Posts Tagged ‘Libraries’
Libraries: A Community Asset
With over 122,000 libraries of varying types in the United States, libraries are a prominent aspect of our society. Over the last several years, many have questioned the future of libraries. Luckily, libraries are organisms that are thriving in our information-rich environment. Public libraries serve many essential functions within the community, and contribute to the local economy, as well. We are a nation of curious citizens, however, and many questions still surround the public library institution. Public libraries are funded by tax dollars and any facility which is paid for by the community raises the question, “What purpose does this facility/activity/organization serve?” In the case of the public library this question can be easily answered.
The library defends intellectual freedom. It levels the societal playing field by offering resources of all varieties to all individuals regardless of educational or economic status. Providing equal education also supports democracy by offering access to information that allows citizens to make informed decisions regarding their government. This intellectual environment nourishes creativity and establishes the public library as a place for life-long learning.
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Understanding the Link between Distance Learning and Academic Libraries
Distance learning and academic libraries have a symbiotic relationship, and the steady support of library resources is vital in making any off-campus courses a success. Academic libraries have continuously supported various forms of teaching on campus, such as regular courses and distance learning in its traditional form as well as its new online avatar. Libraries need to aid the educational process in any higher education institution, and cater to a variety of publics, including students, administration staff, and faculty, regardless of the location. In this day and age, it is important that library personnel are up to date with the mediums of technology being employed for delivering online courses, so that they can provide undeterred assistance to their patrons.
How do Virtual Academic Libraries Work?
Most of the virtual libraries linked to universities offering distance learning programs work in a fashion similar to a physical library. Every student enrolled in any course with any particular college is given a Personal Identification Number, which the student needs to provide to the library manager along with the course details he/she is enrolled in for accessing library resources through email. Most of the colleges give students a unique username and password thereafter, which can be used to browse library catalogs and locate specific articles.
A lot of universities have mutual information sharing, wherein if certain information requested by a student is not available in the library resources of the college he is enrolled in, he can request it from a library resource of a partner college. The University of Houston for example, has a program called ILLiad (Interlibrary Loan internet accessible database) for requesting delivery of books and articles. Any student enrolled with the University of Houston can make a one time registery with this particular delivery format to receive books and articles in the future. Distance Learning and Academic Libraries supporting this form of education have changed the way a traditional library works.
Requirements for Virtual Library Personnel
Virtual library personnel need to have an indepth knowledge of changing technologies and especially of the mediums that a distance education course employs. Understanding the workings of distance learning and academic libraries’ role in making it a success is hugely dependent on how the library personnel implement their knowledge. Library staff today are well versed with technology, and have been long time internet users. Moreover they are familiar with inter-library loans and document delivery and are masters at organizing information.
It is essential to realise that distance learning and academic libraries are partners, where the library staff can work together with the faculty to design online courses. Moreover, due to their prociency with computers, librarians can work as technology advisers for most of the faculty and students of a distance education course. And that is the shape of things to come.
How public libraries can overcome budget cuts through cultural, educational, and business partnerships
In the current difficult economic times, libraries of all sizes and types face budget cuts, often quite severe. At the same time the need and demand for library services surges. In order to minimize cutbacks libraries need to play to their strengths and promote how much value they offer to anyone who chooses to use them. They need to inform the public that they are available and promote what they offer in the way of services and alternatives to paid entertainment. As the public becomes more aware of libraries and what they offer, they may come to their support and demand more funding from politicians and bureaucrats.
During economic downturns, people cut back on unnecessary spending and seek value on what they do spend funds for. There is no better value than free. Public libraries provide services and materials to users that no competitor can beat because they are usually free. Families seek activities and places they can go to interact, be entertained, and spend quality time together. Libraries provide all this plus educational value, whether it be for self-help, school homework help, free choice learning for lifelong learners, or reference help. Also, libraries can preserve a community’s identity by recording oral histories, housing artifacts, and staging programs informing users of the history and culture of their community as it has evolved. Libraries should play to their strengths as educational and cultural institutions while also promoting their value as free and family friendly social centers.
Ways in which libraries might promote themselves as family-friendly centers include advertising at other family gathering venues such as bowling alleys, movie theaters, ice ream shops, and dining establishments. Libraries could establish booths for self-promotion at special events such as sporting events (soccer and baseball games), festivals (wine, music, crafts), concerts (classical, country, jazz, rock), and baseball card and toy shows.