Poetry & Prose Recitation Contest of the Blind: Libraries Collaborate to Promote Social Inclusion

Abstract

Introduction: In 2013, Sun Yat-sen Library of Guangdong Province and Guangdong Blind Association began to jointly organize a poetry and prose recitation contest for the blind. Participants are visually impaired people living in Guangdong who want to show their talents through poetry and prose recitation. Activities cover 20 cities and most special education schools in Guangdong Province. Methods: In January, Preliminary Round in each of the 20 city libraries. Recitation videos will be accepted to compete for the best online popularity award. Then in May, Final Round is held in Sun Yat-sen Library of Guangdong Province and the contestants will be trained about recitation skills before the contest. We will host a live webcast simultaneously. Users: Nearly 750 thousand visually impaired people in Guangdong, China. They have difficult to access applicable information resources and participate in cultural activities. Due to limited resources and equipments, most local libraries find it difficult to provide them tailored service program. Effect: In the past 9 years, we have hosted 150 trials and finals and involved nearly 10 thousand direct participants. The program continuously attracts more and more visually impaired people to come in and use the local library. Also it drives more charitable companies and the public to pay attention to the visually impaired people. In 2019, Sun Yat-sen Library of Guangdong Province was honored National Advanced Organization for Disabled Assistance which is the highest honor in this filed in China.