School library or media centre as earlier discussed in unit 1, is a library that is found in nursery, primary and secondary schools. The aim of school library is for the intellectual development of children. School libraries are the backbone in any school environment because of their ability to provide pupils, children, students, teachers, parents and other members with access to numerous information resources. Therefore, school libraries are indispensable in any educational system.
Education according to Aristotle “is the process of training man to fulfill his aim by exercising all the faculties to the fullest extent as a member of society”. It is the foundation for development of a nation and annihilation of illiteracy. No wonder, libraries and education are inseparable because they both work hand in hand. The absent of one lead to the demise of the other.
This means that a library cannot exist without a school and a school cannot
31 exist without a library. In the words of Gboyega and Gbolahan (2012:11),
“‘education’ and ‘library’ are two inseparable indivisible concepts, both being fundamentally and synchronically related to and co-existent with each other. None of them is an end in itself; rather both of them together are a means to and ultimate end. One dies as soon as the other perishes. One survives as long as the other exists”. Malekani and Mubofu (2019) opined that a qualified school library provides a wide-range of knowledge and information for teachers and pupils, arouse the development of readers’
innovative personalities, and drive the development of different thinking which ultimately leads to quality education achieved by the pupils. Nyam and Guraj (1999) as cited in Moruf (2015: 61) describes some of the relevance of school library in education to include:
i. Provision learning resources such print and non-print materials such as videos, films, e-books, e-magazines which they students can at the end of the school day and during holidays.
ii. Provision of information resources to secondary school children to assist them in their homework, assignment. Such information materials include children’s encyclopedia, journals, magazines, tapes, records and cassettes.
iii. Provision of specialised resources for governmental activities through creation of a “special document” section in the library and.
iv. Provision of leisure and other educational facilities such as games, sports, films and filmstrips, slides, tape records, cassettes, fiction and non-fiction books.
Hussain (2018), also highlighted some roles libraries play in education to include;
i. Provide leadership and knowledge by using information and technology in teaching and learning process.
ii. Provide equal opportunity for all readers concerning information that are associated with some educational institutions unhindered by culture, background, belief and social constraints.
iii. Provision of lifelong learning process for the community members and assist them in any challenging tasks or Assignments.
iv. Prepare individuals to prove themselves as responsible citizens in present-day society.
Dike (1993) highlighted six (6) contributions of school libraries to education:
i. Promoting /Encouraging Reading: The school library/media centres encourage or promote reading habits and skills among children by providing information resources that supports learning, teaching, and research and also meet the information needs of students. Some of the
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information resources or materials that encourage literacy include pictures books, novels, magazines, comic books, story books, illustrated books and talking books. These resources help children and students enjoy reading. According to Ellis (2016), school libraries can support literacy by promoting book of the week, create a comfortable reading environment, set up book talks, ensure the library books matches the information needs of the students, use the library’s Television, create reading programs and set up book displays.
Therefore, the school library plays an important role in the school curriculum which in essence facilitates quality education in the school (Osuchukwu & Edewor, 2016). This indicates that the school library plays a significant in education by developing literate students in the society.
ii. Expanding Learning Resources: One of the roles of school library /media centre is to provide information resources that support the school curriculum by selecting and acquiring more information resources and made these resources available and accessible to the students and teachers. Through the library/media centre, students and children have access to various information resources such as textbook, pictures, video recordings, motion pictures, and tapes. All these information resources broaden students learning opportunities.
iii. Developing Learning Skills: The school library/media centre through their information resources and organized programmes equip students with the needed skills to enable them study independently, locate and retrieve information materials in the library without the assistance of the media specialist or librarian. Some of the ways through which the library can help students develop learning skills is through library orientation, information literacy programmes, reading competitions, use of reference resources, and access to computer and internet facilities. All of these programmes can assist students in developing research skills and self-directed learning skills.
iv. Developing Critical Thinking Skills: The various information materials acquired in the library should be available and accessible in order to encourage creativity and critical thinking that is needed for the present world. According to Zuelke (1988:58) Librarians can play a more active role in the development, teaching and evaluation of lessons that develop critical skills; school Librarians need to encourage teachers to include homework and assignments which develop critical thinking skills in their courses. In this case, students should be allowed to do assignments based on their topic of interest
33 and share or do a presentation in class. They should be allowed or encouraged to ask questions because when they do, they “form their own questions through experiences, reflection, conversation, and writing and gain a sense of ownership and accomplishment in the work they are producing that gradually leads to competence, independence, and expertise” (Kuhlthau, Maniotes, & Caspari, 2015, p. 5). Thus, this will help students to be independent, think for themselves and enable them distinguish between objective and subjective elements.
v. Developing Values, Attitudes and Appreciations: Apart from expanding information resources, developing learning and critical thinking skills, and promotion of reading habit and culture, the school library also have a role to play in helping students develop attitudes, values and appreciation. According to Ilori and Abdullahi (2016), emphasizes that “in the process of encouraging or inculcating the reading habit in secondary school students and youth, stakeholders (parents, teachers, schools, librarians and other library staff) should avoid nagging, bribing, judging, criticizing reading choices, and setting unreasonable goals”. Instead, students should be allowed to appreciate various types of information resources including fiction and non-fiction. This will enable them develop values, attitudes and increase their interests. It is therefore important for school libraries to include in their collection resources like drama, art, music, posters, pictures, posters, photographs depicting history of a nation and recording among others that will help students develop values and appreciation (Dike, 1993).
vi. Assisting with Developmental Tasks: Apart from providing information materials that supports the school’s curriculum, school libraries/media centres should also assist with the developmental aspects of the students which is not covered in the curriculum. Hence, the school library can provide additional information resources for the overall development of children and youths.
Watch Videos on the Relevance of School Libraries
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You could may decide to download and play it offline. Watch the video below and listen to some relevance of school libraries.
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1. http://www.ilovelibraries.org/school-libraries/why-are-school-libraries-essential