Just For Teens: Bangor Public Library

 

Bibliographic Info:

Bangor Public Library. (2011). Just for teens: Bangor public library. Retrieved from

http://www.bpl.lib.me.us/kidsweb/teen2012/teenindex.html

Descriptive Summary:

The Just for Teens website for the Bangor Public Library is an earnest attempt at creating an engaging and informative site for teen members of the library. The Teen Advisory Board information is front and centre on the site, demonstrating that BPL does want to encourage teen participation. The features are pretty standard and feature some interactivity.

Features:

BPL Teens Blog
Monthly Poll
Booklists
Homework Help
Teen Volunteers
Teen Programs and Clubs

Evaluative comments with rating:
3/5 TVs - It needs a little more work to vanquish television for good

The Banff Public Library seems to be putting forth an honest effort to encourage teen participation and teen programming. Judging by the number of regular clubs and programming they have on the go (Advisory Board, Anime Club, Fantasy Book Group, Friday Foragers, Game Day, Movie Night , Photography Club, Writer's Club), the BPL does have a strong commitment to teens. Each of the programming pages is updated and seems to be regularly maintained.

I'd take a few points off the BPL's efforts because of the lack of updating on the polls and their teens blog, but overall their sections are regularly updated and relevant to teens. The site could be improved in terms of fonts —there's just a few too many— but most of these problems are aesthetic choices rather than actual useability issues.

Suggested Improvements:

Updating the blog regularly might be useful, as well as having some photos of their events, clubs, and programming. A few tweaks to the site would greatly improve it in just a matter of moments.

Suggested Audience (age range): 12 - 18

Reason for inclusion: Proximity to Nova Scotia, personal interest in the historic Banff Public Library

Category: Library Website for Teens