“This Intense Desire to Know the World”: Factors Influencing the Selection of Multicultural Children\u27s Literature

Multicultural children\u27s literature offers readers the opportunity to experience new perspectives and cultures or reaffirm and develop their socio-cultural identity (Boston & Baxley, 2007; Yokota, 2009). The availability of diverse titles for youth is critical in enhancing 21st Century literacy and social skills (AASL, 2007; Common Core, 2010; Krashen, 2004). The purpose of this study was to identify factors influencing collection development and the selection of multicultural children\u27s literature in public library collections in geographically and demographically diverse communities across one southeastern state. Employing a mixed methods design, the researcher first surveyed ten library system collections totaling 70 libraries and library branches for three ethnic specific and two non-ethnic specific children\u27s literature awards: Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature (APAAL), Coretta Scott King Award, Pura Belpré Award, John Newbery Award, and Randolph Caldecott Award. The non-ethnic specific awards, the Caldecott and Newbery, were present most in the library collections with the King, Belpré, and APAAL following, respectively. The researcher used the surrounding demographics of each library to investigate the relationship between the diversity of the community and the collection (U.S. Census, 2011). The researcher also identified and surveyed librarians from each system who make selection decisions for the children\u27s section. Findings indicate a wide variety of factors influencing the selection of multicultural children\u27s literature. Using hierarchical regression analyses, the presence of the King and Belpré Award winners were found to be statistically significant predictors of the APAAL, suggesting that librarians use these lists for selecting multicultural children\u27s literature for their collections. The community demographics for each ethnic group were also found to be statistically significant predictors for each corresponding ethnic specific award. The interviewed librarians indicated formal and informal factors on selection including award lists; community needs assessment; and anticipated circulation. They highlighted challenges influencing the selection process with issues like the availability of quality multicultural literature, what is reviewed in selection aids they use, and their ability to select titles about cultures outside of their own experiences. Their responses support the importance of preservice and continuing education to provide opportunities for promoting library services to a globally diverse community

How Common is Common?

Common Core Standards for English Language Arts and Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science, and Technical Subjects (National Governors Association Center for Best Practices, 2010) aims to develop students who are college and career ready in reading, writing, speaking, listening, and language. The standards also emphasize students\u27 need to understand other perspectives and cultures (p. 7). Appendix B of the document includes lists of exemplar texts (stories, read-aloud stories, poetry, and information texts) to help educators choose texts that meet the recommended qualities of complexity, quality, and range. This study examines the Appendix B stories and read-aloud stories at the K-5 levels for diversity in regard to publication year, genre, setting, and protagonist characteristics, including gender and racial and ethnic diversity. Inclusion of diverse texts enables the development of critical literacy skills so that students can consider multiple points of view and other\u27s\u27 differences

Translated Literature in Your Library: The Mildred L Batchelder Award

Translated books represent a unique bridge between cultures for young readers. This article discusses recent trends and practical applications for award-winning literature that has been translated into English and published in the United States. Winner and honour titles earning the Mildred L Batchelder Award for their publishers often include European languages of origins and settings. Despite this homogeneity, the books represent a quality option as a way to diversify a library collection for English-speaking patrons, particularly young adults, and to enhance teaching lessons with the integration of this global literature

Curation in Translation: Promoting Global Citizenship Through Literature

As curators of the school library collection, librarians ensure the resources they select are of high quality and that they meet students\u27 social needs, including diverse perspectives representative of our world and supportive of global citizenship skills and dispositions. The Mildred L. Batchelder Award given to English translations published in the United States is an option for librarians seeking such cultural diversity for their collections. Using the United Nations\u27 Declaration of the Rights of the Child (1959), the research identifies the strong potential these titles hold for engaging youth and promoting global citizenship

Getting Online with Student Satisfaction: An Exploratory Study

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