Conversely, at my library school alma mater (School of Information, University of Michigan), technology courses make up the bulk of the program. It's "traditional" library courses which are lacking -- I think there might be four? at this point.
I got my MLIS 10 years ago, but I was under the impression that more library programs were taking a more technology-based path. Evidently not, which surprises me.
Deb
-----Original Message-----
From: Next generation catalogs for libraries [mailto:NGC4LIB_at_LISTSERV.ND.EDU] On Behalf Of Peter Schlumpf
Sent: Thursday, September 11, 2008 1:56 PM
To: NGC4LIB_at_LISTSERV.ND.EDU
Subject: Re: [NGC4LIB] Library Technologies and Library School (was Commercial Vendors and Open Source Software)
Interesting thoughts.
I am one with a computer science and engineering background who chose to
take his skills to libraries, and took some graduate courses in library
science while at the University of Illinois in the late 1980s. I saw so
much potential. I've often wondered how the library community could have
influenced the development of computers early on, and what computers would
be like today if it had. Computing came out of math and engineering, but I
think the library community could have played a much greater role in the
early development of computing.
One thing that has always struck me is how the library community is so
inwardly self-obsessed and insecure, which one can see in the never-ending
debate: "Is librarianship a profession?" that continues to this day. Why
can't they feel secure in themselves as professionals and get on with the
work at hand? It's a waste of time and energy to even have that debate. I
think that's a big part of the problem.
I agree that MLS students should learn technologies like Javascript,
HTML/CSS, SQL, certain programming languages and Internet protocols, but
those things come and go. They should also have some understanding of the
principles that underly those technologies -- A basic grounding in math.
Algorithms and data structures. Programming (doesn't much matter what
language). Finite state machines. Networking. Human-computer interface
design. That kind of knowledge doesn't get old. They aren't going to be
computer scientists, but maybe this knowledge could be cast in a way that's
relevant to working in libraries, and they'll know how the technology they
use really works.
Peter Schlumpf
Avanti Library Systems
www.avantilibrarysystems.com
pschlumpf_at_gmail.com
On 9/11/08, Kevin M Kidd <kiddk_at_bc.edu> wrote:
>
> I will re-iterate what several have already said in this forum: the
> problems we are having with the lack of technical knowledge in the library
> community is an indictment of library education in general.
>
> Here at Boston College, we have had several newly-minted librarians come
> through recently, MLS in hand, who managed to finish library school with a
> mere smattering of technology competence sprinkled into their degree
> requirements. In this day and age, such a situation is nothing short of
> astounding. What technology should MLS students learn?
>
> For starters, I would say they need more than a smattering of the
> following:
> HTML/CSS
> JavaScript
> Relational Databases/SQL
> Some Scripting languages (Perl/PHP, etc)
>
> They should understand client-server architecture. They should know
> something about how networks function and the difference between internet
> protocols like HTTP, FTP, SSH and Telnet.
>
> Again, this is just for starters.
>
> I feel fortunate that, when I was at Syracuse Library School in the
> mid-1990s, my professors were both technologists and librarians. Many of
> them were working on cutting-edge technology projects, and I was a direct
> beneficiary of their knowledge and experience.
>
> Unfortunately - 12 years on - this is obviously not the experience of most
> current students and recent graduates.
>
> It's a big problem.
>
> --------------------------------------
> Kevin M. Kidd, MA, MLIS
> Library Applications & Systems Manager
> Boston College Libraries
> Phone: 617-552-1359
> Fax: 617-552-1089
> e-Mail: kevin.kidd_at_bc.edu
> Blog: http://datadrivenlibrary.blogspot.com/
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Next generation catalogs for libraries [mailto:
> NGC4LIB_at_LISTSERV.ND.EDU] On Behalf Of Deemer, Selden S
> Sent: Thursday, September 11, 2008 10:45 AM
> To: NGC4LIB_at_LISTSERV.ND.EDU
> Subject: Re: [NGC4LIB] Commercial Vendors and Open Source Software
>
> With some trepidation, I'm going to dip a toe into this pool. I have worked
> as a librarian since 1971. Even though I elected to take some PL/1
> programming classes in library school, by and large, libraries were
> unaffected by computers when I got into the field. This is certainly not the
> case in 2008, nor has it been the case for a considerable amount of time.
>
> While I can accept the argument that a small library may not have the
> resources to hire even a fraction of an IT person, I cannot accept that
> librarians do not have the ability to acquire a modicum of IT skills.
>
> Unfortunately, far too many of the librarians I have worked with over the
> past 35+ years have an attitude of "I can't do this unless someone teaches
> me to do it." What a crock. Today's libraries are inseparable from computers
> and IT. Someone who can't motivate him/herself to keep up with the
> technology should get out of the field and find some activity that doesn't
> require knowledge of computers (although that's increasingly difficult in
> today's world).
>
> Selden Deemer, Library Systems Administrator
> Emory University Libraries, Atlanta, Georgia
> EMAIL: libssd_at_emory.edu
> PHONE: 404-727-0271
> FAX: 404-727-0827
>
>
>
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Received on Sun Sep 21 2008 - 09:56:45 EDT