The Paradox of Access

Update: I wrote this article over a year ago when I taught at a different school.  I'm now fortunate to work at a school that provides a generous library budget, but I still think about this issue a lot--especially as I know there are many school librarians in the same position.  I know that my opinion isn't shared by everyone, and I would love to hear other librarians' thoughts and perspectives on this important topic.

Recently a kindergarten teacher at my school came up to me and asked that I not let his students check out books if they have overdue items.  I cringed a little at this, and he said, “Gotta teach them responsibility.”  I went along with his wishes that week (mostly), but the idea nagged at me.  I learned in my school library courses that children should get books, full stop.  The most important parts of my job are putting books in children’s hands and getting them to read.  These are my top priorities; encouraging a love of reading is the reason I got into this job.  But I couldn’t completely disagree with this teacher, and the number of overdue and missing books in my library has been a growing concern since I started working there. 

Not even a week later, I saw a tweet that said, “Some say library fines ‘teach personal responsibility.’ But responsibility isn’t a core value of libraries; access is.  Families can choose for themselves if and how to teach the value of responsibility/accountability.”   While my concern isn’t on fines as much as it is actual checkout (we don’t do overdue fees at my school), the statement still holds true; according to the American Library Association, libraries prioritize access, not responsibility.  I read inspiring articles by teachers and librarians on the importance of remembering that replacing a few missing books is only a minor inconvenience when a missing book means a child has a story at home.  I applaud that attitude and I agree that, in theory, access beats overdue books.  But carrying this out is a lot harder.

My title does not stop at librarian; I am a teacher librarian.  I work in an elementary school, I write lesson plans, I teach classes.  Isn't one of the tasks of a teacher to teach responsibility?  We can say all we like that those values should be taught in the home, but teachers—at some schools in particular—have to guide students on them as well.  And as a teacher librarian, isn’t that my job, too?

Second, and even more importantly, the idea that a missing library book means a child now has a book in their house is a wonderful thought.  I want my students to have as many books at home as possible.  But when a book stays at home, it leaves a gap in the library collection.  I don’t get money for new books at my school; any books I’ve added have been ones I’ve purchased with my own money, or are donations from my generous friends.  I have students who have more than ten missing books.  School policy states that students must pay for missing library books, but the majority of mine cannot afford that fee.  A missing book is a book gone.  I know those books could be enjoyed by so many more students if they came back to the library and filled our shelves.

Which brings us back to the point of access: if the librarian cannot replace books, there are fewer books for others to check out.  Already, in the course of just six months, I’ve watched my already meager library collection dwindle down to the point where whole shelves are empty.  Teachers walk in and point out how paltry it is, as if I could wave my wand and make books magically appear. 

I wish I could.

When missing books are a school-wide problem in a place where there is no funding, it severely limits access to everybody.  Allowing students to continue to checkout books when they have overdue or missing items only increases the number of books not returned.  It perpetuates a cycle and makes access, the core tenet of libraries, unattainable.

I love the idea of allowing students to continue taking books home no matter what their record looks like.  But I feel it is, at least in part, my job as a teacher librarian to set an example for responsibility and cultivate a library that is as full of books as it can be.  Continuing to allow students to take books and never return them does not encourage access.  It effectively ends it.