Practitioners and Library Education: A Crisis of Understanding

摘要

The crisis in library education is a crisis of understanding. Distanced from LIS programs by their roles in the field, many practitioners have assumed an adversarial role against library education and have been unsympathetic when institutional demands coupled with insufficient funding result in library school programs different from those they envision. Instead of assuming the worst, practitioners should thoughtfully consider how schools are evaluated and what it takes to educate a librarian while seeking cooperative means through which they can help LIS programs more effectively accomplish their goals. As the African proverb goes, it takes a village to raise a child; the education of new librarians is the responsibility of the field as a whole, not just of teaching faculty. LIS programs are small and vulnerable, and instead of criticism they need support and involvement from practitioners.