Role of community libraries in provision of educational resources for disadvantaged rural schools in Limpopo Province, South Africa

Community libraries play a vital role in the provision of educational resources, particularly in the disadvantaged rural communities where there are shortages of school libraries. However, in South Africa, only a few schools have access to community libraries. In the Limpopo Province, in 2020, the province had a total of 74 community libraries to cover a population of 5.8 million. The shortage of community libraries in the province is mostly felt by both teachers and learners of the schools in disadvantaged rural communities. For teachers and learners from disadvantaged rural schools to access a community library, they must travel more than 30 kilometres. Interestingly, no plan exists to address the challenge of access to educational resources by Hlanganani and Vhembe West circuit schools. The purpose of the study was to investigate the role played by community libraries in providing educational resources in schools in disadvantaged rural communities in Limpopo Province, South Africa. With the availability of community libraries, disadvantaged rural community schools can access adequate educational resources. The study was limited to all teachers of 27 public high schools of Hlanganani, Vhembe West circuits only. To investigate this, both quantitative and qualitative research approaches were employed. Data were collected through self-administered questionnaires from a sample of 480 teachers, and the results were obtained using a simple random sampling technique. A face-to-face interview was also conducted with the senior library manager of Mukondeni Community Library using an interview schedule and purposive sampling.

The findings of the study established that only 3% of the respondents have access to a community library. The findings further revealed that only 25% of schools have library facilities on their premises. The shortage of community and school libraries in the disadvantaged rural schools of Hlanganani, Vhembe West circuits, contributes to inadequate access to educational resources in these schools. The study recommends that mobile library services and resource sharing by the schools be prioritised by the Department of Basic Education (DBE) and the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture (DSAC) in Limpopo Province.