INFS 431: LITERATURE AND SERVICES FOR CHILDREN Session 10 - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

College of Education School of Continuing and Distance Education

2014/2015 – 2016/2017

INFS 431: LITERATURE AND SERVICES FOR CHILDREN

Session 10– DEVELOPMENT OF CHILDREN’S LIBRARY SERVICES IN GHANA Lecturer: S. Nii Bekoe Tackie, School of Information and Communication Studies, Department of Information Studies Contact Information: snbtackie@ug.edu.gh

Session Overview

Library services for children in Ghana, as with the rest of the world, began with the establishment of the public library service in Ghana by the Colonial government. Public Library Service actually began in Ghana in 1928 with the pioneering effort of Rt. Reverend John Orfeur Aglionby, the then Anglican bishop of Accra who used his personal books to start a library service for “the growing literate” population of Accra.

S.N.B. Tackie, SICS-DIS Slide 2

Session Objectives

At the end of the session, you will be able to:

• Identify the beginnings of children’s library services

in Ghana

• Describe the services provided for children
• Examine efforts made by other library service

providers

• Describe the current state of provision for children

S.N.B. Tackie, SICS-DIS Slide 3

Session Outline

The key topics to be covered in the session are:

• Topic 1: First Efforts at the Development of Library Services
• Topic Two: Current State of the Provision of Library Services in

Ghana

• Topic Three: The Way Forward

S.N.B. Tackie, SICS-DIS Slide 4

Reading List

• Dr. Richard Boateng, UGBS

Slide 5

FIRST EFFORTS AT THE DEVELOPMENT OF LIBRARY SERVICES

Topic One:

S.N.B. Tackie, SICS-DIS Slide 6

Service Provision for Children

The first effort at the provision of library services for children in Ghana was made in1930.

• It was an initiative by the Department of Education

in the Gold Coast.

• The service consisted of a mobile library service for

children in government schools.

• A lot of care was put in the selection of materials

– not suitable for the children – materials had foreign backgrounds – children found difficult to relate to.

S.N.B. Tackie, SICS-DIS Slide 7

Service Provision for Children(Cont.)

• Eighteen (18) years later in 1948 the

public library service begun

• In 1950 the Gold Coast Library Board

was established

• Gold Coast Ordinance Cap 118 of 1949
• Thus began library services for

Ghanaians including children.

• Dr. Richard Boateng, UGBS

Slide 8

Service Provision for Children(Cont.)

• In Ghana, as in other parts of the world, the provision of

services for children begun at the same time as the adult services.

• A section of the Aglionby Library (as the library was initially

called) was used for the children’s service.

• Books that were provided included local language books as

well as English language books.

– Local language books, however, were text books published by the Mission bookshops.

• Majority of materials provided were religious literature.
• Popularity of the children’s service

– Kaneshie and Osu libraries

• Within a short period of commissioning those libraries

membership had risen to 5,000.

• Dr. Richard Boateng, UGBS

Slide 9

Services

Service for children consisted of basically circulation services.

• However, parents who live around the library sent their

children to the library to study.

• Children were required to register as members just like adult
• members. However, children enjoyed free membership.
• The libraries were equipped to cater for children from pre-

school to age 17.

• In the beginning, children were allowed to borrow a book for

two weeks.

• As time went on it became clear that it was necessary to

generate and sustain children’s interest in the library so extension activities were added to the services.

• Dr. Richard Boateng, UGBS

Slide 10

Services (Cont.)

• The most popular extension activity was the story

hour which was organised from Monday to Friday.

• Books for the story hour were selected from the

classics, folktales and fairy tales.

• Other activities included inter-school essay

competitions, spelling competitions, quizzes etc.

• Prizes were given to winners of the competitions..
• There were film shows, radio talk shows and puppet

theatre.

• There were also book exhibitions for children.
• Dr. Richard Boateng, UGBS

Slide 11

Survey of Children’s Reading Interests

In 1955, there was a survey of children’s reading interests.

• The survey covered 16 locations in the country and the

population was 10,295 children.

• The survey found out that there was uncertainty about the

ages of children in each class.

• The problem that that posed was that it was difficult to

provide books that to meet the reading interests of the whole class.

• It was also found out that titles of books that children read

were so varied that it was difficult to group them into specific areas of interest.

• The most popular book was the Bible stories which both girls

and boys indicated.

• Dr. Richard Boateng, UGBS

Slide 12

Survey of Children’s Reading Interests(Cont.)

• Least title of books that were mentioned was books

about children in other parts of the world.

• Children did not show interest in books about

children in other parts of the world

– They could not identify with the background of those children.

• Ghana Library Authority requested for advance

copies of books for children to read to determine their interest before books were ordered.

• Dr. Richard Boateng, UGBS

Slide 13

Second Survey of Children’s Reading Interests

In 1965, another survey was conducted to find out whether children’s interests had changed.

• The survey was conducted because Ghana and Africa had

been undergoing the struggle for independence.

• It was discovered that children’s reading interests had

not changed much.

• However, books from other subject areas were being

read

• For example
• science fiction and
• books on children from other parts of the world
• Dr. Richard Boateng, UGBS

Slide 14

Second Survey of Children’s Reading Interests(Cont.)

• In terms of hobbies, the survey revealed a range of interests that the

children had; some were even foreign.

• For example,

– bird watching, – stamp collecting, – photography, – coin collecting, – music – cycling.

• Again, it was discovered that children in Accra and Sekondi libraries had

been reading books in series which was a very rear occurrence.

• Examples included
• the Nancy Drew series;
• the Bobsey Twins series; and
• the Enid Blyton series.
• Dr. Richard Boateng, UGBS

Slide 15

Children’s Magazine

The GLA decided to improve upon the services to children

• It encouraged them to establish their own magazines

in which they contributed

– short stories, – poems, – plays, – riddles.

• These were all done to encourage the adoption of

reading as a life long habit.

• Dr. Richard Boateng, UGBS

Slide 16

Other Initiatives in the Provision of Children’s Services in Ghana

There were efforts by other organizations to provide library services for children

• Apart from the Ghana Library Authority, some district assemblies

have been providing libraries for children.

• The National Commission on Children also started providing library

services for children as part of a project to build a children’s park and library complex for each of the ten regions in Ghana.

• This effort was in the early to mid 1990s.
• The Ghana Book Trust also set up a children’s library with an

electronic component in 2000.

• Mention must also be made of the efforts of Cathy Knowles, a

Canadian lady who established children’s libraries in

• Osu, Latebiokorshie and Kanda.
• Dr. Richard Boateng, UGBS

Slide 17

CURRENT STATE OF PROVISION OF SERVICES TO CHILDREN IN GHANA

Topic Two:

S.N.B. Tackie, SICS-DIS Slide 18

Introduction

Library provision for children in Ghana is on the decline instead of being on the rise. At a time when children’s rights issues are always at the forefront of discussions worldwide, it is surprising that there does not seem to be advocates for children’s libraries that will help children to inculcate the habit of reading. If children learn to read they will become more conversant with their rights and needs and be able to articulate them.

• Dr. Richard Boateng, UGBS

Slide 19

Current State of Provision

• By 1975, about 30 children’s libraries had been established in

the country by the Ghana Library Authority.

• Currently, there are 61 children’s libraries under the Ghana

Library Authority.

• These are scattered across the length and breadth of the

country.

• This number is woefully inadequate considering that the

Ghana Library Authority has been in existence for the past sixty-eight (68)years.

• The paucity of libraries for children may be attributed to the

inadequate funding that the public library system receives from central government.

• It may be due also to the declining reading culture in the

country

• Dr. Richard Boateng, UGBS

Slide 20

Current State of Provision(Cont.)

• The Accra Central Children’s Library, the biggest children’s

library in the country became run down from the mid 1980s to the 1990s

• Barclays Bank Ghana Ltd adopted it in the mid 1990s and

refurbished it.

• Barclays Bank on an annual basis provided funding for

five years

• For the upkeep of the library in terms of reading

materials for the children who patronise the library.

• The initial grant that was made was 35 million cedis in

the old currency.

• Dr. Richard Boateng, UGBS

Slide 21

Current State of Provision(Cont.)

• The efforts by the National Commission on Children came to

nought since the whole idea was abandoned eventually.

• Some of the park and library complexes were never built;
• those that were in operation have virtually collapsed.
• One of the reasons for its abandonment was the problem of

sustainability.

• Very little planning obviously went into the implementation of

the project.

• People who had the technical and professional know-how in

the provision of library services were left out of the project.

• Thus the project lacked technical and professional advice.
• Dr. Richard Boateng, UGBS

Slide 22

Current State of Provision(Cont.)

• Personnel for the libraries were drawn from National

Service postings.

• This meant that every year fresh personnel were

assigned to the libraries.

• Thus there was no continuity of personnel.
• Worse of all, personnel posted to those libraries did

not have any library training whatsoever.

• The biggest problem, however, was the very obvious

lack of interest generally by the national leadership where libraries are concerned.

• Dr. Richard Boateng, UGBS

Slide 23

Current State of Provision(Cont.)

• The lack of concern or interest on the part of national

leadership is reflected in the fact that some of the children’s libraries of the Ghana Library Authority have had to be closed down.

• The Kaneshie children’s library, for example, which was one of

the first two libraries to be built after the Accra Central Children’s Library, was closed down about forty years ago.

• All efforts by the Ghana Library Authority to have it rebuilt

have proved futile over the years.

• It should be noted that the Ghana Library Authority is funded

solely by government, therefore, if government does not provide funding the Authority can hardly function.

• Dr. Richard Boateng, UGBS

Slide 24

Current State of Provision(Cont.)

• The Ghana Book Trust Children’s Library has also been closed down after
• nly seven years of operation.
• The reason as usual was lack of funds to sustain the library.
• The initial funding to establish the library was provided by the Ford

Foundation.

• Thus when that funding run out, there was nothing coming from

anywhere again.

• The implication for the collapse of the library is that between Accra

Central and Dodowa, children had no access to any library facility whatsoever.

• About three years ago however, the Madina Community Library was

commissioned on the premises of the Accra College of Education, formerly the Accra Teacher Training College(ATTRACO)

• JOY FM also as part of their Read 100 project solicited funding for the

establishment of a Community Library in Ofankor in the Gt. Accra Region about two years ago

• Dr. Richard Boateng, UGBS

Slide 25

THE WAY FORWARD

Topic Three:

S.N.B. Tackie, SICS-DIS Slide 26

Introduction

For us to create a country of a reading citizenry we need to put a greater focus on the services provided for children and young adults. We need to begin to show the concerns that are being expressed in the USA that Americans in the coming generations may not be able to compete globally because they are not reading anymore.

S.N.B. Tackie, SICS-DIS Slide 27

Going Forward

• At the inception of public library service in Ghana, children

were catered for in much the same way as adults.

• However, greater emphasis was placed on extension activities

for children.

• This was rightly so because it is extension activities that are

used to attract children to the library and to sustain their interest in the library.

• Today, apart from the story hour, such activities like quizzes,

spelling competitions, film shows, puppet theatre, vacation reading camps among others, which were a regular feature of the children’s libraries are no longer existent.

• However, if we want to create a highly literate society then we

must bring back these activities and even develop new ways

• f providing those services such that it will attract a large

percentage of children to the library.

• Dr. Richard Boateng, UGBS

Slide 28

In this era of information and communication technology, the public libraries can create websites at which activities for children in the libraries could be posted.

• In the USA for example activities like

– Baby Time, – Toddler Time, – Story Time, – Craft Time and – Family Time

• Provided for parents or caregivers and their children.
• Such activities would no doubt encourage parents and

guardians to send their children or wards to the library.

S.N.B. Tackie, SICS-DIS Slide 29

New Initiatives

New Initiatives(Cont.)

• For young adults, our public libraries right from inception

hardly targets them in service provision.

• There are no specific programmes targeted at the youth to

attract them to the libraries.

• Those who visit the libraries are those who are mostly

studying for the WASSCE examinations.

• Thus they visit the library to look for a place to seat and study

quietly.

• After the examinations they virtually vanish from the libraries.
• I expect the public library to design programmes that will

attract young adults to the library and keep them in the library.

• Dr. Richard Boateng, UGBS

Slide 30

New Initiatives(Cont.)

• Recreational reading targeted at the young adult should be

made a part of the collection policy of the public library.

• A survey should be conducted of the reading interests of this

category of readers so that books that they want to read would be what they would find in the library.

• It is worth noting that the last time a survey of reading

interests of any group of people was conducted by the public library was in 1965.

• Jones et al (2004) recommend a variety of vacation reading

programmes for young adults and

• a directory of websites for programming ideas that may be

adapted for the public library.

• Dr. Richard Boateng, UGBS

Slide 31

New Initiatives(Cont.)

• Jones (2002) advocates the provision of magazines for young adults in the library.
• Magazines are important sources of information to young people.
• Many of them are sources of health and self-help information to young people.
• In his own words he points out that: “The most current and often most readable

information available for teens on sex does not come in books, but in the pages of these magazines”.

• In targeting young adults the public library would be helping in re-focussing and

redirecting our youth into productive activities

• That would take them away from the streets and save them from the

predicaments of directionless people.

• Dr. Richard Boateng, UGBS

Slide 32

References

• Dr. Richard Boateng, UGBS

Slide 33