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BEGIN AT THE BEGINNING:
THE “EVERY BABY A BOOK” PROGRAM”
Shukriah Binti Hj. Yon
The paper present at TK Conference on Reading 2012
Meeting Room 1-2, Queen Sirikit National Convention Center, Bangkok
July 12-13, 2012
BEGIN AT THE BEGINNING:
THE “EVERY BABY A BOOK” PROGRAM”
Shukriah Binti Hj. Yon1
Abstract
The program “Every Baby A Book” is developed and is being implemented by
Penang Public Library Corporation (PPLC) Malaysia. The target group for this program are
babies and the program involves the parents / caregivers of babies. The program was
launched nationwide on 27 July 2007 by the Minister, Ministry of Women, Family and
Community Development, Malaysia. The paper will talk about the rationale behind the
program, how it was developed and how it is being used as a basis of a campaign to
educate the public about the value of interacting with babies through reading. The core
messages that the program hopes to convey will be discussed. The campaign has several
aims and these will be highlighted.
The paper will also describe all the features of the program the basis of which is an
attractive, colourful, non-toxic cloth book with local content which was crafted by the
Library staff and printed locally. The challenges faced in carrying out the program which
involves working with several agencies from the private and public sector - government
hospitals/clinics and related governmental organisations and non-governmental
organizations, will also be highlighted. The impact of the program is an important indicator
of its effectiveness and the methods of measuring the success of the program will be
touched on.
1Director, Penang Public Library Corporation,
JKR 2118, Jalan Perpustakaan,Seberang Jaya, 13700, Penang,MALAYSIA
Tel: 604-397771058; 604-3979949 H/P: 6019-4714247
Email: [email protected]
1
INTRODUCTION
The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCROC) protects and
promotes the rights of children to special care
The Convention also acknowledges the primary roles of the parents and family and
recognises that a child should grow up surrounded by them and in an atmosphere of
happiness, love and understanding that will allow for the full development of the child’s
. In addition the state is given responsibility to ensure that the child “has access
and there are more brain cells during these
Babies have unlimited learning potential and a tremendous capacity to learn.
• Reading provides the context during which this learning occurs.
to their education from their parents/caregivers
ronments for this group.
and protection “before as well as after birth’.
personality
to information and material ... especially those aimed at the promotion of moral well-being,
physical and mental health” by encouraging “the production and dissemination of
children’s books.” The program “Every Baby A Book” is a positive action program by the
State, through the Penang Public Library Corporation (PPLC) and represents an expression of
the principles and philosophy that is enshrined in the UNCROC.
OBJECTIVES
The early years of a child’s life is a period during which we see phenomenal changes.
Babies' brains develop at an astonishing rate
early years than in any other time in a life of a human being. The learning potential of a
child at this stage is unlimited and magical and the more stimulation the child receives, the
more the brain grows. However optimal development depends on the experiences that the
caregiver provides them. Reading is one of the experiences that influences the way the
brain develops. The main objective of the program is to educate the public about the value
of interacting with babies through reading. The messages that are conveyed to the
participants of this program are that
•
• This group needs more attention
• Libraries with children collections provide suitable envi
2
The anticipated outcomes of the program are
• An increasing awareness of the roles of libraries with children collections
• Increase in membership through registration at birth, and the increase in usage of the
Penang Public Library
• Increase in parental/caregiver understanding of the development of babies and
young children and their capacity for learning
OUR PARTNERS
The number of births recorded in Penang state in the last three years are as follows:
2005 2006 2007
21,399 20,557 20,907
Source: Penang State Health Department
In order to ensure that as many parents of these babies as possible are made aware
of this program, PPLC works with many partners. The main partner is the Ministry of
Women, Family and Community Development, Malaysia and its agency the National
Population and Family Development Board which has a network of 14 State offices and 49
State and district clinics. The Library also works with the state’s government hospitals, 62
rural clinics, 26 health centres and 6 Mother and Child clinics. The program is also
implemented in private hospitals, as about one third of the babies born in the state are
eeding
s also on our partner
carry
delivered at private hospitals. Other governmental departments that are contacted include
the National Births and Deaths Registration Department. The World Alliance for Breastf
Action (WABA) is a Penang-based non-governmental organization that i
list.
PPLC staffs make regular visits to these places to promote the program, and
out training sessions. Developing relationships with our partners is an ongoing process. Staffs
3
have to keep in constant contact them to be informed of any opportunities that arise from
roviding the
The basic resource of the “Every Baby A Book” program is an attractive cloth book
ublished by PPLC itself.
The title is ambitious as the intention is to get the parents/caregivers of every baby
born in the state of Penang to be exposed to this program and that no baby should be left
out. As a result, e y will hav k. However mplementing, the program
Book” for a particular street, “Every
aby A Book” for a particular village, “Every Baby A Book” for a particular organization.
time to time. Every one of our partners are very cooperative. It appears that p
best for babies and children is high on all their agendas. Besides this every time PPLC goes
on a road show there will an exhibition of the “Every baby A Book” program.
THE BOOK
p
The Title
very bab e a boo when i
can be managed at the micro level e.g. “Every Baby A
B
The Structure
The physical structure of the book is that of the traditional print format with cover,
title page, contents page and numbered pages. It is important to introduce the child to this
structure as the books that a young child will be exposed to as this early age are in a similar
linear format. Cloth was chosen as the medium as it is environmentally friendly, it is pliable
but strong, it has a soft texture, it will not pose any danger if the baby puts the book in the
mouth, and it can be easily washed the normal way. The cloth book allows the baby to use
its senses of vision, touch, taste and smell. Parents are asked to embroider the child’s
name on the cover of the child’s copy of the book.
4
The Contents
The contents of the wordless picture book were determined by the staff of the
Library and the following were taken into account:
• Images will have be big and colorful
• would have to be of objects that are familiar in a child’s surroundings
•
ects that are “Malaysian” will be included
• Inclusion of concepts that are critical to communication development such as the
abet and numbers
•
ic in
the Library’s collection
• An image of self
• A coconut tree as this is one of the most common and useful trees in Malaysia
They
They would be culturally meaningful
• Only images of obj
alph
Object that are common in rural areas of Malaysia
• Image of natural as opposed to man-made objects
• Images should reflect good values e.g. healthy foods
• The images should be of objects that had many other books on the same top
Several discussions were held on the contents and the final images included in the
book were:
• The alphabet in upper and lower case displayed according to the script as used by
the Ministry of Education Malaysia in primary schools
• The numbers 1-10 displayed according to the script as used by the Ministry of
Education Malaysia in primary schools
• Eight common shapes in solid colours
5
• Local fruits – the banana which is a cheap and easily available fruit, full of nutrients,
and which are cheap and also an important
uck, a cockerel and a cow
r the usage of which is
ntion to create awareness among
ery profound effect on the well
ymate.
to the images as well as suggestions for
activities that will make the interaction between the parents/caregivers and the child a fun
xperience every time the book is used.
about the age of 7, and according to the pace of the maturity of the child.
ng (“Read yourself – be good role model”,
g to babies (“Spend time reading together with your baby every
and the king of fruits, the durian
• The national flower, the hibiscus
• Fishes that are endemic in Malaysia
source of protein in the local diet
• Animals that included a cat, a dog, a d
• And finally, the man-made machine, the ubiquitous compute
becoming a part of our daily routine
In selecting the images it was also the unseen inte
parents of the importance of exposing young children to nature. A growing body of
literature illustrates that the natural environment has a v
being of children and that Mother Nature is a child’s best pla
The book has Parents Guide text incorporated into it as “talking points”. These
“talking points” provide information related
and enjoyable e
The contents of the book can be used by the parents from the time the baby is
born up till
In addition, PPLC has published a booklet for parents/caregivers which is distributed
together with the cloth book. The booklet is entitled “A Smart Investment: Time for
Reading” and contains “bite-size”
• Messages for parents related to readi
“Reading can be done anywhere”),
• Advice on readin
day”, “Interact with your baby through daily activities such as during bath time and
when changing diapers”)
6
• Advice on reading to toddlers (“Put your child on your lap, be sure the child can
see the picture,” “Read at the child’s pace”)
the child to read”, “Physical activities are also
RAINING
s contents
•
•
ung children
• Reading reminders(“Do not force
important for your child and contribute to learning and overall development”)
All these messages do not involve the parents spending any money – just their time.
The contents of the cloth both and booklet are in English and Bahasa Malaysia.
T
Training is carried out at two levels:
Train the Trainers
This training is conducted for the staff of the Library and the staff of our program
partners. The training is carried out in a formal environment. A printed module is given to
every participant during the training. The topics covered include:
• Detailed information about the cloth book and it
Bibliographic information of books in the Penang Public Library on topics in the cloth
book
The development of the baby from conception till birth
• The milestones in the development of babies and toddlers
• Reading process for babies
• Selection of books for babies and yo
• Information on the Penang Public Library services, particularly its collections and
services related to children.
7
The training is a 2 day session and at the end of it every trainer is expected to make
a presentation on how they would promote the program in their organization.
Training the Parents/Caregivers
These sessions are carried at various locations and the group can range from more
an twenty to individual parents. The parents/ caregivers will be given information on how
view of the
ibrary services and are asked to register themselves and the baby as members. This
arried out at various locations including the Library, hospitals and even in homes
ND GLOBAL
in Durban. There were 80
poster presentations on display during the conference. The program is also listed in the
site of the IFLA Libraries
Women, Family and Community Development,
ia. The public Libraries in Kedah, Perlis, Selangor, Malacca , Sabah and Sarawak have
rs.
collected and analysed .
th
to use the cloth book, and tips on reading, and also information on how to play their role in
creating readers. During these sessions participants are provided with an over
L
training is c
for Stay-at-home parents.
GOING NATIONAL A
A Poster presentation on the program was judged 2nd runner-up in the poster
presentations competition during the 2007 International Federation of Library Associations
and Institutions (IFLA) World Library and Information Conference
New and Best Practices from all over the world section of the web
for Children and Young Adults Section. In Malaysia the program was launched nation-wide
in July 2007 by the Minister, Ministry of
Malays
also taken up the program and are in various stages of implementing it. It is our hope that
this is the beginning of our efforts towards creating a nation of reade
IMPACT OF THE PROGRAM
The success of any program is gauged by the objectives attained. Statistics on the
penetration rate of this program as well as the increase in the membership are being
8
Monitoring Report
On January 2008, a pilot project on 'Every Baby A Book' was launched. PPLC
onducted a survey to ascertain the suitable families. Certain criteria was set. The families
years and a family income not more than RM1,000.00 a
underprivileged families lives here. Monitoring was done by staff
f village libraries nearby. Every month the staff sends the report to the officers in charge of
w the baby reacted to the cloth book and what type of
c
must at least have a baby age 2
month. The level of the parent's education was also taken into consideration. About 250
forms were distributed through the village libraries.
Method of monitoring
About 240 forms came back after a week. A selection was made and 58 families
were chosen to undergo the project. The participants were selected from the Province
Wellesley District as more
o
every district. Reports was on ho
books the parents borrowed, which should reflect the contents of the cloth book.
The Report
a. The reaction
During the monitoring session, the staff reported that the babies took real
interest in the cloth book. They touched, hug and even chewed the book. The cloth book
became their best friend around. The mother also complaint that they need to wash it
often, which is a compliment to us as it showed that the book was a success with the
babies.
For the toddler, we found that they can relate with the pictures in the book
to the real thing like the cat and they even made meowing sound of the cat. They were
very interested in the striking colors used in the cloth book.
ew up, they became less interested in the cloth book. Instead As the child gr
they were more interested in the books in the library and they always come to the library to
borrow books.
9
b. The borrowing
re related to the content of the cloth
ook, like animals, colors or alphabets, as the cloth book use to attract them to find more
s highlighted in the book. Using the contents of the book, the
he project were enthusiastic about registering all their
families to use the cloth book
milies remain as the other 4 families moved out of Penang. Some of these
milies could no longer come to the village libraries because they are house bound due to
In 2008, from the 58 families that were monitored about 85 library materials
were borrowed by the child and their families. While in 2009, the borrowing increased to
572. In 2010, about 479 library materials were borrowed, and 408 were borrowed in 2011. In
2012, until June, about 201 library materials were borrowed.
Most of the library materials borrowed by them we
b
information about thing
parents were able to communicate with the children. They were guided using the book and
spending time with the children, reading and communicating. Good literacy skills were
introduced to the parents so that they intend will understand the excitement of discovering
knowledge and works of the imagination. This program was able to teach the parents and
children how to make the best use of the library and how to develop skills in the use of
books and reading.
c. The Library Membership
We noted that most of the family members who were registered as library
members during the first two years of t
family members as they found out that they could borrow more if the whole family
became library members. From the 58 families who received the free cloth book, about
148 new library members were registered. They included the parents and also the baby's
siblings.
Challenges
The Penang Library made an effort to approach 58
and monitoring was done for 2 years. During that time efforts were made by the village
library staffs to train the parents and their babies on literacy skills and motivate them on
becoming library members. We could not retain the 58 families because by the end of 2
years only 54 fa
fa
10
11
commitments at home. Since they are already library members the staff brought the library
books to them so as to continue the reading interest of the children.
Closing
The cloth book is a successful story to initiate the reading habits since early
childhood. Reports showed that the child who was exposed to the book from babies tend
rvice : IFLA/UNESCO guidelines for development/
terna Associations and Institutions). Munchen : Saur,
to love books and reading. In rural areas especially, the need to provide free cloth book was
rather significant. PPLC through village libraries are always ready to help the parents to instill
the love of reading to their child. Hopefully in the future, with sponsorship, all new born
babies in Penang can get the cloth book for free as a gift to newborn.
References
The public library se
(In tional Federation of Library
2001
United Nations General Assembly (1989), Convention on the Rights of the Child viewed 12
June 2008, <http://www.un.org/documents/ga/res/44/a44r025.htm>