The Mls Project: An Assessment After Sixty Years
by Boyd Keith Swigger /
2010 / English / PDF
5.3 MB Download
In 1951, the
American Library Association (ALA) Council approved new standards
for accrediting library education programs. These standards shifted
accreditation from the bachelor's degree to the master's degree,
making the master's degree in library science the professional
credential for entry into the profession. At the time, librarians
believed this change would transform the practice of librarianship,
the nature of library education, and the social standing of
librarianship as an occupation.
In 1951, the
American Library Association (ALA) Council approved new standards
for accrediting library education programs. These standards shifted
accreditation from the bachelor's degree to the master's degree,
making the master's degree in library science the professional
credential for entry into the profession. At the time, librarians
believed this change would transform the practice of librarianship,
the nature of library education, and the social standing of
librarianship as an occupation.
In
InThe MLS Project: An
Assessment after Sixty Years
The MLS Project: An
Assessment after Sixty Years, Boyd Keith Swigger
examines the reasons the American Library Association enacted the
change and looks at the consequences of this decision. Reviewing
the last several decades, Swigger addresses a number of concerns:
What were librarians' and library educators' arguments for changing
the system of library education? What problems were they trying to
solve? What were their objectives? Did the change in the structure
of library education solve the problems perceived in the late
1940s? Have the objectives set then been accomplished in the half
century since? What have been the intended and unintended outcomes
of the change?
, Boyd Keith Swigger
examines the reasons the American Library Association enacted the
change and looks at the consequences of this decision. Reviewing
the last several decades, Swigger addresses a number of concerns:
What were librarians' and library educators' arguments for changing
the system of library education? What problems were they trying to
solve? What were their objectives? Did the change in the structure
of library education solve the problems perceived in the late
1940s? Have the objectives set then been accomplished in the half
century since? What have been the intended and unintended outcomes
of the change?
In his review, Swigger draws general conclusions about the MLS
Project, the perception of librarianship, libraries, the
developments of curriculums in library schools, and how
librarianship compares to the new information professions.
In his review, Swigger draws general conclusions about the MLS
Project, the perception of librarianship, libraries, the
developments of curriculums in library schools, and how
librarianship compares to the new information professions.The MLS Project
The MLS Projectis an
informative and critical evaluation that every librarian should
read.
is an
informative and critical evaluation that every librarian should
read.