Scheme Evaluation Card
In Brief
Recommendation: (details)
The Campaign for Commercial-Free Education advises against the use of Scholastic book fairs both as a means of promoting reading and raising funds.
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Scholastic: Scholastic Book Fair
Name:
Scholastic Book Fair
Sponsor:
Scholastic Inc.
Objective:
“a mobile bookshop that puts books in the hands of children and helps raise funds for schools.”
Classification:
Incentive Scheme.
Year: 2005 (operates annually at schools’ request)
Past Record: [top]
Scholastic is a global children’s publishing and media company and is the largest operator of school-based book clubs and book fairs in the United States and in Ireland. Their sponsored classroom magazines produced for US classrooms have been criticised by Prof. Alex Molnar. He argues that Scholastic have “become one of the most aggressive and shameless of the companies marketing to children” (Giving Kids The Business, p31).
Book fairs have become an established fundraising activity in British and Irish schools.
Materials: [top]
Upon registering to host a book fair, schools receive a pack of promotional material – “All you need to advertise your fair”. This includes a banner, posters appealing for volunteers, posters advertising the date and venue of the fair, donate-a-book posters, leaflets promoting individual titles, invitational leaflets for parents, and stickers for children and volunteers.
The fair itself consists of 4 cases of pre-selected books, 4 themed packs of books, poster box, stationary box (pencils, erasers, novelty pens), and 4 additional table-top displays. Schools receive a cash report form on which to calculate their commission and a commission catalogue from which to select materials for the school.
Comments: [top]
No effort is to be spared in marketing the book fair. The many posters, invitations and stickers ensure every member of the school community is aware of its presence. Parents typically set up, advertise and staff it over the course of a week. The Scholastic website enthuses about letting children preview the books beforehand, getting children to design invitations and contacting a local newspaper. The Scholastic brand name and logo is clearly displayed on almost all promotional materials.
40% of the revenue from all purchases goes directly to Scholastic. The remaining 60% is calculated as the school’s commission for organising, staffing and marketing the event. This commission, however, can only be spent on items from the Scholastic commission catalogue. It has also been noted that fairs may contain several “activity books” of little use in fostering literacy and with an emphasis on accompanying toys or gadgets.
Recommendation: [top]
The Campaign for Commercial-Free Education advises against the use of Scholastic book fairs both as a means of promoting reading and raising funds.
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High |
Fair |
Low |
Curricular
Relevance |
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Logo/Brand
Presence |
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Influence
on Spending
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A 2002 report on primary school libraries concluded that
the current situation regarding almost all aspects of primary school libraries is unsatisfactory. (The Borrowers at School p61)
In this climate it may be difficult to refuse the enthusiastic advances of Scholastic. However we oppose such book fairs as we believe they pressurise students and teachers into purchasing products and give undue advertising to one company. Asking volunteers to staff what is essentially a commercial bookshop for a week is, we believe, to misuse the voluntary effort of parents. The use of pre-selected and sometimes low quality “books” removes quality control from the school and places the emphasis on generating a “sale” rather than promoting stage-appropriate reading.
In our opinion, book fairs directly benefit Scholastic who receive 40% of all sales, while only indirectly benefiting schools who must reinvest their commission in the same company.
While fully supporting literacy initiatives in schools to promote reading we have little faith in a scheme which sees schools compromise themselves commercially in return for a fraction of the benefits. We believe the remedy to the current unsatisfactory situation in school libraries lies in adequate governmental funding. This may be supported by commercial-free fundraisers such as second-hand book sales which return 100% of profit to the school as well as non-commercial events such as World Book Week, the Children’s Book Festivals organised by county libraries and Children’s Book Ireland.
“Children's booksellers enjoy another distribution channel through schools. By encouraging parents and children to buy books through school book fairs and branded bookclubs, publishers and booksellers can offer large discounts to teachers to provide books for the classroom, thereby incentivising them to provide schools as an important sales channel.”
Children's Publishing Market Assessment 2005
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