So I was asked by a friend of a friend why I specifically needed a degree to become a librarian. And it made me pause. The idea of a librarian as someone who doesn't have a specific set of skills that need to be trained, is still prevalent in today's society.
It never crossed my mind that a librarian wouldn't need some sort of additional education but maybe that's because I've spent a lot of time in academia. Or maybe I just think about things that don't (or rather didn't at the time) pertain to my personal situation. Regardless it did make me wonder. As you all probably know, having taken Foundations, we discuss this at some length within that class.
And here in 7505 we're learning about all sorts of technology, how libraries are trying to stay on the bleeding edge to make sure they are connecting the best way possible with patrons around the world. How they are learning to adapt to a more mobile and "plugged in" society as a whole. But many folks are completely unaware of what a librarian can do for them or what a library does to stay relevant and incorporated into their lives. They may even visit a library on a regular basis but because what they want, OPACs, email, text, Twitter, FB, etc. are already available they don't notice the changes. It's just how it is.
So should libraries do more or different than what they are already doing to help promote themselves and make people more aware? Or is being that innocuous institution that is always "just there" a good thing?
Technology... is a queer thing. It brings you great gifts with one hand, and it stabs you in the back with the other.
~ Carrie Snow
I admit that I worry a bit about the MLIS requirement in Georgia going away sometime in the future. One of my potential target areas to work is in Portland, Maine - a great little city. It took a classmate at VSU who happened to study in Maine to inform me that Maine doesn't require an MLIS. Also, with the influx of PhDs with no MLIS training still getting library work, or certified IT folks increasingly finding niches in libraries I sometimes worry. I expressed this concern to an MLIS holder and he told me not to worry - that it will still be a leg up and be preferred on a resume even if not required. I hope he's right. I think he is. Jeeez! Sorry for the bummer post. That wasn't what I intended when I visited. :)
ReplyDeleteIt is pretty troubling though and it's good that you've reached out to try and find some answers for your concerns. I found it a hard to really articulate why this degree is important without trying to sound like I'm making excuses or something else that could be seen as a flimsy reasoning.
DeleteI'm not sure I succeeded but I hope that next time I'm asked that questions (which I'm sure will probably happen) I will have a better answer.