Functions of the ELS

Provide processed, catalogued and classified materials to all Namibian government school libraries; Organize sessions which highlight reading promotion activities by identifying and inviting motivational speakers;

Basic Information Science (BIS)

BIS is a non-promotional school subject which provides the opportunity for learners to acquire
information skills. ELS promotes the subject by developing a learner-centered, resource
based syllabus in conjunction with NIED.

The Importance of BIS

• Aims at equipping learners with the knowledge and skills to use information;
• Aims to develop learner’s understanding of the world of information;
• BIS is the foundation of all teaching and learning.

UNESCO/IFLA SCHOOL LIBRARY MANIFESTO

The school library provides information and ideas that are fundamental to functioning successfully in today’s information and knowledge-based society. The school library equips students with life-long learning skills and develops the imagination, enabling them to live as responsible citizens.

The school library offers learning services, books and resources that enable all members of the school community to become critical thinkers and effective users of information in all formats and media. School Libraries link to the wider library and information network in accord with the principles in the UNESCO Public Library Manifesto. The library staff supports the use of books and other information sources, ranging from the fictional to the documentary, from print to electronic, both on-site and remote. The materials complement and enrich textbooks, teaching materials and methodologies.

The school library is integral to the educational process. The following are essential to the development of literacy, information literacy, teaching, learning and culture and are core school library services:
• supporting and enhancing educational goals as outlined
in the school’s mission and curriculum;
• developing and sustaining in children the habit and
enjoyment of reading and learning, and the use of libraries
throughout their lives;
• offering opportunities for experiences in creating
and using information for knowledge, understanding,
imagination and enjoyment;

The Future of School Libraries in Namibia

NLAS and the National Institute for Educational Development (NIED) have embarked on establishing a new curriculum merging the subjects BIS with Computer Studies in order to encompass media and information literacy. The aim is to offer teachers and learners multiple ways to teaching and learning through the use of an extensive range of verbal, audio-visual, visual and technological media so as to promote information literacy.