Shelftalkers: Empowering Student Voice

Abstract

This paper will describe a new initiative of the School Library Association of Victoria. Shelftalkers is a website that publishes 100-word student reviews of texts they are reading or have been sent by arrangement with publishers for review. The process is facilitated by the school library and is open to students of any age. The project aims to give students a voice, give school library staff and publishers an insight into student views, and allows participating school libraries to be central players in the literacy development and reading culture of their respective schools.