“Sharjah Libraries” hosted a student debate entitled “Reading and its patterns between the traditional method and contemporary methods” at the Wadi Al-Hilu Public Library, as part of the activities of the Month of Reading, as it attracted a number of secondary school students from the emirates of Sharjah and Ras Al-Khaimah, from Wadi Al-Hilu and Al-Munai schools, in addition to Shoka School for Boys.
The debate aimed to enrich the activities of the “month of reading” with mental and intellectual activities that contribute to enhancing the personal and cognitive growth of students, to enrich their cultural stock, and to encourage individuals and students to practice reading as a daily habit that they eagerly accept.
The debate, which was moderated by Dr. Ahmed Farrag Al-Ajmi, Professor of Arabic at the Ministry of Education, dealt with the advanced habits of reading in the modern era, where Dr. Farrag highlighted the importance of encouraging reading, and its impact on enhancing the culture and knowledge of young people. It also traced the history of writing and codification, citing examples from civilisations. Ancient Egyptian and Islamic, as well as modern practices in Europe and Southeast Asia.
Various Dialogues The students participated with passion and enthusiasm in the various dialogues that stimulated their ideas, and through which they exchanged views on the pros and cons of both the traditional and contemporary methods of reading, as the discussion served as a platform for exchanging ideas and visions about the importance of developing a love of reading among members of society, especially from the younger generation.
The debate provided a valuable opportunity for the students, as they were divided into two opposite teams, one supportive of traditional reading, and the other supporters of contemporary reading, where one of the two teams expressed his opinion of preferring electronic reading because it is characterized by the ease of searching in sources in a short time with the ease of storing millions of books in negligible spaces and at a cost cheap.
Students who support traditional reading expressed their preference for the paper book despite all that threatens it, stressing that the texture of the paper takes them to other worlds of imagination, through which they feel the participation of all their senses in reading, which gives the reading sessions a real feeling as if the reader is flying high and traveling from one place to another. across the book.
At the end of the debate, Al-Munai’i Secondary School for Boys organized a competition in the Arabic language for outstanding students, in which five distinguished students from the schools that participated in the event participated. The competition was coordinated by teachers from Al-Munai’i School, who provided computers dedicated to answering questions in the reading room of the library. Al-Munai School came in first place, followed by Wadi Al-Helw School and Shawka School, by a slight margin.
After the library administration honored the winning students and participants in the competition, commemorative shields were presented to the session director, Dr. Ahmed Al-Ajmi, in addition to the supervising teachers in the participating schools.
