K-12 Digital Transformation report

 A survey in 2023 revealed that K-12 digital transformation efforts are still in their early stages, with nearly two-thirds of respondents indicating they have not yet begun to implement their strategies or technology initiatives for digital transformation. However, around 36% are in various stages of implementation, and only about a third of respondents expressed confidence in their understanding of digital transformation, with IT leaders showing higher levels of understanding compared to non-IT leaders.

Nagel, D. (2023). Most districts still early in their digital transformation journey. THE Journal.

https://thejournal.com/articles/2023/08/31/most-districts-still-early-in-their-digital-transformation-journey.aspx

Book censorship survey

 Book censorship requests in US public schools and libraries surged to a 21-year high in 2022, with a 70% increase over the previous year, according to the American Library Association. The data reveals a new trend of multiple book titles being targeted in each challenge, often driven by organized political advocacy groups seeking to ban books, particularly those featuring LGBTQ+ themes and diverse perspectives.

Censorship by the numbers. (2023). American Library Association. https://www.ala.org/advocacy/bbooks/by-the-numbers

Book Challenges Survey

 According to a national survey, the surge in book challenges nationwide is having a chilling effect on school librarians, who are more likely to avoid buying books or to remove titles from collections because of their content than they were last year. "And while the percentage of U.S. librarians who have experienced a book challenge dropped from 43 percent to 38 percent, 30 percent of those challenges led to a book’s removal in 2023, up from 19 percent last year. Urban school librarians were the only segment to report a rise in book challenges, from 31 percent in 2022 to 39 percent this year.

Perhaps in response to the spike in challenges, 55 percent of respondents said their school’s book challenge procedure was new or revised, an increase from 49 percent in 2022.

The number of librarians who voluntarily removed books from their library also rose, from 42 percent in 2022 to 47 percent in 2023.

All 729 respondents are responsible for selecting books for their library. Their most cited reason for choosing not to buy a book was sexual content, especially at the high school level—increasing from 60 percent in 2022 to 75 percent in 2023. As for other concerns, 43 percent said profanity or vulgar language caused them to reject a book, while 37 percent named LGBTQIA+ content." School Library Journal

Controversial books survey. (2023). School Library Journal.

https://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/story/Book-Challenges-Are-Having-a-Chilling-Effect-on-School-Librarians-Nationwide-SLJ-Survey

Survey of parents'worries

According to a national poll of parents, the top five concerns rated as a big problem for their children were overuse of devices or screen time (67%), social media (66%), internet safety (62%) depression and suicide (57%) and bullying ( 53%). Around half of parents also named stress and anxiety, unhealthy diets and health care costs as big problems.

Mott Poll Report. (2023). Overuse of devices and social media top parent concerns. Author. https://mottpoll.org/reports/overuse-devices-and-social-media-top-parent-concerns. 

LGBTQIA+ literature for youth

A recent study identified and categorized published empirical research on LGBTQIA+ topics in school and youth librarianship and identify and categorize gaps in that research to propose focuses for future research studies. The key finding was that little research has examined LGBTQIA+ inclusive school library services for youth.

Spiering, J., Santos Green, L., & Bowman, J. (2023). "LGBTQIA+ Inclusive School Library Research: A Systematic Literature Review." School Library Research 26. https://www.ala.org/aasl/sites/ala.org.aasl/files/content/pubs/slr/vol26/spiering-et%20al.pdf

Mental Health Impact of Social Media Study

 In a new report, the AFT describes the toll—particularly surrounding youth mental health—certain online technologies have taken on students both in and outside of the classroom as students partake in the “unregulated environment” known as social media. The report serves as a reality check to social media companies that need to make “fundamental changes” to their platforms so that students’ and educators’ lives may be improved as a result. According to the report, social media companies should adhere to the following five principles:

• Prioritize children’s safety
• Protect students from becoming addicted
• Protect students’ privacy
• Protect students from risky algorithms
• Engage and work directly with K12 schools and parents

American Federation of Teachers. (2023). Likes vs. learning: The real cost of social media for schools. Author.

https://www.aft.org/sites/default/files/media/documents/2023/LikesVSLearning_Report.pdf

AI and teens study

 A recent survey found that more than 40% of teens are likely to use artificial intelligence to complete their schoolwork, but 60% consider it cheating. As AI-powered tools like ChatGPT become more prevalent in schools, educators are grappling with how to incorporate AI use responsibly, emphasizing it as a tool to assist learning rather than a replacement for learning.

Junior Achievement. (2023). AI and tomorrow's jobs. Author.

https://jausa.ja.org/dA/79df6c0f56/criticalIssuePdfDocument/AI%20and%20Tomorrows%20%20Jobs.pdf