AUK Library Holds its 6th Annual Open House

The library at the American University of Kuwait held its annual open house for members of the AUK community in February.

The event aimed to showcase library resources, services and technologies to all members of the AUK community, and provided an opportunity for the library to highlight new collections and demonstrate interactive technologies employed in its facilities. The open house provided a fun and interactive space for students to enjoy outside the classroom.

The open house featured a reading corner organized by the Intensive English Program (IEP); in addition to booths from student clubs such as Sigma Tau Delta, and Fikir-each participated with a booth and a banner to highlight themes such as "self-exploration" and "identity". AUK students had the chance to express their identities through their literary writing and presenters shared their ideas as visitors walked in. A number of international publishers were also present, showcasing their latest publications.

Among the activities in the event was the use of augmented reality technology for interactive competitions such as the "hunt for answers" game in which participants had to scan through library posters and facilities to get the answers. They also scanned through images on the READ display to get captions related to faculty book selections. The event program also included educational games such as the "Spinning Wheel" and the "Read and Explore" puzzle game which required participants to compete in answering riddles.

Library Director, Asma Al-Kanan, expressed her joy to host both faculty and students during this event to introduce them to all the available facilities and collections that the library houses.

Towards the end of the event, all participants had a chance to enter the raffle draw for a chance to win one of five big prizes, including an Apple Watch, an IPAD, Samsung Galaxy tab and gift vouchers. Prizes were sponsored by the library's partners and international publishers including Cengage Learning and EBSCO.