There is really no reason why school libraries should fear competing sources of information. With the right adjustments, K-12 libraries can work alongside the rest of the data that students access on a daily basis. Remaining relevant is simply a matter of carrying foundational ideals forward and adapting to an ever-changing information culture.

Librarians have long understood that to provide access to knowledge it is crucial to protect their patrons' privacy. Books can provide information that is deeply unpopular. As a result, local communities and governments sometimes try to ban the most objectionable ones. Librarians rightly see it as their duty to preserve access to books, especially banned ones.

By on This year's Banned Books Week (BBW, September 27 to October 3) will celebrate books written for teens, the BBW National Committee announced on April 22. This annual event to raise awareness about the freedom to read has long been a staple in libraries, schools, and bookstores, especially those serving young adults.

"Aided by the convenience and constant access provided by mobile devices, especially smartphones, 92% of teens report going online daily - including 24% who say they go online "almost constantly," according to a new study from Pew Research Center. "

"Libraries and librarians are at the forefront and often the hub of the school. They are a community resource, a public face, a service profession, a helping hand, relationship builders, collaborators, and educational technology leaders. Librarians of 2015 are not the same librarians you remember from 1985. They still order books and teach research skills, but it is very rare to hear them shushing students, or hiding meekly behind the stacks. Librarians wear a number of hats and information literacy is closely tied to educational technology."

Libraries are in rough shape these days. Long treasured as bastions of knowledge, they're being assailed on two fronts: funding cuts and technological disruption. Why borrow a book when you've got the Internet and a Kindle?But rumors of the library's demise are greatly exaggerated.

If one of your New Year's Resolutions was the classic "read more books" and you haven't so much as opened a magazine, we're here to provide some inspiration. TED-Ed asked a few of our favorite educators to weigh in on the best books in their subject - for students, teachers and lifelong learners alike - to crack into during 2015. Here, find a list of their top 5 picks in literature, science, math and history.

"Canva is a nice tool for designing infographics, collages, flyers, and slides in your web browser or on your iPad. I've been a fan of the service since it launched. In fact, I like it so much that I became an unpaid advisor to them when they started thinking about developing resources specifically for teachers." ~ Richard Byrne

Fascinating article from the blog for the Canva Design School

"Textbook makers, bookstore owners and college student surveys all say millennials still strongly prefer print for pleasure and learning, a bias that surprises reading experts given the same group's proclivity to consume most other content digitally. A University of Washington pilot study of digital textbooks found that a quarter of students still bought print versions of e-textbooks that they were given for free."

From Library to Learning Commons Printed books still play a critical role in supporting learners, but digital technologies offer additional pathways to learning and content acquisition. Students and teachers no longer need a library simply for access. Instead, they require a place that encourages participatory learning and allows for co-construction of understanding from a variety of sources. In other words, instead of being an archive, libraries are becoming a learning commons.

With today's rapidly evolving technology and ever-present social media changing the way consumers are connecting with the written word, it should come as no surprise that today's teens are finding and consuming content differently from previous generations. But while we typically associate these youthful consumers with being early adopters of new technology and digital content platforms, the reading habits of those aged 13-17 are a mix of old and new.

Infographic on some of the most popular books the world has ever seen.

Video from The School of Life, a cultural enterprise offering good ideas for everyday life. http://www.theschooloflife.com/ Site includes a classroom and library (archive of study resources).

"Peter Mendelsund estimates he's designed "somewhere between 600 and 1,000 book covers," ranging from Crime and Punishment to Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.... Now Mendelsund has designed the covers for two new books of his own. Cover is a collection of hundreds of his book covers, including many that were rejected, along with commentaries on his technique. What We See When We Read is about how words give rise to images in our minds." Article and podcast

What gives old books that ever-so-distinctive smell? Andy Brunning, a chemistry teacher in the UK, gives us all a quick primer with this infographic posted on his web site, Compound Interest. The visual comes accompanied by this textual explanation. Writes Brunning: Generally, it is the chemical breakdown of compounds within paper that leads to the production of 'old book smell'.

CHOOSE YOUR READING MODE In keeping with its topic, this essay can either be read in a scrolling screen format or in a book-like format; it can also be listened to.

" 'The Giver,' a powerful and provocative novel, is sure to keep older children reading. And thinking." That's what The Times's book critic said about "The Giver" when the novel was first published in 1993. Today it is one of the most taught (and most challenged) books in middle schools, and a movie version has just opened.

In this 13-minute documentary, Brewster Kahle, founder of the Internet Archive, describes his vision for universal access to all knowledge.

Thanks to Kalev Leetaru, a Yahoo! Fellow in Residence at Georgetown University, you can now head over to a new collection at Flickr and search through an archive of 2.6 million public domain images, all extracted from books, magazines and newspapers published over a 500 year period.