I wonder how my life would have turned out to be if I didn’t know how to read. I have no revelations as to how that would feel, but am certain that it would be a dull and flimsy life.
Today, I can read, and in fact an interesting book is one thing that I cling to dearly; I will fall asleep with it clasped in my hands, it is the first thing I rise up to, and the reason why I will rush home after my day at school. I want to quench my thirst for knowledge, the thirst of what happens next, and the list continues. The credit for it goes to all the dedicated teachers and mentors who inspired in me a love for books.[break]
As I grew up, reading is one skill my mentors invested time in developing in every child. Out of this nourishing background, I would read anything that came my way. Friends and family admired this in me, and the best things that I received when it came to prizes were books. Reading became a part of my repertoire.
This ability is a power within us that unlocks an exciting world. In it, you will discover, explore and create. It ignites a blaze not even the biggest of waters can quench. It is an avenue to relinquish pent up emotions…read a book when all seems to be boiling inside you, and enjoy encounters with great minds who will move you with their well-crafted phrases to a point higher up. Not easily attained idly sulking all by yourself.
With the advancement in technology, one can access any kind of information independently, without having to rely on “teachers” (with their traditional role as bankers of knowledge), to lay the table and serve us their doses.
In my area of jurisdiction, as a VSO Basic Education Volunteer, my role revolves around capacity building for teachers in the classrooms in Myagdi. This is one of the skills that, together with my team, I am dedicated to inculcate amongst learners. Recently, we held a library exercise in a bid to bring students closer to libraries, which for some reason, have been treated in isolation from mainstream teaching. The whole day saw us spend our time rearranging books and room décor to make it more appealing to learners.
To start with, a number of students joined in to help. To them handling the books was a morale booster. At some point, they would take a break to read an interesting story book they landed their hands on, as well as discuss books they found useful with their classroom assignments. The students remained behind after school. This explains just how much zeal and passion they had towards this noble task.
The young ones were not left behind. It was an opportunity to come in and flip through the big picture books. It was such a privilege that when asked to go back for lessons, they argued that they were free.
It is this latent passion and love for books that I would like to tap, together with the teachers. I want to see this passion flourish and extend beyond reading to pass exams to more meaningful, purposeful and enjoyable reading. This will empower students to go that extra mile in search of knowledge, not to mention, creating a hobby and a career for some. It is a life time skill through which one freely interacts with the magical world.
How big a barrier it is when one cannot read….our phones require this skill, and so do reading signposts. To keep up with the demands of the 21st century that require literacy, I might also point out that reading is at the same ranking as with basic needs, i.e. clothing, food and shelter.
Reading is a culture that can be created, starting with the very young during their early years. Give them a picture book, let them flip through the pages; today, they will do it holding it upside down, but as time goes by, with guidance, they learn to handle the books with care and hold them appropriately. Children will start familiarizing themselves with the flow of the stories, characters, and try to create their own. Next thing you know, they are always eager for that story/reading session.
It has been a rewarding experience, for both children and adults I have interacted with as I climbed my career ladder. If I were to narrate remarkable memories, they would be those of the early years of my academic journey, and the people who put in their tireless effort to build me into the reader that I am today. It has happened before and it still can be done, in much better ways.
Let us build a generation of readers; read a bedtime story, give a book as a birthday present, reward an exceptional achiever with a book. This way, we are sending signals of how crucial reading as a skill is in our daily lives. We create an elite society with independent readers culminating in critical thinkers and problem solvers; a much needed asset in the modern day world gradually transforming into a global village.
The Author is a VSO Basic
Education Volunteer, working for DEO Myagdi
Virginia.ngindiru@gmail.com
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