butterflymommy Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 (edited) We have been touring high schools with 8th grade DD. If she doesn't get into one of the specialized HSs (she took the test yesterday) she'll be attending private catholic high school (she said no way to HSing :glare:). In all the schools it's always the same-- the libraries are computer rooms. In some there were still a very few bookshelves with dusty books, or a handful of reference books, but mainly they were filled with shiny new computers with internet browsers a-ready. I mentioned this to a family acquaintance and he said, "Your grandchildren won't even know what a book is!" Are books really disappearing? My kids love books. Whenever I go to B&N it's packed with people. I know in certain parts of the world book buying is up (off the top of my head-- europe and manga books in japan). Personally I think books will continue to exist just like movie theaters are still popular despite dvds, streaming, and pay per view. But maybe I'm overly optimistic and books are indeed becoming obsolete. I had to listen to a few lectures about the importance of technology in the classroom. One teacher proudly says he doesn't stop any student from using any device they bring to the classroom "because that's the real world." All I know is that in my girls' school the kids use the classroom computer to watch Chucky videos when the teacher isn't paying attention :rolleyes:. For the option "physical books will become obsolete for certain subjects but not others" I'm referring to, say, user manuals, maps, or technical books, VS more experiential books like fiction or art books. Edited October 28, 2012 by butterflymommy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parrothead Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 I don't think they will be obsolete. If nothing else there are people who just do not enjoy reading everything from a screen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blakereese Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 I don't think they will become obsolete. But it is hard to go shop for books in person, which irritates me. Our last local book store closed over the summer, so now all we have is a couple of B&N that are about 30 minutes to 45 minutes away. Sometimes I just want to go in and browse and sometimes I want to look through something before buying. I know I am as guilty as anyone on this one, I buy waaaaaaaaay too much at amazon. But I do miss small, independent book stores. :( As far as the schools, they do not have a lot of money to buy books these days. Our school hasn't bought any new books in years and in fact, the school library was closed for a couple of years because we couldn't afford the librarian. :( So sad. But they do receive grants to buy e-books, so there are lots of those, and very few real books. When I volunteered in our school library a few years ago, a good portion of the books (especially science and history related) were from the 60s and 70s. :glare: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Night Elf Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 I haven't the foggiest idea. It's hard for me to imagine a lack of physical books but I have to confess that I much prefer using my Kindle now. At my dd14's school, I don't recall seeing a lot of computers in the media center, so I'm assuming they were in the back section. We were standing in line in the front area waiting to get her schedule. I didn't look around much. But she was not given a single textbook for any of her classes. Either there is a class set which is used during class only, or there is no book at all. Her English textbook is class only. They are reading Anthem by Ayn Rand and were able to check out copies from the media center. It surprised me because we had to buy Fahrenheit 451 so I jut assumed we'd be buying any book they read. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
butterflymommy Posted October 28, 2012 Author Share Posted October 28, 2012 They aren't disappearing here. There is a freeze on purchasing new ones. How does English class work with nothing in the library? Do students not write papers on short stories or poetry? Many of the newer authors are not available for free on the internet; would be a shame to drop them or to save them for the rich. I wondered the same thing-- how are the students going to do research other than wikipedia and websites? And while these weren't "elite" private schools or anything, they're all considered to be very good schools. Yet hardly any books! I know there is a wealth of information online-- but there's great deal of disinformation and junk on the web. Even the good information is often "unvetted" and the work of hobbyists and amateurs. That's great but it's definitely a step down from reading scholarly books on a subject. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
katilac Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 I wondered the same thing-- how are the students going to do research other than wikipedia and websites? Encylopedias and other reference workds are online, and you can usually get access via the library - you don't have to physically be at the library, just sign in from home. So, it's more of a question of teaching students what is an acceptable source. They are definitely available. Did you ask at the schools? The books may be there, just not as visible as the computers. All the high schools I have visited in my area still have plenty of physical books. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Journey Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 They aren't all gone. In my child's high school the library is huge and is filled with books. No offense, but it's that kind of attitude that makes homeschoolers sound like elitest snobs. Remember, homeschooling doesn't work for everyone and it is okay for people to go to public/private schools. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KungFuPanda Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 Maybe the poll should be "Does your local HS have books in their library." ours does. I'd also guess that your local public schools have much larger libraries than the private schools. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momacacia Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 My private high school had a library when I was there, back in the day. Did we use it? Nope, not so much. And I did AP English. We either purchased the lit we were reading separately as part of class supplies or read shorter stories and poems from an American or British Lit text provided as part of the curriculum. If memory serves me correctly, I darkened the door of the school library 10-15 times 8th-12th grade. Not that that's how it should be. Reality is, I've spent more time in the library with my oldest in 3rd grade than I did by the time I graduated high school. Maybe it is a homeschooling thing. Idk. Or just lack of a huge book budget. :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gingersmom Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 I love love going to the library. I love the way they look, I love the smell, I love everything about them. My 13 year old likes going with me but my 16 year old has never been very enthusiastic. I have a kindle but still prefer to read books in print (although I love reading the newspaper on the kindle). I visited schools with my daughter that also had virtually no books. They told me if they needed a book they just ordered it. This is an article about a boarding school that got rid of its schools library (I think in 2009)- http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=120097876&ft=1&f=1013 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heather in Neverland Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 I wondered the same thing-- how are the students going to do research other than wikipedia and websites? And while these weren't "elite" private schools or anything, they're all considered to be very good schools. Yet hardly any books! I know there is a wealth of information online-- but there's great deal of disinformation and junk on the web. Even the good information is often "unvetted" and the work of hobbyists and amateurs. That's great but it's definitely a step down from reading scholarly books on a subject. That is why a 21st century skill, and one we cover thoroughly in our curriculum, is research skills in a digital age... How to tell credible sources from non-credible... How to properly cite a digital source, etc. I just finished a master's degree and all my books and all of my research was online. All the big journals are digitized and searchable. I can't imagine trying to do a 20-page research paper from just books. All of our high school kids have an iPad and all of our novels for English class come through iBooks or the kindle app. Our kids have access to hundreds of scholarly journals online through our school for research. All of our textbooks are digital. The kids type their essays right into Notability then send it to the teacher who can make corrections in Notability and send it back. No more wasted paper. No more heavy backpacks! It's not really that scary. :D But we do still have books in our library and we are always buying new ones. Do I think books are going away? No. But if you look up stats on ebook purchasing vs. physical books, it is evident that ebooks are the present and the future. . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
butterflymommy Posted October 28, 2012 Author Share Posted October 28, 2012 I just finished a master's degree and all my books and all of my research was online. All the big journals are digitized and searchable. I can't imagine trying to do a 20-page research paper from just books. But to read the journals you need a subscription... so simple internet access isn't going to be a substitute for scholarly research. The average schoolkid is going to be using Wikipedia. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caroline Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 But to read the journals you need a subscription... so simple internet access isn't going to be a substitute for scholarly research. The average schoolkid is going to be using Wikipedia. Actually, most school systems buy access to databases, and students have access to them from home. The average school kid does have access to many subscriptions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmmetler Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 Tennessee schools have access to the TN Electronic Library, which gives a wealth of periodicals, and I know there are even more specialized services available for schools/libraries, especially for research. It's certainly more user-friendly to have periodicals and journals in an accessible online database than on Microfilm, which is what we had when I was in college/grad school. I'm teaching my DD7 about using the TEL already, so by the time she gets to high school, I'm guessing she'll be pretty used to it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 (edited) I think they will continue. I'll say, however, that dd's history and math texts are online. There are physical books, but they don't use them. (FWIW, I made her get a copy to keep at home, even tho she can access it online at any time.) ETA: In elementary school, she had "library" as an activity--they could go and check out books. In Secondary (combo 7/8th grades and 9/12 grades), there's no time to go, esp if you have to catch the bus home. She's been in the school since the day after Labor Day and hasn't set foot in the school library yet. Edited October 28, 2012 by Chris in VA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimson Wife Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 I'd also guess that your local public schools have much larger libraries than the private schools. My guess would be the opposite- the public schools have been hit really hard for many years by budget cuts, while the private schools have ridiculously luxurious facilities. Even with the recent economic slump, there are far more families willing to pony up the $30+k per year per child to enroll them than there are slots available. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mert Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 But we do still have books in our library and we are always buying new ones. Do I think books are going away? No. But if you look up stats on ebook purchasing vs. physical books, it is evident that ebooks are the present and the future. Dh was reading something a while back about the folks at Amazon being shocked that last year's sales of paper books had dropped so dramatically and the enormous popularity of kindle/ebooks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heather in Neverland Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 But to read the journals you need a subscription... so simple internet access isn't going to be a substitute for scholarly research. The average schoolkid is going to be using Wikipedia. The kids have a subscription to scholarly journals through our school for free. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarlaS Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 That is why a 21st century skill, and one we cover thoroughly in our curriculum, is research skills in a digital age... How to tell credible sources from non-credible... How to properly cite a digital source, etc. I just finished a master's degree and all my books and all of my research was online. All the big journals are digitized and searchable. I can't imagine trying to do a 20-page research paper from just books. All of our high school kids have an iPad and all of our novels for English class come through iBooks or the kindle app. Our kids have access to hundreds of scholarly journals online through our school for research. All of our textbooks are digital. The kids type their essays right into Notability then send it to the teacher who can make corrections in Notability and send it back. No more wasted paper. No more heavy backpacks! It's not really that scary. :D But we do still have books in our library and we are always buying new ones. Do I think books are going away? No. But if you look up stats on ebook purchasing vs. physical books, it is evident that ebooks are the present and the future. . I find the idea of etextbooks very exciting! I think ebook technology is still very much in it's infancy right now, but I look forward to my grandkids having access to inexpensive, automatically updated, and accurate information with a portable affordable interactive device. I most look forward to this as it could eliminate the waste of having to deal with outdated textbooks. Anyone know what happens to most of them? It's not pretty. Most of the books printed right now are not "classics", so keep in mind that only having digital access to quality literature is not what I'm talking about. My guess would be the opposite- the public schools have been hit really hard for many years by budget cuts, while the private schools have ridiculously luxurious facilities. Even with the recent economic slump, there are far more families willing to pony up the $30+k per year per child to enroll them than there are slots available. Your geography is showing. What's true for your area is not true for most of the country. I know a great many intelligent hard-working people who barely make that in a year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LibraryLover Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 They aren't all gone. In my child's high school the library is huge and is filled with books. Same here. I don't know what will happen in the future, but currently, the HS library is quite large, and the director of the 'media center' always has an ever-changing display of books to catch the students' attention. My favorite was the Shakespeare one. She included really old copies, as well as new copies, plus lots of DVDs and audio books. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 They will be obsolete. Absolutely. But they aren't yet. And they won't be in the next decade. Places that are dumping their book resources make me really sad. I don't fear ebooks or the loss of paper books, but I do know that there are sooooo many resources that aren't available digitally yet. And the paper books are still cheaper in many cases and more accessible to people of all incomes. So I think it's extremely premature to get rid of or stop buying books for libraries. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stripe Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 Public libraries may have more electronic resources than school libraries. Even with the recent economic slump, there are far more families willing to pony up the $30+k per year per child to enroll them than there are slots available. Given the typical salary in the US, let's hope they only have one kid. from 2009 from 2005 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LucyStoner Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 But to read the journals you need a subscription... so simple internet access isn't going to be a substitute for scholarly research. The average schoolkid is going to be using Wikipedia. I'd assume the school has access, much like my local library does? The various databases and journals all have package pricing for libraries and schools. I don't pay for any of that sort of stuff but I use it all the time, either through the library website or by visiting the library and using one of their computers. You can also check out eBooks from libraries so I would assume that is what this school is doing. That said, you can pry my printed reading materials out of my cold dead hands. I am not really into eReaders and I do worry about the class ramifications, as well as the availability of used reading materials and the DRM issues raised by only owning an electronic license to a book rather than a tangible item. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TranquilMind Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 I don't think they will be obsolete. If nothing else there are people who just do not enjoy reading everything from a screen. I HATE reading anything lengthy or significant from a screen. Screen time is fun time only. You couldn't pay me to have a Kindle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lang Syne Boardie Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 They aren't all gone. In my child's high school the library is huge and is filled with books. No offense, but it's that kind of attitude that makes homeschoolers sound like elitest snobs. Remember, homeschooling doesn't work for everyone and it is okay for people to go to public/private schools. What attitude? All I read was an observation. Did you not catch the fact that the OP's daughter will not be homeschooling? Obviously, the OP is aware that it is okay for people to go to public/private schools. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarlaS Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 I HATE reading anything lengthy or significant from a screen. Screen time is fun time only. You couldn't pay me to have a Kindle. Have you seen and held one? I have had several people make this remark and then be very surprised at what the kindle (regular kindle--not the Fire) screen actually looks like when I whip it out of my purse and show them. It's never anything like they imagined. It's nothing like I imagined it would be before I got it. You really CAN read in direct sunlight with it. It's like no other screen on any other device I've ever seen. Also, after getting my kindle, I often wish I could enlarge the font in regular books. This thing is going to keep me out of bifocals at least a couple years longer. :thumbup1: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wheres Toto Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 The high school my oldest just graduated from has a library with a decent number of books. Probably the same number found in my much larger high school in the 80's. All students in any high school in the county also can order books from the public library system. I've used Kindles, Nooks, tablets, Itouch, PC - I don't like them as much as I like holding a book in my hands. The electronics are okay for a pleasure novel but if I'm reading something with multiple pictures or diagrams, I don't like the screen at all. I want to see the whole "page" in one and that's not possible on e-readers for larger books. Plus I have to scroll too much since I read fast. When life as we know it comes to an end and the electrical grid shuts down, the paper books are going to be missed. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarlaS Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 The high school my oldest just graduated from has a library with a decent number of books. Probably the same number found in my much larger high school in the 80's. All students in any high school in the county also can order books from the public library system. I've used Kindles, Nooks, tablets, Itouch, PC - I don't like them as much as I like holding a book in my hands. The electronics are okay for a pleasure novel but if I'm reading something with multiple pictures or diagrams, I don't like the screen at all. I want to see the whole "page" in one and that's not possible on e-readers for larger books. Plus I have to scroll too much since I read fast. When life as we know it comes to an end and the electrical grid shuts down, the paper books are going to be missed. ;) I have definitely bought books on my kindle that I later wished were in print. But only 1 or 2 and they were photography books (Duh! What was I thinking? :lol:). It's a pretty safe bet that if you want any kind of how-to book, you should get it in print. (I know that now. ;)) In it's current configuration, kindle is not ideal for any text with diagrams and illustrations. They can format weirdly. It's only in it's 3rd generation though (4'th?). I'm sure they'll come up with a workable solution for that eventually. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murphy101 Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 That is why a 21st century skill, and one we cover thoroughly in our curriculum, is research skills in a digital age... How to tell credible sources from non-credible... How to properly cite a digital source, etc. I just finished a master's degree and all my books and all of my research was online. All the big journals are digitized and searchable. I can't imagine trying to do a 20-page research paper from just books. All of our high school kids have an iPad and all of our novels for English class come through iBooks or the kindle app. Our kids have access to hundreds of scholarly journals online through our school for research. All of our textbooks are digital. The kids type their essays right into Notability then send it to the teacher who can make corrections in Notability and send it back. No more wasted paper. No more heavy backpacks! It's not really that scary. :D But we do still have books in our library and we are always buying new ones. Do I think books are going away? No. But if you look up stats on ebook purchasing vs. physical books, it is evident that ebooks are the present and the future. . I don't think it is scary. We have a laptop, a desktop, 2 iPads (old wifi only versions) and 4 iphone4Gs in this house. I like technology! But when my Internet is down or the power is out, we can still read. If I spill a bit of coffee on my book, I shed a tear or two and keep reading. When I spilt coffee on my device (any device) I sorta have a hysterical meltdown. If I lose a book, for any reason including theft, I go to the used book store and hunt up a new one for less than $3. If I lose my device, I am screwed. I've lost everything on it not recently updated in the nebulous and fickle cloud and I might end up with an empty bank account, identity theft, or a stalker who knows where my kids live. When I buy a book, I can do any cotton picking thing I want with it. I give it away, loan it, rip it up, donate it, anything. When I buy an ebook, I pay nearly the same cost or more (which always leaves me :001_huh:) and it is not really mine. It's just mine for as long as they leave it on my device or I have the device in working order or the school lets me have my device. I think there is some good to having iPads or kindles, for those who can afford the luxury. (I sure can't afford one for everyone here! And I deplore the use of computers before my kids are teens. I know. Old school. But there it is.) But how things are now, I don't feel they replace actual books. I also worry that only popular whatever will be available for for the majority and the elite will be the only ones who can afford anything not deemed marketable on a massive scale. That said, you can pry my printed reading materials out of my cold dead hands. I am not really into eReaders and I do worry about the class ramifications, as well as the availability of used reading materials and the DRM issues raised by only owning an electronic license to a book rather than a tangible item. :iagree: even without the glare, reading from devices is hard in the eyes when done to the extent that a full time student would need to if everything was digital. Not to mention numerous studies showing electronic use affects brain development and chemistry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Excelsior! Academy Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 I know you are discussing ps, but I can tell you that copies of classics that *I* want to read are only available by audio at our public library. That bugs me. Developmentally it is not good for children to switch to mainly screen time. They need books. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murphy101 Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 I know you are discussing ps, but I can tell you that copies of classics that *I* want to read are only available by audio at our public library. That bugs me. Developmentally it is not good for children to switch to mainly screen time. They need books. I agree. I'm so grateful my dh is okay with all our bookcases. I can't count how often I've had to buy a book bc the library didn't have it. Or worse, didn't have a "modernized" or butchered abridged version of it.:glare: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justamouse Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 I am already giving away all of my gardening books--like, the old Rodale organics book. There's lots of stuff that I automatically look to the internet for. Stuff like that may go the way of the dodo. Other stuff will stick. I am also collecting books. Classics, kids books--there are some books that just need to be paper. Plus, there's nothing like going and grabbing a book off the shelf and hiding away. That bliss will never end. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommymilkies Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 What attitude? All I read was an observation. Did you not catch the fact that the OP's daughter will not be homeschooling? Obviously, the OP is aware that it is okay for people to go to public/private schools. :iagree: We have tons of technology here. My oldest likes her nook with dark background/white text. But she also likes real books. I am a real book person. Reading on screens hurts my eyes. I use some PDFs for economic reasons, but don't read books on screens. Idk about the hs here, but the colleges have been moving to almost all purchases being ebooks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justamouse Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 Public libraries may have more electronic resources than school libraries. Given the typical salary in the US, let's hope they only have one kid. from 2009 from 2005 I cannot believe my county is that dark of a green. :glare: And, my big question, who the heck with that much $ is living a the top of Alaska? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meriwether Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 I cannot believe my county is that dark of a green. :glare: And, my big question, who the heck with that much $ is living a the top of Alaska? I figured all three people living that far north had struck gold.:D And, yes, I'm kidding. I accused Dh of moving me to the frozen north when we moved to Iowa. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Storm Bay Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 Our public hs has books & just asked for donations to purchase more. I'm going to donate 2 books instead (asked the librarian & gave her the titles.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KungFuPanda Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 My county is dark green, but it's EXPENSIVE to live here. They need some sort of standard-of-living map for it to be accurate. Maybe square-living-footage per person, or something like that to reflect what those salaries can actually buy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KungFuPanda Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 My guess would be the opposite- the public schools have been hit really hard for many years by budget cuts, while the private schools have ridiculously luxurious facilities. Even with the recent economic slump, there are far more families willing to pony up the $30+k per year per child to enroll them than there are slots available. Public schools aren't ditching their books because the economy is down and their libraries have grown with years of public funding. Larger schools have more space, a bigger budget, and media specialists who are rather partial to books. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stripe Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 My county is dark green, but it's EXPENSIVE to live here. They need some sort of standard-of-living map for it to be accurate. Maybe square-living-footage per person, or something like that to reflect what those salaries can actually buy. I think most people know that, but still, many people in huge swathes of the country are making very little money. Their cost of living is not extremely low. The whole thing disturbs me to no end. I've mentioned before how many PhDs, MBAs, and others with collge degrees I know who can only find the most pitiful of work. I would be very interested to know in which parts of the country people can get by on a typical salary. I had a chat with the librarian of my neighborhood high school about ten years ago. She felt students weren't reading books because of No Child Left Behind and an emphasis on reading short passages for tests. She had a well-stocked library with tons of books that rarely got checked out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 I think there's a big difference between high school and elementary school in this regard. Back in the dark ages, I went to what was though of as a pretty good public high school, with (what I would guess) had an average library. (Not nearly as swanky as the library in the Breakfast Club movie, but that's another thread). I went to the library every day for "study hall", but I almost never checked out books there for research material. Why? Because even a average sized high school library rarely had any (or more than one) book on any particular topic. I always went to the public library for anything more than a encyclopedia lookup. Even my smaller town, the public library had (10x ? 100x?) more books than the high school. And I certainly never went to the school get a book there for pleasure reading, that was also the domain of the public library. Now elementary school is another story, there's less "research" there, the books are less for reading to learn, and more about learning the pleasure of reading. Also elementary school library is good for teaching about library skills. So, even though I love books as much as anyone, losing most of the books in a high school library wouldn't bother me much. It always struck me as a waste of money, if all the books were duplicated at the public library. If my high school library had, I don't know, 5,000 books, and they each cost $20, that $100k right there. I think I'd rather see that money shared with the public libraries, and more people would have access to those books. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 My guess would be the opposite- the public schools have been hit really hard for many years by budget cuts, while the private schools have ridiculously luxurious facilities. Even with the recent economic slump, there are far more families willing to pony up the $30+k per year per child to enroll them than there are slots available. My experience working in private and public schools is the opposite. Most private schools don't have huge investments in books - even ones that cost 30K. In general, my experience with schools has been that the schools that are newer - and many private schools have moved buildings or changed form - don't have books. Older schools do. Simple as that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stripe Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 My experience working in private and public schools is the opposite. Most private schools don't have huge investments in books - even ones that cost 30K. In general, my experience with schools has been that the schools that are newer - and many private schools have moved buildings or changed form - don't have books. Older schools do. Simple as that. Yeah, I think it's a lot cheaper to stick with what you've got. Plus all those databases' subscription fees add up. They are expensive! I did track down a few cost of living type maps, and I think this one is the best http://www.educationvoters.org/2012/03/16/map-compares-cost-of-living-across-the-u-s/ I couldn't get a good graphic to insert here, sorry The full report is at http://nlihc.org/sites/default/files/oor/2012-OOR.pdf And I also found http://blogs.wsj.com/economics/2011/05/31/adjusting-wage-disparities-for-cost-of-living/ http://www.salary.com/advice/layouthtmls/advl_display_nocat_Ser294_Par428.html (from 2004) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimson Wife Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 Public schools aren't ditching their books because the economy is down and their libraries have grown with years of public funding. Larger schools have more space, a bigger budget, and media specialists who are rather partial to books. If by "media specialist", you mean school librarian, then the PS haven't had those in ages (they got cut during the '90's budget crisis IIRC). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
butterflymommy Posted October 28, 2012 Author Share Posted October 28, 2012 DH and I were discussing the future of books a while back. He has a theory that the more print material that is moved towards digitalization, the more disenfranchised the already disenfranchised will become. To expect the poorest of the poor to have working devices and power sources to read ebooks borders on something of sick joke. At least books don't require technology or a power source to be read. I think he has a point here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KungFuPanda Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 If by "media specialist", you mean school librarian, then the PS haven't had those in ages (they got cut during the '90's budget crisis IIRC). The title in MD is 'Media Specialist' and every middle and high school in my county has one. (I'm guessing the title changed when they were put in charge of more and more technology and were expected to assume more teaching responsibilities than school librarians of the past.) The same is true for at least one neighboring county. I haven't done my research to see if this is state-wide or expands to neighboring states. It's a big country. I'd expect the norm to vary greatly from region to region. I have been inside several schools in my immediate area, met a few media specialists, and have laid eyes on row after row of bookcases. Our local library system is VERY nice, so they can't compete with that, but these schools have a LOT more books than my rural 1980s high school ever hoped to own. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stripe Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 The title in MD is 'Media Specialist' and every middle and high school in my county has one. I do think they are often cut during budget crises. My public school did not lose its librarian when I was a kid, during the budget crises. And I've worked with several in the 21st century, both middle school and high school level, at middle class, run of the mill public schools in a major US city. School librarians are a HUGE subgroup of librarians, so the idea that they've all been fired or replaced by a computer is not the case. Reminds me of the movie "Desk Set," though! This is an interesting study of school libraries, what they contain, and how much is spent on them http://www.ala.org/news/mediapresscenter/americaslibraries/schoollibraries Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 It wouldn't surprise me to hear that many places have cut school librarians (or media specialists), but they are very much alive and well in many states and districts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Word Nerd Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 I had fun browsing the shelves in DD's school library during orientation. They still have a lot of books. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momto2Cs Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 I voted that REAL books will not become obsolete, if only because I own so many already. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sugarfoot Posted October 28, 2012 Share Posted October 28, 2012 I know high schoolers who have all their texts online. There's one hardcover text that's kept in the classroom. It can be tough. What if your family only has one computer at home and 3 kids trying to do homework? Everyone needs to access their online texts. No one has an actual book to use. My own kids get really tired reading from a screen, and there are certain subjects that they really dislike reading electronically, particularly science and math. They need to flip back and re-read or study a visual again, etc. We all hate doing that in an e-book. Electronic "extras" from the publisher are fine, but we like the actual text. I also really dislike the idea that when I buy a book on my Kindle, I can't give it away when I'm done. :glare: I pay almost as much as I do for the paper version, and yet I can't sell it at a garage sale, donate it to the library, loan it to my DD's OT, or give it to a friend. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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