1. YA Literature &
Collection Development Approaches
Renee Hobbs
LSC531
Spring 2015

2. Genres of YA Literature
• Contemporary realistic fiction
• Multicutural
• Romance
• Gay and lesbian
• Dystopian science fiction
• Paranormal
• Graphic novels
• Crossover
• Verse
Kaplan, Chapter 2
Teaching Young Adult Literature Today

3. Obstacles
• Maintaining the tradition of the classics
• High-stakes testing & scripted curriculum
• Readicide
• Challenges to controversial texts
Bull, Chapter 4
Teaching Young Adult Literature Today

4. Opportunities
• Access to high-quality YA literature
• Professional resources for YA literature
– ReadWriteThink
– English Companion
• Student Motivation and Engagement
Bull, Chapter 4
Teaching Young Adult Literature Today

5. Collection Assessment & Development
• Focus on the users, the collection, the curriculum
• Concepts: core, classic, popular, controversial
• Self-generated user needs vs imposed
information needs
• Selection can be a very subtle form of censorship
• Collection development is a political activity
Pattee
Developing Library Collactions for Today’s Young Adults

6. Young Adult Literature
• Category of fiction and nonfiction
• Location and organization affect use
• Budget structure and funding strategy impact
how material is selected
Pattee
Developing Library Collactions for Today’s Young Adults

7. Policy
• Collection development policies serve a
protective function --to justify decisions
• Describing the users, genres, formats
• How libraries use ratings systems
• Policies for how libraries respond to handling
challenges
Pattee
Developing Library Collactions for Today’s Young Adults

8. Two Paradoxes
• Collection-centered approach: List checking, age
analysis, comparative use statistics, optimal collections
• User-centered approach: analysis of circulation data
• Creating a curriculum collection map: data collection,
physical inspection and consultation w faculty
Most libraries are user-centered but use collection-
centered approaches
Why is there a lack of collaboration between school and
public librarians?
Pattee
Developing Library Collactions for Today’s Young Adults