Education for Information - Volume 28, issue 2-4

Article Type: Introduction

DOI: 10.3233/EFI-2010-0919

Citation: Education for Information, vol. 28, no. 2-4, pp. 99-99, 2011

Authors: Qi, Yanli

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: The paper introduces data on the employment of postgraduates in the Department of Information Management of Peking University in 2000-2009. Master's graduates in LIS in Peking University have a wide job choice. In China, the job market for postgraduates in LIS is composed of enterprises and business organizations, rather than libraries and information centres only. The paper discusses the challenges in the job market in China: with the increase in popularity of higher education, the number of graduates is continuing to rise and graduates' employment pressure is up. Employer's views on qualifications for people have changed greatly. Some organizations expect …to recruit graduates of “great capacity”. It is important to build a road to improve Master's employment competitiveness in LIS in China. With an example of teaching and practice in the Department of Information Management in Peking University, this paper proposes some suggestions for improving postgraduates' employment competitiveness in LIS. 1) Broadening academic vision, information science as major and others as minor. 2) Emphasis on training of comprehensive quality and improving their employment competitiveness. 3) Providing a relaxed academic environment and enhancing their autonomous learning and research abilities. Show more

Keywords: LIS education, postgraduate education, employment competitiveness, curriculum for postgraduate, inter-disciplinary, practical skills

DOI: 10.3233/EFI-2010-0894

Citation: Education for Information, vol. 28, no. 2-4, pp. 101-113, 2011

Authors: Ullah, Midrar | Ameen, Kanwal | Bakhtar, Salman

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: The study aims to explore the professional activities, needed competencies and education/training needs of medical librarians in Pakistan. The following questions guided the study: what are the current professional activities of medical librarians in Pakistan? What is their perception of the competencies needed of medical librarians? And what are their training and education needs? Twenty medical librarians were identified through purposive sampling. An interview guide was prepared after expert review and pilot testing. Personal and telephone interviews were conducted to collect the data. Data were analysed using content analysis methods. Sixteen (80%) out of 20 medical librarians could be approached. …The findings reveal that the medical librarians were generally involved in traditional kinds of professional activities. They were unaware of the latest trends in medical librarianship. Out of ten competencies mentioned by the respondents “ability to use ICT and integrated library software”, “verbal and written communication skills” and “extensive knowledge of Pub Med and other medical databases” were ranked first, second and third respectively. The opportunities of specialized education and training are also limited for medical librarians. Based on the findings of the study it was recommended that formal training programs should be initiated for medical librarians in Pakistan by MELAP, CPSP and library schools. Show more

Keywords: Medical librarianship, health sciences librarians, knowledge and skills, role of medical librarians, competencies, LIS education

DOI: 10.3233/EFI-2010-0895

Citation: Education for Information, vol. 28, no. 2-4, pp. 115-123, 2011

Authors: Miwa, Makiko | Kasai, Yumiko | Miyahara, Shizuko

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: The GlobaLIS Project intends to attain the globalization of Japanese library and information science (LIS) professional education by defining the requirements for internationally transparent and harmonized educational programs for LIS professionals. We asked three research questions in a stepwise manner: (1) What are the basic requirements for globalizing Japanese LIS professional education? (2) What kinds of efforts are required to attain a global collaboration between Asia and the Pacific in quality assurance of LIS education? (3) How can we attain global collaboration in the development of a common curriculum framework for LIS education in Asia and the Pacific using school …librarian training as an instantiation? For the first research question, we identified the requirements of (1) establishment of an office responsible for preparing and administering mutual accreditation of LIS programs with overseas counterparts, (2) implementation of the LIS examination as a means of establishing an outcome-based assessment of LIS education, and (3) establishment of graduate level LIS education programs to be mutually exchangeable with overseas counterparts. For the second research question, we tentatively identified areas requiring efforts. For the third research question, we have begun preparation for the collaborative curriculum development of school library professionals planned for 2013. Show more

Keywords: LIS education, global collaboration, mutual accreditation, common curriculum development, school library professionals, comparative librarianship

DOI: 10.3233/EFI-2010-0896

Citation: Education for Information, vol. 28, no. 2-4, pp. 125-136, 2011

Authors: Maitaouthong, Therdsak | Tuamsuk, Kulthida | Techamanee, Yupin

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: This study was aimed at developing an instructional model by integrating information literacy in the instructional process of general education courses at an undergraduate level. The research query, “What is the teaching methodology that integrates information literacy in the instructional process of general education courses at an undergraduate level?” was set with an aim to develop the teaching methodology that integrates information literacy in general education courses of undergraduate curricula. The research method was based on quasi-experimental design and a non-randomized control group pretest-posttest design. The two general education courses under study included SWU 142 Sciences for the Development of …Quality of Life and the Environment, and SWU 151 General Studies for Human Development. The research was divided into 4 stages: (1) The teaching plan involving the outcomes of information literacy acquisition in general education courses was analyzed and written so that it integrated information literacy. (2) The knowledge and competency related to student information literacy were measured before and after the experiment using an information literacy proficiency test. (3) The teaching was conducted according to the teaching plan. (4) The case study reports by the students where information literacy skills were applied were evaluated by the teacher. The findings indicate that instruction which integrated information literacy of two general education courses comprised 8 components: learning outcomes, teaching method, learning activities, teachers' roles, librarians' roles, students' roles, teaching media, and learning assessment and evaluation. The instruction that integrated information literacy involved seven steps: assignment of case studies, selection of case study topics, retrieval of related information, stipulation of teaching topics, self-access learning, research presentation, and evaluation of the case studies. The experiment on the developed teaching approach in courses SWU 142 and SWU 151 indicated that the experimental groups of both courses showed a higher level of information literacy and higher scores of group assignments after the experiment. Show more

Keywords: Instructional model, information literacy, information literacy integration, learning and teaching processes, general education courses

DOI: 10.3233/EFI-2010-0897

Citation: Education for Information, vol. 28, no. 2-4, pp. 137-150, 2011

Authors: Ismail, Mohd Ikhwan | Roni, Nurul Azurah Md.

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: Education in Library and Information Science is a requirement to become a librarian. There are a lot of syllabi and subjects to concentrate on such as cataloguing and classification, information retrieval, knowledge management, and reference. The library as a centre of information has been developing year by year with various types of collections written and presented in many languages such as English, Arabic and Malay. The different languages come with different letters, words, pronunciations and characters. They can bring problems and challenges in the cataloguing process including determining access points, subject headings and call number. The objective of this study …is to identify the challenges in cataloguing Arabic books for cataloguers in Malaysia academic libraries. This study aims to investigate the relationships and differences between Arabic and Roman scripts in cataloguing process. The comparison is made to discover the similarities and differences in the problems faced by cataloguers from different academic libraries in Klang Valley, namely International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM), University of Malaya (UM), National University of Malaysia (UKM), Islamic Science University of Malaysia (USIM) and International Islamic University College Selangor (KUIS). The method used in data collection in this study is personal interview with cataloguers responsible for cataloguing Arabic books. The findings show that the major problem is in the Arabic scripts. They are difficult to vocalize Arabic words due to the different ways of reading the various types of calligraphy and typography. Besides, the issues of lengthy author's name, vocalization of name and Arabization of English names also create problems for the cataloguers. Some of the integrated library systems cannot adopt Arabic characters. Another problem is the difficulty to determine the subject heading for Arabic books that are not accurately stated in the Library of Congress Subject Heading (LCSH) besides the unavailability of new Arabic terms. However, the cataloguing process of Arabic books is still on-going even though there are a lot of problems that come without solutions. Although transliteration can be one of the solutions, it is still not the best one. This study will help to improve Library and Information Science education to cope and face the challenges in library work field. Show more

Keywords: Cataloguing, Arabic script, roman script, academic libraries, transliteration

DOI: 10.3233/EFI-2010-0898

Citation: Education for Information, vol. 28, no. 2-4, pp. 151-163, 2011

Authors: Ransom, Sylvia

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: During a six month contract with the Royal University of Bhutan, the author was required to develop the initial stages of a first library qualification to be offered in Bhutan. Questions raised by this project included: is a first qualification in librarianship needed in Bhutan? What are the potential student numbers in such a programme? What structure should such a programme take? What guidance exists for developing diploma programmes at the royal university of Bhutan? Does the country contain the expertise to run the programme? The author utilised situational analysis to gather data for the programme, building on a number …of existing but unpublished documents relating to training library staff in Bhutan. Using the guidelines in existence, and the knowledge gained from the data gathered it was possible to answer the research questions. A three year, part time diploma of library management to be offered by mixed mode (distance education) was designed, and supporting documentation written. There is no doubt that appropriate, relevant library training is needed for library staff in Bhutan. It is less clear that the resources currently exist to fully develop and present an initial diploma level qualification. Show more

Keywords: Library education programs, qualifications, developing countries, Bhutan

DOI: 10.3233/EFI-2010-0899

Citation: Education for Information, vol. 28, no. 2-4, pp. 165-173, 2011

Authors: Chang, Naicheng | Huang, Yuhui | Hopkinson, Alan

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: This paper aims to investigate the current XML-related courses available in 96 LIS schools in South East Asia and Taiwan's 9 LIS schools. Also, this study investigates the linkage of library school graduates in Taiwan who took different levels of XML-related education (that is XML arranged as an individual course or XML arranged as a section unit in courses) and their professional qualification. Research questions include what is the availability of XML-related courses in countries in Taiwan and South East Asia? What are Taiwan LIS graduates' views on degree of XML-related courses satisfaction, cognition of learning XML technology, and views …of XML-related courses? What is the linkage of Taiwan LIS graduates who studied different levels of XML-related education and their professional qualifications? This study applies 3 research methodologies: information gathering from the internet; questionnaire surveys; in-depth interviews. Results of the analysis show that LIS schools should provide optional XML-related courses with practical sessions, and library associations should provide regular XML-related continuing education to enhance LIS students' professional qualifications. Show more

Keywords: EXtensible markup language (XML), library and information science (LIS) education, library science curriculum, information-related positions, digital library

DOI: 10.3233/EFI-2010-0900

Citation: Education for Information, vol. 28, no. 2-4, pp. 175-185, 2011

Authors: Hay, Lyn | Pymm, Bob

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: Following a review of the online delivery of distance education programs within the School of Information Studies (SIS) program at Charles Sturt University, a team of academics worked with an external consultant to design a purpose built SIS Learning Centre in Second Life (SL), a 3D virtual world environment in which people (via their avatars) may act as if in the ‘real’ world. This paper discusses the design and implementation of a variety of teaching and learning activities in this virtual world environment, examining both student and faculty experiences throughout the teaching sessions, and exploring the affordances provided by the …3D virtual world of Second Life. Findings suggest that most students see this approach as providing a valuable opportunity to interact with each other and with faculty. For academics, the benefits provided by Second Life are acknowledged but the time commitment required to establish and manage the class in this virtual world need to be considered when adopting this approach. Show more

Keywords: Lis education, Second Life, virtual worlds, e-learning, distance education

DOI: 10.3233/EFI-2010-0901

Citation: Education for Information, vol. 28, no. 2-4, pp. 187-202, 2011

Authors: Georgy, Ursula

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: Aim of the project: Curriculum development is a time-consuming process and often interminable. Pursuing the idea of creating a nationwide core curriculum is one opportunity to develop a curriculum in library and information science (LIS). It can be supposed that a project like this can be the initial point stimulating and encouraging the widest possible discussion between different educational environments. Furthermore, it can strengthen the cooperation and collaboration between LIS educational institutions. The European project in 2005 has shown that there are more differences than similarities in the European LIS curriculum [Kajberg, Lørring 2005]. But nonetheless the discussion about a …core curriculum can be an opportunity and a challenge for universities, students and libraries / companies in many countries around the world. Research questions: The key question is how to create reliable framework conditions that will speed up the procedure of developing a nation-wide common core curriculum? A second question is: What consequences to be drawn if it appears that there are only a few similarities in the curricula or the universities show little willingness to modify the curricula in a study reform process? Method/finding: The European project will be reflected and the own long time experience in curriculum development will be contributed. Findings: A nation-wide or international core curriculum seems to be inappropriate for direct transfer into the participating institutes or universities. But finally, it would ensure greater cooperation and collaboration, thereby multiplying the chances of long-term cooperation and enhancing the reputation of universities among employers, e.g. libraries. Show more

Keywords: Bologna process, curriculum, core curriculum, study reform, library and information science, education

DOI: 10.3233/EFI-2010-0902

Citation: Education for Information, vol. 28, no. 2-4, pp. 203-213, 2011