Role of library staff in academic libraries in india
Answers
Answer:
to take care of the students in the library
Explanation:
the role of a library staff in academic libraries in India is to bring the students from the class by making a straight line and making them sit silently with discipline.
According to ALA glossary of Library and Information Science, a university
library is defined as "a library, or system of libraries established, supported and
administered by a university to meet the information needs ofits students andfaculty
and support its instructionaL, research and service programmers." That is why Dr
Sarma stated: "A library is more important than a university because a library can
function without a university whereas a university cannot do without a library." 35
A well-resourced and well-managed library is one of the important assets of any
educational institution. It plays a central role in providing essential services to support
the learning, teaching and research work of all students and staff. Library and
information services are most effective when they are closely integrated with the
academic process of the institution. Most modern libraries are "hybrid" libraries,
providing both traditional and electronic services.
A number of changes in teaching, learning and research in recent years have
reinforced the values of high standards of library provision. These include: the move
towards resource - based, flexible and online learning; a more student - centered
approach to learning; the growth of distance and life-long learning; the growth of
printed resources and the even faster growth of electronic services; the increased use of
the web; the development of managed and virtual learning environments; greater
accountability; and the assessment framework both for teaching quality and research.
With the convergence of technologies, many have seen the value of drawing the
library together with other services. The range of services varies but may include the
library, computer services, media services, information services, archives and learning
support units; these converged services may be called Learning Resource Centres,
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Learning Centres of Information Services. But they make a core contribution to
teaching, learning and research in Higher Education by
• providing a diverse range of both traditional and electronic resources,
maximising access and availability;
• creating study environments for both curriculum-based and independent
learning and research; and
• teaching transferable information, learning and knowledge navigation skills,
which are core enabling skills for independent and life-long learning.
At the threshold of the 21 Sl century the above factors put libraries and information
professionals as organizers and facilitators, at the very heart of information revolution.
Firstly, there is a much - cited proliferation of information: for instance, it has been
claimed that by the year 2020, the amount of available information will double every 73
days. Secondly, the advances in information and communication technologies are everexpanding possibilities for accessing information at a distance. Thirdly, increasing
development in distance will call for a greater reliance on online access and well-honed
accompanying skills, the acquisition of which is frequently undervalued36 . As the
learning process becomes increasingly student-centred, student's needs will be satisfied
less and less by a "sage on the stage" as they will need access to "a guide on the side."
Here there is a clear role for the well-trained and knowledgeable information
professional and his information centre. According to Dr. S. R. Ranganathan, library is
"a new instrument for perpetual self-education":
"When the informal instruments of the home and the community proved
ineffective and the formal instrument of the school proved to be inadequate, the semiformal instrument in the library came to be recognized. No doubt libraries had existed
ever since books came to be written, but they had been devised either to hoard books or,
at most, to serve books to a select few. It was not till our days that the library has been
conceived as a tool for universal education - for the education of all, at all time. This
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new role of libraries is the message of the modern library movement. This new
instrument of education is semi-formal in the sense that it does not enforce a
curriculum, it does not enforce a particular time-table ... it is a supplement to the formal
education... ,,37
Later Dr. S. R. Ranganathan also argued for a change of teaching method from
textbook-centred-teaching to library-centered learning": "The present social impact on
education calls for an immediate change of the memory filling textbook-centred mass
talk method of teaching to the intellect sharpening, library-centred individual and group
guidance method of instruction." 38