Libraries give children access to reading materials that will expand their minds and enrich their education.
Educational resources in Ghana are scarce. The government rarely has the funds to provide schools with the needed teachers, classrooms, and textbooks. Additional materials that will enhance learning experiences are simply not available–especially in the rural areas. Families are unable to afford the purchase of additional reading materials. Lack of access to reading materials contributes to the existing literacy discrepancy in Ghana.
This is why Empower Playgrounds has partnered with the African Library Project to begin adding libraries to each of our schools. We feel this is a natural progression of our project with our mission to provide Play. Light. and Learning to children. Providing access to reading materials will increase their learning and provide them with more materials to use with their lanterns while they study in the evening.
As of Dec. 2018, Empower Playgrounds has installed 10 school libraries expanding current schools resources to include shelves, tables, and 1000 new books.
This is a picture of what many schools call their libraries.
We provided shelves, tables, and 1000 books to fill school libraries.
Ghana’s national curriculum includes a library period each week. But in the rural areas without the resources for a library, teachers cannot take full advantage of this period. Books are simply not available in Ghana and the books that are available are expensive because other companies and organizations have paid to print and/or ship them into the country. This is why Empower Playgrounds has partnered with the organization the African Library Project. They are experts in libraries with over 1900 libraries across the continent of Africa. The African Library Project will help oversee the book drives to get books donated, help cover the expensive cost of shipping, handle shipping logistics, and train our teachers on how to maintain the libraries.
LET’S CLARIFY: HOW THIS HELPS
There is a significant differences between the urban and rural areas of Ghana. Over 70 percent of people in urban areas are literate compared to the rural areas that have a literacy of rate of only 40 percent. By supplying our students with books, we are expanding their knowledge and education, propelling them forward to a future with greater understanding and depth of the world that surrounds them. Books inherently increase the minds of children giving them exposure to things they might not experience otherwise. Increased reading leads to increased reading comprehension. Reading comprehension is a large part of education and will ensure greater success in all their academic endeavors.