As data has become critical to our everyday lives, a growing concern with the skills gap required to exploit the data surfeit has arisen; library and information science practitioners and educators have recognized this concern. This paper is intended to identify current trends in library and information science education in response to the rising…

An Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) funded National Forum Planning Grant "Envisioning Our Information Future and How to Educate for It" brought together a diverse group of stakeholders to lay the framework for re-visioning LIS education. This article describes three take-aways from the 2015 forum: encourage wide…

Public libraries are heavily affected by political and policy-making processes that shape the funding, activities, and roles of libraries in society, with the explosion of information policy decisions in the past two decades significantly increasing the responsibilities of libraries while also increasing limitations on their activities. Research…

This paper presents the results of a study conducted with the aim of identifying competencies needed by special librarians in Iran at three different levels of library and information science education. A list of competencies was initially identified from the literature and 21 semi-structured interviews with managers of special libraries in Iran.…

The paper describes a recent review of Library and Information Management courses offered by the School of Information Studies at Charles Sturt University, and the resulting program of curriculum renewal and expansion. This program aimed to address concerns over the long-term sustainability of the courses and respond to an increasingly converging…

The purpose of this article is to suggest commons-based peer production as a form of work that can help bridge the gap between research and practice in LIS. The research design is based on two in-depth and longitudinal qualitative case studies of collaborative projects involving LIS academics and practitioners in Italy. Analysis of interviews and…

A survey of Australian academic reference librarians was conducted as part of an international collaboration seeking to identify the most important knowledge, skills and attributes now and for the next ten years. Librarians working in or managing reference-related services at university and vocational education and training institutions…

If Google represents the first flicker of information technology, the development of additional tools has continued to enhance access to information but with the unfortunate downside of decreasing information literacy. Todd Gilman, librarian for literature in English at Yale University's Sterling Memorial Library, decries the resulting disconnect…

Argues that special librarians are not fact keepers but "catalysts in the knowledge continuum." Examines special librarians, the information business, and knowledge management; the knowledge continuum (data, information, knowledge, behavior) and strategies for successful "transformational librarianship": organizing information,…

Examines the possible role of the chief information officer in universities and corporations, and the ways in which librarians need to restructure their professional role to qualify for the chief information officer function. (CLB)

Critiques the model of information literacy as a central purpose of librarianship. Reviews the appropriateness of the "learning methodology" of the information literacy model. Outlines the challenge of relating information literacy to workplace competencies. Proposes that information literacy be refocused away from information toward learning, and…

Information professionals and those who educate them face enormous challenges. Increasingly easy access to communication media and information is altering perceptions of the very nature of information work, globally. There is no doubt that there are many challenges facing present and prospective information professionals too. These include issues…

Twenty-three scholarly papers and eleven abstracts reflect the content of the seventh "Brick and Click Libraries Symposium," held annually at Northwest Missouri State University in Maryville, Missouri. The proceedings, authored by academic librarians and presented at the symposium, portray the contemporary and future face of…

This review of the position of information, the use of information technology, and the needs of librarians, is based on the report of the Transbinary Group on Librarianship and Information Studies in the United Kingdom. Both practical and theoretical issues in library education and employment are discussed. (LRW)

Provides an account of efforts made to impart education and training of information technology (IT) at six library schools in Pakistan. Presents a brief history of library education in the country, and describes the rationale of IT education for Pakistani librarians. Provides recommendations for improvement in IT training, discussing factors…