Over the past year, concerns about the issue of censorship and book banning have been steadily growing.
It’s an age-old problem. Books have always been routes to challenge, change, disrupting narratives, and a chance to explore the world through new perspectives.
This is enough to make some believe access to certain types of books should be limited, or restricted entirely through book banning.
I believe that at a time of deep uncertainty in our society, books offer a way to discover and deliberate, a way to understand the world and yourself.
In school, where better for this to happen than in the school library, with a librarian on hand who can provide guidance, listen, and advise where support might be needed?
A school librarian who is knowledgeable and supported can provide the expertise needed for schools to acknowledge difficult issues and approach them with sound judgment.
Trusting your school librarian to develop a collection that is reflective of your whole school needs and interests is fundamental to this.
Working with them to support their collection development approach, with a clear policy and a route to responding to any concerns, is also fundamental.
A collection development policy is essential
As with any department in school, the library should have its own development plan, with aims and outcomes clearly defined and a clear rationale for the books it holds and how they are accessed.
This does of course require the library and the librarian to be properly funded so they can build an inclusive collection supportive of the whole school community’s needs and interests.
Like any art form, books can provoke debate and disagreement. The challenge for schools often arises when it comes to age appropriate-ness. This is where a solid collection development policy becomes essential.
A collection development policy demonstrates a clear approach and commitment to creating inclusive and supportive libraries so all stakeholders – children, young people, parents and carers, teaching staff and senior leaders – know what to expect and feel confident that the library will serve the needs of the whole community.
Librarians provide the knowledge and understanding
Whatever the policy, with a school librarian at the heart of your library, you know there is someone with the in-depth knowledge and understanding to guide children and young people to the right book, at the right time.
And let’s be clear, curating a collection with titles for the whole range of ages and interests in a school community is vital to inclusivity and accessibility.
Let’s also be clear, there are some topics and themes that younger children don’t need to read about until they are mature enough to understand them.
Again, that is where the skill of a school librarian, who knows the children they support and knows the books they have in their collection, can define what is appropriate and for whom and will take steps to ensure that they read it at the right time.
These approaches only work when they are applied with the full support of school leadership and never allowed to be co-opted to push a particular agenda.
A worrying trend
School libraries are places of knowledge, safety and security and any collection development policy should recognise and uphold this.
The increase in instances of book banning shows a worrying trend with the school library as a cultural battle ground.
Many recent instances of censorship in the school library speak to societal issues with acceptance, freedom of expression, freedom of speech and a growing unwillingness to understand different perspectives.
There is no better way for us to tackle these problems than to encourage our children and young people to read and give them opportunities to discuss their thoughts and opinions in a safe space.
Our school librarians should be trusted and enabled to support these discussions and recommend well written, age-appropriate books that they know will resonate with the children and young people reading them.
In this way, we can build empathy and understanding in our young people, in a world that is increasingly complex.
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