The Road to College: Libraries can be students' best ally
By: AGNES DIGGS - Staff Writer | ∞
Free public education and the free public library are the two institutions that have made America great, said Ellen Zyroff, spokeswoman for the county library system and one of several librarians around San Diego County interviewed during the past months for this story. They are the tools that have allowed people who wanted to rise to the stars, she said.
"Those two institutions ---- if the people use them ---- there's no reason why they can't rise to any place that they want," she said. People can get the information that they need to get to where they want to go. It's all there for the taking. Without them we would have a much bigger differentiation among the rich and the poor."
And in them, especially in the public library, students will find a trusty ally on the road to a higher education. No wonder the nation's library system has been called "the people's university."
Help for SAT test
The library can also offer practical knowledge to help with one challenge facing seniors this academic year, and all other college-bound students in the foreseeable future ---- the essay portion of the new SAT tests. Like the proverbial 500-pound gorilla in the room, it can't be ignored. The essay segment of the SAT is designed to show "how effectively you can develop and express ideas," according to information on the Web site. Students are advised to "take care to develop your point of view, present your ideas logically and clearly, and use language precisely."
When the time comes to write the required essay, there will be no Internet, no library, no English teacher. But essays, like artwork, are easiest done by studying what a good one looks like. And the library is chock-full of examples.
Help preparing
Libraries have lots of information that you can find more quickly there than on the Internet, said Rod Carr, librarian at Carlsbad High School. Carr, who has been both a media specialist and an English, speech and drama teacher, has two master's degrees. Being a librarian is his first love.
"All the research says that you don't teach reading, students just basically read," Carr said. "You give students literature that's high-interest, and they will read. The more you read, the better you get at your reading skills, your vocabulary skills."
Students may also have to write an essay as part of the college application process, for which they must also be prepared, Carr said. "We have several books of collections of essays that are considered good examples," he said. "Look at some of the essays that are considered to be classics, and try to analyze why they are considered to be good."
Chris Vanderweit, a library media teacher who has worked for 19 years in the Oceanside School district, agreed with Carr's suggestions and offered others.
"The more the kids come and use the resources that are in the library, the better the chances of having interacted with successful (writing) examples," she said. "A lot of the stuff on the Internet or in the newspaper is not very well done. Just because an item is in print doesn't mean it's a good example. But the more you read, the better you can assess (whether) it makes the point well."
Regular reading needs to begin at a very early age for students, not when they're seniors, Vanderweit said. It's a lifelong skill. "You start it in early childhood with age-appropriate books, and as the child grows older, their skills will develop with the level of the books that are presented to them. It's a progression."
Help understanding
The first lending library in this country was founded in 1731 in Philadelphia by Benjamin Franklin and a group of associates who pooled their money to purchase books to be used for reference. In colonial times, books were very expensive and out of reach for most people. Subscribers paid an initial investment fee as well as an annual fee to buy books from England and to maintain the new institution.
Public libraries, which are rooted in Franklin's idea, can help in many creative ways, said county library spokeswoman Zyroff. Some have classes in how to set up Internet mailboxes and there are Internet docents who can help you, she said.
If you need help, go right to the reference desk and ask. Don't be afraid, and don't think you're bothering people. Be prepared to have a conversation with the librarian, Zyroff said. Help the library staff to help you by being as specific as possible when stating your research and study needs.
"If you're doing a report on China, for instance, is it the country, or plates with a blue and white pattern?" she said. "The most common waste of time is that they don't say what they need."
They're there to help
The librarians' job is to help everybody in the community, from preschoolers to retired persons, from people who are new to the United States to people who are new to a library.
"There's no such thing as a stupid question in a library," Zyroff said. "They are being paid to help you. That's their job. To bring the people and the information that they need together."
Library staff can show patrons how to use the Internet to find books and information for school assignments. Students can set up e-mail addresses at one of several sites on the Internet to receive scholarship and other useful information.
Libraries have strict guidelines for Internet use, of course. Users under 18 need permission from a parent or guardian to use Internet sites in the San Diego library system. Both parent and student have to be present and sign the form. The library staff has the authority and the obligation to ask people who are spending time on inappropriate sites to get off the Internet.
Whole sections of the library are dedicated to scholarship information. Students can even get live homework help.
"There are people sitting there like the Maytag repairman to help with homework," Zyroff said. "The library is providing that to students. Free tutoring. In English and Spanish. A live person."
Help for life
The library pays for databases that offer helpful information such as full-text newspapers, magazines, test preparation information and encyclopedias.
"None of these is something that you can do a Google search and come to," Zyroff said. "They are value-added services, and we would like more people to know about them and use them. The library pays for the public to have access to them. They are real documents, rather than something someone else wrote that may or may not be true and/or accurate."
Visitors can learn personal information on subjects like divorce or health. Barring a court order, what you're asking is confidential, she said. You can even borrow materials from other libraries in their own systems or other systems, she said.
"The library is not just there for school. It's there for life," Zyroff said. "It's a lifelong learning place. You can also find magazines at the library, and that kind of reading can be very, very good. Whatever they read is all to the good."
A lot of people say libraries are obsolete because of the Internet. They're not obsolete. They have changed, Zyroff said.
"We don't see the people because they are using our system on the Internet from home," she said. "And we have a program that sends books to people free of charge in a canvas bag by mail. It's a program that reaches out to people. So libraries are keeping themselves current by finding ways to meet the public need. They're opening doors and windows to the world."
Fast Facts About Libraries from the American Library Association
The United States has more public libraries than McDonald's.
U.S. libraries circulate more items every day than FedEx ships packages (5.4 million vs. 5.3 million)
Americans go to libraries more than twice as often as they go to the movies.
Americans spend more than three times as much on salty snacks as they do on public libraries.
Americans spend seven times as much money on home video games as they do on school library materials for their children.
Libraries record more than 1.1 billion visits each year, compared with 204 million sports tickets sold in a year.
For the checklist:
Local library folks choose models of excellent writing
---- Recommended by: Dave Bright, library technician, Casa De Oro branch, San Diego County Library.
---- Recommended by: Liz Hildreth, librarian, Poway branch.
---- Recommended by: Margaret Moody, volunteer in San Diego County Library's public relations department.
---- Recommended by: Sylvia Wolfe, librarian, Vista branch
---- Recommended by: Sharie Altomare, substitute technician, Bonita/Sunnyside branch, San Diego County Library.
---- Recommended by: Kathy Kirk, library technician, La Mesa branch.
---- Recommended by: Janet Gastil, librarian, Lemon Grove branch.
---- Recommended: by Denise Stutzman, librarian, Spring Valley Branch.
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