The employment landscape and LIS education in Pakistan: challenges and prospects

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Amara Malik ◽  
Kanwal Ameen
Keyword(s):  
Information Science ◽  
Future Orientation ◽  
Library And Information Science ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Job Market ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Job Titles ◽  
The Future ◽  
Information Landscape

Purpose This study aims to explore the current and future employment opportunities for library and information science (LIS) graduates. It identifies future employers and emerging competitors in the information landscape. The strategies that may be used to respond to and capture the future job market are also presented for LIS schools in the light of the study findings. Design/methodology/approach The qualitative approach coupled with the interview technique was used for collecting insight into the phenomena. Face-to-face and telephonic semi-structured interviews were conducted with 17 faculty members (professors, associate professors and assistant professors) from 8 LIS departments. A thematic analysis approach was used to analyze the data to present the participants’ opinions regarding various aspects of the job market in the country. Findings It was found that the job market was still traditional (library) and would continue to be so for the next five to seven years. However, the findings also indicated the emergence of a non-traditional job market in the country. New job titles and functions relevant to the emerging job sector other than libraries in the information environment were noted. Originality/value Findings may have a direct impact on the future orientation, survival and sustainability of LIS programs in the country. The study may inform curriculum revision and updating efforts to make it more relevant and responsive to future needs.

Echoes down the corridor. Experiences and perspectives of library and information science education (LISE) during COVID-19 through an African lens

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Dennis N. Ocholla
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Disaster Management ◽  
Information Science ◽  
Library And Information Science ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Future ◽  
Challenges And Opportunities ◽  
New Research

PurposeThe COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in enormous challenges, but also presented opportunities that have notable implications for the future. The aim of this paper is to explore and discuss the experiences, perspectives, challenges and opportunities of Library and Information Science Educators (LISE) during the pandemic. The aim is articulated in the following three research questions: How is the COVID-19 pandemic experienced by LISE and in research? What are the perceptions formed during the period? And what are the challenges and opportunities?Design/methodology/approachThis is an interpretivist qualitative study informed by disaster management theories. The study involved the content analysis of existing literature with a focus on COVID-19 and higher education, particularly LISE, in conjunction with an open-ended email questionnaire that was sent to selected LIS educators/faculty/staff from major LIS Schools from eight sub-Saharan African countries. The author used personal experiences and observation to supplement the data and the interpretation.FindingsResults show more similarities than differences in how the COVID-19 pandemic is experienced and perceived, as well as the challenges and opportunities that it brings to the sector. As a whole, political factors are most pronounced, meaning that administration and decision-making need more attention in the sector. Also notable is that opportunities are mostly linked to technological factors, which will determine the “new normal” for LISE in the future. Almost all the narratives focused on the middle level of (during) the disaster life cycle, which is understandable as the complete cycle of the disaster is yet to come, likely when COVID-19 ceases to be a threat.Research limitations/implicationsThe sample was small, as related studies focus more on COVID-19 and higher education, with hardly any focusing on LISE. The COVID-19 pandemic has not ended, so the disaster management life cycle cannot be fully exploited. Furthermore, the author’s categorization of responses within PEST was largely judgmental.Practical implicationsNew research, teaching and learning developmental paths have been created for LISE. The study provides practical reflection on the effects of COVID-19 on the sector and HEIs that can inform discourse and responses to the pandemic.Originality/valueThe study explores a new research domain in LISE and due to limited research in the domain brings together important voices/narratives – based on their experiences – of LIS educators in Africa on the research area. Further, it proposes the future of LISE under COVID-19 within the 4IR framework.

Sustainable relevancy in the changing library job market in Kuwait

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Hanadi Jumah Buarki ◽  
Mashael Alomar ◽  
Munirah Abdulhadi
Keyword(s):  
Information Science ◽  
Information Overload ◽  
Personal Information ◽  
Academic Departments ◽  
Survey Method ◽  
Job Market ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Job Opportunities ◽  
Job Titles ◽  
Technology Applications

Purpose The Library and Information Science (LIS) discipline face challenges such as technology applications and information overload in its effort to remain relevant in the challenging job market. This study aims to determine the skills and knowledge needed for LIS professionals in the job market to rethink the current syllabus and offer better future employability. Design/methodology/approach The research used a survey method to collect data concerning personal information, LIS employment opportunities, job titles and skills needed. Content analysis followed to determine librarianship job listings and the need for LIS graduate jobs in Kuwait. Findings The findings suggested difficulties and challenges; they also compiled a comprehensive list of skills needed and recommended courses and institutions hiring LIS graduates. The research improves decision-making in syllabus development and experiences recommended by employers. Practical implications Academic departments can follow this research to develop and update their syllabuses according to the requirements of the job market, thus offering better future job opportunities. Social implications As LIS graduates are provided with better education, the updating of their employability skills will help them socially by recognising their employment status and economically by raising their pay. Originality/value The research is the first in Kuwait to collect LIS job titles and analyse employability needs.

Charting a multi-dimensional role of future librarians

2017 ◽  
Vol 38 (6/7) ◽  
pp. 302-311
Author(s):  
Loriene Roy ◽  
Elizabeth Kennedy Hallmark
Keyword(s):  
Information Science ◽  
Social Institutions ◽  
Library And Information Science ◽  
Self Assessment ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Science Courses ◽  
The Future ◽  
Service Training ◽  
The Times ◽  
Difficult Times

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to involve readers in an exercise in conceptualizing the library workplace of the future and how to prepare librarians to be successful in these future scenarios. Design/methodology/approach This paper introduces a visualization exercise that invites readers to contemplate the likelihood and desirability of five scenarios for libraries of the future. Readers are also invited to create a new scenario. Readers then can reflect on the skills and aptitudes librarians would need to have or acquire in order to succeed in one of the scenarios. The method involves visualization, reflection, and self-assessment. Findings The authors have tested this exercise in in-service training with public, academic, and special librarians as well as with students in graduate library and information science courses. The end result is deep conversation, engagement, and sharing. Research limitations/implications The authors have observations on the effectiveness of this future exercise with students and practicing librarians but did not structure its use as a research project. In years of attending conferences and delivering over 600 conference presentations, the authors have yet to observe a similar future exercise being employed. Practical implications This exercise promotes reflection and discussion. It enables librarians to consider these scenarios on their own or in groups of varying sizes. It has application in understanding the complexity of futurism and how it might impact their future lives. And it emphases that individual librarians have some degree of independence in how they respond to change and, ultimately, a future much different from the present. Social implications Libraries are social institutions and their services reflect and respond to changes in society. Recent changes in governance around the world, warfare, the refugee crisis, and episodes of violence have contributed to tension. These are the times when librarians are called on more than ever to respond. Considering possible and improbable futures and one’s response to those futures are helpful in preparing one’s professional response in these difficult times. Originality/value This paper introduces an original model for discussing many possible futures for libraries and for librarians to consider their roles in those futures.

scholarly journals Mobile phones for development

2017 ◽  
Vol 69 (3) ◽  
pp. 294-315 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sylvain K. Cibangu ◽  
Mark Hepworth ◽  
Donna Champion
Keyword(s):  
Mobile Phone ◽  
Mobile Phones ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Information Technologies ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Information Science ◽  
Library And Information Science ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type

Purpose This paper relayed an important line of Mark Hepworth’s work, which engages with information technologies and development. The purpose of this paper is to suggest a subfield of library and information science (LIS) for development to reclaim the role of information services and systems for social change in rural areas. The paper looked at the extent of development gained with the advent of mobile phones. Design/methodology/approach Rather than undertaking traditional large-scale, quantitative, context-independent and survey-type research, the paper employed capability approach and semi-structured interviews to ascertain the experiences that mobile phone kiosk vendors in the rural Congo had of mobile phones. Findings It was found that mobile phones should be geared towards the liberation, and not utilization or commodification of humans and their needs and that mobile phones were not a catalyst of human basic capabilities. Research limitations/implications Since the method employed is an in-depth qualitative analysis of mobile phone kiosk vendors, obtained results can be used to enrich or inform mobile phone experiences in other settings and groups. Practical implications This paper provided empirical evidence as to how an important group of mobile phone users could harness development with their mobiles. Originality/value Most LIS literature has presented mobile phones along the lines of information freedom or access, mass subscription, adoption rates, technological and entrepreneurial innovation, micro-credits, etc. However, the paper placed the topic development at the heart of LIS debates.

Informatics and data science: an overview for the information professional

2016 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
pp. 7-10 ◽  
Author(s):  
H Frank Cervone
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Data Science ◽  
Information Science ◽  
Information Environment ◽  
Library And Information Science ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Information Professional ◽  
Information Professionals ◽  
Traditional Approaches ◽  
Information Landscape

Purpose – This paper aims to describe the emerging field of data science, its significance in the larger information landscape and some issues that distinguish the problems of data science and informatics from traditional approaches in the information sciences. Design/methodology/approach – Through a general overview of the topic, the author discusses some of the major aspects of how work in the data sciences and informatics differ from traditional library and information science. Findings – Data science and informatics, as emerging fields, are expanding our understanding of how the massive amount of information currently being generated can be collected, managed and used. While these may not be traditional “library” problems, the contributions of the library and information science communities are critical to help address aspects of these issues. Originality/value – The emerging fields of data science and informatics have not been extensively explored from the perspective of the information professional. This paper is designed to help information professionals better understand some of the implications of data science in a changing information environment.

scholarly journals You are a brand: social media managers’ personal branding and “the future audience”

2020 ◽  
Vol 29 (6) ◽  
pp. 715-727 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jenna Jacobson
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Media Management ◽  
Job Market ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Digital Platforms ◽  
The Future ◽  
Personal Branding ◽  
Employee Groups ◽  
Social Media Management

Purpose Social media management is an emerging profession that is growing as companies increasingly adopt social media. The purpose of this paper is to analyze social media managers’ personal branding. Design/methodology/approach In-depth qualitative data is drawn from 20 semi-structured interviews with social media managers and supported by three years of orienting fieldwork in Toronto, Canada. Findings Social media managers are responsible for managing and executing organizations’ brands and presence on social media and digital platforms. As lead users of social media, social media managers provide critical insight into the emerging practices of personal branding on social media. “The future audience” is introduced to describe how individuals project a curated brand for all future unknown and unanticipated audiences, which emphasizes a professional identity. Due to workplace uncertainty, social media managers embody the mentality of being “always-on-the-job-market”, which is a driver for personal branding in their attempt to gain or maintain employment. Originality/value While personal branding is largely discussed by industry professionals, there is a need for empirical research on personal branding that examines how various employee groups experience personal branding. This research fills this gap by analyzing how people working in social media brand their identity and how their personal branding is used to market themselves to gain and maintain employment. The development of “the future audience” and “always-on-the-job-market” can be used to understand other professions and experiences of personal branding.

The Information School at the University of Sheffield, 1963-2013

2014 ◽  
Vol 70 (6) ◽  
pp. 1141-1158 ◽  
Author(s):  
Melanie T. Benson ◽  
Peter Willett
Keyword(s):  
Information Management ◽  
Health Informatics ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Information Science ◽  
Library And Information Science ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
History Of ◽  
The University ◽  
School Records

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to describe the historical development of library and information science (LIS) teaching and research in the University of Sheffield's Information School since its founding in 1963. Design/methodology/approach – The history is based on published materials, unpublished school records, and semi-structured interviews with 19 current or ex-members of staff. Findings – The School has grown steadily over its first half-century, extending the range of its teaching from conventional programmes in librarianship and information science to include cognate programmes in areas such as health informatics, information systems and multi-lingual information management. Originality/value – There are very few published accounts of the history of LIS departments.

scholarly journals The pedagogical challenges of creating information literate librarians

2017 ◽  
Vol 66 (6/7) ◽  
pp. 570-583
Author(s):  
Maryam Derakhshan ◽  
Mohammad Hassanzadeh ◽  
Susan E. Higgins ◽  
Sara Abbaspour Asadollah
Keyword(s):  
Information Science ◽  
Single Case ◽  
Library And Information Science ◽  
Sources Of Information ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Exploratory Approach ◽  
Bounded System ◽  
Made In

Purpose This study aims to investigate the challenges of developing information literacy (IL) competencies and approaches to overcome the challenges among library and information science (LIS) students in Iran. Design/methodology/approach Taking an exploratory approach, the study used semi-structured interviews to gather the data. Using the 2000 ACRL standards as a framework, the fieldwork questions were designed around the five areas of IL competencies. A total of 15 academics teaching 18 different LIS courses from six universities were interviewed. They were asked the challenges they faced in teaching these competencies and the approaches they took or suggested in overcoming the challenge(s). A thematic approach was used to analyze the data. Findings Some of the challenges for students mentioned by the interviewees were ambiguity about the discipline, inability to match subject relevance with appropriate sources of information and lack of familiarity with databases. Research limitations/implications This study is limited to LIS academics; studying students’ reflections can bring broader perspectives to IL education in LIS programs. Owing to the nature of the design of this study, which is a single case study, the teaching experiences of IL are limited to the ones which emerged and were addressed in the context of the case. Although the case selection was made in a way that can be representative of the “general” in the “particular” bounded system of the case (Stake, 1998), studying more cases could certainly have brought broader perspectives to IL which could have been to wider contexts. Originality/value The results of this study contribute to our understanding of challenges in teaching IL in the LIS discipline, an area that has not been researched directly. This contributes to IL teaching in disciplinary areas and it brings new perspectives to the elements of IL teaching which emerged from the experiences of people who are directly experienced in the context of the discipline.

Library and information science collaboration in Pakistan: challenges and prospects

2018 ◽  
Vol 119 (9/10) ◽  
pp. 555-571
Author(s):  
Amara Malik ◽  
Kanwal Ameen
Keyword(s):  
Thematic Analysis ◽  
Information Science ◽  
Visionary Leadership ◽  
Faculty Members ◽  
Library And Information Science ◽  
Original Research ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
High Level ◽  
Collaborative Activities

Purpose This study aims to explore the nature and extent of collaboration among library and information science (LIS) departments, faculty members and practitioners. It also intends to identify the challenges and future prospects of collaboration in Pakistan. Design/methodology/approach Face-to-face and telephonic semi-structured interviews were conducted with 17 faculty members (professors, associate professors and assistant professors) from eight LIS departments. A thematic analysis approach was used to answer the research questions. Findings A thematic analysis of the participants’ opinions reveals a weak and informal collaboration among LIS stakeholders. However, high level of awareness among faculty members regarding the potential benefits of collaborative activities was observed. Their urge for developing liaison and collaboration with stakeholders is a positive indication that requires visionary leadership and committed efforts to ensure long term success. Practical implications The study aspects discussed may provide guidelines for creating future planning and growth of professional collaboration in Pakistan. The scope of this study may be extended to groom national, regional and international collaborative activities in other countries with same conditions. Though this study is conducted in Pakistan, the findings may be extended to other parts of developing countries with similar context. Originality/value It will serve as a guideline for further research, as it has addressed an untouched area and reports original research.

Perceptions on Job Requirements of LIS Graduates in Public Libraries: A Reflection on Public Libraries in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Mousaion ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 36 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mpilo Siphamandla Mthembu ◽  
Dennis Ngong Ocholla
Keyword(s):  
Work Experience ◽  
Computer Literacy ◽  
Industrial Revolution ◽  
Information Science ◽  
Public Libraries ◽  
Knowledge Society ◽  
Professional Services ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Library And Information Science ◽  
Structured Interviews

Public libraries play a crucial role in the information and knowledge society. Their access and services in the fourth industrial revolution require review as well as the knowledge of the competency requirements for Library and Information Science (LIS) graduates to offer professional services. This paper presents the competencies LIS graduates require for work. It also seeks to examine the challenges they encounter in public libraries. The study is driven by the notion that a skills gap and a lack of training for LIS professionals are still daunting challenges in most public libraries. The post-positivism paradigm was employed through the triangulation of both qualitative and quantitative methodologies in data collection and analysis. Content analysis and a survey were employed as research methods. The study scanned job advertisements in four newspapers spanning a three-year period (from January 2015 to December 2017). Semi-structured interviews were conducted with assistant directors and structured questionnaires were administered to LIS graduates. Grade 12, one to three years of work experience, computer literacy and communication skills are the most required competencies to work at public libraries. There seems to be no balance between theory and practice offered in most LIS schools, which suggests the need for curricula revision. Employed LIS graduates are facing several challenges, which include lack of practical exposure or knowledge, lack of qualification recognition and individual promotions, and lack of ICT skills and knowledge.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document