Using both focus groups and a non-scientific sample of people who volunteered to participate in Pew Internet surveys, we asked library staff members from around the country about their thoughts on many of the library services discussed in this report. This section includes some of their comments on library services for parents and children, including […]
This study is the Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project’s first extensive examination of teachers’ perceptions of the positive and negative impacts of a rapidly evolving technological environment on teachers’ professional activities and how that new environment has impacted teachers’ own tech use. This research was developed to explore not only teachers’ assessments of students’ […]
Parents say libraries are very important places for their children because reading is a key part of parent-child interactions and libraries provide extra resources not available in their homes
Fully 95% of teens are online, a percentage that has been consistent since 2006. Yet, the nature of teens’ internet use has transformed dramatically during that time — from stationary connections tied to desktops in the home to always-on connections that move with them throughout the day. In many ways, teens represent the leading edge […]
Report About eight-in-ten Americans (83%) identify ultraviolet as the type of radiation that sunscreen protects against. Nearly as many (77%) know that the main concern about the overuse of antibiotics is that it can lead to antibiotic-resistant bacteria. However, only about half (51%) of the public knows that “fracking” is a process that extracts natural […]
Given the degree to which AP and NWP teachers are embracing and using digital tools, it is not surprising that they are making these tools a key part of their teaching practices. In addition to desktop and laptop computers and classroom projectors, significant portions of these teachers report cell phones, digital cameras and recorders, e-readers […]
What is important for libraries to offer We asked survey respondents about a variety of services that public libraries often provide to the public, and asked them how important, if at all, they think it is for public libraries to provide each to the community. All but one of the services are considered to be […]
The AP and NWP teachers taking part in this survey are notably more connected to technology than the general adult population. More than half describe themselves as very confident when it comes to learning how to use new technologies, and this confidence is reflected in the gadgets they own. These teachers are twice as likely […]
Our new report takes a close look not only at how Americans are using public libraries, but also what sort of services and programming they think libraries should offer — and what they say they would use in the future. For this last point, we asked about a range of potential offerings. Here are illustrations of some of these more innovative services, to see what they look like on the ground — as well as some “fun and funky” services that we’ve seen pop up at libraries across the county.