Week 8 (Post 7)

Article Title: Comics Are Key to Promoting Literacy in Boys, Study Says
Date: July 23, 2010
Retrieved From:
http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/slj/newsletters/newsletterbucketextrahelping/886042-443/comics_are_key_to_promoting.html.csp


A study performed by the Canadian Council on Learning (CCL) has shown that girls are more motivated to read than boys are. However this is based on studies using materials from school libraries and classrooms where the literature largely under represents boys. Schools and libraries tend to have collections with a larger number of fictional books rather than non-fiction which is what boys are more interested in. They enjoy reading books based on science, how-to manuals, adventures, hobbies, gross topics, and also prefer media rich in visual imagery such as the internet, graphic novels, magazines, video games and you guessed it, comics. About 75 percent of school-aged boys read comics.

Girls perform much stronger on standardized testing for language arts and reading, while boys continue to miss the mark. CCL states that with the inclusion of more appealing materials to boys in school, they might be able to close that achievement gap. "The report says comics serve as an effective gateway to reading prose-based works and contribute to visual literacy, as well as the ability to understand and respond to a visual image. Comics also can help develop many of the same literacy skills as books, such as how to follow a sequence of events; connect narratives to the reader's own experiences, predict what will happen next, and interpret symbols."

Educators and librarians need to include materials like this in their collections and make them available for children of all ages. This way we are tapping on the interest of all children and not just the ones interested in fiction.

I found that this article had some tie -ns with this week's discussion on advocacy. In promoting comics in the library, we can use current events to draw patrons into the library. Events such like Comic-con, and comic based movie releases are great ways to advocate for tween interests and get them more involved in the library and in reading. In making these simple connections to current trends we can really make some life-long readers out of the more reluctant ones.

Week 7 (Post 6)

Title: What Would Madison Avenue Do? Marketing to Teens
Author: Anastasia Goodstein
Retrieved From: http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/slj/technology/web20/859046-359/what_would_madison_avenue_do.html.csp

I found this article on the School Library Journal website and found it very relevant to last week's topic of marketing to teens. It is even written by Anastasia Goodstein the author of our text book Totally Wired.

The article presents some issues or obstacles that corporations and libraries have creating media campaigns to snag their attention. One of the problems is that this generation (aka, Generation M) are big on multi tasking. They can text, do homework, watch TV, and IM all at the same time. This also results in the need to create ads that are very short in content. "Bytesize" as it is referred to in the article.

Other issues that the media needs to address are that teens want their content and they want it now. With DVR's and ipods, they are able to look up TV shows or movies at their convenience. They also want to participate whenever possible, that is why American Idol is such a big hit and other similar reality shows.

With this in mind here are some tips that Goodstein suggests when marketing to teens:

1. Enlist teens to manage your social media-have them set up a MySpace or Facebook account for the library. This empowers them to be a part of something big.

2. Don't try too hard to be cool-be yourself and don't dumb things down for them.

3. Know your audience-check up on how teens use technology and what sites they are using online.

4. Don't sweat the design-just make sure it addresses their needs.

5. Support causes that kids care about-find out what kids care about and how they can help.

6. Use text messaging and IM appropriately-give them options they are comfortable with using with an adult.

and finally . . . just ask them what they are interested in! You can learn a lot about teens when you just open the lines of communication and talk to them.

This article is a great resource for librarians or anyone interested in reaching out to tweens and teens. They are a wonderful group to work with and serve and the best way to do so is simply by learning what they like and building on that interest. Goodstein uses her own research and teen input to address media outreach to teens and her tips are very practical. I enjoyed how easy her article was read and how she includes examples for implementation in the library. She covers all tweens and teens younger and older. She also has a great website to use as a resource, YPulse, which covers many topics on this age group. I found this article to be very helpful, especially to those working with young adults.

Week 6 (Post 5)

Special Issues for Teens and Tweens

This article was from the Media Awareness Network website and it describes some of the ways corporations and businesses target young tweens and teens through media influences. It begins by describing how the usual definition of a tweens is from the ages of 8-12, however now, kids over the ages of 10 do not consider themselves "children" anymore and advertisements are playing off of this belief.

Companies play on the "cool idea" of teenagers. They hire scouts and people to discover the next cool thing and then infuse that into the media to get teens to buy this cool thing in order to think that they are cool. The important thing is "that parents discuss these issues with their teens, and challenge the materialistic values promoted in the media."

Fashion marketers are filling media images with ultra thin, sexy, fit, and beautiful people everywhere, enforcing the idea to tweens that if you do not look like these people you will not be accepted or wanted in society. What they are doing is selling adult sexuality to kids who are not ready for it. It is important again for parents to open the lines of communication up with their tween about healthy sexual practices and healthy body images.

Tobacco companies have also jumped on this bandwagon of media exploitation of tweens in order to develop some lifelong customers. By using younger models for ads and depicting tobacco use as being "cool," tweens start to use the products to express a certain lifestyle. The alcohol industry is using the same tactics as well.

It is unfortunate that at an age when tweens can be developing life long skills and interests such as sports, arts, crafts, hobbies, academics, they are almost brainwashed to focus on other non important things such as boys, being thin, being muscular, shopping, or dating.

This article was very informative. It explains the current issues with tweens and the media in a clear and concise article using studies and facts to support their claims. At times it seems a bit dated, definitely written more than 10 years ago, however, no date can be found on the site. The information is good and gives nice overview of the issues facing tweens. Some more examples could have really given a clearer picture of some of the media's influences but overall it provides enough and even gives some solutions to help our teens focus on the more important things in life.

http://www.media-awareness.ca/english/parents/marketing/issues_teens_marketing.cfm

Week 5 (Post 4)

Teens and "Sexting"

In keeping with this week's topic, I decided to look up information on teens and the trend of "sexting." I came across a CBS article on their website on the topic and it presented some good insight to this issue and some of the ramifications for teens choosing to engage in this practice.

Sexting-sending nude or provocative photos via text message is a growing trend among many American teens.

According to the National Campaign to Support Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy, over 20% of teens have admitted to participating in "sexting." Not only is this inappropriate for obvious reasons for teens, it follows under the practices of child pornography laws especially when these pictures show up in public places like the internet. In many states sexting, falls under these child pornography laws and this is a felony. One boy admitted that after he broke up with his girlfriend, he sent out the nude pictures she had sent to him to all of his friends. Unfortunately for him, he had just turned 18, legally an adult, she was still a minor. For every picture he sent, was one count of child pornography, so he was charged with 76 counts of child pornography, sent to jail, and now has 5 years of probation and is also on the State of Florida's Child Sex Offender list for 25 years!

Teens do not have the ability to see the disastrous consequences on such a small act. They text sexy pictures for validation and self esteem, but once these pictures go public, the legal problems are quite extensive. Most states are trying to reduce the penalties for teen sexting to a misdemeanor, but many states are not agreeing to this, saying that teens need harsh consequences for engaging in such behavior.

I feel that this article did a great job outlining the issues with teen sexting. The problem is that we need to get this information to the teens and let them know the extreme consequences involved in sexting or other sexuality explicit behaviors. Like with other teen topics, sexting is one that needs to be communicated and one that has legal issues as well. Tweens and Teens are smart and I think that with communication and openly talking to our teens about things like sex, they will make better choices in the future.

Retrieved from: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/05/31/sunday/main5051909.shtml

Week 4 (Post 3)

In staying with our topic of the week, “Outliers,” I came across a couple of articles about a gay 15 year old teen that was speaking out against the lack of LGBT literature available at his school library and his public library. This teen is Brent, and he attends a high school in Kentucky. He is an avid reader and when he decided to start coming out to his friends about his sexuality, he also decided to find some LGBT literature to help with his openness and this transition. He was sad by the fact that his school library carried no LGBT titles. Not a single one. Then angered by the fact that the librarian said those types of book are “inappropriate for school.” He then turned to his public library and found one. Only one title with a gay protagonist. He knows that living in a small town has definitely had some affect on these findings, but to be called inappropriate was something else. He then went to the local bookstore, where he found more LGBT titles than he imagined existed. He learned that there really is a market out there for LGBT titles you just have to know where to look. He is lucky enough to have the resources provided by his parents to purchase these books for him. He saddened though and now speaking out for those other teens that are Gay or Lesbian and are not able to buy these books, since they are not available at the libraries. He decided to start a blog where he reviews LGBT YA literature and books and has been advocating for more availability of these titles in public libraries.


One article that I read was a NY Times article. This one was well written and presented the situation in a very open and sensible way. They did not quote Brent very much, but they showed how his story is building up an audience around the “blogosphere” online. The second article was an interview with Brent from the School Library Journal, and while this one was informative and gave a closer look at Brent as an individual, it was really lacking the feel of a professional interview. The questions were very repetitive and addressed things that he already answered in previous questions. I also felt that the interviewer was dumbing the questions down for Brent. He is 15 and I think they are not giving him enough credit for being a well read high school student. Overall, both articles gave a good inside look at how one gay teen is making a difference for himself and other LGBT teens whose informational needs are not being met. It appears that with more time and with others getting involved, LGBT materials in public and school libraries will slowly star to find their place among the shelves.

The Associated Press. (2010, June 23). Books with gay themes for young readers
take off. The New York Times. Retrieved from
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2010/06/23/arts/AP-US-FEA-Lifestyles-
Gay-Lit-for-Teens.html?_r=4&hp&adxnnl=1&adxnnlx=1277327599-
21K2VXCYnaqvj%2FGtzDvurg

Whelan, D.L. (2010, June 25). Gay teen blogger blasts school, public librarians.
The School Library Journal. Retrieved from http://www.libraryjournal.com/article/CA6727991

Week 3 (Post 2)

Naked Reading, By Teri S. Lesesne

Chapter 2: Books Tweens Prefer to Read

This chapter of Naked Reading, for our required reading in class, introduced the five most popular types of books that tweens are currently reading. The author, Teri Lesesne, has given book talks to many tween and teen audiences at many different schools and this is a list that she came up with from her personal experience, student surveys that she has previously administered, and evidence from her own children's reading preferences. The five most popular types of literature for students in grades 4 to 8 are: 1) subliterature: magazines, comic books, and series books; 2) non-fiction; 3) horror, suspense, and the supernatural; 4) humor; and 5) mystery. After reading the explanation for each of these types of books, I have to agree with Lesnesne's research. As a teacher, I am very familiar with children's literature ranging from Kindergarten to upper high school grades, and I witness the same findings. Tweens love these categories and most of the libraries at the schools I have worked at have a very hard time, keeping these books on the shelves. I think non-fiction is the bigger of the bunch here. Time after time, I see books such as the Guinness book of world records being read until the binding is falling apart. Books on animals, are always being requested by students for me to read aloud. I see so many books on how to draw certain things floating around the classroom, as well as how to make books, like origami, or science projects. I think the reason for this that is non-fiction is very empowering for this age group. They learn something new and not only facts but how to do something. For a young tween, this is incredible, to learn something without the aid of an adult. I find subliterature, such as magazines and comics to be a close second to non-fiction. Magazines are popular because again, they are similar to non-fiction in that the reader is learning how to do something and the visual imagery is very important for young readers. The same goes for comics. Lesesne not only makes a strong argument based on her research as a book talker, she backs up her claims, from personal experience, strengthening her argument. I could not agree more with the chapter in Naked Reading, and I found it very interesting to see how my experiences with tween literature closely parallel a professional's research.

Week 1 & 2 (Post 1)

A Teen’s Take on Tween Online Communities (Ypulse)

http://www.ypulse.com/a-teens-take-on-tween-social-networks

Tweens are those children aged 9 to 14 that are in between being a child and a full teenager. It is an age where they are struggling to find an identity, explore their interests, and also explore the world. In an age where we rely heavily on the internet for more than just practical things, tweens are also exploring the internet as a way to interact socially with others and find what they are interested in. This article introduces many sites that are geared for this age group. Written by high school freshman, Meredith, she gives a closer look at what sites are made for tweens that are not necessarily keeping their interest and what other sites tweens tend to “graduate” to in order to further explore the internet. She states that sites like Club Penguin and Webkinz are great at first for tweens, but that they have so many limitations with chat options or other functions tweens quickly lose interest. They want more from a social networking site, so they turn to other less restrictive sites like Myspace and Facebook. She says that tweens nowadays are smarter than most adults give them credit for and this translates to the spaces created for tweens online. I think she makes a very valid point here. I have taken a look at these sites for tweens and she is right, many of them are very restricted and limit what the user can do. Of course there are ways to get around these restrictions, but they do feel a little like dumbed down versions of internet space. At the same time, I do see the need for safety precautions and filters on sites for minors regardless of the age. My 14 year-old niece used to use Meez.com and Club Penguin and I saw this disinterest in these sites grow quickly with her. She used them for a few months when she was around 12 years old and then quickly wanted to create a Myspace account in order to find her real friends at school and connect with them that way. She said that sharing pictures, being able to chat about anything, and update her status, was more fun than just sitting in a virtual room with a stranger and trying to strike up a conversation. At first, as any adult figure would, I was a little hesitant to allow her to create a Myspace account, her father gave her permission so I let her use my computer and wireless connection to maintain her profile. I added her as a friend too as a way to monitor and also keep connected. She has been using the site for over a year now and I must admit, I see her making good decisions with the site. All of her friends are real people that she knows, friends from school and family members. She keeps her settings to private so that no strangers can request her and she posts appropriate images and comments. I know that my niece does not represent all tweens, but I am very proud of her choices and wise internet usage and it helps maintain my idea that we as a society do not give tweens enough credit these days. By setting good examples and communicating trust to our youth, I feel they will have the ability to make good independent choices online. I think Meredith makes a good argument in her article.