language learning - Public Libraries Online https://publiclibrariesonline.org A Publication of the Public Library Association Fri, 19 May 2017 16:57:46 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.4.5 Language Learning at the Library https://publiclibrariesonline.org/2017/05/language-learning-at-the-library/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=language-learning-at-the-library https://publiclibrariesonline.org/2017/05/language-learning-at-the-library/#respond Fri, 19 May 2017 16:56:20 +0000 http://publiclibrariesonline.org/?p=12165 As an immigrant myself, I know the loneliness of feeling like you're different from everyone because you don't speak English. I felt as a librarian, I was able to go full-circle and create a welcoming atmosphere for my patrons, and send them a message: You're not alone, we're here for you!

The post Language Learning at the Library first appeared on Public Libraries Online.

]]> I myself am an immigrant to the United States. My family came here when I was four years old. I remember how hard it was to learn English. I despaired that I would never learn how to speak and read English, but I did it! Learning another language was very rewarding and has reaped a lot of dividends, like being able to write this blog entry for instance. A few years ago, I went to Japan for six weeks and I took some Japanese classes there. It was so much fun. Learning a language, although a tad difficult is also extremely rewarding because it is an excuse to socialize with other people in a fun and yet productive way. In my experience, people wanting to learn a language are quite diverse in both background and age. I remember studying Japanese with people from America, Asia, Europe, and Africa. What brought us together was our curiosity to learn and our drive to improve ourselves. We had a lot of good times and we made friends along the way.

At the library I have tried to share these types of positive experiences I have had, while learning new languages. Here are some examples:

  • First, when I was the manager of Queens Library at Seaside, I spoke with a woman who wanted to volunteer for the library. I asked her about her background and she said she was a retired reporter from Columbia. With her background in writing and communication, I suggested that she start a Spanish club and she did. We scheduled this program once a week in the afternoons after 3:00 pm. What was interesting is that we got senior citizens who just wanted to come in, chat, and learn something new. Adults who learned Spanish at school or college, wanted to refresh their memories. We got native Spanish speakers who just wanted to speak in Spanish. And we got one or two high school students who were taking Spanish and they wanted to complement their learning in school (and have someone check their homework). It took some time to build a following, but eventually this became a very popular program. I think  it is important to remember all the customers and staff coming in the door have something special to bring to the table. Take time to find that “thing” it can pay-off big!
  • Another example, as manager of Queens Library at South Hollis I still had my Japanese lessons on my mind, and we had quite a few customers who were interested in Japanese animation. So, I started a Japanese Language Club. At first I used books and videos. I called it a self-study group since I am by no means proficient in Japanese. But after a while, it seemed like there was a need for someone to teach us. I did some research online and found a plethora of language instructors. I found a native Japanese-language speaker willing to do lessons for a reasonable fee, via Skype. We decided to try it for the Japanese Language Club at the library and she was excellent! One of our customers, a veteran, said it was his first time using Skype. He also chatted in English to ask questions about Japanese culture. I was happy to facilitate this dialogue and create a new experience for our customers. We do the lessons every week now, and they’re a lot of fun!
  • My third example is meeting people where they are and just accepting them as they are. For many customers, including school aged children, English is not their first language. So using volunteers from our Library Friends Group, we were able to create a Multi-Lingual Homework Help Service, with volunteers helping kids do their homework in their native language including Spanish, French, and Haitian Creole. I thought this was a fun and re-affirming program. As an immigrant myself, I know the loneliness of feeling like you’re different from everyone because you don’t speak English. I felt as a librarian, I was able to go full-circle and create a welcoming atmosphere for my patrons, and send them a message: You’re not alone, we’re here for you!

The post Language Learning at the Library first appeared on Public Libraries Online.

]]> https://publiclibrariesonline.org/2017/05/language-learning-at-the-library/feed/ 0 Collection Development: Catering to the Hispanic Community https://publiclibrariesonline.org/2015/12/collection-development-catering-to-the-hispanic-community/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=collection-development-catering-to-the-hispanic-community https://publiclibrariesonline.org/2015/12/collection-development-catering-to-the-hispanic-community/#respond Tue, 22 Dec 2015 19:17:06 +0000 http://publiclibrariesonline.org/?p=7620 There are many ways to reach out to the Hispanic community. Do not underestimate the little things and do not assume the Hispanic community does not take notice.

The post Collection Development: Catering to the Hispanic Community first appeared on Public Libraries Online.

]]> According to the United States Census Bureau, the estimated Hispanic population as of 2014 is roughly 17.4% of the United States’ 319,000,000 population.[1] While not all of the individuals who classify themselves as Hispanic or Latino speak Spanish, according to a 2015 report released by the prestigious Instituto Cervantes “the United States is now the world’s second largest Spanish-speaking country after Mexico.”[2] The U.S has 41 million native speakers and 11 million who are bilingual. Those are some serious numbers and public libraries are at the forefront of assisting many of these Hispanics with whatever resources they have available. Many Spanish speakers go to public libraries to look for answers regarding a path to citizenship, questions about the I-90 form, services offered for Spanish speakers, and my favorite, “Donde tienes tus libros españoles?” (Where do you have your Spanish books?) Publishing companies are doing their best to cater to this large community, but answer this question: Even with more Spanish books readily available, who are the librarians assessing community needs and building these Spanish and bilingual collections? It is one thing to be a Hispanic librarian, as I am, but it is another thing to truly understand the Hispanic community to know how a collection should be built.

In library school, they teach you about multicultural librarianship and how to cater to diverse communities. Learning something can only take you so far, however. It is the application portion that is key. Libraries should “recruit Spanish-speaking personnel in all job classifications, i.e. librarians, paraprofessionals, clerical workers and volunteers.”[3] Librarians and library professionals should never underestimate the power of the “door knocking” approach. Get out into the Hispanic speaking community in your area to sit and talk to individuals who wish to have input on the Spanish and bilingual material located in your library; they are stakeholders as well.

Librarians can no longer sit back and wait for Hispanics to provide them with information regarding collection development. Outreach is the answer! Making contacts and connections throughout the community for assistance with this process is an integral part of the collection development process. If this is not accomplished, Hispanics will assume the library does not care about their needs and does not wish to have programs that cater to their community and culture. Whenever possible, advertise and post signage around the library in Spanish. This is a useful tactic that will let Spanish speakers know that the library indeed understands there is a Hispanic community and they are important as well. Social networking is obviously very popular in this digital age, so posting in English and Spanish gets the word out much better than only posting in English. If you do not speak Spanish, use Google Translate. It is a highly resourceful tool that goes a long way.

There are many ways to reach out to the Hispanic community. Do not underestimate the little things and do not assume the Hispanic community does not take notice. As Louis Pasteur once famously said, “Chance favors the prepared mind.”

[1] “Quick Facts Beta: United States,” The United States Census Bureau, accessed November 17, 2015, http://www.census.gov/quickfacts/table/RHI725214/00.

[2] “US now has more Spanish speakers than Spain – only Mexico has More,” The Guardian, accessed November 16, 2015, http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/jun/29/us-second-biggest-spanish-speaking-country.

[3] “Guidelines for Library Services to Spanish-Speaking Library Users,” Reference and User Services Association (RUSA), A Division of the American Library Association, accessed November 18, 2015, http://www.ala.org/rusa/resources/guidelines/guidespanish.

The post Collection Development: Catering to the Hispanic Community first appeared on Public Libraries Online.

]]> https://publiclibrariesonline.org/2015/12/collection-development-catering-to-the-hispanic-community/feed/ 0 A Library Can Say Hello in Almost Any Language https://publiclibrariesonline.org/2014/10/a-library-can-say-hello-in-almost-any-language/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=a-library-can-say-hello-in-almost-any-language https://publiclibrariesonline.org/2014/10/a-library-can-say-hello-in-almost-any-language/#comments Thu, 30 Oct 2014 20:40:58 +0000 http://publiclibrariesonline.org/?p=4940 When challenged with serving New York City’s most linguistically diverse borough, the Queens Library in New York City has flourished instead and created a mosaic that celebrates the Queens community’s wonderful multiculturalism.

The post A Library Can Say Hello in Almost Any Language first appeared on Public Libraries Online.

]]> According to the traditional Bible story, the Tower of Babel tumbled down when its builders each had to communicate in a different language. When challenged with serving New York City’s most linguistically diverse borough, the Queens Library in New York City has flourished instead and created a mosaic that celebrates the Queens community’s wonderful multiculturalism.

New Americans Welcome Here

The Queens Library services what some might consider an almost impossible task—the most ethnically diverse population in the United States.  47% of the Queens Library’s patrons speak a language other than English.

How that’s done has been QL’s challenge since the 1970s when the library initiated its New Americans Program.  It has strived to develop a multilingual collection, a multilingual database and to provide multilingual services. It is a “user-friendly in any language” library in all of its branches.

According to the Queens Library, it’d be almost impossible to find someone who speaks every language in every local branch.  However, they explain that the library conducts extensive staff training in non-verbal communication and cultural awareness to help patrons and staff. It has even developed a library linqua franca—an adapted universal sign language/pointing guide to target key areas of service in the library.

Multicultural Services—More than Books

The library’s community branches offer ESL classes, Citizenship and Naturalization classes, and Computer Literacy classes. The Central branch offers comprehensive newcomer services such as immigration form and application assistance, financial literacy classes, and other cultural orientation classes.

Presently, the QL maintains Multilingual Web Picks in 10 languages so patrons can find the best websites in their native languages on anything from Albania to Zen.  Queens Library explains that the multilingual media center is very popular,  since network links to foreign media sources and news services are very important for many individuals.

Over 26 Languages and Growing 

The multilingual collection now exceeds over 26 languages—this represents the largest collection in the US for general readers in Spanish (157,000 items) and Chinese (256,000) (both Mandarin and Chinese simplified), extensive fiction and non-fiction collections in Korean (53,000 items), Russian (53,000), and South Asian Languages (46,000 items in Bengali, Gujarati, Hindi, Malayalam, Urdu and Punjabi). (http://www.queenslibrary.org/sites/default/files/about-us/Facts%20Sheet.pdf)

Queens has the largest Asian population in NYC—49.3% of the population is either Asian Indian, Chinese, Filipino, Korean, or Nepalese.

Queens Library says that most of the library’s circulating material is popular reading—romance novels, mysteries, self-help books, and cookbooks. However, these aren’t necessarily direct translations of American publishers. The library takes great effort to access materials from overseas libraries and publishers in order to continue cultural contact and authenticity.

David Baldacci may be a household name to readers in the United States but for a Chinese reader, Keigo Higashino is more likely the name that comes to mind. This Japanese writer has been translated into Chinese and has been on the bestseller list since 2007 (http://paper-republic.org/news/newsitems/80/).

Serving the Whole Community: The First, Second, and Heritage Language Community

The flagship QL Branch in Flushing includes international newspapers, magazines, and books. It also includes the C.Y. Han collection on Chinese culture—a collection of bilingual English-Chinese books as well as reference books relating to Chinese civilization. 90% of these materials can be borrowed. The Window of Shanghai and the Window of Dynamic Korea are also housed here.

QL’s awareness and respect of first, second, and “heritage” language speakers embraces the spirit of multiculturalism that it fosters. QPL serves the immigrant populations of Queens as well as succeeding generations who want to preserve their language heritage.

The C.Y. Han Collection is a good example of a native language collection that preserves its past while still including culturally relevant material that interests contemporary Chinese speakers as well.

Multiculturalism as a Fundamental Characteristic of a Library

Queens Library serves its community’s changing demographic by consistently reaching out to newcomers, offering them services, and providing them reading.

Multilingual collections are a foundation of outreach services for:

  • Family literacy
  • Information services
  • Citizenship classes and information
  • Community services and access
  • English as a second language classes
  • Digital literacy
  • Homework help

Introducing diverse groups to library services also assists these groups in linking with other agencies or services that might benefit them as they assimilate into a new culture and country.

The Eyes and Ears of the World

The community librarian is the eyes and ears of data collection. QL constantly monitors census data, citywide statistics, and even surrounding hospital birth records to track changes in neighborhood demographics in order to keep its local collections relevant to its community’s needs.

Queens Library shared a retired librarian’s insight into multilingual collection development: “You can map the world’s troubles by looking at the book collections in the Queens Library.”  In the early 1990s, Queens saw an influx of Chinese from Hong Kong as it was seceded back to China. As a result, there was a demand for , authors, which QL ably met. Last year, in Jackson Heights–nicknamed the Little Philippines– the library noticed a much greater demand for requests for books on typhoons after Typhoon Haiyan. Jackson Heights now has 9 copies of books on the subject in several languages; the Central branch now carries 44.

In a world connected by information needs, QL recognizes the multicultural role it plays. The library’s multilingual collection is the perfect hub for its community’s citizens to connect to their former residences as they make new homes here.

Lost in Translation

Multilingual collections do not equate to direct translations. Likewise, QL understands that assimilation does not equal instant citizenship. It is a process to become a new citizen in a new country. Respecting the cultures within our library’s communities by maintaining the languages they speak is the very touchstone of multiculturalism. The multilingual collections at the Queens Library embrace the unique character of each stone in the diverse mosaic of the Queens community that it serves.

The post A Library Can Say Hello in Almost Any Language first appeared on Public Libraries Online.

]]> https://publiclibrariesonline.org/2014/10/a-library-can-say-hello-in-almost-any-language/feed/ 1 Language Learning @ Your Library https://publiclibrariesonline.org/2014/10/language-learning-your-library/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=language-learning-your-library https://publiclibrariesonline.org/2014/10/language-learning-your-library/#respond Wed, 01 Oct 2014 20:31:10 +0000 http://publiclibrariesonline.org/?p=4833 In today's world, we're adopting an increasingly global outlook. Whether we're traveling abroad for vacation or business, immigrating, or simply interested in expanding our personal knowledge, the desire to learn a different language is prevalent. Many people turn to their libraries for resources to do so.

The post Language Learning @ Your Library first appeared on Public Libraries Online.

]]> Library Journal recently conducted a survey to find out more about the interests of library patrons across the country regarding language learning. They found that almost half the libraries surveyed reported an increased demand for educational language materials. While people are interested in learning new languages for travel and leisure, many libraries also reported a high demand for English as a Second Language materials.[1]

Some of the typical methods of linguistic learning have included books, audiobooks, videos, and online subscription services. These online options can create a more interactive learning environment, as well as be readily available to a larger audience on demand. Some of the top programs include Mango, Pronunciator, and Rosetta Stone.  With developers constantly working to make their services more responsive to people’s desired methods of learning, these programs will continue to become increasingly user friendly. Some of them already offer accent and pronunciation correction.[2]

Even if your library can’t afford one of the subscription services, you can direct people to some of the free language websites available. BBC Languages has online videos, grammar, vocabulary, and slang for forty different languages. For the traveler, they also have some essential vacation (or holiday, as the BBC puts it) phrases. LiveMocha is another free online language learning option. Users have to sign up for a free account, but then can access lessons and converse with native speakers from around the world! The social interaction extends to the ability to post your language exercises online for feedback from other members.

Because people greatly benefit from forming relationships and having immediate feedback, face-to-face classes or language groups are a wonderful option. Sometimes it can be a task finding someone qualified to lead a sustainable language program. Paying a teacher can be expensive, and finding the right volunteer can be difficult. At Pikes Peak Library District, Colorado Springs, Colo., one rewarding partnership we made was with a local college. One of the language professors wanted his students to have the experience of teaching others, so we were able to have regular student volunteers with their professor running the group. Unfortunately, when the professor left the school, we were unable to sustain that language group. For ESL learners, we have a strong force of volunteer tutors who work one-on-one or in small groups with patrons, as well as classes taught by adult literacy staff.

If the demand for language materials continues to grow, we will need to continue to do more to provide these services to patrons. Even with scant funding, we can still be creative to help our population become prepared for and better able to succeed in our increasingly global world.

Works Cited

[1] Chant, Ian. “Library Linguistics.” Library Journal. August 4, 2014. http://lj.libraryjournal.com/2014/08/digital-resources/library-linguistics/ (accessed August 20, 2014).

[2] Ibid.

The post Language Learning @ Your Library first appeared on Public Libraries Online.

]]> https://publiclibrariesonline.org/2014/10/language-learning-your-library/feed/ 0