The paper describes the attempts made in recent years to determine the essential functions of a national library. It considers these functions in relation to the recommendations of the Dainton Committee and the proposals in the White Paper on the British Library. (14 references) (Author/MM)

Discusses how libraries have the potential to support and motivate adults wanting to improve their literacy skills. Reports on a British initiative to bring together libraries and basic skills providers. (Author/JOW)

This paper examines the need for accurate, reliable data on energy, flowing upward to the national government from various energy-intensive information systems. Part I explores the need for a national policy coordinating this flow within both the United States and, for comparative purposes, Great Britain. Part II presents in outline form the…

Psychological barriers that prevent the public from using libraries effectively and efficiently are identified. The problem of receiving too much information is also addressed, and seven steps for obtaining the right information are outlined, including determining exactly what is needed and then asking for help from a reference librarian. (LBH)

After years of cutbacks, the pivotal role of public libraries in providing lifelong learning resources is being recognized. In Britain, a consortium for public-library networking is extending libraries' ability to deliver knowledge-based services. (SK)

Presents a possible solution to the problems of cataloging and retrieval which arise when teachers wish to assemble relatively large collections of structured resource materials, to enable their students to choose widely divergent routes, as they plan their studies with the ultimate goal of satisfying fixed criterion tests. (Author/VT)

The school library in Great Britain has moved from a supportive position to one of major importance as a mode for teaching and learning. (DE)

The three cultures referred to in the title are: the humanities, the sciences, and the social sciences. The theme of the lecture is comparative librarianship. The comparisons are of public library services in different countries, how they are similar and how they differ. His emphasis is on British libraries with which he is most familiar. The…

Argues that school libraries should maintain a commitment to encourage reading and have concern for the enrichment of the individual's imaginative and creative life. Describes a variety of ways the school libraries in the United Kingdom promote reading. (RS)

This paper argues that the multicultural society which exists in Britain today requires libraries to be more sensitive and responsive to the needs of minority groups. It is also pointed out that librarians have a responsibility to project positive images of a multicultural society and that they must face up to the difficult issues of prejudice and…

Provides an overview of school library development in Great Britain and the United States and discusses five factors that have facilitated or retarded school library development in each country: standards, staffing and certification, government support, rationale for school libraries, and professional organizations. (Author/LRW)

The Mass-Observation Archive contains a large amount of evidence, stretching back to the 1930s, of the British public's daily lives and its attitudes to local, national, and international issues and events. The archive's data-collection method takes the form of essay-style contributions submitted from anonymous volunteer correspondents who write…

This book draws attention to the issue of access to literature and highlights some of its complex aspects--physical, psychological, educational, and economic--to discover ways of increasing that access. Focusing on what the barriers between people and literature are and on how they may be removed, the book uses interviews to investigate the…

For several decades there has been a trend towards project work, independent study, and guidance from the lecturer rather than instruction. The library and other polytechnic-wide services, it is argued, can be exploited to produce more effective and economical means of achieving an institution's objectives. (MLW)

The first American Library Association (ALA) yearbook appears in the ALA's centennial year. The yearbook brings together in alphabetical sequence a series of articles on topics of enduring as well as current interest to the library community. Included are also reports of the activities of the ALA units, affiliate organizations, and other…