Eye Opening Experience.

                                  Eye Opening Experience.

 

On the 16^th May, we visited the library as part of our learning experience. The visit was not only educational but also made me aware of how books are categorized and where to locate specific materials for research and study.

Librarian Sangay Dawa also showed us some of the very valuable and rarest books available in our library, such as the Encyclopedia of Buddhism and a Tibetan Dictionary. I even got to view Dilgo Khentsho Rinpoche Volumes 1, 2, and 3. The borrowing time of such books is merely 3 to 4 days, which says a lot about how sought-after and invaluable they are.  Journals and magazines are placed in one such special section. Some special publications, such as Research for Life (which includes UN publications by WHO, UNICEF, etc.), are on the right-hand side near the door of the textbook room. I came to know that Bhutan History books for Class 7 up to Class 12 are placed under the Commerce category.

As we delved further, we took a look at the Social Science section, shelf 330, and saw interdisciplinary history materials including human settlement perspectives and human discipline perspectives. Section 900 is where the General History books are kept. I also learned that the next classification system is employed within the library:

901 – Philosophical publications

903 – Dictionaries of History

907 – Educational research and teaching/learning materials

909 – Ancient and World History

930 – Country-by-country history books

I was really fascinated by the 930 section, as that's where we get to search for books specifically committed to the history of specific countries, which can be very valuable to specific areas of study.

On our visit, we hung around for a bit in the Discussion Room, and there we leafed through some biography books.  We also visited the Manjushri Room, and we observed religious literature, particularly the books on Buddhism. It was a peaceful and inspiring environment. Our module tutor Mr.Sangay Phuntsho devoted some time discussing a few books our sir had read, making the books more personalized and meaningful to us.

Overall, the library visit was a great experience. It not only gave me access to rare and important books but also taught me how to navigate through different sections and use classification codes effectively for research.

Written by Tandin Tshering