What Are Libraries Good For?

what are libraries

and what are they

good for?

LIB 601 Libraries and Learning Fall 2009

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What is a Library?

OK, What is a Library? “A truly great library contains

something in it to offend everyone.” • Jo Godwin

“If you want to get laid, go to college. If you want an education, go to the library.”  • Frank Zappa

– Online Dictionary of Quotations

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Library?

“You see, I don’t believe that libraries should be drab places where people sit in silence, and that’s been the main reason for our policy of employing wild animals as librarians.” • Monty Python skit

Gorilla Librarian

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Dictionary definition of Library?

Main Entry: li·brary Pronunciation: 'lI-"brer-E; British usually and US sometimes -br&r-E; US sometimes -brE, ÷-"ber-EFunction: nounInflected Form(s): plural -brar·iesEtymology: Middle English, from Medieval Latin librarium, from Latin, neuter of librarius of books, from libr-, liber inner bark, rind, book1 a : a place in which literary, musical, artistic, or reference materials (as books, manuscripts, recordings, or films) are kept for use but not for sale b : a collection of such materials2 a : a collection resembling or suggesting a library <a library of computer programs> <wine library> b : MORGUE 2

How do librarians define it? library

A collection or group of collections of books and/or other print or nonprint materials organized and maintained for use (reading, consultation, study, research, etc.). Institutional libraries, organized to facilitate access by a specific clientele, are staffed by librarians and other personnel trained to provide services to meet user needs. By extension, the room, building, or facility that houses such a collection, usually but not necessarily built for that purpose.

But what are they for? What are libraries for?

Are they cultural storehouses that contain the best that has been thought and said? Or are they more like actual stores, responding to whatever fickle taste or Mitch Albom tearjerker is all the rage at this very moment? If the answer is the latter, then why must we have government-run libraries at all? There's a fine line between an institution that aims to edify the public and one that merely uses tax dollars to subsidize the recreational habits of bookworms.• Checked Out: A

Washington-area library tosses out the classics by JOHN J. MILLER

One possible model

The Library as a Dictionary Instead of embracing this doomed model,

libraries might seek to differentiate themselves among the many options readers now have, using a good dictionary as the model. Such a dictionary doesn’t merely describe the words of a language--it provides proper spelling, pronunciation and usage. New words come in and old ones go out, but a reliable lexicon becomes a foundation of linguistic stability and coherence. Likewise, libraries should seek to shore up the culture against the eroding force of trends.

• Checked Out: A Washington-area library tosses out the classics

Why bother, though?

What about the internet? Libraries will have a

crucial role for years to come no matter how much of recorded human knowledge makes its way onto the Internet. No one has yet come up with a proven method of preserving digital information for a century or more, and the explosion of knowledge and information abetted by the digital revolution makes the organizing and cataloging skills of librarians ever more valuable.

What about School Libraries?

School Library A library in an elementary or secondary

public school, charter school or non-profit private school serving some combination of grades K-12. Some also serve pre-kindergarten (PK), or may be combined with a public library or branch• Colorado Librarian's Survival Guide • Glossary

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History of School Libraries

Not vet well known! Although the American public school

library is one of this nation’s most ubiquitous educational institutions, we know very little about its history.• First sentence of:

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A Pioneer of School Librarianship

Hannah Logasa (1879-1967) General objectives of the library

study-room:

1. To serve as the laboratory and workroom of the school

2. To make available library material for the use of teachers and pupils

3. To coöperate with all departments of the school in the carrying out of their objectives

4. To serve as the centralizing agency in the plan of school organization

– The High School Library: Its Function in Education (1928)

A mid-20th Century View

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