…

Though few students realize it, many things in today's culture exist because of mythology. This article argues that library media specialists and teachers can teach mythology but it must be applied to the 21st century and shown its relevance in today's world. The article demonstrates that mythology studies are alive and well when the new AASL…

Book displays have always been an important part of the library field. However, despite all the time and effort, children do not read them. In this article, the author stresses the need to stop promoting reading. Instead, she encourages library media specialists to help children find reading material they will be eager to read.

This article is Part 3 of a three part summary of selected articles from the journals of the American Association of School Librarians (AASL) over a period of thirty-five years from 1972 to 2007. This three-part series in the April, May, and June (2009) issues of "School Library Media Activities Monthly" ("SLMAM") illustrate the evolution in…

Library/Information Science (LIS) education is facing cataclysmic change brought about by changes in the information professions. LIS education must provide education for the evolving information professions or it will become obsolete. Two central characteristics describe the status of LIS schools and their likely evolution. First is the depth and…

The purpose of this, the first international library conference held in China and sponsored by a Chinese institution, was to enhance the development of library and information science, promote the status of library and information professionals, and exchange ideas of research and practices in the field. In addition to ceremonial speeches, 134…

The subject of this analytical bibliography is the future of education for librarianship. Its purpose was to cover English-language publications since 1980 and selected "classic" authors of the past, and to synthesize the trends and concepts that emerge. The first section presents a brief synthesis of each of the major issues/trends that emerged…

Conclusions drawn from brief visits to library schools in Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania, and the Slovak Republic in 1992 and 1993 are presented. Visits were made to 10 schools, appropriate ministries, and major libraries and information centers. The visits were largely supported by the Trans European Mobility Programme for…

A graduate of the Columbia University School of Library Services in 1968 and the current Executive Director of the National Commission on Library and Information Science (NCLIS) argues that information professionals today are confronted with increasingly complex and conflicting missions: they must interpret the impact of change on the institutions…

This document contains two syllabi and selected handouts developed for a graduate-level course in bibliographic instruction (BI). The purpose of the course is to enable students to become familiar with the field of bibliographic instruction and to plan, implement, and evaluate a BI course within an academic setting. Attention is also given to…

In recognition of the centennial of the College of Information Studies at Drexel University (Pennsylvania), the history of the school is reviewed by a former dean, with reference to anecdotes and exemplary events. Drexel opened in 1891 and began its library science training program the following year. The founding years through 1921 were followed…