Danielle posted about an article that appeared in one of the Australian newspapers in the last couple of days, about a new school that is opening with no books in the library.
I used to live in the area where this school is and I can tell you that I wouldn't have been best pleased if my child had gone to a school with no library books. Yes, I understand that most of the information that children require is available on the net, but to have no books at all seems completely unbelievable to me! Or maybe, just maybe, it is the way of the future. What do you think?
Read the full article here.
That seems almost unbelievable. A few years ago I would have never believed it, but now if my daughter is working on a project or has to do research, it is all done on the internet. I don't even think they teach kids how to do research the "old fashioned" way. I sometimes wonder what those kids without the internet do - I'm sure there are some.
ReplyDeleteBut still. Why call it a library if it doesn't have books? Then it must becomes another place to sit and study. No books to borrow to read? How awful. Where I live, there is no public library so my daughter sometimes gets books from the school library to read.
It's all very sad.
The school that my daughter goes to has opened a new campus, and they don't have any books in their "library" either! I do know one parent that sends her child to that campus and she is not happy at all. They can go to the local council library, and she does, but that is beside the point!
ReplyDeleteI don't think it is an issue so much for the younger ones, but yes, for projects etc a library is a must. The internet doesn't give you everything!
I certainly hope that just because we live in a world of technology that books don't become obsolete!! What a horrible thought! There is too much bad stuff out there for my kids to find on the net. I prefer them with book in their hands!
ReplyDeleteSigh, as a children's librarian and former school librarian, this really depresses me. All I'm going to say is that I hope they're teaching the students how to use the 'net, databases etc. correctly. There is a huge amount of information, but unless the children are taught how to search and how to analyze the information they find for validity, it's pretty much useless. The internet is full of biased misinformation.
ReplyDeleteI was a little surprised when I read this article, too. I do think that libraries are moving in this direction--the library I am working at is definitely going digital--whether the workers like it or not. On the one hand it is wonderful that so many more things are available and at our fingertips, but I still do think that libraries are meant to be cultural depositories, too. I can't imagine a library without books--reference materials online I can understand, but everything? I woulnd't want it to be this way.
ReplyDeleteDevon I think that your last point is what bothers me the most. Yes, you can find just about anything on the internet, but there are very few checks in place to be sure that the information that the kids can access is actually factually based!
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