CITY FILES
Lincoln Corner at Liaquat Memorial Library reminded me of The Great Good Place - a book I was recommended to read at my first job in a school. Though I didn’t move beyond the first chapter, the author’s idea of creating a “third place” (a space outside home and work where people can engage in interactive learning and develop social bonds) stuck in my mind. Third place sounded idealistic at that time because all I could think of was a local library in my neighbourhood. A creepy building, a musty scent in the air, messed up book shelves, the ghost librarian, and the zombie staff made it a perfect set of a horror movie.
With this reminder, I realized how often we take for granted the incredible power that comes with being able to read and write and what doors of learning a library opens.
We must transform our public libraries that have been neglected for a long time. So what about taking some inspiration from Lincoln Corner? After all, we all know that libraries change lives.
Faryal Najeeb, the coordinator at Lincoln Corner in Karachi tells Us about what makes this corner an exciting place to learn, grow and connect.
About Lincoln Corner
With 18 spots in universities, public libraries and cultural centers in Pakistan, Lincoln Corners are set up all around the world to promote cultural exchange between America and citizens of other countries.
We call them Information Resource Centers because we believe libraries are more than just quiet places to store books and read; they should also be places where healthy interaction and exchange of culture take place. That’s why we are always organizing programmes, panel discussions, workshops, and competitions to keep visitors engaged.
It is quite interesting to see that through just a mere exchange of ideas strangers become friends. Like-minded people interact and at the same time learn to respect each other opinions.
Facilities
We have an up to date collection of American books on a variety of subjects and magazines that you would not easily find in bookshops. Magazines like Economist, Forbes, Times Magazine, The Oprah Magazine are always on the stand.
You can also find quality guide books for tests like TOEFL, GRE, SAT, etc.
Digital learning
Libraries around the world are embracing modern technology; the worth of actual books can’t be denied but we also know that in today’s world we can’t do without technology. If we learn to use technology constructively, we can really make progress. We are happy that laptops and iPads can be used by anyone who visits the Corner. The basic idea was to have a digital library because a lot can be explored when materials and resources are in an electronic format.
Along with access to eLibraryUSA, students coming to Lincoln Corner can easily look for research papers on some of the most credible online journal platforms like JSTOR and LexisNexis. It’s like accessing subscription-based resources that Google can’t offer.
Learning model
Whatever learning activities we have here are based around STEM education - a popular method of learning in libraries. In Pakistan, STEM education isn’t popular and few organizations like Ejaad Tech uses it for promoting collaborative learning.
We also want to introduce the concept of maker spaces by turning our library into a space where people can gather to get creative with projects, invent new things. You just give students such spaces and see how inventive they can get with limited resources.
During the National Library Week in April, we invited librarians from various schools in the city and introduced them to the concept of maker spaces. We have interactive sessions where everybody agreed that a library should be more than just a reading room and we can’t keep hushing students all the time. We can neither expect students to sit still nor encourage rote learning. When they will open books, they will need to discuss things with others. At Lincoln Corner, we encourage visitors to engage in meaningful communication for education purposes.
Global interaction
We aren’t working in isolation! We also make sure to connect with people from other countries. Recently we had this event “Food beyond border” for which we had a video conference with different chefs in Hyderabad, India. Here we invited Chef Shahi and food blogger Farah Kamal to head the discussion. They had a delightful conversation on Pakistani and Indian food industry. Global interaction is definitely on the list.
There are no rules
Lincoln Corner isn’t a conventional library so nobody is going to throw you out of the library if you make noise or ask you to stop using the internet because you are checking your Facebook feed.
And no boring membership forms to fill; you can just walk in anytime!
Who visits the Corner?
It is situated in the Central District which makes it easy for residents from adjacent areas to come regularly. Most visitors fall into the 18-35 age group and are from all socio-economic backgrounds. Students usually come for self study, or for using internet.
Friends of Corner
We run a six-month volunteer programme at Lincoln Corner. In the programme, we designate volunteers to do things they are good at. If they are into photography, they can be photographers at our events; they can be videographers, content developers, event managers or they can serve Lincoln Corner in any capacity they like. Volunteers have to work for at least 100 hours to successfully complete the programme.
Volunteerism should be promoted in our country. With volunteer work on your resume, you can outshine at a job interview and the skills you acquire can really help you perform well in a professional setting.
To encourage students to volunteer, we try to keep a friendly atmosphere. We don’t push anyone to do anything against their will.
All that matters is learning! We have seen students coming with minimum communicative competence and when they leave they have become such good communicators. They are able to organize events on their own and some even get jobs in Public Relations.
We also provide trainings to our volunteers and arrange special workshops where they learn new things and perfect themselves.
Lincoln Corner, Islamabad was run by volunteers for a couple of months when the coordinator left. Everybody was surprised at how well it was run! Later, when the position for coordinator was opened, one of the volunteers was selected for the position.
Challenges
Since women empowerment is one of the goals of Lincoln Corner, we really look forward to women’s participation in the activities at the Corner. But unfortunately, only a few girls show up; they just prefer sitting in a separate reading room at the library which is usually crammed. We want them to be active members of Lincoln Corner.
Other major concern is exploitation of resources. People think free stuff can be used in any way so they don’t care if they are mishandling laptops, books and furniture. Resources are valuable even if get them for free.