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Equal Education launches third library

Fri, 05 Nov 2010 15:11

Equal Education (EE) will be launching its third school library at Masiyile High School in Khayelitsha, 5 November 2010 at 14:00.

The Masiyile High School library collection is made up of over 3300 fiction, non-fiction and reference books (3 books per learner) which cater for every level and interest. Many of the books have been chosen by the learners themselves, thanks to financial donations from a number of generous donors.

The Bookery Project:

Currently, only 8% of public schools in South Africa have functioning school libraries, most of which are in former model-C schools.

Widely acclaimed research has demonstrated that the provision of functioning school libraries is significantly linked to improved learner performance. The findings of that research are included in EEs own research report titled: "We Can’t Afford Not To" (see attached file). This research partly forms the basis for Equal Educations current Campaign for School Libraries (1School, 1Library, 1Librarian).

In response to the stifling statistics, EE opened The Bookery at 20 Roeland Street, Cape Town, which is now the home of the Equal Education book-drive.

At the Bookery books suitable for either primary or secondary school learners can be donated; books must be in good condition and not too out-of-date. All worthy books are sorted, covered, labeled and catalogued before being sent to disadvantaged schools in the Cape Town area. Staff and volunteers at The Bookery work hard to identify, and work with schools to stock empty library spaces at schools.

In order to ensure sustainability, recipient schools must not only have an existing library space, but a member of staff committed to fulfilling the role of a librarian.

Masiyile High School is located on Bonga Drive in Site B, Khayelitsha.

Cosatu Daily News 4 November 2010