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School District No. 48 teacher-librarians and school libraries across Canada will be sponsoring various activities on Oct. 27, 2003, to celebrate the first national School Library Day declared by National Librarian and renowned author Roch Carrier.

School District No. 48 teacher-librarians and school libraries across Canada will be sponsoring various activities on Oct. 27, 2003, to celebrate the first national School Library Day declared by National Librarian and renowned author Roch Carrier.

In spite of this day of celebration, school libraries across Canada are facing oblivion. School libraries in School District No. 48 are no exception. Teacher-librarian time and library operating budgets have been slashed in most schools over the past two years. In fact, in the present school year, some school libraries have no operating budgets to purchase books, and teacher-librarian time has been cut so drastically in several schools that teacher-librarians are not able to deliver a library program that will positively impact student achievement.

Empirical evidence shows that a quality school library program has a very significant, positive impact on student achievement. Extensive research on the subject over the past few decades is presented in Ken Haycock's document The Crisis in Canada's School Libraries: The Case for Reform and Reinvestment (www.cla.ca/slip/final_haycock_report.pdf). The many studies all come to one conclusion: In schools where qualified teacher-librarians have a large amount of library time teaching information skills, and in schools where there is greater investment in books and other resources both for recreational reading and curriculum assignments, students are more information literate and more capable readers. In the independent Colorado Department of Education studies, research revealed that standardized test scores tend to be 15-20 per cent higher in schools with qualified teacher-librarians than those without.

Ironically, one of the goals of School District No. 48, according to its own locally developed accountability contract, is literacy. This accountability contract has been approved by our local school trustees and submitted to the Ministry of Education. While literacy is a very worthwhile district goal, the one area that can play a major role in improving literacy is being decimated. If the school district’s goal to improve student literacy is sincere and genuine, it must find ways of improving the state of school libraries. Parents and others who support literacy are urged to lobby School District No. 48 school trustees, as well the provincial government by contacting your MLA, Ted Nebbeling, and Christy Clark, Minister of Education, to restore adequate funding for school libraries. Our students deserve better.

Carl Walker,

Howe Sound Teachers' Association President

Once again a good time was had by all at the very successful Used Book Sale held over the Thanksgiving weekend. Just over $3,000 in donations was taken in and hundreds of books went out in the arms of happy buyers. Spring Creek Community School received $2,000 to spend on new books for the school library, and $1,000 went towards the Whistler Public Library collection.

Thanks go out to all those who made it possible: Alison, Lil, Kelli, Barb, Linda, Kathy and her mom Jane, Cindy, Leslie, Kris, Jennifer L. and Jennifer P., and Verity, plus the steadfast Rotary Club of Whistler Millennium guys: Gordon, Garry, Bill, John and Paul. Huge thank yous also go out to Nesters Market and TD Canada Trust for being collection depots, Pique Newsmagazine and The Whistler Question for great and crucial coverage, and last but not least to IGA (it couldn't be done without you!) for allowing the sale to be held in front of the store.

The generous donations of hundreds and hundreds of books by the people in Whistler make these sales possible. Special thanks to Armchair Books for their contribution.

Finally, thank you to all the people who came, bought, and donated so generously!

Happy reading!

Jane Reid,

Organizer

Am I to understand that Ms. Harrington ("Course serves more than golfers", Pique letters Oct. 17) feels a "better role" for the golf course besides local housing is an "urban park"? If so, does this attitude not smack of selfishness? Perhaps Ms. Harrington would prefer the extra traffic from locals travelling to and from their jobs (serving visitors and part-time residents) impeding her "escape" to her vacation home rather than having to go beyond her backyard (in Blueberry? Whistler Cay Heights?) for some "open space close to the village". There is, after all, A LOT of "open space" no too far from the village. You don't even have to drive. I thought that "urban parks" belonged in urban areas. Since when did Whistler become an urban area?

Alex Nikolic

Whistler

A suggestion that 300-acres of Crown land at the Callaghan Valley be traded for land that makes up the Whistler Golf Course is unsound, disturbing and unwise.

The idea is not to get rid of the Whistler Golf Course, but to move it to the 300 acres in the Callaghan, where there the land is set aside for future Olympic use, and eventual affordable housing.

It is what is known as "creative development" and though it has some upsides, such as proximity to major infrastructure and the village, these do not come close to balancing the downsides.

These would include another 10 years of "phased" development… of heavy construction trucks, backhoes and excavators rumbling in and out of the village area. Something we have experienced during our last 30 years of growing pains. Property values in the area would diminish by way of the lower quality "affordable housing" construction.

Single-day tourists who are able play golf in the morning and shop the village in the afternoon, would vanish. Multiple-day visitors would be denied the convenience of playing a "package" of rounds, currently available through the convenience of the Whistler Golf Course and its proximity to the Chateau and Nicklaus North courses.

The flypast for Canada Geese and White Swans would vanish forever, and small habitat would do likewise. Residents of Blueberry Hill would lose a sweeping view of the golf course and valley. It would be replaced by hundreds of rooftops and driveways.

Stanley Park in Vancouver, Hyde Park in London, and Central Park in New York offer some of the most desirable housing sites in the world. Does anyone think they could convince their city fathers to abandon such jewels? Get a Grip!

Allan Eaton

Whistler

The Whistler Naturalists were praying for rain this past week so our annual Mushroom Festival would be a success. Mushrooms need rain, but maybe not quite so much as we got. Luckily, we had great help from a lot of people and great interest from the 30 hardy, Gore-Texed locals who came out for the Saturday walks.

Thanks to mushroom-finder Todd Bush and mushroom-cooker Ophrah Buckman for their great presentations, and to Sharmin Gamiet for her enlightening talk and walk. Thanks also to Kristina Swerhun for her great organizing.

And a special thanks to Gordon McKeever and Rainbow Retreats Acommodations for putting stranded Sharmin up for an extra night. Just another example of why Whistler's a great place to live.

See you next year for an even bigger Mushroom Festival!

Bob Brett

Veronica Woodruff,

Whistler Naturalists

Angels on the Sea to Sky Highway

No fewer than three separate cars stopped to help us when one of our three bicycles fell off near Strip Creek on Oct. 11. One tried for some time to gain our attention and to pull us over, another propped the bicycle up out of danger, and many others must have swerved to avoid hitting the bike.

Very little damage was sustained to the bike, to say nothing of the potential hazard for the traffic behind us.

This incident proves, again ,that this world has many caring "angels". To you all we are extremely thankful.

Marillyn D. Bennett

Via e-mail