Meet KEY

KEY’s mission is to drive meaningful change in Kenya’s education system by providing fully functioning school libraries in Kenya. Our vision is that every school-aged child has access to the resources of a library because it is key to a child’s progress and potential, regardless of the child’s background. We achieve our mission and vision by:

The school library is one of the best options for addressing the civil rights of our students — Pew Research Center

KEY builds libraries

To date, KEY has built 45 libraries — 43 spread across Kenya major regional blocs and one each in Tanzania and Ghana. But this Canadian registered charity does more than build libraries. We also establish programs and management practices that keep libraries sustainable and relevant, and get students and teachers excited about going to the library.

The results speak for themselves. KEY libraries have won awards, including first, second and third place at the National Library of the Year awards. But more important, students are thriving in them, winning local and international awards for their writing, reading, debating and science-fair projects. And our interactive whiteboards, computers, games and up-to-date collections of diverse books from major national, regional and international publishers equip teachers with new, innovative ways to teach and better engage with students.

KEY builds democracy

We believe that democracy needs to be practiced to prepare students to participate in a democratic culture. To this end, we encourage the use of our libraries as forums for good governance, student activism, freedom of expression, self-discovery and personal development. Each of our libraries is governed and managed by a library council made up of students, plus a teacher and parent representative. Each library council is mandated in a constitution that integrates the democratic values of rights and choice in the use, governance and management of the library. Before we provide libraries to communities and schools, the KEY Library Constitution must be agreed upon and adopted by school boards and students.

KEY builds change

Our mission at KEY is to drive meaningful change in Kenya’s educational system by providing fully functioning school libraries in Kenya.

KEY ensures that our measures are compatible with national interests and align with the general objectives of Kenya’s Primary and Secondary Education Syllabus, its 2010 Constitution and Vision 2030 development program.

KEY builds teachers

Our interactive whiteboards, computers, games and up-to-date diverse books from major national, regional and international publishers equip teachers with new, innovative ways to teach and better engage with students. Our record strikes a balance between building inspiring school libraries, advocating for them and using them as a practicum for children to learn, apply and practice the skills of a democracy.

KEY builds readers

Studies show that reading for pleasure produces academically superior, emotionally intelligent students¹⁵ – the perfect recipe for a thriving community and an extraordinary country. Reading is also shown to:

The benefits of reading books

Foster critical thinking

Reading literature has been shown in multiple studies to improve critical thinking skills, even when controlling for language proficiency³. Genres of fiction such as fairy tales and fantasy have been shown to help teach children the difference between right and wrong⁴ by tapping into their ability to use critical thinking.
Grow empathy and social skills

Reading fiction has been shown to activate and fortify neural pathways in the brain that help in the understanding of real human emotions, effectively allowing readers of fiction to strengthen their social skills.⁵ This is seen especially with empathy, where multiple studies have shown that reading fiction enhances one’s ability to empathize with others and interpret social cues⁶, both being social skills critical in daily interactions and business.
Outperform and reduce the effects of poverty

Reading for pleasure has been shown to produce students who academically outperform their peers across all subjects, including math, compared to those that don’t.¹⁰ In fact, reading alone has been shown to be a greater influence on the academic achievements of students than the education of their parents¹¹, and access to reading books has also been shown to completely eliminate the negative effects that poverty can have on education¹².
Support strong community ties

A 2014 Pew study suggests that library users tend to be pillars of their community, with good ties to their neighbours and live positive lives¹⁴. Access to books, and the subsequent improvement in literacy, is a requisite to a thriving democracy.
Reduce Radicalization

A study from Harvard found that a well–rounded education significantly reduced radicalization and recruitment by violent extremists¹⁶. As students learned to think critically and were exposed to subjects and experiences outside their everyday life, they were less likely to indiscriminately accept extremist narratives – making it harder for these groups to radicalize and recruit then to their cause.
KEY libraries encourage
• self-leadership • knowledge • excellence • openness • respect

FOOTNOTES 1 Moore, Penny. An Analysis of Information Literacy Education Worldwide. White Paper Prepared for UNESCO, the U.S. National Commission on Libraries and Information Science, and the National Forum on Information Literacy, for use at the Information Literacy Meeting of Experts, Prague, The Czech Republic 2 World Economic Forum. https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2017/10/students-learn-better-from-books-than-screens-according-to-a-new-study 3 Tung, Chi-An. Developing Critical Thinking Through Literature Reading. Feng Chia Journal of Humanities. 2009. Pp 287-317. 4 Docherty, Saoirse. 5 reasons why fairy tales are good for children. 5 June 2014. Web. 8 Nov. 2016. http://scottishbooktrust.com/blog/2014/06/5-reasons-why-fairy-tales-are-good-for-children. 5 Berns, Gregory S., Kristina Blaine, Michael J. Prietula, and Brandon E. Pye. Brain Connectivity: Short- and Long-Term Effects of a Novel on Connectivity in the Brain. Rep. Department of Economics, Emory University. N.p., 9 Dec. 2013. Web. 2 Aug. 2016. 3(6): 590-600. doi:10.1089/brain.2013.0166. 6 Berns, Gregory S., Kristina Blaine, Michael J. Prietula, and Brandon E. Pye. Brain Connectivity: Short- and Long-Term Effects of a Novel on Connectivity in the Brain. Rep. Department of Economics, Emory University. N.p., 9 Dec. 2013. Web. 2 Aug. 2016. 3(6): 590-600. doi:10.1089/brain.2013.0166. 7 Mar, Raymond et al (2009a). Exposure to Media and theory-of-mind development in preschoolers. Cognitive Development. 25(1). pp 69-78. Available at: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0885201409000835 8 Vezzali, L., Stathi, S., & Giovannini, D. (2012). Indirect contact through book reading: Improving adolescents' attitudes and behavioral intentions toward immigrants. Psychology in the Schools, 49(2), 148-162. Available at: http://psycnet.apa.org/record/2012-01849-004 9 Vezzali, L., Stathi, S., Giovannini, D., Capozza, D., & Trifiletti, E. (2015). The greatest magic of Harry Potter: Reducing prejudice. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 45(2), 105-121 10 Docherty, Saoirse. 5 reasons why fairy tales are good for children. 5 June 2014. Web. 8 Nov. 2016. http://scottishbooktrust.com/blog/2014/06/5-reasons-why-fairy-tales-are-good-for-children. 11 Evans, M. D. R., et al. Family scholarly culture and educational success: Books and schooling in 27 nations. Research in Social Stratification and Mobility (2010), doi:10.1016/j.rssm.2010.01.002 12 Ibid 13 University of Nevada, Reno. “Books in home as important as parents' education in determining children's education level.” ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 21 May 2010. 14 Zickuhr, Kathryn, Kristen Purcell, and Lee Rainie. “From Distant Admirers to Library Lovers–and beyond.” Pew Research Centre. N.p., 13 Mar. 2014. Web. 2 Aug. 2016 15 Borgonovi, Francesca. OECD: “Do Students Today Read for Pleasure?” PISA IN FOCUS (2011): http://www.oecd.org/pisa/pisaproducts/pisainfocus/48624701.pdf 16 Martin-Rayo, Francisco. Countering Radicalization in Refugee Camps: How Education Can Help Defeat AQAP. Rep. Belfer Centre for Science and International Affairs, The Dubai Initiative – Working Paper. N.p., June 2011. Web. 2 Aug. 2016 17 Bruneau EG, Cikara M, Saxe R (2015) Minding the Gap: Narrative Descriptions about Mental States Attenuate Parochial Empathy. PLoS ONE 10(10): e0140838. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0140838 18 Paluck, E (2009). Reducing Intergroup Prejudice and Conflict Using the Media: A Field Experiment in Rwanda. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. 96(3). Pp 574-587. Available at: http://psycnet.apa.org/buy/2009-02415-005. (Accessed: 10/18/17).

Knowledge Empowering Youth School Libraries