Overview of Segregated Development in South Africa and Its Implications in the Provision of School Libraries

Prior to 1994, South Africa's education system was influenced by racial dynamics which had implications for the development, provision and distribution of human, financial and material resources. This paper presents the overview of segregated development in South Africa and its implications for the provision of school libraries, to support teaching and learning in selected schools in KwaZulu-Natal. It sets out to describe the understanding and the extent of segregated development in the provision of library resources at Gilonki Secondary school and to establish the perceptions of educators and school management for the importance of teaching and learning. This paper seeks to establish the policies/measures which were being put in place to redress these anomalies. Furthermore, this paper observes that development was retarded as evidenced by the poor provision of important resources such as school library services, resulting in poor learner performance, limited ability to excel in reading and mathematics, lack of appropriate study areas, and difficulties in providing extended tasks on class exercises, among other factors. The study concludes that segregated development has had negative implications for the provision of school libraries, and subsequently for the teachers' and learners' performances. The study recommends a swift rolling-out of processes to redress challenges of the past.