11th National Library Technicians Conference

It seems like an odyssey: upgrading to a professional qualification

Roy Sanders

Considers issues associated with library technicians who choose to upgrade their qualifications by studying CSU's BA (Library and Information Science) degree. Approximately 50 per cent of CSU's annual intake into the BA(LIS) are those with a library technician's qualification, and previous research indicated that their success rates were lower than those who enter the program with other backgrounds. The paper discusses whether success rates have improved as CSU support systems for students grow and improve.

There are many reasons given by library technicians when asked why they chose to upgrade their qualifications by undertaking a degree in library and information science.

Whatever their reasons, library technicians are a significant component of Charles Sturt University's annual intake into the Bachelor of Arts (Library and Information Science) [BALIS] degree. In the past 6 years, an average 43 per cent of our intake to the BALIS have been those with a library technician's qualification.

The BALIS, the equivalent of three years' full-time study, is an internationally recognised undergraduate degree. The program is available only in the Distance Education mode, allowing students to pursue their professional development while remaining in employment and/or maintaining a family life. The course is intended to produce graduates who will be able to operate as information professionals in any library or other information agency. The course aims to develop in graduates the ability to:

• synthesise experiences so as to generate ideas
• think creatively
• communicate effectively
• reason logically
• provide information services which are able to meet the perceived and unperceived needs of individuals,
• organisations and communities
• create, maintain and assess appropriate information environments
• operate within, develop, maintain and manage teams
• be proactive in ensuring their own professional development
• become reflective practitioners

These broad aims will be achieved through the development of professional, educational, administrative and technical knowledge, skills, values and attitudes that will enable the graduate to fulfil the role of librarian and information professional. These will include, but will not be limited to, the following:

1. A knowledge of the philosophy, trends, ethics, values and major issues of the information profession.
2. An understanding of the role of the information professional within a rapidly changing technological society.
3. A knowledge of, and the ability to apply, the theories, principles and best practices of the key professional areas of:
   • generation, flow and utilisation of information;
   • information users and their needs;
   • sources of information and their characteristics;
   • provision and management of information services;
   • acquisition and organisation of information resources;
   • information control and retrieval;
   • information dissemination.

When asked why they chose to study the BALIS at CSU, the range of student responses includes:

• CSU has an excellent reputation for library courses
• Distance Ed hasn't been too onerous yet
• Only one residential school
• It's the only choice I've heard of
• The only one I could find on the www
• I can't attend classes at night in the city
• I'm used to DE/did my technicians' diploma by DE
• Etc.

Credits
CSU follows the recommendation of the 1994 AVCC Credit Transfer Agreement and gives credit for one-third of the degree to any person with a Library Technicians Diploma or Associate Diploma. Whilst some universities now give two-thirds credit for some Diploma courses (in disciplines other than LIS), it is clear to us that it is not possible to present an appropriate study program over one year to library technicians who have not been exposed to theoretical principles, to complex analytical and evaluation processes, and to the higher level thinking and writing skills that are required in degree level education. In other words, the theory involved in some 'first-year' subjects will be more extensive than a graduating technician student could be expected to have learned. Our difficulty, then, has been to assess what has been learned in the technicians' course, and decide for which subjects credit can be given.

When we consider what credit to give for those students articulating from library technicians programs librarianship degree programs, we try to compare what has been learned, and to what level it has been learned and assessed. For example, at CSU, some 1st and 2nd year subjects in librarianship do cover learning outcomes similar to a spread of Technician subjects, especially in the areas of the roles and functions of libraries and information agencies; organising and describing information; and information sources and services.

Charles Sturt University
Charles Sturt University prides itself on being one of the leading Distance Education (DE) universities in Australia; it has, for example, been delivering librarianship and information studies through DE for over 25 years. CSU spans 8 campuses throughout New South Wales, the distance between its northernmost and southernmost campuses being over 500km. The catchment area for CSU students is even greater, with students from every State and Territory, and in more than 80 different countries.

CSU now has more than 33 000 students [undergraduates 59%; taught PG courses 20%], 65% of whom study by Distance Education (DE).

School of Information Studies
The School of Information Studies comprises discernible groups, librarianship, teacher-librarianship, information technology and mathematics. It is an interesting mix and when it works well is very fruitful. To put that in personal terms there are colleagues to whom I can refer about educational theory and practice, and those equally well versed in technology. We willingly share our expertise - for example one of our IT colleagues is currently running tutorials for us in creating and maintaining web pages, and in developing the expertise to run online interactive tutorial sessions.

Librarianship and teacher librarianship at CSU
In June 2001, there were more than 1300 students in CSU's Library and Information Science Courses.

The catchment area for CSU library and information science students is broad, with students from every State and Territory. There are also significant cohorts of students studying in countries such as New Zealand, Hong Kong, Mauritius, and small numbers of students in places such as Singapore, Fiji, Canada, South Africa, UAE, and USA.

Library technicians and the BALIS
A study of the success rates of CSU BALIS students which was completed in the early 1990s indicated that those students most likely to succeed in their first year of study, and to complete the degree, were those who had had previous university-level study. Those least likely to succeed were those who came to the degree with a library technicians qualification.

A more recent study shows a reversal of this trend. A study of the intakes in 1997, 1999 and 2000 shows that the success rate in their first semester of library technicians upgrading was slightly higher than the average for the intake. In fact, in the 1997 and 1999 intakes, not one technician graduate terminated their studies at the end of the first year, compared with up to 17 per cent of those who had no prior tertiary or TAFE study.

This is one indication that those who are graduating from library technicians programs now are in a better position to succeed at university study than were those who graduated from technicians program before 1990. Further evidence of the success rates of technicians upgrading is that in the past 10 years, more than 500 students have graduated from CSU's BALIS. 21 students graduated with Distinction, 10 (47 per cent) being TAFE Assoc. Dip. graduates. A further 6 (29 per cent) of those were students with no prior post-secondary study.

During that time, 3 of the students who graduated with Distinction were also granted the University Medal (only 5 are awarded each year throughout the whole university), and one of those went to a TAFE library technician graduate.

Success factors
One of the noticeable trends which represents a critical success factor for our undergraduate students is that the library technician graduates are now more likely to be ready for active participation in the learning process. It is only 6 years (at the 1995 Technicians Conference) since Richard Williams said of library technician students:

'They are used to being passive recipients of pre-packaged past knowledge ... the best thing any of us can do for library technicians is to help them become self sufficient, autonomous learners, not only during their course, but throughout their lives.' (Williams, p. 78)

This fits well with the results of studies of vocational level students which have shown that their predominant learning style is one in which they relate best to the physical, hands-on world and think in ways that are methodical, ordered, and predictable. They prefer hands-on activities and may also have a tendency for perfection. (Orr et al, 1999)

We have long been aware that we need to encourage the majority of our first year students to evolve from passive to active learners. This involves changes in personal values, time management, study skills, critical and lateral thinking, research and information seeking skills. One recent Australian study (Fuller and Chalmers) compared the approaches to learning adopted by University and TAFE students in similar fields of study, and also compared the approaches to learning and learning goals adopted by university students who had previously studied at TAFE with those of university students without such experience. Differences that had been predicted on the basis of theory and anecdotal observation were not confirmed, and the study found no evidence that differences in the purpose and focus of universities and colleges of TAFE influenced students to adopt different approaches to learning.

Fortunately, the majority of our intake into the CSU BALIS consists of mature adults who, through life and work experiences, have already become efficient and effective time managers, and have the motivation to seek assistance in developing further the other related skills required to succeed in tertiary education.

Another factor which assists library technician graduates is that many of the subjects studied in CSU's BALIS combine theory and practice in a way that allows the application of the theory to real situations. In many subjects, assessment combines a requirement to demonstrate the student's understanding and learning of new knowledge with a requirement to apply that knowledge to practical situations. The use of practical exercises, case studies, journals, interviews, projects and reports as assessment styles recognises the need to be able to demonstrate the potential skills required to put theory into practice.

An even more obvious factor is that both courses are preparing for entry to the same profession, albeit, as the profession is currently structured, at different levels. Both courses are preparing students for employment, and certainly in our case, developed with considerable consultation with ALIA, with employers, with practitioners, and with current students and recent graduates.

CSU support for distance education
A critical factor in the success of any students at University is the support they receive from the University. This is even more important in the relative isolation experienced by DE students. Distance Education is the fastest growing sector of tertiary education in Australia today. Indeed, in the last five years, the number of students choosing to study by distance education in Australia has grown almost three times faster than the number choosing traditional full-time on campus studies.

Over two decades ago when CSU led the introduction of DE as a way of gaining a professional award in librarianship there were many sceptics. They argued that DE was but a shadow of the traditional face to face offering and that graduates of the new DE approach would be inferior. Students wishing to pursue a professional award were persuaded to consider a DE offering only if no suitable face to face program was on offer.

At CSU, we encourage DE enrolments by promoting our strong past record, our support infrastructure, and advantages for remote or full-time employed people.

However, at CSU, our research shows that the drop-out rate is greater for external students than for those on-campus. The main reasons for this appear to be:

• unrealistic expectations;
• failure to feel a connectedness with the institution;

In the first case, this covers many issues, from how to fit study in with family, work, and personal life, to expectations of the nature and level of tertiary study.

In the case of connectedness, CSU prides itself on increasingly providing flexibility, empathy and understanding to cater for individual student needs. For example, in our undergraduate library science degree, which is by far the largest in Australia, the need for face-to-face contact at the beginning of study is covered by a compulsory residential school in Wagga Wagga.

Some LIS courses offered by DE in other countries lament their inability to offer online enhancement because many students do not have access to internet and e-mail. At CSU, regardless of where our students are located, they need to be able to access resources and support services to assist them in undertaking their studies and to gain maximum benefit from their experience as a student CSU. Access to the internet and to e-mail is imperative, and we have been using the internet to support teaching and learning for a long time now.

Underpinning all of our information studies courses is an emphasis on lifelong learning and the need to create independent learners who are information literate in our knowledge based society. These are global issues, as a review of education for the Hong Kong Government illustrates (Law).

... to succeed in a knowledge-based society, our children must develop the capacity and aptitude for lifelong learning. They must have a good mastery of information technology skills and the creativity and resourcefulness to harness, share and synergise information and ideas in the global village of the 21st Century.

Teaching in the DE world can be an example of the worst teaching. Materials can be sent to students, they can be treated as clones, they can be rewarded for reproducing the instructional materials in their own words. Alternatively, the DE world can be harnessed to create thinking learners who are treated as individuals and have both individual and group learning experiences.

Human contact
Despite the hype that surrounds the ever-increasing array of communication technologies, there is still no virtual communication which is nearly as good as face to face. E-mail, forums, audio tele-conferences and virtual conferences give greater ease of access to distance learners, and while it is true that many of these are used for free-range chat the spark of incidental face to face discourse doesn't tend to happen. Our research shows that most e-mail consists of requests for extensions to deadlines on assignments, or to clarify something in the study materials, and most postings to the forum are to make contact with other students, or to ask specific questions about assignments. However, this is not seen as a problem by students, as the following anonymous comments illustrate.

... distance education is supported well through CSU in that the study materials are prepared by experts in the field, and the information is there in front of one to pore over. I have always found e-mail a great way of making enquiries to the subject supervisor, etc, and the group of staff I have encountered have always been more than willing to regard life's inconveniences as a necessary adjunct to study - ie. consideration for a couple of days' grace for assignments etc.

It seems to me that the philosophy of support for the student is alive and well - I have a friend who is taking one subject a semester at night at [another university], and even though she is a capable person, she has been floundering trying to find out day-to-day info such as "where do i get the mark for my assignment" etc.

My answers are always at the end of a phone, in return e-mail. And probably the overall good quality is that one's approaches are always treated seriously, even if the question has been asked a hundred times. I just don't feel too alone studying this way - online contact makes all the difference.

At CSU in library science, we see our present and future as being courses with a people focus - after all we are providing education for those who must work with and serve people.

Still on a practical note, one of the things that I have found at CSU is that the level of support by the University is excellent, largely because, as the student statistics indicate, the majority of the University is geared to DE and that makes a difference. It is one of the selling points of the University and a reason why students choose CSU. Although the academic outcomes are important, it is often because the systems are in place that the University generally is perceived by students as 'efficient'.

Support for DE students comes through personal, accessible and flexible student administration systems; opportunities to improve skills in online learning, academic skills development, maths, statistics, career management, personal development and making the transition to tertiary study; counselling; help with disabilities; library support; IT help; and through the strong support of academic staff, through staff training and development, instructional design, IT systems, etc.

Conclusion
CSU's experience with effective learning through DE declares that flexibility and constant development are keys, and, with increasingly more time and resources allocated to discussion, research, training, and support for innovation, these are a strong part of the organisational culture. It has become increasingly obvious that students can be empowered to learn and to succeed by being able to choose their means of access to learning resources and the means of delivery. The student's prior success or otherwise at tertiary study seems no longer to be a major factor.

As well as preparing students for their profession, we are setting our students up for lifelong learning. We attempt to deliver that balance between

• what the profession requires as core knowledge, skills, abilities and values;
• what will help get them employed; and
• what will encourage them to become lifelong learners.

That balance also assumes that our approach is learner-centred, that judicious use is made of new and old technologies, and that we must not be driven by financial agendas alone. Online teaching and learning can be done with high quality if approaches are employed which compensate for any limitations of new technology, and if our lecturing staff make the effort to create and maintain the human contact which is so vital to the success of their students.

References
Fuller, Richard, and Denise Chalmers (1999) Approached to learning of TAFE and University students. Australian and NZ Journal of Vocational Education Research, 7, 1: 127-144

Law, Fanny (1999) In pursuit of excellence: challenges and changes for the Hong Kong special administrative region. International Congress for School Effectiveness and Improvement, January 5.

http://www.info.gov.hk/ed/english/resource/international_congress/home.htm Accessed 7th September, 2000

Orr, Betsy, Ok Park, Dale Thompson, and Cecelia Thompson (1999) Learning Styles of Postsecondary Students Enrolled in Vocational Technical Institutes. Journal of Industrial Teacher Education, 36, 4, Summer.

Reid, Donna (1997) Meeting the future: paraprofessional education and training in a knowledge economy. In Interaction: the client, the profession, the technology. Proceedings of the 9th National Library Technicians Conference, Canberra, 24-26 September, 1997. Pp. 151-163. InterACTion: Canberra.

Williams, Richard. (1996) Challenges faced by library technician students towards 2000. In Techs at the top: challenges and changes around the world. Proceedings of the 8th National Library Technicians Conference, Darwin, 12-14 July 1995, pp. 74-78. Techs at The Top: Darwin.