The Demise of School Libraries

 The Demise of School Libraries

I think one of the more boring talking points made by politicians and out of touch people is that “nobody goes to the library anymore.” One Facebook post about someone’s one visit to their local library and how it’s empty and suddenly everyone wants to talk about how libraries are costly. Currently, libraries across the country are experiencing defunding. Even our local mayor, Todd Gloria, is proposing a budget cut by reducing library hours that already had been cut due to the COVID lockdown in 2020. Unfortunately, these issues go even beyond our borders. Our friends to the north, in Canada, are also experiencing setbacks. Author Chudhury Kunal writes that “52% of school libraries had a school librarian in 2017.” How disheartening and what’s even worse is that of that 52%, only 11% were employed on a full-time basis.

Another unfortunate aspect and unintended consequence is how the youth’s literary rates and joy of reading will be affected. There are already issues with declining literacy rates and adults who are learning to read for pleasure. Where does this start? Ideally it starts at the toddler age but sometimes kids simply do not have the privilege of early childhood literacy. Communities with low-income and historically disadvantaged peoples are definitely and what little resources are allocated will most likely be on the chopping block. In the article, “Worlds Apart: One City, Two Libraries, and Ten Years of Watching Inequality Grow” follows two patrons of two different Philadelphia neighborhoods and their experience with inequality. Chestnut Hill, the polished and gentrified of the two neighborhoods, has its library’s pre-school described as “Inside the spacious preschool area at Lillian Marrero, separated from the rest of the library by “castle walls,” we find bins and baskets, crates and shelves full of books, and small tables with computers.” What a luxury to have the pre-school located within the library!

Ultimately, it’s a hard pill to swallow and watch the library be attacked in a myriad of ways. I don’t think there’s a demise in the love of the library, especially at the school level, but rather the way in which we value a library. We’ve reduced the library to a hefty financial responsibility and somehow the burden of up-keeping such an institution is burning holes in our pockets. In actuality, the school library is a gathering space worthy of the cost we think it is.

*Ariana Johnson-Lopez

Chaudhary, K. (2024). How the Ford Government is Accelerating the Decline of  School Libraries. Canadian School Libraries Journal, 8(3), 10. 

Harmon, J., Martinez, M., Juarez, L., Wood, K., Simmerson, L., & Terrazas, C. (2019). An Investigation of Middle School Classroom Libraries. Reading Psychology, 40(7), 583–611. https://doi-org.palomar.idm.oclc.org/10.1080/02702711.2019.1635240

Neuman, S. B., & Celano, D. C. (2012). Worlds Apart: One City, Two Libraries, and Ten Years of Watching Inequality Grow. American Educator, 36(3), 13–19.