Let the children read, ignorance is an abomination to God – Librarian
President of the Ghana Library Association, Mr. Samuel Bentil Aggrey has underscored the importance of reading for students, saying it is the key to unlocking and realizing the world and everything in it.
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He has therefore challenged students to make reading a daily habit and thus improve their own academic performance.
Mr. Bentil Aggrey was addressing the 17th Graduation, Speech and Prize-giving Day of the Ave Maria School in Accra as the guest speaker, and said it is imperative for all to read as God detests ignorance and considers it an abomination.
The ceremony was interspersed with various cultural, musical and dance performances as well as cadet drills by the students and was under the theme, “Reading: An Enhancement to Holistic Life”.
Mr. Samuel Bentil Aggrey, President of the Ghana Library Association
He said while reading involves mainly the use of the eye, and in the case of the visually impaired by touch, it can also be done with the other senses and remains a good exercise for the brain.
“We must also be able to read things like the weather, clothes, situations either for safety, danger, opportunities and avenues”, he said, adding that developing a holistic life is about making conscious choices for a healthier environment.
“Reading and reading with understanding will enable us make right, informed choices in our lives”, he counselled, and explained that action should follow the reading otherwise the reader gets no benefit.
Mr. Bentil Aggrey also urged teachers to help students to select useful books for reading and thereafter engage them to ensure they understand what they read.
He recalled his own experience while in school with the book ‘Animal Farm’ by George Orwell, which he said a teacher had handed him and his mates to read about animals, only to be tutored later about its true reality.
Benefits of reading
He said there are many benefits in reading and it is a good habit to acquire.
“Literature and research shows that by the age of six, if you have not grasp the skill of reading, one is bound to struggle so parents, teachers, let’s bear this in mind and infuse in them the art of reading before they get to six.”
“It also exercises the brain as you read, it sets you thinking about the theme, the characters involved and that gives work to your brain to do. It also improves your concentration – you sit alone or in a group and you get focused on what is before you.”
Mr. Bentil Aggrey said reading also teaches us the world around us and give us a lot of information, makes us bold rather than proud, it cures ignorance, makes the reader creative by improving the imagination, helps develop empathy with the author and also makes the reader better in all courses and subjects.
“It is also a great sense of entertainment and as you read, you cannot put the book down… and it also has a health effect as it relaxes the body and calms the mind and nerves”, he said.
Caution
Mr. Bentil Aggrey cautioned however, that reading should be handled appropriately in order to derive the good benefits, saying fictional books must be understood in their context to avoid creating utopian desires.
Reading materials should also be appropriate for the level of the reader, neither above nor below.
He called for adequate stocking of libraries with varieties of reading materials and the provision of a serene atmosphere as well as friendly and professional staff to help users of libraries realise the best from their engagements.
Josephine, Benjamin and Mimi bearing their prizes shortly after they were presented with them
Graduating students
Master Benjamin Nketsiah Quansah, 15, was adjudged the overall best student in JHS 3, emerging the best in ICT, Science and Pre-Technical Skills.
Two other students also won prizes in three subjects each, with Miss Josephine Akuamoah picking the best in English, Maths, and Twi while Miss Mimi Kumwa-Akyenba was the best in RME, French and Home Economics.
Girls generally outperformed their male counterparts in the competitive academic works, a trend which ran through the various classes.
No ‘Kumkum Bagyia’
The Headmistress, Mrs. Florence Agordjor, said the school presented 84 students for the 2017 Basic Education Certificate Examination and was hopeful, as always, that they would do excellently well.
She counseled parents to discourage students from spending their precious time before TV sets watching movies such as “kumkum bagyia”, “ask God for forgiveness, not me” and rather help them with their homework and also encourage them to read more useful books for vocabulary.
Mrs Agordjor reminded the graduating students that they had only completed the first rung in their academic pursuits and should work even harder in the years ahead while denying themselves any deceptive pleasures in their quest to build hopeful, more enduring futures for themselves.
She also appealed to parents and guardians to pay school fees on schedule and present students on time so they can enjoy lessons to the fullest.
