Australian Journal of Teacher Education
Abstract
Bibliotherapy – the use of books to heal – is a concept that dates back to the time of the philosopher Aristotle who believed that literature had healing effects and that reading fiction was a way of purging illness. But how is bibliotherapy practiced now in secondary schools? This study investigates bibliotherapy use in a regional Australian city with adolescents who have chronic illness. It explores the responses of members of welfare teams (welfare co-ordinators, school nurses and teacher-librarians) within secondary schools to questions on how books are used with students experiencing issues. Findings indicate that although bibliotherapy practice is not a formal process within schools, its central phenomenon of a reader forming a relationship with a book and then changing in some significant way as a result is a concept that most participants understood and attempted to utilize with the students in their care.
Recommended Citation
Harvey, P. (2010). Bibliotherapy Use By Welfare Teams In Secondary Colleges. Australian Journal of Teacher Education, 35(5). https://doi.org/10.14221/ajte.2010v35n5.3