guidelines for improving reference services at rubaga girl’s school library

Description

A was carried out to comeup withguidelines for improving reference services for Rubaga Girl’s School (RGS) Library. The study objectives were to: establish the current status of reference services that are provided at Rubaga Girls School Library, find out how the various reference services atRubaga Girls School Library are managed, identify the challenges in offering reference services atRubaga Girls School Library and to propose a set of guidelines for providing of reference services at Rubaga Girls School Library. The study adopted a case study research design.The study purposively selected 2 librarians and 2 teachers and randomly sampled the 76 students who participated in the study. Questionnaires, interviews and observation methods were used to collect the data for the study. Thereference services activities included orientation to the library users through tours, referral to information centers that have services, assistance in finding the answer to specific reference services, guidance on how to use the information resources, and online search services. The methods adopted for offering reference services included; using face to face interactions, using telephones, using social media, and library visits. The study also revealed the challenges in reference services and these were; fewer computers, unawareness about the existing sources of information, unreliable electricity, inadequate space for storage of reference collection, inadequate support staff, and lack of written policy. The guidelines form improving reference services included; training on the use of computers, availing up to date reference sources in the library and developing the guidelines for effective provision of reference services in the school library. The study concluded that there was a need to develop guidelines for improving reference services at Rubaga Girls School. The study recommended the implementation of the proposed guidelines for improving reference services for Rubaga Girl’s School (RGS) Library.