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School library takes steps of improvements

School+library+takes+steps+of+improvements
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A section of the school library holds new and updated books particularly tailored for students.Photo by Hannah Kim

The school library is in with the new and out with the old. The librarians have recently put forth a great effort to update resources to accompany the needs of students, so all are encouraged to visit and utilize the changes.

Last year, the librarians got rid of 3,000 older books and added 600 new books, and they are continuing to shift the focus of the library to the specific needs of students, especially on topics assigned by teachers in various classes.

According to Neil Wong, librarian and media department director, the collection is now smaller but more tailored to what students actually want to read. This enables students to be able to find books that are up to date and better written.

Though many students already use the library for many reasons, such as checking out books, using the computers or privately working in a quiet environment, more students should begin utilizing the useful and relevant resources of the library’s new and improved collection.

Senior Tanya Tevs is one of the students who regularly makes trips to the library to make the most of the resources it offers.

According to Tevs, since her everyday life is so busy, she goes to the library to finish up her work, use the computers and check out books for research everyday. She is glad that the books are being restored so that she can benefit from the newer books.

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Senior Tanya Tevs utilizes the open work space of the library to quietly finish her school work.Photo by Hannah Kim 

All students should really take advantage of the school library, as it is one of the few reference centers that is truly centered around what highschoolers need to succeed in their studies.

According to Wong, everything he and the other two librarians do is aimed at trying to get all the students here to have a better experience. He feels that it is a pretty powerful tool that everyone should be using, especially because it is free.

Not only does the library come at no cost, it is also easily accessible for all students, as it is located within the heart of the school building.

In contrast to the Multnomah County library, where the needs of people of all ages from little kids to the elderly have to be taken care of, the school library here is directly aimed for high schoolers and what they need.

Additionally, teachers are encouraged to request particular books that are needed for class assignments and projects. Students can also request commonly wanted books for personal leisure, if the library lacks those kinds of books in the collection.

According to Wong, teachers can let students know what projects they have in mind, so that if the library collection is missing anything, the librarians can go out and purchase them to satisfy student needs. He also claims that receiving specific requests from students also helps a lot.

There are very few places where everything is directly aimed toward supporting and guiding students academically; therefore students should all the more use the readily available sources the librarians and the library itself has to offer.

According to librarian Tracey Kent, the library easily has around 100 checkouts a day. Lately, she is noticing an increase in the number of checkouts and claims that she would have to give that credit to Wong, as he has been working hard to update computer subscriptions and resources in general.

Wong brought methods from Barlow, where he works as a part-time librarian, in order to help provide a better experience for the students. Starting this work last year gave him the opportunity to apply the same standards in developing the collection and teaching students how to do research also.

According to Wong, the library is like a garden in that they need to get rid of books that are never being used and replace them with newer and better novels, as it helps a lot when newer resources are available for people to check out.

As the librarians have poured much time and effort towards creating a better learning environment full of updated online resources and newer books suited just for highschoolers, students should begin to make use of the free, valuable and relevant resources available at all times in the school library.

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