Promoting Use of Library In Rivers Schools

The saying, “reading makes a man,” has become a word-play to many students in Rivers State.

The reason being that many students, especially at primary and post-primary schools are nonchalant about reading books, some observers have noted. They say their concern stems from the fact that the levels of education affected by the apathy to library use forms the foundation of learning.

“When a child learns to read in school, he imbibes a reading habit which if sustained, will enable him become addicted to reading even up to higher institution”, says Mrs Jessy Peterson, a teacher.

She, however, says that many Nigerian youths lack interest in reading books whether for academic purposes or for pleasure.

Educationists maintain that developing strong reading culture is important to the acquisition of knowledge, as it broadens the scope of knowledge of readers, on diverse topics. According to them, the reading culture can be cultivated and advanced through the use of libraries.

“A library affords students, researchers and other interested readers the opportunity of sharing and increasing their knowledge. It also encourages them to build their private libraries for personal use”, says Mr. Asike Maduka, a librarian.

Maduka, nevertheless, laments the inability of the Rivers State Government as well as local governments in the state to establish befitting libraries in all government-owned primary and post-primary schools in the state. He emphasised the need for the state government to promote the culture of reading and knowledge acquisition through enhanced use of the library.

He insists that government’s indifference to the poor use of the library by students largely accounts for the dismal performance of secondary school students in the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) and National Examinations Council (NECO) examinations.

“Apart from the waning performance of students in these examinations including the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examinations (UTME), many young school leavers today  can hardly express themselves in simple but correct English in public”, Maduka emphasises.

Mr. Robert Lawson, an educationist and a retired principal, shares similar views. He says “many of the school leavers today cannot even spell their names correctly. He, however, agrees, that library services in the country have suffered a lot of decay in recent years.

The rot, explains Mr. Anthony Warmate, a lawyer, is as a result of many years of neglect of library development in schools by successive governments in the state.

“The public attraction of libraries has been eroded considerably, as students and other potential users of libraries now patronise other information sources for their educational, professional and personal development purposes, “ says Warmate.

Mr. Owuje Harry, a journalist, says that the decay in the library services across the country is one of the root causes of the crumbling of the education sector.

“The complete neglect of library services in the state nay the nation, particularly since the early 90s, actually facilitated the erosion of quality learning in Rivers Schools, says Harry.

Harry commends the Rivers State Government for building model schools with a state-of-the-art library facilities. But he advises the government to establish standard libraries in all primary and secondary schools in the state. He says teachers should also visit the library to enrich their knowledge.

“How do you explain the situation where even teachers in primary and secondary schools no longer visit the library to enrich their knowledge?”, Harry quips.

Some observers say the reading culture in primary and secondary schools has seriously gone down because the students are not being introduced to the culture of reading books for leisure and self-improvement.

They blame parents who introduce their children to computer games and toy guns, while neglecting the need to provide for books and other materials that would help them do well at school and expand their knowledge.

However, all hope is not lost for Mr. ThankGod Ibude, and educationist, who believes that the situation will soon experience a positive turn-around.

His optimism is based on the fact that some private schools in the state are now emphasizing the reading culture, while they also provide well-equipped libraries for their students. He advises parents to ensure that their children create and sustain interest in reading books.

“If you do not encourage a child to have interest in reading, he or she will start off on a faulty foundation. During exams the child may be looking for shortcuts to pass,” Ibude points out.

As a way out, Ibude proposes the introduction of “library hour” in primary and secondary schools curriculum both in the state and the country.

“When you have about 60 minutes ‘library hour’ every day, the students will be forced to read in the library, whether they like it or not. In fact, when a student knows that a particular time is fixed for reading in the library, he will be forced to prepare his mind for that,” concludes Ibude.

Observers point out that library development needs a lot of resources, as books, journals and periodicals are expensive. According to them, the in-thing now is automated library systems which rely heavily on computers and other informatics which are very expensive to acquire.

The cost notwithstanding, they urge the Rivers State Government and governments at all levels to invest in automated libraries not only in schools, but also in strategic neighbourhoods in towns and cities for the use of the public.

Arnold Alalibo