Library science

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Not to be confused with Informatics.
Not to be confused with Information science.

Library science or library and information science (abbreviated LIS) is the study of issues related to libraries and the information fields. This includes academic studies regarding how library resources are used and how people interact with library systems. These studies tend to be specific to certain libraries at certain times. The organization of knowledge for efficient retrieval of relevant information is also a major research goal of LIS. Basic topics in LIS include the acquisition, cataloging, classification, and preservation of library materials. In a more present-day view, a fervent outgrowth of LIS is information architecture. LIS should not be confused with information theory, the mathematical study of the concept of information, or information science, a field related to computer science and cognitive science.

Most professional library jobs require an academic LIS degree as certification. In the United States, the certification usually comes from a Master's degree granted by an ALA-accredited institution, so even non-scholarly librarians have an originally academic background. In the United Kingdom, however, there have been moves to broaden the entry requirements to professional library posts, such that qualifications in, or experience of, a number of other disciplines have become more acceptable.

Programs in LIS are interdisciplinary, and overlap to some extent with the fields of computer science, various social sciences, statistics, and systems analysis.

The term "library science" first appeared in the early 1930s, in the title of S. R. Ranganathan's The Five Laws of Library Science and in the title of Lee Pierce Butler's 1933 book, An Introduction to Library Science. See History of library and information science for further detail.

Contents

[edit] Subdisciplines

Subdisciplines of library science include the study of:

  • Human Information Behaviors (information-seeking, search strategies, and use)
  • Knowledge Organization (which includes Bibliography, Cataloging, Classification, Indexing & Abstracting, Metadata, Semantic & Syntactic Analysis (Controlled Vocabularies, etc.))
  • Digital libraries
  • Collection development
  • Public reference and other services
  • Scholarly communication (includes Bibliometrics, Informetrics, Scientometrics, Webmetrics)

[edit] Types of Library Science professionals

[edit] Librarians in different types of libraries

[edit] Public

The study of librarianship for public libraries covers issues such as cataloging, collection development for a diverse community, information literacy, community standards, public services-focused librarianship, serving a diverse community of adults, children, and teens, Intellectual freedom, Censorship and legal and budgeting issues.

[edit] School

The study of school librarianship covers library services for children in schools up until (but not including) university. In some regions, the local government may have stricter standards for the education and certification of school librarians (who are often considered a special case of teacher), than for other librarians, and the educational program will include those local standards. School librarianship may also include issues of intellectual freedom; pedagogy; and how to build a cooperative curriculum with the teaching staff.

[edit] Academic

The study of academic librarianship covers library services for colleges and universities. Issues of special importance to the field may include copyright; technology, digital libraries, and digital repositories; academic freedom; open access to scholarly works; as well as specialized knowledge of subject areas important to the institution and the relevant reference works.

Some academic librarians are considered faculty, and hold similar academic ranks as professors, while others are not. In either case, the minimal qualification is a Master's degree in Library Studies or Library Science, and, in some cases, a Master's degree in another field.

[edit] Archives

The study of archives covers the training of archivists, librarians specially trained to maintain and build archives of records intended for historical preservation. Special issues include physical preservation of materials and mass deacidification; specialist catalogs; solo work; access; and appraisal. Many archivists are also trained historians specializing in the period covered by the archive.

[edit] Special

Special librarians include almost any other form of librarianship, including those who serve in medical libraries (and hospitals or medical schools), corporations, news agency libraries, or other special collections. The issues at these libraries will be specific to the industries they inhabit, but may include solo work; corporate financing; specialized collection development; and extensive self-promotion to potential patrons.

[edit] Theory and practice

Many practicing librarians do not contribute to LIS scholarship but focus on daily operations of their own library systems. Other practicing librarians, particularly in academic libraries, do perform original scholarly LIS research and contribute to the academic end of the field.

On this basis, it has sometimes been proposed that LIS is distinct from librarianship, in a way analogous to the difference between medicine and doctoring. In this view, librarianship, the application of library science, would comprise the practical services rendered by librarians in their day-to-day attempts to meet the needs of library patrons. [citation needed]

Other uses of these terms do not make the distinction and treat them as synonyms. [citation needed]

Powell's widely used introductory textbook does not make a formal distinction, but its bibliography uses the word librarianship as the heading for articles about the library profession.

[edit] Current issues in LIS

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

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