No one seems to really understand what it is librarians do all day. You could ask anyone what they think a librarian’s job entails and they’d give you the same answer: “She shelves books.” There has to be more to the job than that. Otherwise, why waste money to pay someone for what a volunteer could do for free? In fact, children and youth services librarians are important in supporting the social, mental and emotional development of children and teens.
The library is tailored specifically to support the community it serves. An effective youth services program provides resources and events that satisfy and arouse children’s personal interests. Similarly, the librarian’s knowledge of the curriculum, local community, and the developmental needs of children and young adults allows her to locate and make available materials that enhance student knowledge and appeal to various learning styles. Interaction between public librarians, children and teens, school librarians, parents and teachers is necessary to provide children with a rich learning experience. Teachers and school librarians can provide librarians with a closer look at curricula as well as a more intimate knowledge of students’ learning styles and developmental needs. Parents, children and teens can provide librarians with greater knowledge about what they find appealing. In return, librarians provide teachers with the information and resources needed to create a higher degree of student learning and increase students’ ability to navigate technological resources. Public librarians can also provide school librarians with resources that they could not otherwise obtain due to space issues or other concerns. In order to ensure healthy development, youth services librarians must work together with parents, teachers, library media specialists and children.
Librarians are skilled at providing reading materials that match students’ level of development and personal interests. By doing readers’ advisory and sharing book trailers, the librarian introduces children to reading choices they might not have previously considered. By hosting book talks, the librarian encourages students to evaluate what they have read, strengthening their critical thinking skills. Librarians are an important factor in students’ development of a lifelong love of reading.
A youth services librarian, not a luxury. Some people cite the presence of the internet as a reason that schools don’t need librarians; “Why bother teaching students how to do research when they’ve been doing it themselves for years?” Today if a child has a question, their first instinct is to go to Google. People often remember the convenience of the internet while forgetting its sheer size. For any phrase typed into a search bar, there are thousands of results, most of them useless. A librarian is needed to teach students the skills they need to sift through all this information. Even when people find what they are looking for online, it is often difficult to tell what information is fact and what is opinion. In this area, children are especially vulnerable. Librarians can direct children to resources that are recent, authoritative and accurate. Youth services librarian can help children develop the ability to successfully locate and evaluate information. This ability is necessary in an increasingly digital workforce.
Librarians exist to provide students with resources and skills they need to thrive in the classroom and the outside world.