PhD research students

Marianne Ruth Bamkin

Date of Start of Studies: 1st October 2008
Country: UK
Supervisor: Dr Anne Goulding and Dr Sally Maynard
E-mail: M.R.Bamkin@lboro.ac.uk
Research Group: Knowledge Management

Title:The Promotion of Reading on Children’s Mobile Libraries

Marianne’s previous careers spanned the retail trade, community education, early years education and the teaching profession. After getting a job on a children’s mobile library Marianne chose to become a children’s librarian then worked for a short time as a school librarian. Her experiences on the children’s mobile library prompted questions which has lead to her research interest.

Library Authorities who run children’s mobile libraries make claims that they are doing so to break down barriers of library membership and to spread the love of books and reading. These claims are made on the assumptions that putting books into communities and telling stories improve children’s interest in books, increase their vocabulary and stimulate the cognitive abilities necessary to achieve literacy. There has been no general evaluation to produce evidence that the claims are true. Marianne is using grounded theory ethnography, visiting children’s mobile libraries to observe the interactions of staff, children and carers, to discover if reading skills are promoted and developed on board children’s mobile library vehicles.      

Research Blog: childrensmobilelibraries.blogspot.com.