April 13

INF506 – Librarian 2.0 in Library 2.0

The term ‘Library 2.0’ first appeared in a rather non-descript blog post written by Michael Casey in September 2005. Whether intentional or not, at the time Casey used the term, he did so in an attempt to directly connect ‘Library 2.0’ to the characteristics and technologies of Web 2.0. The hallmarks of Web 2.0 – and by Casey’s unwitting extension, Library 2.0 – are that people use technology tools to widely share their ideas, generate content, and have easier access to collaborative tools.

Burton (2019), Chun (2018), and Dodd (2019), all explore what they believe to be the core knowledge, skills, and attributes of information professionals working within Library 2.0 institutions. Burton argues that amongst those core competencies most valued (and missing) by information professionals are analysis, technology utilisation, communication and project management (2019, p. 43). Chun (2018) poetically discusses the need for LIS employees, specifically teacher librarians, to accept imperfection and be brave in embracing new technology. Meanwhile, Dodd puts forward the idea that employers and managers should be looking at ‘capacities’ of employees, instead of ‘competencies’, which may have an air of “rigid rules and demands from higher-ups” (2019, p. 688).

So what then, do I believe to be the essential knowledge, skills and attributes of information professionals in a Web 2.0 world? I believe that information professionals are expected to be adaptable and fast learners, who are skilled in management, particularly because they often work independently from their peers (Huvila et al., 2013). I believe that information professionals are expected to have the skills to encourage, teach and guide others in information literacy development and the use of Web 2.0 technologies. I also think that in the last 20 decades, librarians have come to see that they need to use these technologies to engage with patrons, interact with professional learning networks, and help others to do the same. Above all though, information professionals must be brave, and open to taking (calculated) risks in their professional lives, as Chun (2018) notes.

As a teacher librarian, I am also reminded that information professionals do a million over things that they are often not credited for. Why? Because they have the capacity. As society evolves — as it has been doing since conception — so must information professionals.

Reference List 

Burton, S. (2019). Future skills for the LIS profession. Online Searcher, 43(2), 42-45.

Casey, M. (2005, September 26). Librarians Without Borders [Blog Post]. Retrieved from http://www.librarycrunch.com/2005/09/librarians_without_borders.html.

Chun, T. (2018). “Brave before perfect”: A new approach for future-ready librarians. Teacher Librarian, 45(5), 35-37.

Dodd, J. (2019). Competency or capacity: Measuring librarians’ potential for success. Journal of Library Administration, 59(6), 684-692.

Evolving Librarian [Image]. (n.d.). Newprofessionalsnetwork. https://newprofessionalsnetwork.wordpress.com/tag/librarian-2-0/.

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March 20

INF506 – The Influence of Technology on Society

Although many people have attempted to outline the ways in which society is changing because of technology, few summarise it as succinctly as David Wiley (2008), who outlines five significant shifts in our society because of Web 2.0, namely a movement from:

  1. Analog to digital forms
  2. Tethered to mobile technologies
  3. Isolated to connected experiences
  4. Generic to personal user networks
  5. Closed systems to open systems of information

All of these shifts have presented unprecedented challenges — as well as unique opportunities — for organisations wishing to remain relevant and fulfil their purposes in an increasingly online world.

First, analog to digital forms. In the most obvious example of this, paper as a physical format is quickly giving way to digital documents which are easier to search, copy, share and organise. For organisations, this may mean adapting not how they offer their services, but also potentially what they offer. For instance, many libraries have begun cultivating digital collections of e-books and audiobooks, offering these to patrons as an alternative to physical books.

Second, society is no longer tethered to desks and landlines to work, but can now enjoy the benefits of mobile technologies from anywhere. In fact, 5.19 billion people globally use mobile phones, with mobile phones accounting for 53.3% of all web traffic (We Are Social, 2020). EDUCAUSE argued in their 2020 report that although mobile learning had existed for over 10 years, the ‘future’ of this trend was to focus on connectivity and convenience (p. 21). This is of particular relevance to organisations, as they must consider how people are consuming content, and therefore make their content mobile-friendly.

Third, isolated to connected experiences. Using social media and Web 2.0 technologies, organisations are no longer isolated but instead, belong to connected and global networks. For organisations, this is an opportunity to exploit their potential connectivity and market themselves to a much wider audience, as well as using their audience (through social media, reviews etc.) to market them.

(Visualising the Networked World, n.d.)

Fourth, generic to personal networks. The world of social media and social networks has opened the possibilities for finding individuals and organisations who share the same interests and goals. For organisations, there is also the potential of communicating with individuals on a person-by-person basis through Web 2.0 technologies, thus cultivating relationships with users to create a more personal user experience.

Fifth, closed systems to open systems. Technology has quite literally opened the world in which we live in, becoming an indispensable part of our lives. If organisations fail to acknowledge this and tap into the potential that this new world offers, they risk becoming irrelevant and failing at their purpose. 

 

 

Reference List

EDUCAUSE (2019). Horizon Report: 2019 Higher Education Edition. Retrieved March 16, 2020 from https://library.educause.edu/resources/2019/4/2019-horizon-report.

Visualising the Networked World [Graphic]. (n.d.). Connected World. Retrieved from https://connectedworld.com/visualizing-the-networked-world/.

We Are Social (2020). Digital 2020 – Global Digital Overview. Retrieved March 23, 2020 from https://wearesocial.com/au/blog/2020/01/digital-2020-3-8-billion-people-use-social-media.

Wiley, D., & Hilton III, J. (2009). Openness, Dynamic Specialization, and the Disaggregated Future of Higher Education. The International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning, 10(5). https://doi.org/10.19173/irrodl.v10i5.768

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