Information Scotland

The Journal of the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals in Scotland

April 2009 Volume 7(2)

School reading groups

Heated debate in the library

Mark Russell gives a personal account of the Reading Group he runs in his secondary school, and discusses the importance of the librarian’s role.

There are a lot of policy changes happening in Scottish education. A Curriculum for Excellence is coming and this will endeavour to embed the core skills of numeracy and literacy more fully within the whole curriculum. The librarian will have the opportunity to play a greater role in the school and in particular in promoting reading and literacy.

One function of a school librarian’s role is to provide access and opportunity for all pupils. What form this takes will ultimately depend on the school. At Kirkland High School and Community College where I work the reading group is a major part of this aspect of the library’s work. The senior reading group has been a great success and enables staff and senior pupils to read an eclectic mix of books.

Members come and go but the group’s size over the years has averaged between 14 and 16. The fluctuations only add a stimulus to the group. Staff and pupils with a genuine interest in reading get together in relaxed, informal surroundings over – to borrow a German phrase – ‘Kaffee und Kuchen’, and talk about the book. It allows those pupils with intentions of moving on to college or university a chance to debate and to express their ideas in a tutorial-like setting. Everyone’s opinion is listened to – and of course differences of opinion are often in evidence. I often disagree with the only other surviving original member from the early days nine years ago (Stuart Bell, PT Guidance), and the debates can be heated. The pupils can get to see that, although our ideas may be different, we can accept differing points of view. More importantly, they can choose which of use to side with. A reading group is ultimately only as good as the people in it.

Another factor that adds to the reading group’s prominence in the school is the teachers who are in the group. At Kirkland we have a mixture of teachers from various subjects and also the headteacher, Ronnie Ross. He has similar taste in novels to me – the historical novels tend to have us agreeing – although Thomas Hardy is my favourite author and his least. I also think that he has not forgiven me for choosing Salman Rushdie’s Midnight’s Children last year!

Sometimes it pays for the librarian to be undemocratic with the first choice of book for the year to get the group up and running for the current academic session. Researching the market is also useful and providing this information to the group allows members to have a say in the next choices. We read four or five books a year. This year our theme has been American literature and books have included Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain; Twilight by Stephenie Meyer and Jack Kerouac’s On the Road. It was a senior pupil who suggested the theme as he was reading Moby Dick for his personal study. The books have all been well received and everybody rates the books out of ten at the end of the meeting. (Twilight is the most highly thought of book so far this academic year – but the staff group members marked it slightly lower than the pupils.)

In the past we have been extremely lucky enough to have had authors Ruaridh Nicol (White Male Heart and Wide-eyed) and Isla Dewar (Dancing in a Distant Place) visiting the reading group. These visits were greatly appreciated, especially as the authors had come in their own time, free of charge, and answered questions about their books very willingly as well as signing members’ copies. The Scottish Booktrust’s website is a very useful tool and allows people running book groups to trawl and see who is willing to come to visit.

Running a reading group is not hard. Some pupils prefer to borrow titles from the library; others like to go to the bookshop or purchase a copy through my links with a local book supplier in Fife, Millfield Books. We are fortunate to be offered a very generous discount.

For me at least, and I dare say for the other staff members both past and present, time spent with the reading group has added to the enjoyment of working in education and supporting the education of our young people. Equally, for our pupils, the experience will hold them in good stead for whatever career path that they should choose.

Mark Russell is Librarian at Kirkland High School and Community College, Methil, Fife.

Information Scotland Vol. 7(2) April 2009

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Last updated: 24-Jul-2009