“The Importance Of The Library And Its Impact On Reading: A Perspective From An English Teacher” By Hjh Siti Salawati Bte Hj Abu Hanifah Brunei English Language Teacher Association (BELTA)
Background: ◦ I’m a Lead Facilitator at the Brunei Darussalam Teacher Academy (BDTA) ◦ In-charge of English PDs ◦ I was teacher for 17 years before BDTA ◦ I taught English O level, General Paper and A level Literature in English.
◦ I have a degree in English Literature from Anglia Polytechnic University ◦ Obtained my M(Ed) Language Education from UBD in 2005.
The Library and me: ◦ Played a big role in my life; frequent visitor ◦ Dewan Bahasa Pustaka (Bandar branch) Why I loved the Library: ◦ Love reading > imaginative, creative, mature, acquired skills, took English Literature. ◦ Social skills; Made lots of friends ◦ Dewan Bahasa Pustaka was the ‘in’ place. Impact:
Avid reader
Fluent in both languages
Mature and Independent
Acquired life skills (social)
Creative and imaginative
Cultured
Reading vs Technology
Research (2012) ◦ Main objective of the study: To look at students’ perception on the use of Poetry in the English language classroom. ◦ Part of the study was also to look at reading preferences. ◦ The sample consisted of Year 8 students in a Government school. (13-14 year-old students) ◦ There were 27 students altogether; 15 girls and 12 boys. ◦ Most of these kids came from a working class family. ◦ It was a C class, so the kids English proficiency were average. There were a few high-ability kids.
Do you like reading?
20 LIKED reading 3 LOVED reading 4 said they DO NOT like reading. *Out of the 4 who didn’t like reading, 3 were boys.
When do you do your reading?
15 : during their free time 4 : after they finished their h/w 4 : during the holidays 4 : never.
Where do you do your reading?
20 : in their room 3 : anywhere 4 : not applicable. *No one ticked the LIBRARY box.
What kinds of books do you read?
12 : romance novels (all of them were girls) 6 : comics (3 of them were girls). 5 of the boys liked reading fact books 4 didn’t tick any boxes
During an informal conversation, “We don’t like going to the library because it’s boring and they don’t have the kinds of books that we like reading.” But interestingly, most of them also mentioned that they would be more interested if they are showed what to read.
What make good school libraries? ◦ Attract students ◦ They have a wide variety of books. They cater for different age groups and gender. ◦ They have conducive environment. I have seen some libraries with bean bags and comfortable chairs. ◦ They have great support, not only from the librarians but also the teachers. I’ve seen teachers guiding their students in choosing books.
These libraries are the ones where there are lots of students coming in. (you can see this from their log books) They come not only during English class, but during break time, lunch or even in the afternoons. And the most interesting fact is that these are the schools that have good results in the language subjects like Malay and English.
As an English teacher, ◦ Please bring your students to the library and GUIDE them. ◦ Understand the students and their interest. Recommend books, give them time to finish it and once they finish it, ask them about the books. ◦ When I was a student, my English teacher used to give us worksheets along with the books we borrowed. The worksheet contained questions like, “summary of the book, who was your favourite character, what is the best part of the book and why you liked it.” ** I find this an effective way of not only to ensure reading but also enhance thinking skills and writing skills.
As a parent ◦ I encourage other parents to bring your children to the library. Be involved. Select books together and talk about it. ◦ Don’t force your children to read books that don’t interest them. Let them read at their own pace as well.
Create your own library or reading corner/ space!
As a parent and a teacher ◦ Please bring back the activities in the library, like the ones we used to have back during my childhood days. Advertise them through schools, the media. ◦ Bring back the mobile libraries. I remember going to borrow books from these vans. ◦ Make going to the library fun!