CHANGING ROLE OF LIBRARIANS IN THE INTERNET AGE

The next time you visit a public library and see an older person at the information desk, someone near retirement age, take a good look. You may be seeing the last of a dying breed, the professional librarian.

Years ago, a librarian was someone who held a master’s degree in library science (MLS) issued by a graduate program accredited by the American Library Association. Those of us who attended library schools underwent rigorous preparation, usually assignments that forced us to become familiar with the reference books and research tools that filled the university library.

The Internet changed all that. The library user who used to rely on a librarian for help can now Google his question and find more data in a few seconds than a librarian was able to locate in hours of research.

Many people who work as librarians no longer hold an MLS degree. Public libraries have created a new position called “library associate”—college graduates who do the same work as librarians but receive lower salaries than their MLS counterparts.

The erosion of the MLS degree has been mirrored by the disappearance of library schools from American universities. The University of Chicago and Columbia University once offered the best librarian training programs in the country; both institutions closed their library schools in the early 1990s.

One bright spot: Some public libraries have created jobs for “technology assistants,” positions filled by tech-savvy young people with community-college degrees and plans for information-technology careers. Libraries can easily justify this new position: Techies are paid less than librarians or library associates and they offer skills the public increasingly needs. The public library of the future might be a computer center, staffed by IT professionals and few books or librarians.

Those of us who hold MLS degrees and are still working recognize the inevitability of these trends. But large segments of the American public struggle with literacy, or want to study for the high-school GED, or are learning English and want to know where they can register to vote. We can still help children with their homework and play a role in our communities, as we have been doing for over a century.

The role for librarians and public libraries is shrinking. But I imagine that in another hundred years, we will still be here, in one form or another.

Suzanne Shelton
The Internet opened worlds, quick answers, and fast access, but it is one of many tools in research. If you need to check facts or add more depth, librarians provide additional sources: museums, local history, databases, books, and persons.

A professionally trained librarian knows how to select and organize materials - digital, print, & visual - , to answer questions, and to set a user-friendly environment. I am excited about the evolving role of the librarian and grateful that I live in a country with free access to information

William Fisher
Google and other online sources provide only unvetted opinion and are useful to people who want answers in ten words or less. Libraries, on the other hand are staffed by scholars who are well versed in their academic fields. These scholars search for books (sources of information both pro and con) and carefully verify (vet) the information therein as valid.

Roger Pratesi
Technology has changed many jobs over the years. Those that fail to adopt the technology and transform their work by incorporating it are left behind. Today's librarians, and there are many still coming out of grad schools, are information specialists that help organize and protect information assets as well as bring new learning opportunities to their communities that are information and experience based. The future librarian will not look like that of our past but will surely be there to help guide our future. This article is too focused on the past and lacks insight to the changes going on at leading colleges and universities and why these changes are important to a society inundated with much garbage on the internet.

To read the complete article and commentary (subscription required), see:
In Age of Google, Librarians Get Shelved (www.wsj.com/articles/in-age-of-google-librarians-get-shelved-1452461659?cb=logged0.4460955150425434)

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