Volume 10, Issue 2 of of YALSA’s Journal of Research on Libraries & Young Adults (JRLYA) is now available online at http://www.yalsa.ala.org/jrlya/.This issue features research papers relating to public library teen youth services staff, cultural depictions in award-winning young adult literature, and the digital practices of teens.
With their paper,“Perspectives on Youth Data Literacy at the Public Library: Teen Services Staff Speak Out,” Leanne Bowler, Amelia Acker, and Yu Chi present data and analysis from the second phase of a three-year study exploring the relationship between teens and data literacy with regard to public library teen services. Through their focus on teen services staff, the authors present a model of youth data literacy that is intended to prepare teens to thrive in a data-driven society.
In the second part of her report, “What’s Going On Down Under? Part 2: Portrayals of Culture in Award-Winning Australian Young Adult Literature,” Kasey L. Garrison conducts a close examination of the ways in which multiple facets of culture, such as class, immigration, and Indigenous Australians, are depicted in award-winning Australian books. Garrison’s close cultural examinations of lists that serve as important collection development tools for school librarians spotlight the opportunities for celebration and for change.
Selected as the 2019 YALSA Midwinter Research Paper Presentation, Amanda Waugh’s paper, “Feels Like Home: The Digital Information Practices of Teen Fans” examines the types of information teens in a specific fan community look for and how they engage in the search for it. Waugh’s research suggests that teen librarians need to recognize the potential that fan communities hold for their patrons, beyond sharing work, such as fanfiction.
JRLYA is YALSA’s open-access, peer-reviewed research journal, located at:http://www.yalsa.ala.org/jrlya. Its purpose is to enhance the development of theory, research, and practice to support young adult library services. JRLYApresents original research concerning: 1) the informational and developmental needs of teens; 2) the management, implementation, and evaluation of young adult library services; and 3) other critical issues relevant to librarians who work with teens. Writer’s guidelines are located at http://www.yalsa.ala.org/jrlya/author-guidelines/.
Robin A. Moeller, editor, JRLYA
