As India's first award for librarians and school heads takes shape, we visit four Mumbai schools with well-curated libraries.
Denis Dabre of St Anne's High School and Junior College, Malad. Pic/Satej Shinde
In a school in Matunga, a teen is looking for Alaska. No, not the American state; it's a John Green book he is referring to. After spending a minute browsing the library catalogue on the computer, he finds it. And that's what the Bandana Sen Library Award strives to celebrate — the effort of the school in building a reading culture. Constituted by Delhi-based One Up Library, Bookstudio and Learning Lab, the award is named after the late eminent librarian. So, we dropped by four city schools where the library isn't just a room with books.
Finding satisfaction
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Denis Dabre has been a librarian at Malad's St Anne's High School for 19 years. So, when asked what keeps him going, he replies, "When a student has a query and I can pull a book out and show them the exact chapter where the answer lies, I find satisfaction knowing they are satisfied." Although one can find anything from a Jane Austen to a Jeffrey Archer in the space, the collection of 7,500 books now solely relies on donations. Dabre elaborates, "I pursued library sciences because a relative told me that there was job security. The government has stopped giving funds for the past 10 years and even filling vacant posts of retired librarians. I also do administrative work along with this. This must change in aided schools."
Arati Sriram of Don Bosco International School. Pic/Atul Kamble
An international edge
Don Bosco International School's library — where Alaska was found — was inaugurated only in 2017 but boasts of a collection of 12,000 titles. These also include Indian publishers like Tara, Pratham and Tulika. Led by Arati Sriram, a librarian with 23 years of experience, students can also browse through Storyweaver — an online platform that offers books in multiple languages — inside the library on desktops. "Since we are starting an IB diploma programme next year, we're in the process of developing a collection of fiction/non-fiction titles for that as well as teacher's resource books," Sriram says.
Kavita Dholakia of The Cathedral & John Connon Junior School, Fort. Pic/Bipin Kokate
The teaching librarian
For Kavita Dholakia, being a teacher-librarian is the need of the hour. At The Cathedral & John Connon Junior School's library, there's a rug laid out with cushions where Dholakia sits with the kids and reads to them. There are ample reading programmes that she has devised including one that's called 10 before 10. "They have to read 10 classic books before they turn 10. They get a badge for that. So, one of them came to me saying, 'Ma'am I just turned 10 yesterday, I still have one classic left'," she laughs. You can also spot titles on gender identity and expression, and racism in both the Indian and international context. As Dholakia says, "Everything is not rosy. They need to know what is happening around the world and what they can do henceforth."
Mallika George and Vaishali Dhawalikar of Gopi Birla Memorial School, Malabar Hill. Pic/Ashish Raje
Taking incentive
The 66-year-old library at Gopi Birla Memorial School in SoBo was renovated three years ago. Their collection comprises over 40,000 books. Librarians Vaishali Dhawalikar and Mallika George, have been helming it for 17 and nine years, respectively. Titles have been segregated according to grades — so, you can find versions of a Shakespearean classic suited for different age groups. "Today, it is better to be a librarian. I remember my teacher would visit the library, pick 10 books and distribute it in class. We didn't get to choose," Dhawalikar recalls, while George mentions how patience is key. "Dealing with children in grades seven and eight is particularly challenging because they become withdrawn — it's a phase," she says. The two also reward voracious readers with books or stationery out of their own money — which goes to show that although it's a task to be a librarian, this isn't just a job.
Dalbir Kaur Madan and Abha Adams
The Bandana Sen Library Awards
Although only ICSE and CBSE schools are allowed to participate in the award, the initiative hopes to create an imprint for others. Schools send applications and the winner will get a cash prize of R50,000. "This will be allotted to the librarian and the school head to invest in the library," Dalbir Kaur Madan of One Up says, while educational consultant Abha Adams, who is on the jury, says that an important factor for her is the sincerity of intent. "It is not a question of resources but the willingness to create [them]," she adds.
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