Welcome back! We hope you had a great time at ALA’s MidWinter Conference. While in Philadelphia, the Early and Family Literacy Committee (EFL) met face-to-face for the first time, it was truly exciting. This meeting took place on Sunday at the All-Committee Meeting. During this time, we were able to talk about the direction that we would like to take this committee in.
One of the first things that came up, something that we had been discussing beforehand as well, was partnering with other ALSC committees. Previously, EFL had put together a short list of other committees that we felt could be great to work and collaborate with. We want to make sure that we are addressing the research topics that librarians across the country want and need. We thought that the best way to first go about this is to reach out and see what other committees and their members felt they needed. At the conference we took the first steps and met with the chair of the and connected with the Chairs of several other ALSC committees. Beyond working with other ALSC committees, we put together a list of organizations and researchers that we feel could be helpful to know and reach out to. We look forward to future collaborative efforts!
With the information that we’ve collected thus far, we’ve identified two avenues of research that seems to be in demand by youth librarians and staff. The first research need that we’ve identified focuses on screen use and how that affects children’s self esteem, attention span and how that touches on literacy. The second avenue we plan to look into is children in grades K-3 learning to read proficiently and at grade level.
We would love to know what you’re all looking to learn more about. Please send us an email at alscfamilyliteracy@gmail.com with your research needs.
Today’s blog post was written by Sarah West, Children’s Librarian at New York Public Library in New York City, on behalf of the ALSC Early and Family Literacy Committee. She can be reached at sarahwest@nypl.org
This blog relates to ALSC Core Competencies of VII. Professionalism and Professional Development.