What is a public library and their characteristics and functions
Dr.
Ranganathan defines Public Library states that "Public Libraries are those
which are established by society, for the society itself and provide every
citizen of the society a favorable opportunity to get education itself.
The Public Library is the Library "established by the public, supported and managed by
the public and used means get education by the public".
Public
libraries are libraries serving the public. They freely engage in service of
all sections of society at all times without discrimination.
Public Library is known
by its definition that its operation is run by public funds and it is run by
the provincial and national governments. The notion of the public library is a
product of democratic governance.
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| Public Library |
Characteristics of Public Libraries
1. They are
run by public funds.
2. They are
open to all the people of the society freely without any discrimination of
caste, class, and gender.
3. They
provide free service to their users (readers).
4. They act
as supporting centers of educational institutions.
5. They
themselves are important centers of education.
Functions of Public Libraries
In public
libraries the following tasks are done for users:
1. Access to
tools of information and education - Access to tools of information and
education - The primary function of public libraries is the means of
information and education literature (tools such as books, magazines, etc.) for
meeting the information needs of local people. Compile and administer so that
users can access these tools easily.
These libraries
provide direct, easy, and independent access to readers for use by arranging
the study material of their collections by applying new methods in cataloging,
classification indexing, and documentation work and services.
2. Promotion
of Formal Self Education - Public libraries are an institution on which older
people depend more on their education. Public libraries provide study material
to increase the intelligence, knowledge, and value of such persons.
As an
example, we can see that through our own education, our farmers can achieve
mastery in their work related to agriculture, etc., which proves that the
library, especially the public library, will play an active role in the form of
formal self-education. Huh.
3. Progress
in Cultural and Social Activities - Any society is made up of individuals consisting of people
related to many languages, religions, occupations and work, and many types of
social and cultural groups are seen.
Public
libraries provide useful textual material to all these groups for conducting
their activities and at the same time, they also display films or dramas, etc.
from their level and also arrange a reading room for cultural and social
groups.
Thus public
libraries play their important role in cultural and social activities.
4.
Preservation of the Material - An essential function of public libraries is to
identify and analyze the cultural material located in their area.
This type of
material may contain instruments of art, painting, literary works or music,
etc. These materials are the past material of the local people, which symbolize
the self-respect and achievements of the individuals. The public library
searches for them and collects them at their place. Separate departments are
set up in public libraries for these goods and works in countries like America
and New Zealand.
Thus we see
that any citizen using the material stored in public libraries is helpful in
his personal progress as well as in the progress of his society, state, and
country.
To Know More About Library Science Click on the Link Given Below
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1. Library and Society
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2. Library Management
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3. Library Cataloging
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4. Library Classification
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5. Information Source
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6. MCQs on Library Science
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