Thousands sign petition to stop National Library service cuts

&NewLine;<p><img class&equals;" alignright size-full wp-image-1263" src&equals;"http&colon;&sol;&sol;schoolnewsnz&period;fastrackdev&period;com&sol;wp-content&sol;uploads&sol;2015&sol;02&sol;SND12-WK2-Library&lowbar;300x225&period;jpg" alt&equals;"SND12-WK2-Library 300x225" style&equals;"margin&colon; 5px&semi; float&colon; right&semi;" width&equals;"300" height&equals;"225" &sol;>Thousands of New Zealanders have signed a petition to stop cuts to National Library lending services to schools&comma; with New Zealand&&num;8217&semi;s favourite celebrity Lorde and Man Booker prize- winning author Eleanor Catton even weighing in on the debate&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p> <&excl;--more--> <&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>&&num;8220&semi;Our members are concerned that the changes will hit hardest in rural and technology-poor schools&comma;&&num;8221&semi; Marianne Elliott&comma; of campaigning group ActionStation said&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>&&num;8220&semi;Unless inequality of digital access is first addressed&comma; these changes may only reinforce existing inequalities in our education system&comma; and in our society&period;&&num;8221&semi;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Last year&comma; 16&comma;000 teachers made 40&comma;000 requests for almost a million hard-copy items via the National Library&&num;8217&semi;s curriculum topic support service&period; From July&comma; this service will be cut&period; The overall savings from the new Services to Schools strategy is estimated to be &dollar;392&comma;000 a year&comma; the equivalent of just one year&&num;8217&semi;s salary of our highest-earning MPs&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>In a press release&comma; the Minister responsible&comma; Peter Dunne accused the Labour Party of &&num;8220&semi;whipping up anxiety and fear&&num;8221&semi; and said that by opposing the cuts Labour &&num;8220&semi;want to limit New Zealand children to learning about topics for which there are books within the National Library&&num;8221&semi;&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>&&num;8220&semi;ActionStation members want the Minister to know that we just want to ensure that every child in New Zealand has a fair chance to learn about topics for which there are books within the National Library&comma;&&num;8221&semi; Ms Elliott said&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>ActionStation was launched in July 2014 as a platform for people who stand for social fairness&comma; environmental sustainability and a transparent democracy&period; It has over 20&comma;000 members&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;