Abstract:
Promoting outreach activities by an academic library is something unique in Sri Lankan context. lt’s even special when such activities are consistently carried out by an academic library for a respectable period. Aiming to serve the underprivileged communities in the vicinity of University of Moratuwa, the Library launched a ”Child Development Programme” at Sumudu Preschool located in the University and ”Reading Camp” at Bodhiraja Vidyalaya - a primary school in Katubedda, Moratuwa. To review the outcome of these outreach activities, a survey was conducted with the teachers and parents of students in these institutions as the tnrpet population. Parents of first year students were omitted since these children did not participate in the programme. Data collection was done by semi structured questionnaire. Fifty four responses were received from parents and eight responses were received from teachers. Majority of the parents and all the teachers had positive attitude about the activities conducted by the Outreach Services Divlsion. They felt the need of continuing such programmes as they had a positive effect on the learning environment of their children. The survey showed that school children expressed their preference towards language learning backed by modern technology while preschoolers preferred aesthetic activities. According to the views of the teachers, these extracurricular activities were able to develop the knowledge and skills Of the students. By observing the behavior, the teachers found out that the students eagerly participated in these activities as were able to move away from the routine learning environment. The teachers and the parents of the pre-school have showed their enthusiasm towards the activities and feel that they contribute towards the progress of children. The results revealed the importance of continuing outreach activities targeting lower age groups of society by an academic library for their future endeavors.
