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Impact of Information Communication Technology in LIS Career: a brief review

Conference Paper · December 2015

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Dr Ksh Krishna Devi Manoj Kumar Verma

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 Impact of Information Communication
Technology in LIS Career: a brief review
Ksh. Krishna Devi*
Manoj Kumar Verma**

Abstract:
Library and Information Science profession is a profession which
ž•ę••œȱ˜‘Ž›œȂȱ’—˜›–Š’˜—ȱ—ŽŽœǯȱ›˜–ȱ‘Žȱ‹Ž’——’—ȱ˜ȱ‘ŽȱŘŗœȱ
century, Library and Information Science Professionals working
’—ȱ •’‹›Š›¢ȱ Œ˜—’—ž˜žœ•¢ȱ  ’—ŽœœŽȱ ’쎛Ž—ȱ ™Š›Š’–ȱ œ‘’Ğœȱ ’—ȱ
library sources and services. The Information and Communication
ŽŒ‘—˜•˜¢ȱ ǻǼȱ ‘Šȱ ™•Š¢Žȱ Šȱ œ’—’ęŒŠ—ȱ ›˜•Žȱ ’—ȱ ‘’œȱ ™Š›Š’–ȱ
œ‘’ĞȱŠ—ȱŒŠžœŽȱœ’—’ęŒŠ—ȱŒ‘Š—Žȱ’—ȱ‘ŽȱŠ›ŽŠȱ˜ȱ•’‹›Š›¢ȱ™›˜Žœœ’˜—ȱ
by introducing new concepts and services. Due to these changes,
the concept of librarianship has totally changed. The present paper
discusses how the advancement of ICT has brought changes in
the libraries as well as in the profession of librarianship. It also
discusses about the changing role of library profession followed
by the LIS Career and LIS education in the ICT era. Further,
challenges and opportunities for the library professionals have been
discussed followed by conclusion.
Ž¢ ˜›œDZȱ –™ŠŒȱ ˜ȱ ǰȱ ’‹›Š›¢ȱ ™›˜Žœœ’˜—Š•œǰȱ ’‹›Š›¢ȱ ǭȱ
Information Science Career, LIS education

T
he Information Communication Technology (ICT) plays
an important role in our society. ICT is the convergence of
computers, communication and micro-electronic based techniques.
The technologies and devices like Radio, Telephone, Telegraph,
Fax, TV, Internet, WWW, Email, and Videoconference and satellite
communication techniques are the major part of the ICT and with the
     
                          
         

  


       

                   
         


help of LAN; it easily shares the information (Yadav, 2014). Due to
the advancement in the field of ICT, tremendous changes are seen in
the libraries as well as in the profession of librarianship. Now, we
are living in the knowledge based society and the role of a library
professional has changed from an intermediary (between source of
information and users) to the knowledge manager. ICT enables the
society to create, collect, consolidate, communicate, manage and
process information through multimedia in various digital formats,
which enables users to access the information effectively and
efficiently. To become successful in the LIS profession one must
have the proficiency in ICT tools and techniques with good digital
communication skill because ICT facilitates & influences digital
communication. These are basically information handling tools that
used to produce, store, retrieve, deliver, process, organize, distribute,
preserve, search, exchange and update of information (Verma, 2013).
All these technologies have become the drivers of knowledge society.
Our society is now converted in knowledge society, so as a knowledge
professional, librarian should familiar with these tools to serve the
user community. Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam, Ex-President of India have
expressed his opinion on the value and power of knowledge during
address to the Nation on Republic day in 2003 as – “Our society is
emerging as knowledge society and efficient utilization of his existing
knowledge can create comprehensive wealth of nation and also
improve the quality of life whether a nation has arrived at the state
of knowledge society is judged by the way the country effectively
deals with knowledge creation & development in all sectors like IT,
industries, agriculture, health care etc”.
ICT & its Impact on Librarianship:
The traditional libraries where the collections were only books;
now are having periodicals, journals, micro-films, audio-video cassettes
and slides for various purposes such as education, research, reference
and pleasure. The libraries being the repositories of knowledge and
information, their importance has increased. The library professionals
help the users to find information and use it effectively in their personal
& professional lives.
The whole environment of the Library has undergone a drastic
evolutionary process from manual to computerized library, then to
automated and finally to a digital library (Kumar, 2014). This is due


to the growth of ICT and its effect on the collection, organization
and services of the libraries. The automation of libraries has made
information to be recognized as an important resource for personal
and professional development of individuals at all levels. Without ICT
skills the library professionals will face difficulty in implementing
new technologies in the libraries. So, they must be educated for the
smooth running of the services in the libraries. The development and
advances in modern ICTs have brought an unprecedented revolution
in the librarianship and its practice. The library professionals with
good ICT skills and expertise will only have ample opportunities
in future and will be crucial to the management of modern libraries
in the dynamic digital environment. In the era of ICTs the libraries
have changed in their shape, size, structure and most important in
their services. Recently accomplishments are being made to establish
digital/electronic library in all over the world.
Changing the Role of Library Profession and Professionals:
The meaning and concept of libraries has changed from store
house of books to knowledge centers. ICT helps to provide traditional
library services more efficiently in the innovation of the new facilities
in library services to transform the nature of library services. The role
of library professionals should also be changed so that he/she can
cope up with the emerging technologies required in the job prospects.
Likewise, their role has been changed from the custodian of books
to an intermediary to an information provider and now to that of
knowledge manager.
There is an increased demand for ICT services among the library
users too, for they want to access the information resources through
internet, yet there are also many users who do not have the search
skills. Qualified library professionals are required for helping them
out. With the development of ICT, the library professionals are trained
and retrained for they can update themselves and can trained the new
recruits, academic/administrative staff and students. The information
explosion, internet and the technology advancement have tremendous
impact on the role of libraries and library professionals. The role
of a library professional in the current academic environment and
information age is very diverse and dynamic and they can succeed in
their new role with competent skill of ICT.
The impact of ICT on the role of library professionals offers
!
numerous opportunities in the development of professional as well
as personal career. The LIS professionals are forced to change the
way they are functioning in providing the information required by
the users. These new roles require different personalities, skills and
knowledge for library professionals. The LIS professionals must have
the curiosity, adaptability, flexibility, confidence and ability to interact
with users outside the library, a passion to educate, can do attitude with
team-oriented spirit, and ability to think globally (Bharathi, 2013).
Bharathi (2013) pointed out in her article that the roles of LIS
professionals in an information society have changed a lot. The LIS
professionals may act in an information society as a Subject Expert; as
a Global Information Providers; as Resource Managers; as Creators; as
Preservators; as Navigational Guides; as Communicators; as Financial
Managers; as Time Managers; as Legal Advisors; as Leaders; as
Personnel Managers; as Mentors; and as a Life-long Learners. For
maintaining these many roles the LIS professionals must requires
a number of skills in them, like IT skills, communication skills,
management skills, learning and teaching skills, etc. for running the
services in the library effectively and efficiently.
It is observed that in today’s job profile, the library professionals
who have the sound knowledge of ICT are mostly preferred for
recruitment in a library post. Nowadays, a number of career prospects
are available in Library and Information Science. The qualified LIS
professionals are employed in various libraries, information centers,
research centers and in the corporate sector too, as per their own
interest. Hence, there is a bright future prospect for LIS professionals
with competent ICT skill. Today’s environmental pressures are forcing
libraries to focus on accelerating technology, innovation, technical
complexities, social and legal issues, cost risks, competence, skills of
staff and technology itself. Therefore, the library professionals have
to act in a proactive manner to support the 21st century educational
change (Singh and Pinki, 2009).
Library & Information Science Schools:
The first library school was started by Melvil Dewey in USA in 1887
at Columbia College (now known as Columbia University). In India,
the library education was started by Maharaja Siyaji Rao Gaikwad of
Baroda by inviting Mr. William A. Borden, an American librarian, to
start a short term training programme in the year 1911. Again in the
"
year 1915, Punjab University invited Mr. Asa Don Dickenson from
USA for training the library staff of the Punjab State for three months.
The actual step for bringing the LIS career in India was taken by Dr.
S. R. Ranganathan, who started a training programme in 1926 under
Madras Library Association.
For incorporating the technology in the LIS education, Dr. S.
R. Ranganathan established DRTC (Documentation Research and
Training Centre) at Bangalore in 1962, under the Indian Statistical
Institute. The in-depth research activity of LICs came into practice
with the establishment of INSDOC (Indian National Scientific
Documentation Centre), now known as NISCAIR (National Institute
of Science Communication & Information Resources) under CSIR,
Delhi in 1957.
After Intendance (1947), the LIS course has recognized as a
professional course in India. Several central and state universities
are running courses like B.Lib.; M.L.I.Sc.; M.Phil.; and PhD.
There is a separate department of library & information science in
many universities of our country. Several universities have started
programmes to give practical knowledge to teachers of library science
and librarians to train students and users for enhancing the library
services in India through orientation & refreshers courses, professional
training, workshops etc.
UGC-CDC has released a report on LIS professionals about the
fast approaching onslaught of ICT. Forecasting the vulnerability of LIS
profession, the National Knowledge Commission (NKC) setup by the
GOI has recommended certain measures for the overall development
of LIS education in the country. At the backdrop of various national
organizations pressing the need for the implementation of ICT in
the field of LIS education, LIS professionals have to take care while
implementing the ICT to suit the local needs as well as the national
needs (Jyothy, 2013).
As India is moving towards a knowledge society with proliferation
of learning and research institutes the demand and importance of
library science is growing rapidly. Consequently, job opportunities
for library professionals are on the upswing. There is a lot of scope
for a career in library science and the person in this field can find
employment opportunities in government/public libraries; academic


institutions; special libraries; private organizations; foreign embassies;
information/documentation centers; etc.
LIS education in ICT Era:
Library education is a professional education concerned with
library activities and functions, which brings efficiency, competence,
confidence and leadership in the students who educate themselves in
this education. ICT plays a significant role to achieve LIS educational
objectives and the fulfillment of the primary tasks of LIS schools. It
has brought new structures and new mechanisms to organize and make
information efficiently and instantly available to the users.
Vaggi, Kamble and Sharnappa (2014) comes up in their article that
the career in library includes areas like library & information systems
management, classification/cataloguing systems, bibliography,
documentation, preservation & conservation of manuscripts,
collection management, information systems & technology,
research methodology, computer applications, reference, statistics
and management, information processing, archives management,
indexing, library planning etc. Library science is constantly evolving,
incorporating new topics like database management, information
architecture and knowledge management, among others. It is an
interesting subject & provides a great opportunity to have the
knowledge of wide variety of information sources.
Sutton (2001) observes that the changes brought into the LIS
profession by ICTs can be divided into two major categories, viz., the
natural evolutionary changes and the transformatory changes. As natural
evolution, the LIS profession has harnessed ICTs to perform old tasks
better through the automation of housekeeping tasks such as reference
work, bibliographic services, cataloguing, serials management,
circulation and acquisition, which are performed more efficiently in
an ICT-based environment. Whereas transformatory changes include
the emergence of new functions arising out of an expanded, demand-
driven information society, wider and/or interdisciplinary jurisdiction
and closer focus on user needs.
LIS education, internationally, has been discussed and studied
continuously to improve the curricula, professionals, and LIS
graduates’ status. There is, however, a need for curriculum revision
to reflect changes in the LIS field, the job market, and consequently
the bachelor’s graduates of LIS schools may not face serious
unemployment problems in future (Buarki et. al., 2011). In India, the
LIS education is currently passing through a turning point and has
become a fast developing subject with a multidisciplinary approach.
LIS curricula need to consolidate ICT concepts, knowledge, skills and
proficiency to provide adequate content and practice which will enable
the LIS professionals to adapt and use ICTs effectively. It has also
been noticed that the components of ICT are very much present in the
current LIS curriculum. Today, not only the library specific subjects are
included in the LIS education, but it has been extended to subjects like
computer applications, information science, management, statistics,
and research. It is required for all the LIS professionals to have the
knowledge about ICT so that they can provide the right information
to the right user at the right time. So it is required to enhance the ICT
skills to get the best placement in a suitable library career.
Opportunities and Challenges in LIS Career:
In the ICT era, due to the explosion of information, the library
professionals are to manage the knowledge and to train themselves
so as to survive in the information age. The changes in the society
affect the roles, job opportunities and self image. The new library
environment of recent age has created new problems and challenges
for LIS professionals due to the changes in library collection from
print to hybrid collection consisting of print, electronic (both online
& offline) and digital resources; changes of manual system of
organization of these materials to automated system; manual library
services to web based library services, etc. (Kumar, 2013). In this new
environment, the roles of library professionals are strongly influenced
by these changes.
There are a number of challenges which are faced by the library
professionals in the use of ICT for disseminating the information in
the libraries are discussed under:
a) The rapid increase in the amount of published information
is becoming the most challenging factor for the library
professionals. The library professionals are the one who use
to manage the knowledge whatever published in the world
and disseminate it among the users who are hunting for the
information. Mostly the dissemination of information is done
with the help of ICT. So, they must be trained and retrained
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 to keep up to date with the cutting edge of technology for
they can provide effective and efficient library services to the
users.
b) The inadequate technological infrastructure is another
challenge which is affecting the library professionals. This
refers to issues such as lack of national ICT policy; inadequate
number of PCs in the libraries; low internet connectivity;
and poor supply of electricity. Theresa and Revathi (2013)
mentions that there is need for policies that deregulate satellite
communication and other telecommunication links, regulate
ISPs, regulate government and cross-border data flows, etc.
ICT policies can help address stringent tax regimes that
still treat computers, communication equipment and other
peripherals as luxury items, thus imposing heavy import
duties on them and subsequently rendering these items very
expensive.
c) As the technology is growing and changing very fast so
the old technology becomes obsolete, with that the library
professionals must be ready to learn and adapt the new
technology so that they can implement it in the libraries for
running the day-to-day works of the libraries effectively and
efficiently.
d) Adequate financial support is required for maintaining
the standards and quality of the library services. Most of
the libraries are facing the issue of funding in many of its
function. The rapid pace and transient nature of technological
development requires sustained funding.
e) Technical support with high level of expertise is badly
needed for the maintenance of ICT in libraries. The library
professionals are expected to be aware of and capable of using
and demonstrating the emerging technology. Theresa and
Revathi (2013) outlined two faceted problems of technical
expertise. In the first place, there are not enough people
qualifying or attaining ICT specialist skills at the speed at
which the technologies are adopted. Secondly, the problem
of brain-drain whereby the few experts opt for better paying
jobs.
$
 Changes in the society always bring opportunities for people.
Likewise, change in the library has also created certain opportunities
for LIS professionals. Some are discussed below:
a) The challenges in the library have made the LIS professionals
more adequate in the field of ICT. Many organizations,
government institutions, universities and colleges provides
ICT training facilities to the LIS professionals so as to keep
themselves up-to-date and implement the open source library
software in their respective libraries without taking the help
of IT professionals.
b) The changes in library system particularly consortia mode of
procurement, library networking for resource sharing, inter-
library lending, provision of “walk in users” in libraries,
organizational membership of libraries, publication activities
of libraries, better marketing of library products and services
etc., have facilitated libraries to be financial sound day-by-
day in-spite of shrinking library budget. Also, the various
types of grants (both government & private), financial and
manpower help for library automation, availability of open
sources software, etc., have helped libraries a lot to manage
smoothly within limited budget (Kumar, 2013).
c) With the advent of ICT, the library services have changed
a lot from the past. In the circulation section, it becomes
easier for the LIS professionals to issue and return the library
materials easily with the help of the library software.
The document searching is also made easy for the users through
OPAC & Web OPAC, it also helps in finding out the exact location in the
shelf for a particular library and it will even come to know how many
copies are available in the library of a particular document, whether
issued out or not. One can even go for reservation too depending on
the facility provided in the library software.
RFID technology helps in the library transaction, inventory
functions and in theft detection. It helps to identify and track the items
automatically through the use of an identification chip or tag.
With the advent of ICT applications, the libraries are being able
to initiate, track and progress ILL requests. The system generates the
reminder to the borrower, maintains monetary calculations & informs
%
the next user in the queue about the status of the document.
The library successfully uses the RSS feed for messaging regarding
the new arrivals and events in the library. It is not necessary to logged
into the email account for getting the syndication of latest information
updates.
For the fastest ways of communication between the LIS
professionals and the users, the library websites have made a tool “Ask
a librarian” for real time reference service.
Kumar and Muruli (2013), mentions that the Social Networking
Sites are effectively being utilized by many libraries and LIS
professionals for marketing & promotion of information services and
connecting to counterparts for information exchange.
Even the websites blogs has a great use as the libraries can
successfully be used for book reviews, book discussions, information
marketing, jobs, etc.
d) The job opportunities for the LIS professionals have increased
a lot from the earlier days. The qualified professionals can
be recruited in various libraries, information centre, research
centers and also the corporate sector. Even the fresher LIS
graduates can gain practical experience by applying to the
post “Library trainee” which will help them in getting a
better job in the future.
e) With the many changes in library system and services,
the LIS professionals and students have greater influence
towards research and publication activities. With it, a large
number of literatures are being published both print and
online throughout the world. Also a large number of LIS
PhD holders are there which has increased the image of LIS
profession and professionals. Kumar (2013) have pointed out
that the LIS professionals in many states of India are being
recognized as the Research guide, which has added a new
status to them.
Conclusion:
The job opportunity in LIS profession is directly related with
present arrangement of library and library service. Today’s library
environment has changed significantly due to ICT application. ICT
&
become important tools in providing the library service efficiently
in present digital environment The whole functions of library i.e.
acquisition, processing and dissemination of information has changed
in traditional to digital. To meet these challenges, LIS schools has also
changed their syllabus and designed more ICT oriented course. Now,
each library school are producing ICT skilled library professional to
meet the digital library challenges. These challenges should take up
in a positive way so as to develop the skills according to present LIS
job requirement. LIS professionals with ICT skills will have plenty of
carrier opportunities in future .as well as a lot of scope to make a career
in library science and get employment in the public, government and
private sectors too.
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