People's primary school interactive tech library exhibition

Abstract

Libraries have played a fundamental role in nurturing a reading culture. However, with an observable trend of children's and young adult's decreasing interest in reading, the libraries of today do need a fundamental reconceptualization in order to attract visitors. Examples from elsewhere have shown that libraries integrating physical activities, with imaginative spaces and mindful technologies attract and retain crowds. In the absence of such libraries in Namibian schools, we have launched into an interactive tech library design journey with a Namibian government school. Our goal is to design and create technologies and spaces that contribute to an enhanced reading experiences for children. Over a period of four months we have held weekly participatory design meetings with the learners from People's Primary School and co-designed imaginative spaces and technologies. At the conference we will re-create parts of the designed library spaces for visitors to experience the technology prototypes within an artistic set up.