In a unique celebration of libraries and librarians from across the country, about heads of over 100 schools and their library teams came together at the India International Centre on Saturday for the first-ever ‘Bandana Sen library awards’.
The award ceremony organised by ‘OneUp Library, Bookstudio and Learning Lab’ was envisioned in memory of late Bandana Sen, a pioneer in the field of children’s libraries.
“For us this award ceremony is the beginning of a conversation on the need for futuristic libraries, celebrating the unsung champions- the ‘Librarians’ and redefining libraries as ‘exploratorium of learning’” said Dalbir Kaur Madan, Founder, OneUp Library and initiator of the award ceremony. “It was Bandana’s dream that the tribe of libraries and librarians should grow and be brought to the centre stage,” she added.
While Shri Ram School, Vasant Vihar, won the award in the excellence award in the junior school category, The Cathedral and John Connon School, Mumbai, received the award in the senior school category.
“The library at Shri Ram has its tentacles in every nook and corner of its school. We do a lot of programmes through the library like encouraging students to write book reports and try and make it enjoyable for the children,” said Pooja Thakur, principal of Shri Ram School, Vasant Vihar.
The Community Library Project in Sikandarpur in Delhi was awarded a community library grant “for bringing access to books and reading to all irrespective of their social and economic background.”
The Jury Appreciation Awards, for programs specifically centred on reading, literacy and library were presented to three schools — Shiv Nadar School, Noida (Senior Library), Abacus Montessori School, Chennai (Junior Library) and Shikshantar School, Gurugram (Junior Library).
Speaking about the criteria through which the libraries were selected, jury member and director of Pathways School, Noida, Shalini Advani said, “We had several rounds of judging and the criteria included looking at the library as a physical space, the events and activities, and whether the library is integral to the whole education process.”
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