Meaning of social organization Can a library be treated as a social organization?

Meaning of social organization? Can a library be treated as a social organization? 

Introduction:

In a modern society, every human activity is organized through organization. The society also needs the organization to look after the above matters. No one can imagine other social organizations except the library that can be entrusted with such type of responsibilities.

Social organization:

In sociology, a social organization is a pattern of relationships between and among individuals and social groups. Characteristics of social organization can include qualities such as sexual composition, spatiotemporal cohesion, leadership, structure, division of labor, communication systems, and so on. Wikipedia

Library as a social organization:

a) It Represents the Society:

 The study of libraries as an organization provides us an approach to analyze the past of a society. Its growth is not an isolated instance of society. Library collections in the different countries represent their cultural identities. Language is at the heart of these organizations. They are the collectors and stewards of our heritage.

b) It Represents the History of Civilization: Library history is an essential chapter in the history of the intellectual development of civilization. It parallels the history of writing and forms a component of the history of human civilization.

c) Respond to Social Issues: Library anticipates and responds to social issues before these issues reach a crisis point. It provides the facilities for life long self education, proper use of leisure, advancement of culture and so on.

d) Form the Link in the Communication System: It builds socially oriented information system and tries to procure information / document on all subjects including local, national and international affairs to serve economic, political and social welfare.

e) Preserve the Record of Civilization: The library preserves the records of civilization, preserves the literary heritage for posterity. The public library is a necessary unit in the social set up so organized and planned as to transmit the accumulated knowledge and experiences of mankind and provides challenging and often unorthodox material.

f) Information Centre: We are living in an information age. Library provides job information for the unemployed youth, helps people looking for better prospects and so on.

g) Education: Education is considered the most important activity forming the backbone of the progress of a nation. Education strengthens the very fabric of a nation. It helps to produce men of integrity, vision, character and, above all, democratically conscious citizens.

h) Formal Education: Formal education is the hierarchically structured, chronologically graded education system, running from primary school through the university. 

The basic function performed by academic libraries is to support formal education. Public libraries also collect such material to cater to the students’ need in some cases.

i) Non-formal Education: Non-formal education is an organized educational activity outside the established formal system. The main responsibility of libraries is supporting the non-formal education rests with the public library system.

j. Education of Illiterates: The public libraries work for the education of the illiterate people in its community through the audio-visual media especially the video tape. It also establishes learning clubs and organizes other programmers of oral communication for educating its illiterate clients.

k) Lifelong Learning (LLL): The whole idea of education is to stress more and more independent learning and acting. All learning activities are undertaken throughout life, with the aim of improving knowledge, skills and competencies within a personal, civic, social and/or employment-related perspective. The necessary implication is that the professional and vocational competence of the members must be maintained with the changing needs of the society.

l) Safeguard Democracy:

 Libraries have been identified as one of the key elements for open access to information, which is crucial to democratic society for its growth and development. It safeguards democracy, creating political awakening, bringing social awareness, and fostering creative leisure activities.

m) Inspiration Centre:

 A public library can create in children a love for reading, which can lead to formation of reading habits at an early age. It prepares people for disciplined and cooperative social life.

n) Instrument of Social Change:

 Information is power and at present it is being regarded as a national resource perhaps as fundamental as energy or matter or water and air, which affects all human activities. It is indispensable and so it needs to be put in the service of the whole community.

Let Us Sum Up:

 In modern societies cultural values are changing. A new social awareness has emerged as we become more diverse, more independent and more highly educated. The culmination of centuries of advances in the printing press, cast-iron type, paper, ink, publishing, and distribution, combined with an ever growing middle-class, increased commercial activities and consumption, new radical ideas, massive population growth and higher literacy rates forged the library into the form that it is today. So we can considered library as social organization.