celebrations and programs, including Children’s Book Week and National Library Week as well as summer reading programs and programs like Every Child Ready to Read. Typically these programs seek to focus attention on the joy of reading, sharing books, and encouraging literacy. In March 1996 during a radio interview in Tucson, Arizona, author and poet Pat Mora learned about a holiday celebrated in Mexico, as well as in other Latin American countries. El día de los niños, or the Day of the Child, has its
Since the internet has been available in schools and libraries in this country, there has been a debate about what should be accessible to users, especially minors. The amount of information disseminated on the world wide web is vast, with some sources valuable for scholarly and personal research and entertainment, and some sources that contain material that is objectionable to some (ie. pornography, gambling, hate groups sites, violent materials). Some information potentially accessible on the
On one particular day, one of your children notifies you that once again they are going to the library to finish a school paper. No harm in that right? However, perhaps you would think differently if you knew your child wasn’t going to the library to merely finish his report, but to also look at pornography he had been introduced to on the internet. This is not only a reality at your local libraries, but also the topic of a long time debate in this country over responsible information access and
Library Professional Associations When an individual makes the decision to pursue a higher degree of education in a desired field of study, he or she may have decided to follow a professional path in the world of libraries and information science. My career goal has been to become the director of the library system that I am currently working. As director, I oversee all library programs, budget, staff, and library operations. I would like to continue as director for the next 3 to 5 years. After
jail." (Merkelson). A book represents an idea, thus limiting access to a book is banning the representation of an idea. The banning of books in American schools should not be allowed, because banning books will prevent students from learning the reason for the controversy and alternate viewpoints they can come to on their own. As the American Library Association notes, books are usually banned "with the best intention…to protect others, frequently children, from difficult ideas and information." (Brunner)
Self-Censored School Library: Safe Haven or Barren Philosophical Wasteland? “You don’t have to burn books to destroy a culture. Just get people to stop reading them,” posited Ray Bradbury, author of the critically acclaimed Fahrenheit 451 detailing a society wrought with regular book burnings and a complete suppression of ideas. This quote exemplifies the threat that censorship poses to the reading habits of young people, a threat that is ever present in the school library. School media specialists
they deem dangerous. Public libraries, school libraries, and English classrooms are where these censorship attempts are being waged, often successfully. Indeed, more than 97% of challenges take place in public libraries, school libraries, and classrooms (“ALA Challenges by Initiator”).When these challenges succeed, they also succeed in taking important, compelling, worthwhile literature from the hands and minds of students. Book banning in public schools and libraries is unethical, counterproductive
.. ... middle of paper ... ... for any information they want or need. Works Cited Ross, Shmuel. "Harry Potter Banned?" Infoplease. Infoplease, 14 Apr. 2010. Web. 05 Nov. 2013. (1) "Top 100 Banned/Challenged Books: 2000-2009." American Library Association. ALA, 23 Dec. 2009. Web. 05 Nov. 2013. (2) Baldassarro, Wolf. "Banned Books Awareness." Banned Books Awareness. World.edu, 31 Mar. 2011. Web. 05 Nov. 2013. (3) "WHY WAS IT BANNED? - to Kill a Mockingbird and Censorship." To Kill a Mockingbird
classes in a classification system. The notation is expressed in Arabic numerals in the case of the Dewey Decimal System. It does not matter what words are used to describe subjects the notation will give a unique meaning of the class and say its association to other classes. The notation has the ability to identify the class within which the subject belongs and related classes. The classes get identified and have linked classes found by using a universal language, which is provided by the notation
influence teenagers’ way of thinking or action in a deep and long way. As a result, in the United States, a lot of schools have banned books from their libraries, book stores, and curriculum since they believe that those books target violence, racism, or sexuality content, which are not appropriate to teenagers. According to Modern Library Association, books which are successfully challenged or target racism would be banned, such as Hamlet, The Communist, Manifesto, Lady’ Chatterley’s Lover, and Moll
vice president of communications and marketing at the Heritage Foundation (Lankford). In Rebecca’s article there are many things that I do not agree with. The first argument that I have to disagree with is when Rebecca stated that the American Library Association recommends books for young readers, but these recommendations reflect their liberal values and the books recommended by the ALA contain cures words and graphic sexual information (Hagelin). I got in contact with the ALA and I asked them
Anthony Comstock – The Father of American Censorship Anthony Comstock was the most prominent American advocate of censorship in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Born in Connecticut in 1844, Comstock fought with the Union in the Civil War and upon release became an influential member of the Young Men’s Christian Association. His personal quest to rid America of indecent and immoral literature made his name synonymous with the epithet “Comstockery” or the excessive pursuit
The Library of Hattiesburg, Petal and Forrest County is located in Forrest County, Mississippi. This public library system is headquartered in Hattiesburg, MS, and has an additional branch in Petal, MS. The library began serving the reading needs of the community with a circulating collection of books in 1916. Later that year it relocated to the lounge of the first floor of the Forrest County Courthouse. During World War I, the American Library Association established twelve branch libraries in Hattiesburg
or challenged. Book banning causes the removal of materials in schools and libraries due to “inappropriate” content. The Lovely Bones, by Alice Sebold, was banned due to sexual content and language. In 1982 was when Banned Books Week was introduced to the world (ASJA, 1). “Banned Books Week is the national book community’s annual celebration of the freedom to read”. In the United States, the First Amendment protects American citizens from being denied the right to read any book they desire (Banned
RUSA’s (Reference and User Services Association, a division of ALA) Standards and Guidelines Committee revised the existing guidelines for Liaison work in 2009. The standards and guidelines help librarians identify users that can help in collection services and issues. They also identify objectives and continuing education opportunities for liaisons. (2010, p. 97) According to the committee, liaison work is the mean by which librarians involve their patrons in assessing the collection to determine
challenge is not only made based on a point of view from a person, or a group of people, but it is made to remove the material from classrooms curriculums and libraries. Thankfully most challenges are unsuccessful. So why are books challenged? Usually they are challenged to protect children from difficult ideas. According to the American Library Association’s Office of Intellectual Freedom the top three reasons for challenging are; the content is sexually explicit, contains offensive language, and not
Since my educational journey will lead me to a school library rather than to a classroom, my philosophy focuses on reading. I believe that there is a reader in every child and to unlock that reader each child must be viewed as an individual so that their own unique passion for learning is ignited. I know that there has been a tremendous amount of research conducted that shows how reading can improve a child’s grades and test scores but reading is much more powerful than that. Reading alters you
Abstract The well-being of a community is in the hands of its citizens. Together, individuals can make a difference to their existing situation and future development. As a librarian at Public Library, it is important to realize the different demographics of the community one serves. One aspect which I have felt lacking in the community is the development of the local children, in particular teenagers. The following report has been developed with the view to communicate the potential of an outreach
involved in the process. For example, in 1954, libraries had difficulty importing materials from behind the Iron Curtain. The post office had taken on the role of the censor and had labeled certain papers "unmailable" and refused to deliver them (Newsletter, January, 1954, 7). The Civil Rights era was also a difficult time for our country, and libraries were not exempt from its pressures. On August 11, 1962, a federal court ordered the public library in Montgomery, Alabama to desegregate its reading
and Other Big, Round Thing have in common? They are books on the American Library Association’s list of the one hundred most commonly challenged and banned books from the year 2000-2007. For various reasons, these books were found unsuitable for public audiences, and an appeal was made to a court on to ban them. From profanity to sexual content to homosexuality, groups have found reasons to challenge the books presence in libraries. But, the problem with banning books is that they shine a light