understanding of other people’s and even of ourselves. All experience of mankind and all his discoveries and his inventions can be learned about through reading”.
Realizing Education for Development (READ) Tanzania, a local Non-Government Organization (NGO) aiming to improve the quality of education in the country, collaborate with the government to build libraries in public schools, and since its establishment, it has reached more than 162 schools in 22 regions in Tanzania mainland. The NGO executes the projects with support from Probono.
Students from Kiluvya secondary school at Kibamba, Ubungo municipality shared their experience after the library project was completed at their school. They expressed how the library is useful to their academic journey.
Doreen Mlay, a form two student said the library helped her to develop a reading culture thus increase her knowledge in subjects such as English by learning new vocabularies. Doreen has been a good ambassador and at forefront to encourage her fellow students to make a habit of reading various books available at the library.
“My performance in English has improved a lot because I can access various books like dictionaries, literature and story books. I used to score an average of ‘C’ but nowadays my average is A. We also have reading clubs and the number of students is increasing day by day” said Doreen who reads four to five books per week.
Apart from performing well in English subject, she is also competent in science subjects, something which was contributed by the availability of the library and various science books.
Abdul Masawe, a Form Two student said the library project has made his learning journey supportive because he has been studying hard and passing examinations since Form One by conducting assignments and school projects.
Masawe narrated that he is impressed by the library environments and resources such as varieties of books like civics which has made him develop an interest in becoming a soldier, a dream which he has had for many years.
“Previous, we did not have enough books and space. It was just a room with no resources. I have also realized that studying in class only without learning more in the library, you cannot succeed. I need to achieve my goal of serving in the army hence I need to read more on civics and other history books which we have in the library.” said Masawe, adding he reads more than 20 books per month.
Loveness Mwasa, a Form Five student said the library has made her read different books from different authors, and develop her skills by conducting projects well by attaining materials and details from the library.
“Before we had challenges when it came to school projects, but now we have plenty of books to help us make references from books and gain knowledge. Also, my grammar has improved. The library is attractive, books are well placed therefore encourages us to read and learn from what we are being taught in classes.” said Loveness who reads three books per week, especially literature books.
Loveness added that she has been sharing books with her fellow students through group discussions, something which contributes to her expanding knowledge and learning new skills.
Kachinga Mkoma, a Form Six teacher said the presence of the library has greatly aided his teaching capability because of its resources.
“I am now able to access a lot of materials which I can then provide to my students. Additionally, the students have been performing well in both assignments and projects given to them outside of school” said teacher Mkoma commenting that books at the library are modern, competency-based, and aligned with the syllabus, allowing the students to excel in various projects and examinations.
Mkoma added that sometimes, the existence of this library alone gives students topics to work on, as they search for materials independently and hence overall academic performance has significantly improved compared to before the establishment of this library.
“The library has helped me enhance my skills and advance my career as I continuously expand my knowledge through reading various books. I assign tasks to my students with confidence, knowing that they have access to resources that facilitate their success. However, we would appreciate additional books, especially in the field of Geography.” said Mkoma.
Glory Njau, a Swahili teacher and the Librarian shared her career journey of multitasking: “We have books from Tanzania Institute of Education (TIE), Oxford and others. Students can easily use them for reference and gather relevant material for their studies. Teaching has become more practical, with students having their own books and receiving accurate examples. Initially, teaching was challenging due to limited books, but now, with a wide range of resources available, both students and teachers have seen remarkable improvement in academic performance.”
She added that through the library, teachers have been able to achieve their teaching goals, as they can prepare their teaching notes and provide relevant references, allowing students to have their own books and provide accurate examples.
“Initially, it was challenging since we had few books compared to the number of students. Significant successes have been achieved, particularly in language proficiency. The library has assisted in improving vocabularies, story comprehension, and unfamiliar words, as students now refer to dictionaries. Moreover, they have improved academically, with some even opting for extra study sessions, leading to increased academic performance,” said Njau.
She cited an example of last year where one student performed extraordinarily, attributing the success with the presence of the library.
She said that being a librarian, she has a responsibility of making sure that books are well kept and the library is well organized to allow students to borrow books and return them within a specified time. She however requested for additional commerce books, as they are currently scarce.
One of the parents, Heavenlady Mrema, said: “We are grateful for the library because we have been spending a lot of money buying books for our child. My child is in Form Four hence books are a must for her. This initiative is of its kind as it enables our children have access to various books and learn peacefully.” said Mrema.
READ Tanzania Managing Director, Naemy Silayo said one of the goals of the project is to empower and support the younger generation in acquiring knowledge, fostering self-awareness, and contributing to developmental issues and providing conducive environments for reading.
We believe that young people can broaden their understanding on various areas being scientific, geographical, mathematical, social, and business concepts. Through collaborations with the government, READ Tanzania has established libraries in public schools, reaching over 162 schools and impacting around 840,000 students.
Silayo said that READ Tanzania has donated over 1.645 million books and worked with 12,000 teachers to enhance their capacity in promoting reading culture, initiatives include setting up reading clubs, organizing competitions, and providing resources to schools based on their specific needs.
“We aim to instil a culture of reading not only for academic purposes but also for personal development and enjoyment” she added.
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