THE LIBRARY, THE LIBRARIAN, AND THE NEW INFORMATION PROVISION FIELD
This blog is intended for discussions on how to improve the library and librarians' profession in the market place.
I do realise that the number of information providers are increasing everyday. Today we have:
- The Press
- The Radio
- The Television
- The Archives
- The Publishers
- The Information brokers
- The Public Relations Officers
- The record managers
The list is endless.
With this realisation, there is need to highlight the problems and challenges the librarian and library face in this new environment of information provision.
I wellcome all the professionals, academicians and students to this blog so as to contribute to the betterment of the librarian and the library in the now competitive field of information provision.
QUESTIONS TO START WITH
- Is the library and the librarian heading to extinction?
- What is the new (if there is any) role of the library and librarian in the new information provision field?
- How can the library and the librarian work be improved to match the competition?
You are all welcome to give your views, opinions and suggestions.
Libraries will never cease to be a requirement to the society. never.
ReplyDeletethey have their role to play such as a social gathering, and recreational centre.
For a long time librarianship has been taken for granted. Most people have not appreciated the roles of librarians neither have they recognized them. This is so especially in African countries and this can be proved with the lack of reading culture among the people. This could be because most people have not realized the need to be informed.
ReplyDeleteLibrarians have also failed in a way. They have not marketed their profession to a reasonable standard. Most people think that the work of a librarian is to arrange books and cut papers. Librarians should actively market their profession. They should join existing associations of their profession and even form more of them in which they can use to market themselves in the public.
The number of librarians is less compared to those of other professionals in other various fields. Therefore librarians should wake up and be involved actively in educating the public on the need to be well informed. They should educate the public on how to get, retrieve, use and disseminate useful information. Information is power!
Josphine is right.
ReplyDeleteInformation is power!.
But it is only power when you have it and you are very weak when your enemy or competitor has it and is unwilling to share it with you.
Friends are always there to share information to us, thus more often than not we, Africans, do not find the need to search for information in the libraries.
This senario is made worse by the emergence of the radio and television which offer free information directed to our ears and eyes requiring less effort on the part of the audience. The Internet has now come into the scene and played the role of librarians.
You will get every information you want in the internet just as you would in the library. You mignt get it free or be requested to purchase just like in the library. You may be allowed to view, carry it home or share with friends just like the library would do.
What is this? It is downing on me - the Internet is actually a library! The librarians should be the first people to actually use it and accomodate it in their daily activities.
This is a new field in librarianship. It comes together with the technical librarian but this field will be rightly called: Internet Libraian.
He/she will be involved in such information services as long distance reference services, literature searches, information literacy, document delivery and a 24hour, world wide service to all members of the library.
What do you think this role of Internet Librarian could also include?
Participate. Its free. Its worthwhile. Have Your say heard by all interested, commited librarians.
This blog is only visited by dedicated, academicians or information profession practioners.
Be sure you have the right audience!
Josphine is right.
ReplyDelete