NOVEL APPROACH AND FRAMEWORK FOR ADDRESSING THE ENDANGERED READING CULTURE IN NIGERIAN SCHOOLS

Abstract

It is no longer news that reading habits and the culture of reading have dwindled so drastically in Nigeria. This is more pronounced in public primary and secondary schools. Many factors have been attributed to it, key among which are lack of functional libraries in primary and secondary schools, unavailability of librarians and information literacy specialists in schools, poverty level in the country, unavailability of conducive learning environment in schools, among others. However, it is a fact that this reading culture revolves around accessibility and utilization of information resources and learning materials. In other words, it is believed that availability and accessibility of information materials in functional and well-equipped libraries and learning resource centres to students in schools will address this abnormality. This paper therefore advocates for the adoption of a developed framework involving network of libraries and information centres, librarians and information practitioners, states and local governments, communities and schools in their locality across the federation for tackling the menace of unavailability of libraries resulting to poor reading culture in Nigeria. It is believed that this innovative approach alongside the sub-elements of its implementation would work strategically in addressing the endangered reading culture in the country.