A Day in the Life of a Librarian...Always an Adventure!
(Credit: imdb.com)
The Archivist...be ready for anything.
(Credit: Society of American Archivist)
Archivists are the keepers of our cultural heritage. They decide what records to maintain, so that they are available for research by historians, genealogists, corporations, and other institutions.
For further review and resources: SAA - Society of American Archivists
The Media Specialist...always remember who your patrons are.
From Amy:
Henry Hall gave a good down-to-earth, realistic presentation of his experience as a media specialist at RH Fulmer Elementary School. His story about the customer who challenges a book in the collection illuminated important practical concepts that really make me think less theoretically and more realistically:
- Intellectual freedom is a fundamental right that theoretically must be defended, but don't get bogged down in the details of a particular book.
- A censorship challenge is a political exercise, not an intellectual discussion. Your funders, who are politicians are prepared to sacrifice you in order to avoid a problem for themselves from a citizen.
- The person who tells the decision makers their side first has an edge. Don't let the complainant frame the discussion before you. Speak to your administrator or board of trustees asap.
The proper steps to take when faced with a censorship challenge are:
- Get the citizen off the public floor area
- Convince them you are an ethical person and you will give them an answer in "x" number of days
- Let them know you are listening and identify with them
- Explain the policy as you give them the complaint form
- Find two colleagues to play the role of a sounding board and an ally
- Talk to the citizen later to get a follow-up
We don't defend the book, we defend the right of people to read the book. The complaint form is a tool which must be used cautiously. ~wisdom from Dr. Feehan
(Credit: Flickr.com)
No comments:
Post a Comment