 |
 |
Received with a technical glitch. --gw ---------- Forwarded message ---------- Date: Tue, 12 Jan 2010 13:51:03 -0800 (PST) From: B.G. Sloan <[log in to unmask]> To: [log in to unmask] Subject: Re: 2010 Forum on Library Education Since Bill Crowley directed his response to "All and Bernie in Particular", I thought I should probably reply. ? I've grown very?weary of the "Is there a chasm between LIS education and professional practice?" question. Seeing the question once again,?posed in the context of yet another ALA Forum on Library Education, pushed me to the tipping point. In the process of replying I blurred the distinction between two issues: ? 1. Is there a "chasm" or "gap" between library practitioners and LIS educators? Well, yeah, there's?often a gap between educators and practitioners, in many fields. There are those who "teach" and those who "do", and never the twain shall meet (this is an exaggeration for the sake of example). Some library practitioners today complain that?some?LIS educators don't really know much about libraries, which is a valid point. But 35 years ago, when I was getting my MLS, my fellow students and I had similar complaints. The faculty may have had library backgrounds back then, but they hadn't actually been practicing librarians in quite a while. I'm willing to accept that there is some sort of gap between those who teach and those who practice. It's the nature of the beast. ? 2. Here's the point I was trying to make. Accepting the fact that there can be natural gaps/chasms in a given field?between those who "teach" and those who "do", what do practitioners think of the students that educators turn out? If practitioners are happy with the quality of students who come out of LIS?education programs, then the gap/chasm between educators and practitioners is not something to worry about. If practitioners feel that newly-minted LIS?students are not well prepared for librarianship, then the gap/chasm is a cause for concern. John Unsworth's suggestion was to conduct?"empirical research leading to a genuine understanding of the needs of the profession and to consider how those needs are, or are not, being met by programs such as ours". He did not suggest research into whether or not there is a "chasm between LIS education and professional practice." And I wasn't suggesting that either, although I probably didn't express myself clearly enough. ? In summation, LIS schools prepare lots of future librarians. It seems like it would be in the best interests of?both educators and practitioners to determine?how well?the LIS schools are meeting the needs of the profession. At the very least, it might put an end to the great LIS education debate. :-) ? ?It seems that a research project to determine this would be a prime candidate for, say, IMLS funding support. ? Bernie Sloan?