In my opinion media assistants should not be cut from our schools. Here's why...
> At the elementary school level, the Media Assistants are the ones who perform the puppet show while the Media Specialist reads the story. They are the ones checking books in and out for students from the whole school while the Media Specialist is teaching just one class. Not to mention, they do lunchroom duty too!
> At the secondary school level the Media Assistants are the face at the checkout desk, they are the ones collecting fines, finding books and resources, solving computer problems while the Media Specialists are working with one class. The Media Center is "open" prior to school start time and they are FULL from the moment the doors open.
> Without a Media Assistant, the library would, in practicality, be closed to all other students while the Media Specialist is teaching. If not closed, then when does the Media Specialist serve the student? Do they stop their instruction each time a student from the rest of the student body stops in and needs help to find a book? There will be continual interruptions.
The Media Assistant is needed in the media center to serve the students all day long. Also, it is volunteers and interns who shelve the books.
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As a former Media Specialist, I agree that cutting the Media Assistants position is detrimental to the media center. Mr. Scauzillo at Challenger 7 does not have an assistant. He relies on volunteers to help him shelve books. When I worked there, Mrs. Roberson was my right hand when it came to taking inventory and processing new books. At Space Coast, Mrs Seale could not teach classes without her assistants running the counter and processing books. Media Specialists are teachers who are supposed to be teaching students how to do research, which is a critical thinking skill. Without others to do the the customer services and book processing, Media Specialists would never have contact with the students. Sharon B. Bowen
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