Interview on Bibliotherapy for Special Education

Here is part 3, the last installment on the interview on Bibliotherapy.

11. We had a hard time finding therapy centers in the Philippines that facilitate regular bibliotherapy sessions. Why do you think this is the case in our country?

Because, one, it is not a one-hit therapy wonder drug and two, books and reading are hard to sell. We see books as textbooks and our view of literature is for perfunction and cognition. Not as tools to nourish the soul. We need a lot of growing up to do as far as books and reading are concerned.

Also, it needs more study and research as a therapy tool.

12. Does bibliotherapy require a center in which it is to be held?

No, it does not.

13. In what ways can bibliotherapy be incorporated in the general classroom? Special education?

Storytelling is one strategy for bibliotherapy to happen in the classroom.

14. How is storytelling/shared stores/directed or guided reading related to bibliotherapy? What are their similarities and differences?

Storytelling is the opening for engagement to a formal bibliotherapy session. It is presenting the material. In reading, there is always the pre-reading, during reading and post reading framework. This can be used to support or in integration with the different stages of bibliotherapy (see PPT)

15. Where do you see the future of bibliotherapy in the Philippines?

It needs to be practiced, documented and researched on - to grow it and further develop its science and craft.

Interview on Bibliotherapy for Special Eductaion 2 of 3

Here is part 2 of the Bibliotherapy interview of Ms. Ardeth Aquino.

6. What are the steps in implementing bibliotherapy?

You may refer to the ppt I sent you for the stages and steps in a bibliotherapy session.

7. What assessment skills and tools do you use in bibliotherapy for clients? How is progress evaluated?

For developmental bibliotherapy, the assessment is very authentic. Students who go to the library often want to read for two reasons: they need academic support and they need to unwind. Meeting students needs for academic support can be met through a reference query process. It is the “unwinding” needs that is more exciting since the inquiry can begin with generic questions to personal ones.

In cases like these, students would ask for books that are light and easy to read. I move on asking them what they have read from the library so far. If they say a title or two, I ask them if they liked it or not, then I suggest or recommend similar titles. I also have a list of book reviews ready for further recommendation. The reviews were done by students. When readers looking for books to read learn that the book review was done by a friend, a classmate or a school mate, they become more interested in reading it. There is a social aspect to reading. I think this is the success generated by Goodreads.com.

Assessment for developmental bibliotherapy can be done with the help of the school guidance counselor. For example, in the school where I work, we have recent concerns on bullying. The guidance counselor conducted individual intervention as well as a group processing of the issue at hand. This is an opportunity to support the counselor’s efforts in conflict resolution through bibliotherapy. So, bibliotherapy here is not a method used in isolation. What I am doing right now is selecting books and reading materials on conflict resolution to further enrich the counselor’s approach in assisting our students develop a coping mechanism to solve personal problems. The list contain that books range from individual titles on personal, self-help and fiction books. The guidance counselor will make use of this list to recommend books for a student to read or for a group counseling session. A similar approach and strategy can be done with classroom teachers.

Clinical bibliotherapy by medical health practitioners is focused more on mental and psychological therapy and requires a different set of asessment tools.

8. What types of activities would you use with a particular population?

The activity would depend on the developmental need of an individual or a group. But, the principle of mirroring or catharsis is the basis of any activity for a bibliotherapy session. It is important to know the profile of different age groups, their learning modalities and context. Reading ability is also a factor.

For children, reading aloud can be done. For more independent readers, they can read on their own pace and time allotted for the session.

9. How are the families, and significant others involved in the assessment process and intervention?

Interviews with family members and friends may help to establish content. They can also be included in special meetings or counseling sessions.

10. What is the biggest challenge in facilitating bibliotherapy?

Tracking and documentation of readers’ progress. Bibliotherapists also need a wide array of resources, other than books, movies and songs can be used for sessions, but our library system in the PH is very poor and such resources are expensive to keep and manage.

Interview on Bibliotherapy for Special Education

UP Special Education graduate student, Ms. Ardeth Marcelino, sent me questions on Bibliotherapy. This is for a research she and her group mates are working on. They are looking at Adjunct Therapy for use in teaching students with special needs. Bibliotherapy is an identified method.

I am posting the first part of three installments of questions in the blog.   

1. How long have you been in this field? Why did you pick bibliotherapy as your field of interest?

I am a school librarian, so my interest in bibliotherapy came from an aspect of my work with children, books and reading. Reading guidance is a school library service that is akin to bibliotherapy. Storytelling programs are gateways in which bibliotherapy can funnel through.  Libraries that serve children and young people must have a storytelling program and reading guidance services in place because, such a program and services foster the development of literacy, well-being and overall life skills.

I started out as a preschool librarian in 1995.

As a school librarian, my work is not only the organization of intellectual structures and information systems for easy, efficient and quick access. Part of my job is the recommendation of books and resources that address the different needs, interest and skills of learners. I work with teachers to support student learning and often, I engage in professional conversations and teaching practices with them that help them choose, select and evaluate books and resources suitable for their students. I touch base with parents and community resources to further enrich the library’s programs and services.

Thus, bibliotherapy is part and parcel of my job.

2. What are the goals and objectives of bibliotherapy?

Bibliotherapy involves the use of books and/or the written word to address a personal problem. It is the assistance given to young people who are going through issues in life by prescribing books and reading materials (Crothers, 1916). The ancient library in Thebes had an inscription that the library is a healing place for the soul. So, bibliotherapy is not a new thing.

There are two kinds of bibliotherapy: developmental and clinical (Brewster, 2008).

Developmental bibliotherapy is the use of books and reading materials in schools and libraries to promote self-knowledge, personal growth and a sense of accomplishment in a particular stage in life. Clinical bibliotherapy is used by doctors and medical practitioners with persons who have emotional and behavioral problems.

3. What is the theoretical framework in which bibliotherapy is anchored on?

In Reading Education, one framework for developmental bibliotherapy is the reader’s response strategy in which readers react or respond to the text they have read. The teacher or librarian uses a set of questions that show a reflection or insight to the character or event in the story. In pastoral care, the process of priming, engagement with the text, reflection and action is the framework.

I think this question can also be referred to in my answer in Q1 where in the concepts of reading guidance and storytelling are basis for bibliotherapy to happen and take place.

In literature, the concept that “literature mirrors life” is another framework for bibliotherapy. Psychology and Philosophy has something to say about the way we see ourselves in the materials that we read, but I suppose, that is a research that you and I can further look into, after all, we are both interested in the topic :-)

4. How can one be qualified to facilitate bibliotherapy?

Know your reader. Know what reading materials are appropriate for him/her. Read a lot. Match and classify reading materials developmentally according to the needs of the readers. Be real, sincere and honest. EMPATHIZE.

You need to be stable and healthy in body, mind and spirit before conducting a developmental bibliotherapy session.

Medical practitioners and guidance counsellors would have a set of requirements for clinical bibliotherapy.

5. What does a therapist need to prepare prior to facilitating bibliotherapy?

A knowledge of the reader. Books to read by and with the reader. A set questions and activities that follow this process: priming, engagement, reflection and action.

Check this link for more information on bibliotherapy - http://lovealibrarian.blogspot.com/2016/10/bibliotherapy-101.html