Thursday, April 12, 2007

D.E.A.R Librarians

We need to be mindful of the proactive role we can play in advocating for information literacy especially the love for reading within our respective communities or institutions. According to conventional wisdom, the Philippines still enjoys a high rating for information literacy among Southeast Asians nations but much work needs to be done to improve the availability and free access of quality reading materials to a greater mass of our populations especially those in the public educational system and users of public libraries.

The recent commentary of Neni Sta. Romana Cruz in Philippine Daily Inquirer (April 10, 2007, p. A13) entitled “Drop Everything And Read” reminds us how we can proactively work together with other stakeholders in other profession to promote information literacy so that libraries & librarians can be part of the solution. We need not make it big time at the start, we can start our DEAR Campaign by reaching out to those dear to us, our little children, the children in our neighborhood or subdivision, then the children in the public schools within the area or perhaps even within our own very workplace so that in turn, fellow employees can start with their own family circle, friends and community and eventually, we all have turned the whole country into an information literate world.

We encourage colleagues to go out of their comfort zones, of being generally reactive in rendering library services to their respective communities. Let’s partnered and joined hands with teachers, parents, book authors, community leaders, school administrators and other stakeholders in information literacy drive in promoting the love for reading and caring for the books as an initial undertaking. (RBManlangit)

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