by Riko Vinluan
This update on Library Hub was provided by the author upon my request.
The Naga Library Hub is working now. Public school libraries have adopted our information system, but I don't know if the system is working at the library level because there is a lack of trained IT staff in DepEd divisions. We are circulating books, but I am very strict with the divisions, especially regarding the circulation of books. I set up a reading program, a concrete project to ensure that the books being circulated will be used in the classroom.
Problems cropped up, however, when the books were distributed to the schools. There were teacher-librarians who, perhaps due to overloading, did not really distribute the books in their schools. The books stayed in their classrooms, and were underutilized. So what I am doing right now is continuing to monitor the use of the books. I believe this is the opportunity to consider the hiring of professional librarians for the public schools.
With the release of funding from the World Bank intended for the Library Hubs, public officials in different parts of the country have begun extolling the virtues of the project. Here's hoping it will not be politicized and that its objective of promoting the use of reading and making every child a reader will be achieved.
