Consider the services discussed by Laura Cole in the video in relation to a library or information agency that you know (as an employee or user). Select four key points made by the speaker, and consider how these may be applied to a library or an organisation you are familiar with to help it embrace a Library 2.0 ethos. Write 300 – 400 words.
Laura Cole highlights the positive changes inherent in the shift from physical to digital libraries. These are the four points that apply to my school library context:
1- The librarian becomes an active participant in the patron’s search for valuable information, and helps discern what is relevant from the resources available, both in the physical and digital formats. In my school context, I have explicitly taught the NSW information literacy model through the delivery of team-teaching Humanities and other integrated curriculum subjects to Stage 4 and 5 students. This combined teaching effort has enabled students to understand the steps of the information seeking process, namely defining, locating, selecting, organising, presenting and accessing information, prior to the completion of school projects that require them to consult and use library resources. There is an emphasis in my school on the sequential teaching of the 21st century skills, across all stages and learning areas. In this context, the teacher librarian has a crucial role in the teaching of digital literacy capabilities.
2- The digital shift in libraries changes the amount of floor space dedicated to book stacks. In my school library, I have designed a future-focused learning space after consultation with subject teachers and students via Google form surveys. As a result of the move towards digital libraries, I have taken hundreds of books off the library catalogue (a process called weeding), which has allowed for the opening up of a functional and inviting study and computer space where students can engage in collaborative learning tasks and silent reading for recreational or educational purposes.
3- The library often acts as a third place, neither home nor work, where patrons can engage in learning activities in a positive and safe environment. My school library offers a flexible learning hub where students can congregate and participate in multiple learning activities, such as STEM classes, book clubs, second language lessons and writing clubs. My school library provides an environment where students feel a sense of belonging and security which is fundamental for their wellbeing and success in academic endeavours.
4- For many patrons, the preferred method of reading will always be the paper book. After countless surveys and questionnaires, the students in my school have expressed unanimously that they favour physical books over digital resources, and that they would like to find the latest releases in the school library in printed format. The students have also said that while they value the accessibility to an electronic library, nothing compares to the tactile experience of holding a book while taking in its contents. This means that the emergence of information technology has not made physical resources completely redundant.
Reference
Cole, Laura (2016) BiblioTech as the Re-Imagined Public Library: Where Will it Find You?