1.0 Introduction
Schools, be it nursery, primary or secondary, are established with a view to achieve the following objectives.
- To improve positively on the civil life of the students
- To impact on the cognitive ability of the students
- To impact on the moral life of the student
- Affects the vocabulary building of the student
- To prepare each student for higher education
Thus, schools establish libraries that partner them in the crusade to achieve the above objectives. This library referred to a school library.
The school library therefore, is the library established, financed, maintained, management found in primary, secondary and teachers training schools.
(TTC). It is expected to serve its community members like teachers. Pupils and student and win their patronage. As the life blood of its parent school, the school library plays certain indispensable roles in the educational up bringing of students.
- Makes the students indiscriminate readers of books
- Emancipates the children from learning by role
- Helps the teachers to prepare for classes
The suffer in the following areas;
- Poor recognition from appropriate authorities.
- Lack of trained staff to organize resources
- Inadequate funding/budget allocation
- Dearth and paucity of resources
- Lack of accommodation
The situation has cumaxed in gross loss of patronage. Is it common knowledge that most schools (Public or private) do not have school libraries, even when they exist, they are nothing less than” small spaces with few books, scattered there and there”. At other times, o full fledged school library exist without enough space. It suffices to say that, most authorities that have the behave to run schools are yet to understand and appreciate the importance of school libraries in primary and secondary education. In the words of Michael Morgan 1998, Libraries serve humanity” and S.R. Ranganathan, “Books are for use”. School libraries, when established, should put into effective use. Just as the holy reads put it.
- How can they know
- Unless they are though
The school teacher librarian should mobilize effort and mount campaign programs that would improve the image of the library, Sir up the reading interest in students that concomitantly draws attention to the library.
According to Amadi in his course Audio visual resources in the libraries, children teens and adolescents, have attaint for what they sec.
Onu quips that teems and children love questhetics, with these, the library staff should improve the library in the following areas:
- Erect attractive building for libraries with good architectural designs-in and out of the library.
- Organize readership programs
- Acquire books and other materials that benefits students
- Acquire audio-visual materials that appeal to the students.
1.1 Historical Antecedent Of The Case Study
St Paul's inter national primary and secondary school was founded over even years ago and kicked off within the church premises of St Paul's catholic church. It later was relocated to its permanent site at Ikenegbu layout. It has over three to four thousand students population and a hand full of staff.
Location
The school is located currently in Ikenegbu layout at Chukwu Nwaoha Street.
Ownership
St. Paul's international secondary school is a mission school. That is, it is owned by the St. Paul's Catholic Church, located along Douglas, Owerri Imo state.
Mission Statement
The school is bent on providing quality education not divide of morality.Structure(s)
St. Paul's International Secondary school occupied a large expanse of land. It has
- A three in one class halls
- Four long class halls
- A dormitory
- A football pitch
- An ICT centre
- A chapel etc
Nature Of Academic Program
The school runs the day and boarding systems.
Library Unit
St Pual's international secondary school is among the school with a school library its establishment was in tandem with the school. It occupies two(2) large block halls with seating capacity of up to seventy (70) each.
Resources
The library has rich resources in the following areas:
- Subject collections
- Litrary collections like drama, prose, fictions
- Reference collections, like dictionary
- Religion collections order of worship
Staff Strength
It is manned by two staff, of which one is the library attendant. Though, all the teachers are working towards the functional growth and success of the library.
According to the vice principle and Dean, the library is currently undergoing renovation. Very soon, it would be revealed to another purpose building.
1.2 Statement Of Problem
The library is user-oriented. This accounts its crude from time to time, to gain more patronage. The existing school libraries are not explored by the students, as have observed it stems from the fact that the user community has not yet under seared the import of library in educational development. Most times the attitude of the school authorities, the low reading culture evident in all and sundry of the country. Contribute to lack of use of library stock.
It is not out of places for a student to finish primary and secondary education without knowing what the library is, and its location it is in view of this that the research ways of improving the use of school library is proposed.
1.3 Objective Of The Study
The aim of the study is to examine the Ways of Improving the Use of School Library by Secondary School Students. In achieving this aim, the following specific objectives were laid out as follows to:
- Ascertain whether there is a school library or not
- Find out whether the library is put into use or not
- Find out problems militating against the effective use of school library
- Find out how to improve the use of school library.
1.4 Research Questions
The research is proposed to find answers to the following questions:
- Is there an existing school library?
- Is the school library used?
- Are there problems associated with its use?
- Are there possible ways to improve the use?
1.5 Scope Of The Study
The research is on ways of improving the use of school library, with St. Paul's international primary and secondary school, as case study. Therefore, it is strictly on the library of the school located at Chukwuma Nwaona in Ikenegbu Layout.
1.6 Significance Of The Study
The research outcome would be of help to school authorities, witching to own of that own libraries again, librarian teachers at primary, secondary and training college would a mass a wealth of knowledge from this work more so. Curriculum development authorities would find this work valuable. Education authorities would be kissing this work.
1.7 Definition Of Terms
In this research, the following teams would be defined:
Improving:
The process of making something better than before.
School Library:
This is a library specially established the support education and academic programme of kindergarten, primary and secondary levels of education
Secondary School:
A school for young people between the ages of 11 and 16 or 18.
Students:
A person at a school, especially secondary school.
