Millennials and Libraries

Rainie, L. (2014, April ). Teens and Libraries In Today's Digital World. Pew Research Center

How do libraries fit into the lives of American teens and young adults?  Well, at the Texas Library Association’s Annual Conference, Lee Rainie, Director of the Pew Research Center’s Internet Project, discussed the project’s research, and seven key insights from the research about younger Americans and how they differ from older Americans.
1.Teens live in a different ecosystem.
·         95% use internet / three-quarters have broadband at home
·         74% access internet on mobile device – 25%“cell mostly” internet users
·         78% have cell phones / 47% have smartphones
·         80% have desktop/laptop
·         23% have tablet computers
·         81% use social networking sites
·         76% use Facebook - 24% use Twitter
·         Approx. from young adult data: a quarter of teens use Instagram; 1 in 7 use Pinterest;
      1 in 10 use Tumblr
2. Teens live in a different learning ecosystem.
·         77% of teachers surveyed say the internet and digital search tools have had a “mostly positive” impact on their students ‘research work”
·         87% agree these technologies are creating an “easily distracted generation with short attention spans

3. Teens reading levels match/exceed adult levels.

                                                  Ages 16-29                  Ages 30+

·         Read for work/school             81%                           49%
·         Read for pleasure                    76%                          81%
·         Read to keep up with current events 73%                79%
·         Read to research topics of interest 81%                   73%
4. Teens use libraries and librarians, but do not love them as much.
5. Teens have different priorities in library services than non-teens.
·         86% Personal book recommendations/62% non-teens
·         81% Library redboxes around town/62% non-teens
·         80% Cell app that allows you to use library services/57% non-teens
·         74% Pre-loaded e-book readers/57% non-teens
·         70% App for in-library navigation/52% non-teens
·         60% Classes on gadget use/50% non-teens
6. Teens will behave differently in the world to come.
Millennials’ future will either produce positive outcomes or negative, based on their decisions.
7. The public and teachers recognize this and want libraries to adjust.
Teachers press for literacy
·         57% spend class time helping students improve their search skills.
·         35% devote class time to helping students understand how search engines work and how
search results are generated.
·         Asked what curriculum changes might be necessary in middle and high schools today,
·         47% “strongly agree” and 44% “somewhat agree” that courses or content focusing on

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