As the mother of three young children, I am constantly thinking about how technology and social media will impact my kids’ lives and what we collectively as parents, adults, and information professionals can do to help cultivate healthy, fulfilling, and even inspiring relationships with technology. And as a substitute middle and high school librarian (and a volunteer at an elementary school library), I have become even more aware of how much potential there is to better engage students and arm them with the tools to seek out (and verify) information.
When I first subbed at the middle school last fall, I noticed 6th and 7th graders coming into the library during recess and lunch to play Minecraft on the computers. I admit that my first thought was, “I can’t believe the school allows this.” It frankly disappointed me that kids weren’t coming in to check out books for fun or for a quiet place to read or study. After all, that’s how I used the library growing up.
But as I watched them come in every day, I began to see that this was a way for kids to connect and socialize with their peers. This echoes what Dana Boyd writes in It’s Complicated: The Social Lives of Networked Teens and what Professor Stephens includes in Heart of Librarianship: “Most teens are not compelled by gadgetry as such—they are compelled by friendship. The gadgets are interesting to them primarily as a means to a social end.”
However, for me, having fun and socializing still didn’t feel like enough. I sat there trying to think of different ways the full-time librarian could expand the students’ engagement in the library without necessarily eliminating Minecraft (or perhaps engaging them so much that they wouldn’t even want to play anymore!). I thought, why not ask them? As the Hyperlinked Library model makes clear, transparency and asking for user feedback is essential—and children and teens shouldn’t be an exception.
But I am more interested in the participatory service aspect of the Hyperlinked Library, specifically as it relates to the younger demographics and technology. It’s heartening to see successful examples of libraries meeting teenagers where they are, such as the Chicago Public Library’s YOUMedia space and the media center (or “The Unquiet Library”) at Creekview High School in Georgia. I especially love how the high school librarians work together with teachers to plan lessons. The article The Hyperlinked School Library: Engage, Explore, Celebrate also had some great ideas for incorporating technology into the learning environment, including recording and editing podcasts, connecting with a classroom in a different location, or creating stories with images taken on a digital camera. (Stephens, 2010)
In Wholehearted Librarianship, Professor Stephens talks about “zones with heart,” listing areas for community, creativity, curiosity, collaboration, and caring. He writes, “We need technology (all shapes, sizes, and cost factors) to create some of these spaces, but we also need dedicated encouragers and facilitators to help people learn, experience, and utilize the space. The most important thread here is the people, of course. A caring mindset trumps spiffy, expensive technology every day.” This addresses one of my personal concerns; no new technology is worth it if it means losing out on personal connections, especially for young people who often need them most.
What I struggle with is how much technology is too much? What is the ideal balance between learning through innovation and doing it the old fashioned way of books, pen, and paper? What is the best way to arm kids with the necessary skills to seek out and verify accurate information, especially in the world we live in today? When I take my kids to the public library, I audibly groan when they inevitably go to the computer station instead of looking at books. And then I ask myself, why is that my reaction?
I find myself in an interesting intersection as both a parent who is wary of tech in the classroom and as a future information professional who wants nothing more than to inspire kids and teens to spend more time in libraries. The Hyperlinked Library is already opening up my eyes to the possibilities of how—when done right—tech and innovation can meet the specific needs of young people and inspire them.
References
Mathews, B. (2010, June 21). Unquiet library has high-schoolers geeked. American Libraries Magazine. https://americanlibrariesmagazine.org/2010/06/21/unquiet-library-has-high-schoolers-geeked/
Mathews, B. [American Libraries Magazine]. (2010, June 21). Unquiet library has high-schoolers geeked [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v8G4nnlgKmk
Stephens, M. (2019). Wholehearted librarianship: Finding hope, inspiration, and balance. ALA Editions.
Stephens, M. (2010, March 2). The hyperlinked school library: Engage, explore, celebrate. Tame the Web. https://tametheweb.com/2010/03/02/the-hyperlinked-school-library-engage-explore-celebrate/