This essay analyses the implementation of a work-based learning policy in upper secondary schools in Italy. The policy aims to improve student orientation and enhance their soft skills. Based on two ethnographic research studies in Italy, this essay utilises Pierre Bourdieu's theoretical framework, particularly the 'field' concept, to examine how…

Applying a content warning to metadata and archival descriptions is a practice that libraries increasingly embrace, even though the American Library Association considers content labeling to be censorship under the Library Bill of Rights. The language used in a content warning, such as "offensive" or "harmful," carries…

Knowledge organization standards are important community artifacts that set forth agreed upon specifications and protocols, and though they may appear neutral they have been shown to harbor specific perspectives. These perspectives are often covert but hold implications for the ways in which knowledge is conceptualized, organized, and represented.…

Building a personal learning network (PLN) for intellectual freedom has long been an important role of a school librarian; however, in the steadily increasing onslaught of digital information that librarians face today, and in the future, the task has become mission-critical. Personal learning, it stands to reason, requires an appropriate dialogue…

Thirty-six ethical codes from national professional associations were studied, the aim to test whether librarians have global shared values or if political and cultural contexts have significantly influenced the codes' content. Gorman's eight core values of stewardship, service, intellectual freedom, rationalism, literacy and learning, equity of…

For more than 150 years, the United States Government Printing Office (GPO), along with its Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP), has supported an informed citizenry and democracy by ensuring access and preservation to a broad swath of federal government information. This collaborative national public information program between local…

From a core values perspective, this article, following the PATOP critical thinking framework, examines the effectiveness of the Taiwan e-book Net (TEBNET). To improve alignment between core values and processes is central to the effective operation of TEBNET. Key elements in ensuring such an alignment have emerged for a new PATOP model for…

A gap exists between the degree to which African Americans embrace the cultural value of higher education attainment (Butchart, 1988; Du Bois, 1935; Mickelson & Greene, 2006; Washington, 1900; Woodson, 1919) and the reality of their unsatisfactory undergraduate degree attainment at traditional white institutions (TWIs) (Allen, 1992; Allen,…

Offers one librarian's inspirational thoughts on the value of library work: community service, clash of values, intellectual freedom, public good, love of books and libraries, the beauty of small libraries, modern budgets, librarian image, the ideal library, a favorite librarian, the solace of knowledge, the value of silence, and reminders of…

The object of this study has been, firstly, to explain and commend the increasing use of fiction for educational purposes, whether formal or informal; and secondly, to suggest ways and means by which interested librarians may respond to this trend, depending on the type of library in which they work. (16 references) (Author/NH)

Discusses how core values in the library profession present dilemmas when they come into conflict, since there is no established hierarchy of values. Notes that these values are further challenged by the Internet. Argues that the survival of libraries is critically dependent on information professionals effectively dealing with conflicts in these…

For this study of specific values that adult readers derive from their reading, 100 people from eastern central Illinois were interviewed about their reading experiences. All persons selected for interview were identified as having a continuing interest in reading, reflected in regular voluntary reading. The interviews were analyzed for…

Schools and libraries should take a leading role in helping youth build a new system of values rather than forcing them into the present mold of society. (JS)

Discusses core beliefs held by traditional academic libraries, and how these beliefs represented something of value for the user and provided a common intellectual framework. Identifies disturbing trends in modern librarianship, and suggests libraries need to balance technological knowledge with a respect for traditional library practice, focusing…

Discusses adapting traditional marketing strategies for the nonprofit sector, including libraries and information centers, and describes experiences of the Development Information Network for South Asia in Sri Lanka. Topics addressed include librarians' value systems, including free access to information; the need for information marketing;…