Library Service Current Program and Future Opportunities

Library Service Current Program and Future Opportunities

Braille MonitorMarch 1986
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Library Service Current Program and Future Opportunities
by Frank Kurt Cylke

(Note: Frank Kurt Cylke--Director of
the National Library Service for the
Blind and Physically Handicapped,
Library of Congress--was slated to
deliver an address at the 1985 convention
of the National Federation of the
Blind in Louisville; and, indeed, he did
speak at the announced time. However,
he did not speak on the announced topic.
Instead, the program was changed, and he
was asked to participate on a panel
concerning the production and distribution
of Braille. He graciously consented
to the last minute change in plan
and acquitted himself well in the give
and take of the panel discussion.
But this left his prepared remarks
undelivered, so we are taking this
opportunity to bring those remarks to Monitor readers in the present article.
In the meantime Judith Dixon, Head of
the Consumer Relations Section of the
National Library Service for the Blind
and Physically Handicapped, has prepared
additional material which seems logically
to follow the comments by Mr.
Cylke. Here, then, is the address which
Mr. Cylke intended to give at the 1985
NFB convention.)
Like all of you, I have special times
and special things which when thought
about and savored, bring pleasure. This
annual gathering of the NFB membership is one of those special times for me.
I do look forward to July each year.
It is an opportunity for me, as Director
of the National Library Service for the
Blind and Physically Handicapped, to
address you collectively, as I am now,
and to meet with you individually in a
more informal atmosphere to discuss
program matters in some depth. I do
hope that those of you who do have questions
requiring lengthy answers will
meet with me when time will not be a
concern.
There is no more important activity
for a person responsible for a program
affecting services to individuals.
Therefore, I thank all of you for once
again permitting me to attend and participate
in this meeting of the National
Federation of the Blind.
Library Service
When discussing my attendance today
Mr. Jernigan suggested that you might
appreciate an update on our current
activities and some comments about the
future of library service for blind and
physically handicapped individuals.
I agreed, and thus I will spend a few
minutes on our current activity and a
bit more time on thoughts about the
future of library service.
Current Readership is steady! The final
figures for 1984 show a total readership
of 629,140--a 1.2 percent growth over
1983. Similarly, the 1984 circulation
of books and magazines shows an average
increase of 2 percent--with a solid
increase of 9.3 percent in the area of
cassette circulation. Braille circulation
varied the most. We actually
showed a 1 percent drop in the circulation
of Braille books to individuals in
1984 and found an increase of 3.8 percent
in magazine circulation--with an
overall increase of 2.19 percent. These
figures are currently being studied and
the implications analyzed in connection
with other data.
The machine production situation is
under control. T~lex is producing the
current cassette machine models with no
identified problem at the rate of
approximately 1,400 each week. 356 EZ
machines are on their way to the
libraries at this time and, barring
unforeseen circumstances, 20,000 will be
in the hands of users within eighteen
months. The combination machine will be
issued as soon as the EZ and cassette
machine production lines have demonstrated
a problem-free shipping capability.
Thanks
in great part to the concern of
Barbara Cheadle and to National Federation
of the Blind members interested in
children we are placing an added emphasis
on work with children. Leslie
Eldridge, a librarian with special
training and interest in children set
out to assess the NLS service pattern.
She interviewed children and their
mothers, special education teachers,
child development counselors, reading
specialists, and, of course, practicing
librarians. Their individual views were
collected in a book titled R Is For
Reading; A copy of this book will soon
be available in Braille and on cassette
for your use. In summary, it may be
stated that we must place a great effort
on refining our program for children.
We may analyze Ms. Eldridge's reports
and recommendations and modify our
approach where necessary. I will bring
Mr. Jernigan up to date as we progress
and inform you directly in our future
meetings. I leave this topic with the
comment that children and young people
will remain a high priority with NLS.
The Future
When contemplating or attempting to
project the future, it is always necessary
to work off a base of common knowledge
or understanding. So, first we
must ask: How does access to print
material differ for the blind and
physically handicapped population than
for the general public? The blind individual:
is often dependent on a mechanical
device; finds no usable material at
newsstands; traditionally finds no
usable material in bookstores. Of
course, this is changing as more
cassette books appear in bookstores.
Next we ask: How does library service
to blind and physically handicapped
individuals as it is currently provided
differ from that provided to the general
population? As we all know: materials
are provided by mail; subscriptions to
magazines are free to the user; books
may be selected from one's residence; no
fine levied for overdue books; there are
fewer reference materials available.
Then, how does "library service" as it
is currently being provided to the
general public differ from that provided
to blind and visually impaired individuals? Public
libraries offer their
patrons much more than books to borrow
and magazines to read. Public libraries
provide: personalized reference
services; bibliographic information;
business information; professional
journals; science and technical information;
as well as a plethora of other
services.
Now, are blind and physically handicapped
persons availing themselves of
the services offered by public
libraries? I assume probably not as
much as they can. Possibly the reasons
for this are: the prevailing perception
of public librarians is that the library
service to blind persons is offered by
the "special-regional" library--there
are no readers at the public library;
the information, once it is obtained, is
usually in print form only; blind persons
are often unfamiliar with what
kinds of information are available "for
the asking" at the public library.
Finally, as blind persons are becoming
employed at higher levels, starting
business, etc., reading needs are
changing. The need for recreational
material is apparently being satisfied.
(I trust this statement is not too self
congratulatory.) The need for professional
reading is not being satisfied
in an organized way. Through the
creative use of technology, these needs
can be met more and more by the public
library. Libraries can make newspaper
and journal articles, information from
on-line services, and other materials
available in special format.
Examples: 1) Phoenix Public Library,
Access Center! 2) Boulder Public
Library, and 3) the cooperative project
between the Texas Library for the Blind
and the Texas State Library's Information
Services Division. Texas plans to
share their experience with the development
of a research reading center that
allows access to printed materials with
public libraries.
Future: Summary
With perseverance, appropriate patterns
will be developed. I will take the
opportunity to call together an appropriate
group of representatives from
agencies interested in broadening the
library/information service currently
available to blind and physically handicapped
individuals within the next few
months. Then, to coin a phrase, "We
will see what the future holds."
In summary, it may be noted that if
the varied reading/library needs are to
be met in the future, a combination of
existing library services must be melded
together with services not now existing.
This will require a concerted effort by
all interested parties--the National
Federation of the Blind, NLS, Recording
for the Blind, volunteer groups, and
traditional print library organizations.
Conclusion
In the short fifteen minutes allotted
to me, I have touched briefly upon many
topics. Obviously, it has been impossible
to discuss any of them in depth.
Therefore, I welcome your questions now
and do look forward to our more personal
conversations during the remainder of
this convention. Thank you.
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