Rsponding to the Economist
The importance of quality libraries: What the research says
Sent to The Economist, Dec 2
“Checked out” (Dec 3) asks us not to “underestimate the symbolic role libraries play as a visible public good.” Libraries play much more than a symbolic role.
Study after study has shown that reading achievement is higher when children have access to better school and public libraries, that is, libraries with better holdings and with qualified staff. This has been shown for individual states in the US, for the US as a whole, and internationally. The reason is simple: More access to reading material results in more reading, and more reading results in more literacy development.
Quality libraries are especially important for children of poverty, because they have very little access to books at
Sent to The Economist, Dec 2
“Checked out” (Dec 3) asks us not to “underestimate the symbolic role libraries play as a visible public good.” Libraries play much more than a symbolic role.
Study after study has shown that reading achievement is higher when children have access to better school and public libraries, that is, libraries with better holdings and with qualified staff. This has been shown for individual states in the US, for the US as a whole, and internationally. The reason is simple: More access to reading material results in more reading, and more reading results in more literacy development.
Quality libraries are especially important for children of poverty, because they have very little access to books at
