Kahuman, Polanharjo — Efforts to improve community literacy have been realized through a community social program (Sosmas) in the form of building a reading corner, carried out at the Kahuman Village Hall, Polanharjo District, Klaten Regency. This activity is an individual work program carried out by Nadia Zahrina, a student of the Library and Information Science Study Program, as part of Community Service Program (KKN), drawing on her academic background in information and library management.
The activity began with coordination with the Head of Kahuman Village to determine a strategic location that would be easily accessible to residents within the village hall area. Once the location was agreed upon, the activity continued with the collection of reading materials, making use of collections that were already available. The books gathered spanned various categories, ranging from children’s books and general knowledge books to reading materials relevant to the information needs of the village community.
The process of building the reading corner did not stop at collecting books, but also included arranging the space to make it comfortable to use, carrying out a simple classification of the reading collection, and arranging the shelves and reading nook aesthetically to attract visitors to the village hall. Basic principles of library science were applied in managing this reading corner, particularly in organizing the collection so that it could be easily found and used by the community visiting the Kahuman Village Hall.
The Kahuman Village officials welcomed this program positively. One village official stated that the presence of the reading corner at the village hall provided a new benefit for residents who came for various administrative purposes. “We feel helped by the presence of this reading corner. Residents who come to the village hall now have an alternative activity while waiting, so they don’t get bored,” she said.
This reading corner program aligns with efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly Goal 4: Quality Education, by improving community access to reading resources and literacy facilities. In addition, this activity also contributes to Goal 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities, by creating an inclusive public space that benefits all levels of society, as well as Goal 17: Partnerships for the Goals, through collaboration between KKN students and village officials in establishing a shared literacy facility.
Through this Sosmas reading corner program, it is hoped that the reading interest of the Kahuman Village community will continue to grow, and that the reading corner can be sustainably managed by village officials and local residents alike, so that its benefits can be felt in the long term.
