Break and lunchtime at KCC Primary School in Kamwokya bring an interesting scene as excited pupils stream into the school library, eager to borrow a book, read a story, or revise their lessons, even though the library has far too few books to meet their demand. The room, roughly 30 by 12 feet on the first floor of one of the school buildings, has no polished tables or new shelves.
Pupils simply find space wherever they can. Most sit cross-legged on the floor, others lean softly against the walls, turning pages with care under the watchful eye of the librarian. Alex Batibuka, a Primary Seven pupil, has been part of this daily ritual since Primary Three. During break time, he makes his way to the library to borrow a storybook or revisit a lesson from class.
“The books are good. You get to understand many things from the stories,” he says, carefully flipping through a worn-out storybook. “Even the pupils’ books help us when we are revising.” Batibuka’s enthusiasm reflects exactly what the school hopes to achieve. Yet keeping the library functional demands constant creativity and compromise.
Rose Aduwet, the school librarian, notes that many children like to attend the library, but the place is currently constrained in serving the 2300 learners in the school. She notes that, for instance, the shelves hold only a modest collection of books. “The books we have here, compared to the pupil and staff population, are only a drop in the ocean. But even what we have, most of them are old and torn. Some pages are loose, others are barely holding together, yet we still use them because they are all we have,” Aduwet adds.
The librarian says government book deliveries are both infrequent and inadequate, leaving the school heavily reliant on donations from well-wishers such as Kitante Lions Club and Watoto Church to stock its library. She adds that over the past few years, the school has received only a handful of textbooks from Kampala Capital City Authority.
A look around the library shelves reflects the shortage. A few teachers’ guides and pupils’ textbooks are neatly arranged, but they are far too few for the school’s large enrolment. Many of the books are old, worn out and torn from years of use. Despite their condition, they remain the only learning materials available to many pupils.
Joseph Mubedde, a teacher of English who also oversees the school library, says that even the few books available, some of them are of little use to most pupils. He notes that many should be for readers far beyond primary school level, while others tell stories and describe places unfamiliar to Ugandan children because they were donated from overseas.
Mubedde adds that the school once considered donating the unsuitable books to nearby secondary schools, where they would be more useful. The idea never materialized because of the logistical challenges involved, and the books have remained in the library.
In one corner of the room, stacks of dusty books sit untouched. Their titles include advanced algebra, geography and other subjects intended for older learners, a reminder that having books on the shelves does not always mean pupils have access to materials they can read and understand.
The challenges do not end there. There is no dedicated reading space, forcing pupils to sit on the floor during break and lunch as they immerse themselves in books. Even so, the library opens every school day, with a librarian ensuring that learners have access to the few resources available.
Mubedde says that with the limited space, the school has now decided to have some library time allocated to learners, but they read from their respective classes. In this, a teacher picks the books from the library and takes them to the class for learners to read.
The librarian says they also have a book lending programme, mainly for upper primary pupils. Here, a learner signs for a book and is allowed to keep it for several days, either for reading at school or at home. The arrangement, though, comes with its own challenges. Some pupils lose the books, while others fail to return them, steadily reducing the school’s already limited collection.
“At the same time, there is no point in keeping the books locked away where no one uses them,” the librarian says. “We have introduced some screening before lending books, but we still lose a few.” KCC Primary School’s determination to sustain a reading culture stands in stark contrast to the situation in many public schools where books remain locked in stores or gather dust on shelves because there are no functional libraries or organised reading programmes.
Francis Katabira, the headteacher, acknowledges that keeping books under lock and key is far from ideal but says the school has had to strike a balance between protecting the few resources it has and making them available to learners. Katabira adds that despite the shortages and other challenges, the school is determined to keep its modest library operating as it searches for long-term solutions.
“We are fortunate that the donors who built the school included a room for a library. Many schools do not even have that space, and they also donated the first collection of books,” the headteacher says. “Our challenge now is to keep the library functional and ensure it continues to serve both learners and teachers.”
For many learners, the library remains one of the few places where they can read beyond the classroom.
Alex Batimpa, a Primary Seven pupil, says the library has improved his reading skills and academic performance. He adds that the shortage of books often forces several pupils to share a single copy, making research and revision difficult. “We enjoy reading in the library because it helps us understand our lessons better. But sometimes we fail to find the books we need because there are very few copies,” he says.
Another learner, Martha Nabayiga, says the library offers a quiet space for study, but its collection no longer meets learners’ needs. “The library is important to us, but we need more books, especially those that match what we are learning in class,” she says.
Filbert Baguma, Secretary General of the Uganda National Teachers’ Union (UNATU), says the shortage of books and the struggle to maintain functional school libraries is a nationwide problem. He commended schools such as KCC Primary School that are trying to keep their libraries operational despite limited resources. “It is encouraging to see what some schools are doing to keep their libraries open, but much more needs to be done to ensure every learner has equal access to a functional library,” he says.
Drawing on visits to schools across the country, Baguma says many so-called libraries are little more than piles of books stored in classrooms or tucked away in a corner of the headteacher’s office. He notes that many schools first need proper library infrastructure, shelves, trained personnel to manage them, and enough books to serve learners.
Baguma also calls for a shift in government policy on school libraries. He says book provision should go beyond supplying subject textbooks to include storybooks, reference materials, and other age-appropriate reading resources that help learners develop a reading culture-URN. Give us feedback on this story through our email: kamwokyatimes@gmail.com
