Final Thoughts

For this Professional Development blog, I completed four activities based on the following themes: Censorship, Diversity, Book Awards and Technology.

For Censorship, I read Yorio (2018), Hinton (2020) and Doyle’s (2021) articles on the School Library Journal website and commented on the third article’s Facebook thread. 

In several articles’ comment sections, many angry and disappointed commenters expressed outrage over what they perceived as politically correct censorship. Other comments were more thoughtful and constructive, showing it is essential to listen to a variety of voices, even critical ones.  

Censorship is a controversial, complex and emotive issue. Librarians need to balance catering to a diverse community’s informational needs while also ensuring their safety and well-being. They can do this by not actively promoting nor restricting access to ‘offensive’ material.  

For Diversity, I analysed the streaming service website Kanopy and its children’s collection. I evaluated the collection’s multicultural offering and found more Indigenous and African-based material than expected, but criticised the site’s lack of Asian and Middle Eastern content, as well as disabled and LGBT+ content.

Campbell and Dahlen (2014) voice their concern that many digital media in library programs “do not examine or celebrate cultural diversity,” noting their Eurocentrism and cultural genericness (p. xi). Being exposed to a diverse range of people and cultures in media is not only identity-affirming for children who see themselves represented onscreen but educational for other children who “can gain perspective and develop empathy for others” (Southwest Human Development, 2021, paras. 3-4). 

Kanopy Kids would be valuable for libraries to offer patrons based on the generous amount of educational and story-time videos. However, it should comprise only a small part of a vast, rich and more diverse library collection.

For Book Awards, I read and analysed Babb, McBurnie and Miller’s 2018 journal article, ‘Tracking the environment in Australian children’s literature: the Children’s Book Council of Australia Picture Book of the Year Awards 1955-2014’.

I realised how influential book awards could be, especially those from an illustrious source like the Children’s Book Council of Australia, which has been promoting “the best of Australian literature for children and young people” for more than 75 years (Children’s Book Council of Australia, n.d.). 

Based on their assumed prestige, libraries acquire award-winning books, whose themes and attitudes go on to shape the worldview of their young readers. Books like Jeannie Baker’s 1988 Where the Forest Meets the Sea can remain culturally relevant and popular thirty years after publication, possibly because it won awards in the first place.

Lastly, for Technology, I learned how to use a new tool - the popular video creation and social media app TikTok. I discovered the popularity of library-related hashtags on the site and that librarians cleverly employ the app to create humorous videos and share ideas and information. 

I also learned that, while the app does have issues related to privacy, safety and informational integrity, librarians can use this as a teaching experience to inform young patrons about cyber safety and misinformation. The range of possible benefits for libraries adopting TikTok surprised me. I realised that sources of professional development can lie anywhere and that you must remain curious and open-minded.

Reference List

Campbell, J. C. & Dahlen, S. P. (2014). Diversity programming for digital youth: Promoting cultural competence in the children’s library. Libraries Unlimited.

The Children’s Book Council of Australia. (n.d.b) About the CBCA. https://cbca.org.au

Southwest Human Development. (2021). Diversity in children’s media provides representation and fosters compassion. https://www.swhd.org/diversity-in-childrens-media-provides-representation-and-fosters-compassion/