By Aaron Tomak
It’s of no little concern that the traditional view of the library and the contemporary world of information do not necessarily align. More and more people are questioning the validity of the both the public and the academic library. In order to maintain their existence many libraries have had to expand upon their usual services in order to maintain relevancy. The idea of a library as a book depository is no more. Now the library must actively engage its users by becoming educators, content creators, and providers of technological resources. Librarians must realize that the discovery of information will most likely take place independent of the library and expand their role from fact-finder to information guidance. They will need to accept the greater challenge that comes with this role.
In the current economic climate cities and organizations are looking for ways to cut spending and the library is a prime target. Luckily the library holds a soft spot in the hearts of many educated and influential people. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation released a study of the benefits of internet access within the public library. The 2010 report states that “149 million American’s visited public libraries in the last year and nearly half of these visitors made use of library computers and wireless networks to access the Internet”. For the past century libraries have been considered a mandatory public good for an educated and prosperous society. Now the library is in the difficult situation in which it must prove its continued value.
But the good news is that libraries are doing just that. According to the Public Library Funding and Technology Access Study 2010-2011, “virtually all public libraries (99.3 percent) provide public access to computers and the internet” and “87 percent of libraries provide formal or informal technology training”. With less funding and increasing demand libraries are rising to the occasion and continuing to provide excellent service to their communities.
With the recent changes in the economy, library users have become more reliant on the expertise given by librarians when it comes to career and work related searches. Many patrons come to the library for guidance and to receive assistance with job searching and resume building. Nishi (2011) found:
ReplyDeleteThe availability of the Internet at the library coupled with the vast number of online transactions has expanded the librarian's job and mission, creating a new set of opportunities and service challenges. Librarians have begun serving as informal job coaches, college counselors, test monitors, and technology trainers for the growing number of patrons navigating government aid, the job market, and all levels of education on library computers. (p. 36)
References:
Nishi, J. (2011). Opportunity for all: how American public benefits from internet access at museum and library services. National Civic Review, 100(3), 36. doi:10.1002/ncr.20071
-Lindsay Fricke
wonder how effective the "87% public libraries that offer training" and "the 99.3% that provide access to the computers and the internet" are? As the article "The internet, public libraries, and the digital divide" states ". . .[t]echnology use is as important as technology access" (2010, p. 114 ). In other words, just because you can lead someone to the computer, does not mean you make that you have taught that someone how to use a computer.
ReplyDeleteAdditionally, as Paula Warnken mentions in her article, "New technologies and constant change: Managing the process," there are some librarians who fear the change that the digital age brings. (2010, p. 324). Thus, if there are some librarians who fear change and if those very same librarians who resist change are suppose to teach patrons how to use these new technologies, how effective are these librarian's libraries in the digital age? One may have greater access, but have libraries really proven its value just by offering greater access?
--Charlotte Walden
Reference:
Kinney, B. (2010, June 3). The internet, public libraries and the digital divide. Public library quarterly, v. 29, no. 2, p. 104-161.
Warnken, P. (2010). Managing Technology New Technologies and Constant Change: Managing the Process. The Journal of Academic Librarianship, v. 30, no. 4, p. 322-327.
In regards to librarians being fearful of changes that are happening in the digital age, I think that each librarian is going to handle the changes differently. In the article, "Attitudinal correlates of selected Nigerian librarians towards the use of information technology," Adeyinka (2008) found:
ReplyDeleteFour out of the five variables age, gender, educational qualifications and prior knowledge of IT significantly correlate with the librarians' attitudes towards IT. The other variable, IT anxiety, correlates negatively with the librarians' attitudes towards IT. Findings further show that all the five variables significantly predict librarian's attitude towards IT with prior IT experience showing the greatest predictive effect. (p. 287)
From this article, one can gather that there are many factors that are to be considered as to how librarians feel about the changes in the digital age. It is important that librarians get on the same level as other librarians so that the patrons can fully benefit and learn about new technology. After all, as librarians, we should be up for the challenge of finding new ways to implement these technological advancements so we can inform patrons on how to utilize these new forms of technology. It is not about having access to these advances of technology as it is about being able to work with and show patrons how to use these new technologies in order to better serve the community.
References:
Adeyinka, T. (2008). Attitudinal correlates of selected Nigerian librarians towards the use of information technology. Journal of Interlibrary Loan, 18(3), 287-305.
-Lindsay Fricke