Editorial

Belle Alderman ; Trish Milne

Letters to the editors

I have read with lots of interest the issue regarding research degrees in library and information studies. Although from a personal point of view it has been both enriching and pleasurable to have completed first a Master in Librarianship and later a PhD (both at Monash University), professionally I have just succeeded in qualifying myself out of the employment market. Unless my luck changes soon, it seems I will become another long-term unemployment statistic. I wonder if any other fellow research graduates have experienced/are experiencing similar difficulties.
Maria Teresa Herrera-Keightley

Response
Maria has raised some interesting and important issues in this letter. In identifying two of the most important reasons for undertaking higher degrees - namely personal and professional satisfaction and development, and for the enhancement of employment prospects - she writes that in her experience, the latter has been a disappointment.
While acknowledging that there are many issues involved in a situation like this, it does beg the question of the relationship between research and practice. Certainly, all of the writers who contributed to the previous issue of ELIS:A spoke of the strong links between the two and of the enhancement to their career prospects as a result of undertaking research degrees.
We are interested in further comments from readers.
The editors

International connections

Laurel A Clyde
Abstract

The Australian Library and Information Association has both an International Relations Committee (established in 1985) and a policy statement on ALIA and international relations. The policy statement has two main areas of focus:

• the responsibilities of the profession in Australia to the wider international community; and
• the value to librarians and the profession in Australia of Australian involvement in professional issues and developments at the international level.

The statement says, among other things,

The Australian Library and Information Association recognises the global information environment in which its members now operate and the importance of the Australian profession making a vigorous international professional contribution.

Research focus

Associate Professor Joyce Kirk
Abstract

Education for library and information services lies at the junction of different fields of study: information studies, adult learning, communication and media studies, policy analysis, management, career development and computer studies to name a few. For our purposes these fields exist within a practice framework and a broader social, economic, political and technological context. Education for practitioners also takes place in different settings such as organisations, colleges and institutes and universities, each with their own priorities and imperatives, tradition and history, culture and ethos...

Flexible learning: challengeing traditional models of university teaching

John M Dearn
Abstract

This paper explores some of the issues surrounding the current development of flexible learning in university teaching with a particular emphasis for its implications for student learning. It examines first the diversity of meanings attached to the concept of 'flexible learning' and then discusses why flexible learning has become such an important issue. It also explores the relationship between flexible learning and technology. Conclusions draw attention to the fact that flexible learning calls for new ways of both learning and teaching and present challenges to students and academic staff. They suggest that, by its nature, flexible learning shifts the responsibility for learning more towards the students, making learning more of a shared responsibility. For students it means developing higher levels of self-management and self-motivation. For teachers, it means relinquishing a degree of control and becoming more of a facilitator of learning...

A distant relationship: Using technology to improve the distance learning environment

Vicky Wilson
Abstract

Edith Cowan University has been delivering educational materials by distance education since the mid 1970s. During that time external study has remained the poor cousin of on-campus study. Now interactive multimedia, the internet and the World Wide Web offer opportunities for academics to create an enriched on-line learning environment for students. The academic staff in the Department of Library and Information Science at the University have been experimenting for some years with a variety of technologies to determine whether they can be used to improve the learning environment of distance education students. This paper documents some of those experiments and explores possibilities for the future...

Online delivery in distance learning: enhancing student learning experiences through collaborative practices

Lyn Hay
Abstract

Online delivery of university education has been hailed as the answer to overcoming the loneliness of the long distance learner. However, the majority of online delivery methods to date have focused on the use of asynchronous tools, such as web published versions of hard copy mail packages supported by online discussion forums, eg listservs, web forums and newsgroups. To harness the power and immediacy of electronic communication via the internet, a number of synchronous tools are available to enhance the online teaching and learning experiences of academic staff and distance education students. The concept of virtual classroom environments is introduced, and the virtual world of AussieMOO - as developed at Charles Sturt University - is explored. Several university academics are already experimenting with virtual classrooms to enhance student collaboration within their distance education subjects. Some examples of synchronous pedagogical practice are included...

Reviews

Dr Trish Milne
Indexing and abstracting in theory and practice 2nd ed, Lancaster, F W 1998. Champaign, Illinois: University of Illinois Graduate School of Library and Information Science. ISBN 0 87845 102 1 $140.00.
...Aspects of the subject that are not treated are back-of-the-book indexing and the structure of thesauri, although some mention is made of the application of thesauri. The inclusion of these topics would have added to the value of the text for students. However, despite the lack of coverage of these topics, the book is highly recommended for library schools and for anyone who is interested in the theory and practice of indexing and abstracting.