Copyright 2000 P.G. Publishing Co.
Pittsburgh
Post-Gazette
April 2, 2000, Sunday, TWO STAR EDITION
SECTION: NATIONAL, Pg. A-12
LENGTH: 930 words
HEADLINE:
SCHOOL LIBRARIES SEE FEDERAL CASH SPENT ELSEWHERE
BYLINE: KAREN MACPHERSON, POST-GAZETTE NATIONAL BUREAU
DATELINE: WASHINGTON --
BODY:
Browse a school library in many parts of the country and you'll
learn that humans haven't yet set foot on the moon or that airline
"stewardesses" must quit working when they get married.
Many school
libraries contain books that are outdated by decades or filled with what are now
considered offensive stereotypes -- even though the latest research indicates
that a well-stocked and well-staffed school library raises student scores on
standardized tests.
Nevertheless, federal funding for school libraries
has plummeted over the past three decades. Many libraries, particularly those in
inner-city schools, don't have the money to chuck old books and buy new ones.
Local districts and states also have cut school library funding in favor of
addressing other needs, such as school safety.
The average cost of a new
school library book is $ 16, but the average per-pupil amount spent by school
districts for books is $ 7 for elementary and middle school and
$ 6 for high school.
U.S. Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., wants to change the
situation. Reed has sponsored legislation to spend $ 275 million to permit
school libraries to buy new books and advanced technology, such as online
subscriptions for magazines and research software.
Reed's bill would
provide more training for school librarians and permit school libraries to
remain open longer. Neediest schools would be earmarked for help first.
"Too many books on school library shelves across the country contain
harmful stereotypes and inaccurate material," Reed said. "In a multicultural
world, students continually encounter books from a period when authors viewed
the world from only a white perspective.
"Congress can and should
provide funding to improve our children's books."
But Reed, a member of
the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, has so far been
stymied. The Senate panel recently rejected Reed's effort to add his measure to
the updated Elementary and Secondary Education Act.
Republicans, led by the committee's chairman, Sen. James Jeffords,
R-Vt., say they would support increased federal funding for school libraries.
But the GOP lawmakers also contend that Congress should send federal education
dollars to local school districts with as few strings as possible.
If
local school districts want to spend the money on improving school library
collections, that's fine. If they want to spend the money on other programs,
that's their decision, Republicans argue.
"It's up to local parents and
local educators to decide what the most important priority is," says Jeffords
spokesman Joe Karpinski.
Reed plans to try again when the measure
reaches the Senate floor at the end of April. It's unclear, however, whether he
can round up the votes.
A study to be released this month could bolster
Reed's case. The study, conducted by the Colorado Library Research Service of
the Colorado State Library, surveyed 850 schools in three states: Pennsylvania,
Alaska and Colorado. Student scores on standardized tests in those states were
10 to 15 percent higher in schools with strong library programs.
"The
bottom line across the three states is that once again, we've shown a positive
and statistically significant correlation between the size of the school library
and library media staff and test scores," said study director Keith Lance.
Marcia J. Rodney, a native of Pittsburgh, and Christine Hamilton-co-authored the
study.
"The pressure is on for student performance on test," said Linda
Carvell, president of the Pennsylvania School Librarians Association. "Now this
study makes a direct correlation between student performance and the staffing of
school libraries, how much interaction there is between the teachers and the
librarian, the number of hours the library is open and the library's budget. It
seems to me that we'd better wake up and realize these factors are significant
and we can't neglect school libraries."
Nationwide, there are 98,311
public and private school libraries in the United States, according to the
American Library Association. About 96 percent of U.S. public schools have a
library and 80 percent of private schools have one.
Each week, more than
47 million elementary, middle and high school students use a
school library, the library association says. But the ratio of students to
school library media specialists varies widely: Montana has one for every 287
public school students, while California has one per 924 students. The national
average is one for every 591 students.
Congress first approved federal
funding for school libraries as part of the 1965 Elementary and
Secondary Education Act, and many of the books now on the school
library shelves date to that era.
Besides being factually outdated, many
of the books in school libraries today are filled with sexist and racist images,
librarians complain. One brightly illustrated picture book, published in 1962
and titled "Colonial Life in America," describes plantation life in idyllic
terms: "A large plantation was like a village. Slaves had their own cabins."
Another book, "Studying the Middle East," published in 1968, states that
Arabs "are addicted to leisure."
In 1974, federal funding for school
libraries was rolled into a large block grant. Local districts can decide
whether they want to spend the money on school libraries or other things, such
as magnet programs, drop-out prevention programs or school security. Many school
librarians have found their budgets squeezed, as localities have chosen to use
federal funds for other programs.
LOAD-DATE: April 4,
2000 
