Opinion
Curriculum Letter to the Editor

Missing ‘Quality’ Factor: Impact of Libraries

January 23, 2007 1 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

To the Editor:

Your Quality Counts issue included a lot of interesting and useful information about education from early childhood through adulthood.

I was disappointed, however, that the effect of school library programs was not mentioned.

According to the 2006 edition of Scholastic Inc.’s research foundation paper “School Libraries Work!,” 16 different states have determined that, aside from parental socioeconomic status (over which we have little to no control), the biggest indicator of academic success is the availability of a quality library program staffed by certified librarian-teachers.

Funding libraries is one thing we can do to help our students achieve.

Lois Markiewicz

West Chester, Pa.

Related Tags:

A version of this article appeared in the January 24, 2007 edition of Education Week as Missing ‘Quality’ Factor: Impact of Libraries

Events

This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
College & Workforce Readiness Webinar
Smarter Tools, Stronger Outcomes: Empowering CTE Educators With Future-Ready Solutions
Open doors to meaningful, hands-on careers with research-backed insights, ideas, and examples of successful CTE programs.
Content provided by Pearson
Reading & Literacy Webinar Supporting Older Struggling Readers: Tips From Research and Practice
Reading problems are widespread among adolescent learners. Find out how to help students with gaps in foundational reading skills.
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Reading & Literacy Webinar
Improve Reading Comprehension: Three Tools for Working Memory Challenges
Discover three working memory workarounds to help your students improve reading comprehension and empower them on their reading journey.
Content provided by Solution Tree

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

Curriculum Middle Schools Often Prioritize English and Math Over Other Subjects. Should They?
An Illinois district is equalizing time across the four major content areas. But the decision comes with trade-offs.
5 min read
Illustration of clock with math and science symbols.
Chris Whetzel for Education Week<br/>
Curriculum Q&A How This School Librarian Transformed the Library and Got More Kids to Read
While schools across the country have shed librarians, Leigh Knapp became the first full-time librarian at her school.
7 min read
A look at the new seating librarian Leigh Knapp brought into Bethune Academy's school library in Milwaukee.
A look at the new seating librarian Leigh Knapp brought into Bethune Academy's school library in Milwaukee. Knapp became the school's first full-time librarian at the start of the 2024-25 school year, with a vision of revitalizing the library and changing the school's culture around reading.
Courtesy of Leigh Knapp
Curriculum Opinion Which Books Belong in Classrooms? Which Don't?
District officials, parents, and the Supreme Court are debating where to draw the line.
7 min read
The United States Capitol building as a bookcase filled with red, white, and blue policy books in a Washington DC landscape.
Luca D'Urbino for Education Week
Curriculum Video These Two Key Questions Form the Heart of Digital Literacy Instruction
Crucial lessons around digital literacy and digital safety can be framed around these two questions.
1 min read