23rd March 2020 – ETL401

“It is the LIS profession across multiple information agency types (education; public, academic and special libraries; records, archives, museums and galleries) that is dedicated to the principles of equity and freedom of access to information across all formats and delivery modes.”

I learned the above, but I am unsure how this correlates with different school libraries. I originally come from a background in the corporate world, in financial services and marketing. I completed a degree in Economics. I have to shift my thinking from information being guarded, often due to the legal requirements and commercial value of the information, to following the principles of equity and freedom of access to information. It sits much better with me ethically, but how fair is it really in schools? Do schools have equal access to online databases or ebooks? Is there a standard each school library must adhere to? These are questions that popped into my head whilst reading.

For students, the ability to assess the credibilty of sources and the relevance of information is crucial. As is, the ability to find the information they are after amidst the ocean of information out there, with ongoing crashes of waves while they are trying to stay afloat!

The attributes of Information (inconsumable, untransferable, indivisible and accumulative) leads to self-multiplication and information overload. It has never been easier to share information – via SMS, email, blogging, social media, print, radio, television, advertising, internet etc.