Types of Reading Materials in School Library and Their Relevance to Students in Secondary School in Nandi Central Sub-county

Abstract

The school library as a resource centre inspires a love of reading among users. This study aimed at establishing how the school library can be used to nurture a reading culture among Form Three students. It sought to establish use of school library in the high school students' use of library to develop a reading culture in Nandi Central Sub-County, Kenya. The objective was to establish the types and relevance of reading materials available in the school library. The study was guided by Vygotsky's socio-cultural model of Reading. It adopted a descriptive survey design. Secondary Schools were purposively sampled hence only schools with libraries were selected. A total of ten secondary schools were selected. Purposive sampling was used to select one librarian and one English Subject Head from each school. This gave a sample size of 10 Librarians and 10 Subject Heads. Simple random sampling was used to select 31 students from each of the 10 secondary schools, giving a sample size of 310 students. Data was collected using the questionnaire, interview, document analysis and observation schedule. Quantitative data was analyzed using descriptive statistics such as frequencies and percentages and presented using tables and figures. Qualitative data was analysed thematically using themes.  Findings showed that all libraries were stocked with exam oriented texts like course books, revision books and story books (mostly old text books), newspapers and books on donations. Old syllabus course books and donated books were found to be irrelevant. Students (75%) believed that texts equipped them with knowledge and skills necessary for passing examinations. They used the library to complete assignments, conduct research and make notes. Majority of the students (75%) spent most of the time in the library revising for examinations and doing assignments. However, they did not read for leisure because of lack of attractive reading materials, the tight exam-oriented syllabus and lack of enough time for usage of the library. Schools should stock libraries with quality literature that will enhance learning outcomes and foster a culture of reading for pleasure, library periods to be included in the Form Three time table teachers and librarians should identify attention-grabbing texts for students and Subject Heads should encourage all the students to use the school library for leisure reading and not for academic achievements only.