Excerpts from testimony before the U.S. Senate Committee on Labor and Human Resources regarding the proposed Technology for Education Act highlights the need for strong school library media collections and programs in addition to the latest technology. Highlights include funding, expenditures, media centers and student achievement, librarians'…

Describes cooperative planning and projects with teachers, students, and the library media specialist at an elementary school to help update the library to meet current and future information needs. Highlights include flexible scheduling; resource sharing; classes in library skills; computer technology; and updating the collection to include…

Argues that librarians who wish to build effective video collections need to know what is available and negotiate with distributors for multiple copies and lower prices. Purchasing practices of a school system and a public library are described, including adherence to copyright law. Duplication rights and off-air taping are explained. (EM)

Describes how three public library youth librarians used statistics to justify budget requests, change resource allocations, expand services, and show benefits of new services to the community. Examples are provided under the following headings: Show what's missing; Show what's gone wrong; Show what's going right; Show inequities; and Compare and…

This is the first in a series of annotated lists of videos that are being published to help school librarians select materials that emphasize the historical and cultural contributions of ethnic minority groups. It reviews more than 200 videos that document the contributions of African Americans. (LRW)

The fourth article in a series designed to help library selectors enhance their collections of materials on multicultural diversity provides a list of 92 videos about the cultural heritage of Hispanic Americans. Each entry includes ordering information, grade level, and a brief annotation. A list of distributors is also included. (LRW)

Second survey report (first was published October 1983) presents information on expenditures in library media centers for resources and audiovisual equipment, condition of collections and patterns in collection development, staffing and educational background of head library media specialist, and patterns of use of microcomputers by students and…

Description of the new Souhegan High School (New Hampshire), a member of the Coalition of Essential Schools, focuses on the library and information center. Highlights include learning principles of coalition schools; physical layout of the library; collection development, including print and nonprint materials; library technology; and implications…

Discusses the necessity for providing access to microcomputers in elementary education and recommends 48 software titles that would be appropriate for public or school libraries. Considerations for librarians establishing a microcomputer software collection are discussed, and suggestions for choosing preschool programs as well as programs in…

Discusses the incorporation of videos into library collections and school curricula and reviews suitable book-based videos adapted from traditional folk or fairy tales, modern short stories, and novels. Topics addressed include interpreting visual images, changes made from the original version, and style and setting. A list of distributors is…

Urges librarians to weed their nonfiction collections, particularly in the areas of science and technology, geography, and political science, and argues that it is better to send students from the library empty handed than to supply them with obsolete books. Guidelines for evaluating and weeding the reference and circulating collections are…

Describes programs developed by the Chicago School District to renovate and revitalize its school libraries. Topics include funding, other educational reforms in the district, updating library collections, updating librarians' skills, increasing budgets through grants, flexible scheduling, corporate support, relations with the Chicago Public…

Discussion of the provision and management of technology by school library media specialists focuses on CD-ROMs in high schools. Highlights include needs assessment planning; funding options; management strategies; long-range planning; and sidebars which include a bibliography of materials that discuss CD-ROM, recommended conferences, and CD-ROM…

Although the computerized reading management programs, Accelerated Reader and Electronic Bookshelf, increase library circulation and standardized test scores, they have drawbacks. Both programs devalue reading, diminish motivation, limit title choice, restrict materials selection and collection development, discourage independent selection of…

The sixth in a series of "School Library Journal" reports on trends in school library expenditures for program development shows that commitment to the teaching and motivating of reading is in conflict with fascination with technology and that access to books is being seriously curtailed by the deteriorating state of school library collections.…