College and Research Libraries 530 1 College & Research Libraries • November, 1965 judgement. These qualities Dr. Posner has demonstrated in abundance.-William T. Alderson, American Association for State and Local History. The School Library. By Ralph E. Ells- worth. New York: The Center for Applied Research in Education, Inc., 1965. xi, 116p. $3.95. (65-15520). · In 1963, Ralph E. Ellsworth, with the collaboration of Hobart D. Wagener, pro- duced an excellent little book which the Educational Facilities Laboratories issued under the title, The School Library; Fa- cilities for Independent Study in the Sec- ondary School. This 1963 publication was a landmark in school library literature. Now Mr. Ellsworth has produced a second vol- ume by a new publisher but, unfortunately for the student, with a title identical to the main title of his first book. The new School Library is, in other ways, a less happy book than the previous en- deavor. Admittedly, its purpose is differ- ent, for it attempts to present to school ad- ministrators a picture of school library needs in the rapidly-changing schools of our day, while the first School Library was primarily concerned with "architectural aspects of the -school library." Yet the first book pro- vided a more comprehensive outline of what a good school library ought to be than does the new one. There is much of value in the new vol- ume, however. Ellsworth says some things that have not been said before and some that cannot be said too frequently. One statement which shows especially profound insight into the shortcomings of school li- braries appears on page 4. A strong and able librarian can sometimes im- prove a mediocre library situation, but unless she can change the philosophy of education and the teaching procedures and schedules which prevail in the school, her impact will not be noticeable. A proper understanding of who is responsible for the quality of school library service will not be reached until it is under- stood that the status, use, and operation of a school library are the result of the nature and character of the total instructional program of the school. Though it has been said before, it is good that it is now being said again to the read- ers this book will reach. In general, the book is comprehensive in its treatment of the secondary school li- brary, but it provides no indication that the author is aware of the many exciting elementary school libraries that can be identified in various parts of the country. Except for a paragraph devoted to the Knapp School Libraries Project, he seems unaware of the extent of school libraries in elementary schools. In his chapter on the program of the library he suggests that "the librarian should be wise in the ways of teen- agers," valuable wisdom for a high school librarian, but not so helpful for an ele- mentary school librarian whose six hundred pupils only aspire to adolescence. Librari- ans will regret that a book purporting to present The School Library, in fact relates only to libraries in schools of one level, the senior high school. Even in the few places where he men- tions elementary school libraries, the author shows little knowledge of their status in 1965. In the p·aragraph referred to above, he states that the old controversy concern- ing classroom versus centralized libraries is still vigorously alive, a statement he would have great difficulty in documenting. On page 90 he reports, on the basis of hearsay, that the librarians who attended a confer- ence in June 1964 called by the Educa- tional Facilities Laboratories, relating to elementary school libraries, "had less to offer that was fresh and interesting than did some of the administrators ." Other ob- servers, perhaps less impartial than Ells- worth's, have provided a different report. Unfortunately, Educational Facilities Lab- oratories has issued no conference report. Like the earlier book, this one is excellent in its treatment of facilities for high school libraries. His discussion of the nature and elements of a school library should have special value in justifying areas of adequate size for essential service functions. This sec- tion provides one statement that is sure to go into the rare literature of the highly quotable (pp. 61-62). The body of a high school student at work is a wondrous thing, full of aches and pains and jerks and spasms and twists and contor- tions and almost never in complete repose. . . . (One might wonder if the Creator had study- ing in mind at all as an expected activity for youth.) While applauding the spirit with which Ellsworth writes about school libraries, the reader may well take issue with his thesis that school libraries were moribund until the 1960's. The American Association of School Librarians' Standards for School Li- brary Programs was based on levels found through research in good school libraries, yet Ellsworth seems to imply that until 1960 good school libraries were virtually nonexistent. Ellsworth rightly criticizes the quality of the literature of school librarianship, but at the same time ignores important and influ- ential documents. One publication of great import, and one that would have strength- ened his case but which he has not men- tioned, is Responsibilities of State Depart- ments of Education for School Library Ser- vices; a Policy Statement issued by the Council of Chief State Officers in 1961. The council's policy statement, defining the school library as a part of instruction, is one of the most important publications in creating a favorable attitude toward im- proving school library services. Mr. Ells- worth has overlooked other important con- tributions to the description of goals for school library programs. Nowhere does he indicate that he is familiar with the writings of Mary Helen Mahar, nor for example, of the original and significant research of Mary V. Gaver. Ellsworth begins with an enumeration of the factors which have hastened the recent development of school libraries, following with an analysis of "negative forces" which hindered them. Subsequent chapters deal with the proper role and characteristics of school libraries. The book closes with a short look into the future. Two sections dealing with censorship give disproportionate weight to this prob- lem. The chapter, "The School Library and Community Relations," except for its open- ing and closing paragraphs, relates exclu- sively to censorship. More than half of the final chapter is also concerned with cen- sorship and is out of keeping with the tone and method of the rest of the book. If in- cluded at all, the final ten pages should have been an appendix. As a book for school administrators, The School Library will be valuable in present- ing a modem and lively concept of library service for secondary schools. Since it is a part of a subscription series, "The Library Book Reviews 1 531 of Education," in which individual volumes are not sold separately, it may not, however, reach many of the administrators who most need its message. For school administrators seeking a rationale for elementary school library programs, it will not do at all. A book which .encompasses school library ser- vices at elementary, junior, and senior high school levels remains to be written.-Rich- ard L. Darling, Montgomery County Public Schools, Maryland. • • GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING (Continued from page 489) and incomplete printing, publishing, and distribution programs are serious. The problems connected with these pro- grams, while not susceptible to easy or cheap solutions, can be overcome pro- vided vigorous, high-level attention is focussed upon them. In any case, their resolution should not be beyond the ca- pacity of a government which can count the number of chickens in Sagadahoc County and send rockets to the moon. •• PROFESSIONAL OR CLERICAL ... (Continued from page 526) ly complained that their job duties were not adequately represented among the professional items on the questionnaire. In this case it is not reasonable to expect the proportion of professional duties in- dicated to be a true representation. In conclusion, the findings of the study seem to verify the results obtained by Griffith and Hart that librarians prob- ably perform more nonprofessional du- ties than they should. • • . . . UNIVERSITY ARCHIVES (Continued from page 524) chives has been stimulated by the writ- ing of a history of the university.35 The archival collection in the university ar- chives is as helpful to the historian as the supplementary nonarchival materials attracted to it. • • 35 Fulmer Mood and Vernon Carstensen, "Univer- sity Records and Their Relation to General Univer- sity Administration," CRL, XI (October 1950), 339- 40.