Developing the New Learning Environment: The Changing Role of the Academic Librarian

Jane Secker (Learning Technology Librarian, London School of Economics and Political Science, London, UK)

Program: electronic library and information systems

ISSN: 0033-0337

Article publication date: 1 April 2006

273

Keywords

Citation

Secker, J. (2006), "Developing the New Learning Environment: The Changing Role of the Academic Librarian", Program: electronic library and information systems, Vol. 40 No. 2, pp. 194-196. https://doi.org/10.1108/00330330610669325

Publisher

:

Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2006, Emerald Group Publishing Limited


As someone working in an academic support role I was immediately drawn to this book, hoping it would be a thought‐provoking read for myself and also for all academic librarians and managers. I was not disappointed. The book covers a rich variety of topics, focusing on the changing role of academic librarians, which is driven in part by changes in higher education (HE) and the development of e‐learning. The book has an impressive list of contributing authors, opening and closing with an introduction and conclusion by the editors. The editors are to be commended for the selection and arrangement of the chapters and the coherent argument that runs throughout the book. The book provides a range of perspectives, challenges thinking, as well as offering practical advice. It is usefully divided into two parts, with the first five chapters providing theory and context. Part II of the book is, meanwhile, highly practical and littered with case studies and real‐life examples.

Chapter 1 by Peter Brophy provides context for the book, briefly tracing the history of the university sector. He looks at the expansion of HE in the UK in the 1990s and developments leading up to the Higher Education Act, 2004. He considers the economic impact of HE and raises issues such as widening participation, developments in technology and the need for excellence in teaching and learning. Philippa Levy goes on to discuss pedagogy in a changing environment in Chapter 2, emphasising how pedagogical awareness is increasingly required in the library community. The chapter provides a useful overview of current educational theory looking in particular at constructivist pedagogy. The chapter is easily digestible and provides a good starter (with plenty of references) for librarians wanting to get to grips with educational theory.

Dorothy Williams critically examines information and other literacies in Chapter 3 with useful definitions and models. Again this chapter is a helpful starting point for a newcomer to the subject. Meanwhile Alison Littlejohn provides an overview of learning technologies and the issues raised by integrating these technologies with digital libraries. She views digital content as an essential part of e‐learning, and argues for a “new breed” of librarian who has skills in both areas. This idea is built on in Chapter 5, by Sue Roberts who looks at the changing roles of learning support professionals. She looks at how boundaries between professions are being eroded as there is a move towards team working, and this is creating problems and challenges. She concludes that “a librarian‐centric worldview is not helpful” and that “the role must be critically appraised within the complex context of other roles in learner support” (p. 107).

Part II then goes on to present practical examples and Chapter 6 begins by looking at the development of new academic teams including their relevance and possible barriers to their establishment. The chapter presents a series of case studies and nicely illustrates, with a brief cameo, how the development of such teams has impacted on one academic librarian. In Chapter 7 Susannah Quinsee, Head of E‐learning at City University, London provides a practical insight into the e‐learning imperative: what it is, what it offers (and threatens) different groups of staff, including academics, administrators and librarians. This is again nicely illustrated with real life examples and a series of cameos.

Judith Peacock offers a rallying cry from the Australian perspective in Chapter 8 examining “Information Literacy education in practice”. Describing the current battle over teaching and learning between pedagogists and technologists, she sees librarians as holding “an enviable position in the conflict” (p. 154). Peacock argues that information literacy is crucial and, citing Alan Bundy, maintains that: “in a teaching world gone technologically mad, librarians can provide a balanced and discriminating view of the place of ICT in education”. She illustrates her points with a case study from Queensland University of Technology, but is clear that “it is not enough … to stand out and challenge old paradigms; they [librarians] must offer solutions and create new perceptions of information literacy education” (p. 177).

Chapter 9 examines what is called “The inclusion agenda” and is co‐authored by three members of a consortium set‐up to improve library access for disabled users. The chapter briefly provides an overview of the legislative context that has brought inclusion onto the HE agenda in the UK, such as the Disability Discrimination Act Part IV (1999). The chapter goes on to present a range of case studies showing how personal initiatives in two universities lead to practical and policy changes. It discusses Assistive Technology Provision and again presents a series of insightful professional cameos. In Chapter 10, Philip Payne discusses how library management can support the development of new learning environments. This chapter raises a number of current issues, such as the role of para‐professional staff. Again, a useful case study, this time from Leeds Metropolitan University, is presented.

Roberts and Levy conclude by looking at what they call “(E)merging professional identities and practices”. They in part reflect on the preceding chapters, but also look at the future role for academic librarians in a changed learning environment, where arguably collections are no longer seen as the central focus. Librarians are clearly not the only professionals shaping this environment, therefore they need to evolve, to work more collaboratively and to remain focused at all times on learners and pedagogy.

This book should be recommended reading for all academic librarians who care about their future career. However, I would also hope that senior management in libraries and throughout HE might also find it valuable. It is particularly focused on examples from the UK but is also of relevance to the international community, reflecting changes throughout the library community and the education sector more widely. It illustrates how the library profession is evolving and suggests a challenging, but exciting future for academic librarianship.

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