The effect of censorship of this uncontrollable volume of information has become part of the lesson plan at public and private high schools, where librarians and teachers discuss the potential impact of censorship on an individual's First Amendment rights.

Aiding in the censorship debate is the American Library Association Office of Intellectual Freedom, which annually sponsors Banned Books Week—from Sept. 25 to Oct. 2—to raise public awareness of the number and type of books that are challenged.

"I was amazed at the number of books on the list," said Katy Lemon, Presentation High School librarian for the last 10 years. She said the Catholic all-girls high school has not banned any books or had requests from parents to ban materials.

She adds that she is not told what books to buy either. "There is zero bureaucracy," she said.

While Lemon said the school library didn't have a presentation planned to recognize Banned Books Week, English teachers bring up the topic when they have their students read books that have been challenged in other libraries.

When teachers assign items in English curriculum such as Mark Twain's Huckleberry Finn, Kurt Vonnegut's Slaughterhouse Five and J.D. Salinger's Catcher in the Rye, they discuss why people have tried to ban the books, she said.

"The girls say, 'What do you mean?'" Lemon said. "They become agitated at the idea."

Likewise, the school's computers do not have filters on the Internet, she said.

"Library computers are supposed to be used for school research," Lemon said. "They're pretty responsible kids."

As librarian, Lemon said she takes the majority of her book-buying cues from teachers and class curriculum and not from popular fiction.

"They don't read a lot of fiction," she said. "They don't have time."

While some students may not have much time to check out books from the school library, the Office of Intellectual Freedom reports that 4,555 of the 6,415 reported book challenges between 1990 and 2000 were made to schools or school libraries.

Willow Glen High School library media assistant Genevieve Stoner said she created a library display for Banned Books Week to let students know that people have attempted to ban books such as the Bible along with many literary classics that are normally part of a school's curriculum.

In her three years of working at the library, no one has ever questioned a book's selection, she said. However, there is one book for which the school library requires that students receive parental permission before checking it out. The book has a red sticker labeling it "Parent permit."

The title Always Running, La Vida Loca: Gang Days in L.A. by Luis Rodriguez was first checked out in 1996 and last requested in 2000, Stoner said.

Stoner, however, said she has never been asked for it.

The banned book awareness campaign—officially established by the American Library Association in 1982—was designed to educate people young and old alike about the importance of being able to choose a book without fear of censorship. Now with the elimination of librarians throughout the San Jose Unified School District because of budget cuts, this message may be weakened. Although there are still library media assistants helping students, those most versed in the field of library science are no longer part of the book-buying decision process.

"It's a bit of a touchy subject with some people," Stoner said. "Book selection is technically not part of my job description, but there needs to be someone who takes charge of that."

Stoner said that she makes selections from staff input or does research on a curriculum-related topic.

"It's always in reference to what teachers are asking," she said.

"Depending on the school site, assistants are given more latitude."

With a bachelor's degree in French and Italian, but not one in library science, Stoner said she and other schools' library media assistants are doing the best they can.

"We're paid a lot less," she said. "It's definitely a cost-saving decision."

Stoner said that San Jose Unified School District middle and high schools have one library media assistant per school who works 30 hours a week, only during class hours.

But she said elementary schools are even more strapped. Their one library media assistant only comes 10 hours a week to each school.

"They're really in sorry shape," she said. "It's difficult to get everyone's needs met, and they're relying on a lot of parent volunteers."

While schools may not be banning books from their overall circulation, Stoner said library cuts are still affecting the amount of time students can use the library, which ultimately will affect how much and what they read.