Academic libraries, apart from their main function, which is to provide information services to academic communities, may also perform a number of social roles in the broad meaning of the term. Accordingly, they now tend to serve as the third place offering inclusion and animation activities to academic as well as local communities (including…

Introduction: An emerging research area within the social sciences is infrastructure studies. This article conceptualises school libraries as an infrastructure among others, allowing for a fresh look at the role of the school library. We review and discuss what constitutes the school library as an important infrastructure at a school site. Method:…

Four decades of research indicates that well-staffed, well-stocked, and well-used school libraries are correlated with increases in student achievement. Well-staffed school libraries have qualified teacher-librarians with qualifications in librarianship, digital technologies, and inquiry-based pedagogies. Well-stocked school libraries include…

Introduction: Self-guided learning has had a major impact on adult education, where information seeking and use are key aspects of learning. With their lack of experience in study contexts, the students are nevertheless assumed to develop information literacy. Method: The paper aims to create an understanding of how information literacy can be…

Sweden has special, public, and academic libraries. Staff for each is recruited from different groups of people and trained in different ways, according to the special requirements, goals, and philosophy of each type of library. This article focuses primarily on information and documentation centers and research libraries. (JPF)

Libraries are critical learning spaces and may play a significant role in intercultural education initiatives, particularly in Sweden where the national curriculum ascribes central functions to libraries for learning activities. Unfortunately, the ways in which teachers and librarians may collaborate to leverage mutual resources is not fully…

Describes the Barkestorp Project that investigated the teaching and learning process for Swedish elementary school children after libraries had been introduced into the curriculum. Highlights include planning by principals, teachers, and librarians; the librarian's role; cooperation between teachers and librarians; student behavior; library…

The world has not previously experienced migration to the extent that it does today, and the situation is likely to intensify in the future. Millions of people leave their homes because of war, persecution, and other disasters, or simply in search of work. Migration often creates problems in the receiving areas, and ignorance often engenders…