The effectiveness of school libraries towards the provision of study material to grade twelve (12) pupils: A case study of Kamwala High School in Lusaka

Abstract

The main aim or objective of the research was to assess the effectiveness of School Libraries and the provision of study material to grade twelve (12) pupils. The research design comprised both qualitative and quantitative designs; a sample size of 60 pupils was randomly drawn using a simple random sampling method out of a total population of 500 grade twelve pupils. 6 key informants were purposively and conveniently sampled and interviewed. Research Questionnaires which were both open and close ended were administered to pupils to obtain quantitative data, and interview guides were also administered to key informants to solicit qualitative data. Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) was used in the analysis of quantitative data whilst qualitative data from interviews was analysed using content analysis.The research findings indicated that the library was too small to accommodate pupils who would want to use the library. The research findings also showed that most of the library stock was out¬dated and was not tailored towards the School Curriculum. The findings further indicated that the library apart from stocking old books did not stock other sources of information like compact discs, video tapes, video compact disks and audio tapes to mention but a few.In view of making school libraries meaningful and improve pupils' performance in examination, the following recommendations were made: School authorities should embark on expanding the school library which was found to be very small. The school authority should stock current material tailored to meet user needs. Government through the Ministry of Education should increase funding to schools as funds would trickle down to school libraries making them efficient in service delivery. Further, Teachers should encourage pupils to use the library as this would improve pupil academic performance and the Library Assistant should offer library guidance to library users. In conclusion, school libraries which are well stocked with adequate and current material of different sources of information are repositories of wisdom of mankind, they are the source of educational inspiration and facilitate teaching and education delivery in schools.