Old-Fashioned Book Dumping
On the first Friday in November, Hart Middle School Principal Willie Bennett Jr. pulled dozens of students out of class for an important assignment: He needed them to cart away piles of books and toss them in the Dumpster.
From 9 to 11:30 a.m., these students set about gutting the old stock from the newly renovated library. The books had been piled high in a spare room. Katherine Buchholz, a Hart teacher, says many of the discarded books were either brand-new or still in good shape, including works by Shakespeare and a huge section devoted to African-American history. “It was so bad that children were rescuing and hiding books in their rooms because they thought they should be in the library,” she says. Now, Buchholz adds, the new library doesn’t have enough books: “It’s nothing. None of it is research-worthy.”
Indeed, the library’s shelves are far from full. Bennett says community groups, parents, teachers, and students had ample time to save whatever books they wanted and that the books that ended up in the trash were too old to go in the new library, which is named after Rosa Parks. He doesn’t understand why the book dumping caused such a stir. “This was for the students,” he says. “The library is for the students.”
12 Responses to “Old-Fashioned Book Dumping”
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November 21st, 2007 at 12:28 pm
Perhaps you can pass along this reference to the NEA study on the decline of reading to Principal Bennett.
He might read it.It’s in a brand-new edition of The School Library Journal:
http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6504107.html
November 23rd, 2007 at 12:28 pm
[...] the school tossed most of its books into a pair of dumpsters. The school’s principal claimed the books were too [...]
November 25th, 2007 at 8:48 pm
check out Hart’s reading scores
December 3rd, 2007 at 11:15 am
If the idiot that took this picture (probably Katherine Buchholz) and the idiot that wrote this article got together with a reliable source they would have known why the books were thrown away.
Our school was fortunate enough to get an outside agency to give us a new library and books. The entire staff and community was informed at the very beginning of the school year that books were available for the taking, but people trickled in slowly grabbing a few books here and there. The English teachers, of which Katherine Buchholz is one, were asked specifically for suggestions as to which books would be appropriate to add to the library. The new librarian (a man with a library science degree) used a special procedure for deciding which books to keep and throw away.
If teachers like Katherine Buchholz would spend more time learning to control her class, delivering useful information and effective lessons, and imparting high expectations for our students’ success instead of complaining about EVERYTHING ALL OF THE TIME, maybe our reading scores would be better.
Furthermore, I don’t see any other organization donating up-to-date books to our kids or our school library. Could it be that the yuppies of this newly gentrified city intend on reverting to the days of “seperate but UN-equal” and allow our kids to do research from books from that are older than their parents?
Somebody let me know!
December 3rd, 2007 at 1:23 pm
I took the picture, on the afternoon of Nov. 3.
December 12th, 2007 at 8:10 am
I used a “special procedure” to determine that “Hart Teacher” is an idiot as well.
Shakespeare is “too old” to be included? Get a brain.
December 13th, 2007 at 7:12 pm
And the books were thrown away why? If they really were updating their stock, why on earth did they not a) have a library used-book sale to raise money, which most schools need badly, or b) put them out somewhere obvious for students to pick up and take home?
December 15th, 2007 at 12:51 am
Fahrenheit 451 was first published in 1953, several years before my father was born. Does this mean that it’s not worth reading? Interesting theory.
December 30th, 2007 at 12:56 am
Whoever identifies themself as a Hart teacher should be ashamed of him/herself…there was no public announcement. I personally called people to come get books after hundreds were already thrown away (the principal nor the office staff did so—nor did they ask for such to be done). Many of the books were brand new. I took some myself. I have some in my office and gave some to students. Come and see. I am in room 131…Brogioli. Who are you? You are quick to judge others. Get yout facts straight. the move was a bonehead one, face it.
January 7th, 2008 at 10:37 pm
I seriously doubt that the “Hart Teacher” has his or her facts straight. That person could not possibly know what I do in my classroom, since no teacher in Hart Middle School has set foot in my classroom while I was teaching since I started there two years ago. This lack of collegial review being yet another failure of the system that fears to support community creativity and shared experience by denying us the opportunity to observe our peers and learn from each other.
Obviously, we are all concerned with our children, else why would we be there? Perhaps I just don’t swallow the proverbial hook as quickly as one of my unfortunate colleagues. God forbid one should question authority, think for one’s self, or otherwise refuse to see the forest for the trees. Why stab each other in the back? Why not work together to help our children and raise test scores? After all, does it not take a village?
January 7th, 2008 at 10:53 pm
I thought teachers were supposed to be setting a good example? What would happen if your students were to read this from you, “Hart Teacher?” It’s always nice to see grown adults picking fights through blogs on the Internet. Pretty immature I would think and I’m sure your students would agree.
February 20th, 2008 at 12:12 pm
Perhaps one of the books that should not have been thrown away is a dictionary. I suggest that “Hart teacher” look up the correct spelling of separate.
Personally, I smell a rat and suspect that Willie himself is the author.
I asked to be told when books were ready to be given away, but did not hear from the school. I wonder who they did tell??????