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ERIC Number: ED331527
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 1990
Pages: 87
Abstractor: N/A
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Selected Thematic Priorities in American Graduate Introductory Courses to Library and Information Science.
Nitecki, Joseph Z.
A two-part questionnaire was mailed early in 1990 to all graduate schools of library and information science accredited by the American Library Association to solicit their views on the impact of the changing information environment on the content of introductory courses in the field. The first part focused on the administrative aspects of the introductory courses, and the second requested each respondent to prioritize a number of topics in a hypothetical syllabus for such a course on a four-part scale. This report is based on responses from the faculty responsible for introductory courses in 34 (56.6%) of the graduate library schools, all of which offered an introductory course. It was found that the course was required by all of these institutions, the lecture format was the most popular teaching method, and the focus of most programs was theoretical. Clear consensus was not found on the course content; in fact, the study provided some evidence of overall weak agreement among the profession's faculty. The overall concept of the profession emerged as a social institution concerned about its professional status and focusing primarily on issues of intellectual freedom, censorship, communication, and information policy. The predominant themes of the course were the philosophy, theory, and historical background of the discipline. This study seems to reinforce the perception of librarianship and information science as a discipline in transition. Seven appendixes include the survey questionnaire, a summary of responses from U.S. and Canadian libraries, and details of the analysis. (11 references) (BBM)
Publication Type: Reports - Research; Tests/Questionnaires
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Canada; United States
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A