B@LSH Project: Creating Ubiquitous Reading Environment for Children in Rural China

The Project of Books at Rural Libraries, School Book Corners & Home Bookshelves (B@LSH) is a project of reading promotion for children, initiated by the preparatory team of Non-Government Library Association (NGLA) and co-operated by non-government libraries, schools and families in rural China. The B@LSH Project is aimed at creating a ubiquitous reading environment for children in rural areas, so as to reduce the inequality between cities and villages. The B@LSH Project runs as follows: (1) the NGLA team make contact with a rural non-government library and ask the librarian to select a nearby primary school in need of books;(2) the NGLA team donate high-quality children's books and bookshelves to the library and school respectively; (3) after one year's putting into service of school book corners, 10-20 students are selected by the local school and library as outstanding young readers, to each of whom the NGLA team reward the title of “Reading Star” and a small home bookshelf with 20-30 books. Based on seven years' practical experience and field investigation, this paper introduces the overview, operation details, implications and inspirations of the B@LSH Project, and also discusses how non-government libraries establish dialogues and cooperation with schools and families to create a reading environment for enhancing the reading literacy process of children in rural areas. It is hoped to provide a new way to develop rural children's reading promotion relying on non-government sectors, to identify the role played by non-government libraries in rural cultural construction in developing countries and to explore the new possibility of cooperation between libraries, schools and families.