I've watched the webcast and read the PowerPoint slides. But I'm going to hold off commenting until the full LC working group report is presented to Deanna Marcum (and the library community) on November 30th. (Although it's hard not to weigh in on the provocative recommendation about FRBR and RDA.)
In the meantime, I'm re-reading the public testimony from the few brave souls who distributed their comments publicly on electronic lists, wikis, and blogs. First up, is Dr. Shawne Miksa, professor and researcher. I found her testimony [pdf] particularly interesting since she teaches teachings cataloging, etc. (an area of concern for me since I'm hoping to teach someday also). Here's a quote where she discusses the lack of attention the working group's background papers gave to cataloging education:
The absence of any real discussion in any of the background papers on the education of catalogers was puzzling, but not surprising. I do not have hard data on the most current state of library cataloging education but I strongly suspect that we are seeing now in our catalogs the result of the disturbing lack of knowledge of many cataloging librarians and library administrators that resulted from relegating traditional courses to the back burner over the past decade or so. (As well, I believe our cries of woe concerning users abandoning library catalogs for Google or Yahoo! really originate in our feeling guilty about not providing a good enough reason to use the catalogs in the first place.)
If MLS students are not pushed (whether by faculty or accreditation standards) to take the courses then we are failing our profession by not producing well-rounded graduates no matter what library position they occupy. Given the coming changes to cataloging that will ride in on the new Resource Description and Access (RDA) due to be completed in 2009, we are facing a choice to either be proactive and prepared or suffer the consequences of belated reactions.
I think it's encouraging that the working group's final report will be addressing the LIS education issue (even though they did not discuss this in their preliminary report last week). I'm looking forward to hearing their recommendations.
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