Journal Entry 9

Assigned Readings

Future of Librarianship

This week’s assigned reading was to review articles and presentations at the San Diego State University Library and Information Access page – Exploring the Future of Libraries. This page had seven articles and one power point presentation for perusal.

Futurespeak

Wilson suggests that the term “the future” implies only one possible outcome. The term “prediction” suggests that “one can control the future or even know the future” (Wilson, n.d.). When looking toward the future one must take a balanced or neutral approach toward the subject. If one is pessimistic, this perspective leads to a doomsday view; if one is optimistic, then one holds a utopia view. Library and Information Technology Association (LITA) was charged with compiling a “list of technologies that would be relevant for libraries in the near-term future” (Wilson, n.d.). These included “emerging technologies,” “submerging technologies,” and “sources of information and d information overload” (Wilson, n.d.).

Top Ten

Association of Colleges and Research Libraries (ACRL) Research Committee was asked to “determine ten assumptions about the future that would have a significant impact on academic libraries and librarians” (Mullins, Allen, and Hufford, 2007). The authors wrote that the assumptions of the committee are rather mundane to the expert predictions for the 1990s: distance learning would force the closure of many brick and mortar institutions; and reference collections would reduce to the size of a thimble. Of course, neither of these can true. The committee chose not to forecast, but to look at things bubbling under the surface – things that may the trends of tomorrow.

Of the top ten assumptions, three of these assumptions stood out above the rest. The first is the “increased emphasis on digitizing collection” (Mullins, et al., 2007). There is also an emphasis on preserving the digital record and “improving methods of data storage and retrieval” (Mullins, et al.) All three of these goals or mission of the academic library of the future could pertain to all libraries today and the future. Digitizing hardcopy collections allow for greater access, and digitizing has been viewed as one solution to the brittle book problem. Lastly, the committee addresses the issue of improving the storage and retrieval problem. Digital data can be as fragile as a brittle book. The media is easily manipulated.

The second assumption of the future of academic librarians will need to evolve their “skill set” (Mullins, et al., 2007). This assumption is and will be true for all libraries. Patron, students, and faculty are demanding better technology and have higher expectations. Although most patrons to a public library still expect to walk out with a book, they are pleasantly surprised to have a database retrieved article in hand when all other material is either checked-out or days away from another library. The future of academic librarian looks bright with increasing entry level salaries, and increasing retirements. This is a very different picture than Rubin painted in the class text.

The last assumption that also pertains to the public library is that “students will increasingly view themselves as customers and consumers, expecting high-quality facilities and services” (Mullins, et al., 2007). The current trend among some library patrons is to treat the librarian (or assistant) as an order taker at McDonalds. They bark their need and expect it to be filled in 60 seconds or less. Instead of customers and consumers, perhaps the patrons of tomorrow will be clients. The client-librarian relationship would be a professional one and not a strictly a service one. Librarians do provide a service, but we are not servants. Overall librarians are highly educated individuals with the academic librarian even more so with dual master degrees.

Vision

“Things are going great and they’re only getting better” summarizes this article on the future of the academic library (McDonald, 1989). An essay contest was held jointly by New Jersey ARCL and Fairleigh Dickinson University Libraries on the future of the academic library. Three major trends were noted in the “post-contest analysis” of the essays: “technological developments, library function and librarians’ role” (Marcum, 2003).

The essays under the “technological developments” category were extremely futuristic with “infrastructure of video-displaying walls”, and virtual reality rooms; it appears that the holodeck of the Enterprise will be moved into the academic library (Marcum, 2003). These technology advances are on the utopian bent mention in the Wilson article above. The most likely future scenario was presented as the “personal role of the academic librarian” (Marcum, 2003). The librarian of the future will not be tied to the library but will be out and about by “proactively calling on colleagues and making face-to-face presentations” (Marcum, 2003).

The article concludes with a table that diagrams the changes in the academic library from 1992 to 2002: quiet zones to group study areas, dot matrix printer to laser printer; and inter-library loan to online data-bases (Marcum, 2003). The authors also outline eleven issues of the library of the future. Three of these are all ready here today: access to information (i.e. “print on demand”) is true of the periodical databases; orientation, the library is moving to a multicultural perspective; and computer access, most libraries have wireless internet (Marcum, 2003).


Does librarianship have a future?

The future looks bright for librarians. The roles and skill sets that librarians need may change: archivists, instructors, and the human interface to rapidly changing technology. Although much of the quest for information has become “self-service,” librarians will still be needed (Marcum, 2003). “People will continue to come to librarians because they lack the time and skills to efficiently do the job themselves” (Marcum, 2003).

Marcum, J. W. (2003). Visions: The academic library in 2012. D-Lib Magazine, 9(5). retrieved June 16, 2008 from http://www.dlib.org/dlib/may03/marcum.

McDonald, P. (1989). The future’s so bright, I gotta wear shades. [recorded by Timbuk 3]. On Greetings from Timbuk 3. [album]. I.R.S. Records.

Mullins, J.L., Allen, F.R. & Hufford, J.R. (2007). Top ten assumptions for the future of academic libraries and librarians. C&RL News, 68(4) retrieved on June 16, 2008 from http://www.acrl.org/ala/acrl/acrlpubs/crlnews/backissue2007.

Wilson, T. (n.d.). Futurespeak: A preface to top technology trends in libraries. retrieved June 16, 2008 from http://www.ala.org/ala/lita/litaresources/toptentrends/futurespeak.cfm.