Library: The Forgotten Heaven
The heart of the school is the library, it is the seedbed of all great ideas. Using an imagery:the man will not live without his heart, similarly the school will not function without its heart: The Library. However, this not the case that the modern education set-up. Libraries are just a mere room, a stock pile of old books, a quiet place where one can rest from a busy schedule.
Ogunnyi (2011) noted that the library is an integral part of any educational institution. A well- stocked and organized library is a pride of any educational institution which will definitely help in meeting its teaching, learning, and research needs through availability of contemporary serial publications alongside other library resources. Moreover, the library is not only a depository of books and a place for answers and information that people seek, but also a place for recreation of mind.
The library plays an important role not only in supporting the teaching-learning process by providing instructional materials; it is one of the elements that shows if an institution attains its philosophy, vision, mission and goals. Edoka as cited in Arua & George, (2011) says that a school library is one that is established in a primary or secondary school. Its resources are housed for use by teachers and pupils for learning, recreational activities, personal interest and inter-personal relationships of children in school. The range of information resources is necessary to enable the school library fulfill its functions among which are systematically provide information resources required for the school’s educational programs and to assist in improving and increasing the reading skills and learning habits of students.
In the Philippines, public libraries are not a priority of the government ( Carbonero, 2008). Totanes (2006) stated that, the biggest challenges facing public school libraries in the Philippines today is the thought that there is no money to pay for the improvements that need to be made. Nevertheless, most functional and effective libraries in the Philippines are those within the universities.
If books can only speak and the pages of these books can only speak, everyone will be amazed by the endless knowledge that these books can provide. May the present generation, value wisdom and knowledge more than a brand new phone.