Does Labeling Children’s Books Constitute Censorship?

Abstract

For many elementary students and even secondary students, the school library consists of rows and rows of books marked with labels of different colors and shapes. These stickers and dots indicate which books are considered--by one rubric or another--appropriate for a particular reading or lexile level. Reading programs such as Accelerated Reader (AR) and Read 180 require students to read books at their specific reading levels and answer questions about books on those lists. Libraries that use these kinds of labels do so to help children find books that are at their reading levels and fulfill the requirements of AR and other reading programs. Such labels, their proponents argue, enhance access and improve convenience for readers. However, the same labeling practices can lead readers to prejudge books by their labels rather than by their content, thus creating entire of books that readers avoid or that parents or teachers deem to be off-limits to certain groups of students. The American Library Association (ALA) opposes labeling as a means of predisposing people's attitudes toward library materials. (1) That concern addresses not just overt censorship--the restriction of borrowing privileges by label or level--but also the potential of labels to induce a tendency toward self-censorship by the student. Does the use of labeling in school and public libraries constitute censorship, as the ALA statement implies? Alternatively, is labeling simply a convenient way to help the busy children's librarian or library media specialist guide young people to books they will enjoy? In this column, we hear from two library media with differing views. LISA HUNT As the library media specialist at the elementary school where I work, I am the children's literature expert in my building, and my role is to provide expertise along with a library collection that meets curricular needs. Recreational reading is part of our school reading curriculum, so I have chosen many of the books in my collection with the aim of providing books that appeal to students with a wide variety of interests. Books in my library collection are labeled in many ways. In addition to labels that indicate the availability of a reading program test offered within the digital reading program software used in my school, labels also are used to show awards that have been won, young-adult content level, and graphic novel format. My goal is to collaborate with classroom teachers to create opportunities that encourage reading--I provide the books and the opportunity for students to select them, and teachers provide time in class for reading. These two elements are required components of many reading programs like AR, but they are also essential for success in creating avid readers through free, voluntary reading. (2) When students discover and read books that match both their personal interests and their reading proficiency level, the pleasure and confidence they feel in reading increases, and they are encouraged to read more. Many students who have this experience will develop into subject specialists who follow their preferences and voraciously read everything in the library on a given subject, by a particular author, or in a favorite genre. When a book's reading level is a good match, students are more likely to find it appealing and accessible. Labels are one tool that can help readers find those matches. A labeling system can create helpful tools for students who don't know where to begin when challenged to browse through hundreds or thousands of books. The reality we must face is that students' time is limited during school hours, and browsing must be taught as an efficient skill. Students can be taught to use labels and other elements about library books to gather information when making their own reading choices. I teach lessons to most classes on how to choose the best book, and that includes using labels as one tool for such information gathering. …