The Annenberg Library has over 30,000 books, 40 electronic databases, and five full-time faculty members. However, it is far too underutilized by the Episcopal Upper School students. With the plethora of resources that the library offers, books of all different genres should be checked out by students for recreational enjoyment. More often than not, however, students are only found checking out books when they are required for research projects.
EA’s librarians have recognized this trend for a while. “I would say that the trend that we see in the Middle and Upper School is that the Middle School reads much more fiction and more books for fun. The Upper School reads much more for research purposes or topic engagement on something. It is not reading for fun that I see,” explains Lorie Harding, Director of Libraries. James Austin ‘22 agrees, “I have never once checked out a book to read for fun from the EA library in my entire high school experience.”
Photo courtesy of Gianna Trala ’23
Reading for pleasure, however, has been proven to have extremely positive benefits. According to Healthline.com, reading strengthens the brain by physically altering its connectivity. This has been proven through MRI tests administered while test subjects have been actively reading; the scans show that in more complex and climatic parts of the story, more parts of the brain light up. What’s more, studies have linked reading with preventing age-related cognitive-decline, reducing stress, and alleviating certain mental health issues such as depression and sleeping problems. In a more obvious correlation, reading increases both empathy as readers learn about different ideas or subjects, and vocabularies, as they are exposed to new and more advanced language overtime. Many of these proven benefits to reading fit nicely into the goals of students at EA. So why, then, aren’t EA Upper School students jumping at the Annenberg Library’s many opportunities provided to read?
Andrea Yu, Upper School Librarian, believes that students are simply too busy. “How much free time does the typical EA student have? Between sports and the different classes that people take, not much.” Harding agrees, “I fully recognize the challenge that students are in. There are only so many hours in the day and if you have a lot of obligations, you either stay up two hours to read or you get those two hours of much needed sleep. Even as a librarian, I want you to take care of your personal and mental health first.” Harding also notes that the library does see an increase in interest on the cusp of academic breaks, “We see a big influx of students taking books out before the winter break or before spring break.”
But the limitations of students’ time do not restrict the library’s outreach efforts. Yu makes a point to feature popular or topical works of fiction in the book display at the front of the library. This way, students are offered reading options right as they enter. Harding explains, “Our hope with our displays that we do in the front is that they remind students, in a visual way, that the library is here not just to support their academic needs, but also to provide some sort of reading for lifelong learning, just for relaxation, or to learn about different narratives that are out there.” The Upper School Book Club, which Yu is faculty advisor to, is another avenue for students to approach recreational reading. “The role of Book Club changes year to year. This year we are having all our members read the same book every month that connects to some trending topic,” Yu comments. The librarians both emphasize that if there is any book, e-book, graphic novel, or likewise that is not already in the Annenberg collection, all an interested student has to do is request that the school purchase it, and the librarians will do all that they can to ensure the student has access to that book. “‘If there is something you want us to buy, we will make every effort to be able to get that for you,” says Harding.
With the flexibility and dedication of the librarians, Upper School students should continue to expand their engagement with the Annenberg Library. However, more often than not, students are scrolling on social media in their free time, rather than picking up a book. Amelia Wondrasch ‘23 states, “Whenever I’m in the library whether I’m doing work or with friends, I always see so many other kids on their phones. It’s crazy to look around and everywhere you look everyone is staring at their phones and it seems like they just can’t put them down.” With all the benefits that reading offers, EA students should put down their phones and pick up a book instead. With so many options available, students only need to check out one of the many fiction titles to begin reaping the rewards reading has to offer.