OPINION — Public education has many people doing important work out of sight. I met one recently at Casteel High School after taking junior high students into the library to find books they might want to read. That sounds simple until you are standing next to a student who has no idea where to begin.
The librarian was busy, but when a student needed help, she stopped and asked the right questions: Sports? History? Mystery? Something funny? Something real? She listened, adjusted and before long the student was interested in the book she placed in front of him.
That was only the part I saw. Much of a school librarian’s work happens quietly: tracking materials, judging age appropriateness, helping teachers with research, guiding students toward reliable sources, managing parental authorizations and matching the right book with the right student.
