Supporting E‐learning: A Guide for Library and Information Managers

Citation

Collier, M. (2005), "Supporting E‐learning: A Guide for Library and Information Managers", Program: electronic library and information systems, Vol. 39 No. 4, pp. 389-391. https://doi.org/10.1108/00330330510628042

The aim of this book is to address some of the strategic and operational issues that library and information managers might consider in supporting e‐learning. At the outset, the editor defines e‐learning as “learning facilitated and supported through the use of information and communication technologies”, which gives plenty of scope. As she says, this can encompass electronic content, virtual learning environments (VLEs), managed learning environments (MLEs) and all in between. The book is in the form of a compilation of contributions, with the scene set by the editor, providing accounts of and observations on the respective authors' experience and initiatives in their various institutions. Although not explicit, the focus of the contributions is completely on higher education (although in practice much will be relevant also to further education). Public, school, or special librarians will find elements of interest, but may not feel at home with the numerous mentions of higher education structures and associations.

In her introduction, Maxine Melling, Director of Learning and Information Services at Liverpool John Moores University, observes that the development of e‐learning is still in its early stages, but that high hopes from it are entertained by government in areas such as raising participation, training for employment, and up‐skilling. That said, it is pointed out that the consultation on the Higher Education Funding Councils' (HEFCs) draft e‐learning strategy revealed views that there is a lack of emphasis on learner support. It is certainly the case that library and information managers are only just beginning to get to grips with the implications of e‐learning for their services. There is also a lack of good practical literature on the subject, therefore, this book is a welcome contribution.

The book consists of six main chapters. The first, by Sarah Porter of the Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC) of the HEFCs, gives an overview of the development of MLEs, covering strategy, architecture, scenarios, and advice on development. There are sections on resource description, learning objects, relationship with the library catalogue, links to the library management system, and digital repositories. For those new to the subject, and even those not so new, this is an effective tutorial on topics that can seem rather complex at first. The second is by Oleg Liber, Professor of e‐Learning at the University of Bolton. It focuses on processes and partnerships for developing support. It provides a historical context and an interesting analysis of the change process based on the TASCOI (transformation, actors, suppliers, customers, owners and intervenors) methodology of Espejo, Bowling and Hoverstadt. The third focuses specifically on change management, and is by Robert Hunter, Stephen Clarke and Michele Shoebridge of the University of Birmingham, where the academic support services have been famously and radically reorganised over recent years. Birmingham is often held up as a model, not only of a new approach, but also of good practice in change management and this chapter bears that out, being full of good tips and combining theory with practical experience. The fourth is a contribution on support for the new media by Frank Moretti, Executive Director of the Center for New Media Teaching and Learning at Columbia University in the US. The flavour of this chapter is rather different, perhaps because of its provenance. Starting with high level analysis it moves into two case studies from direct experience (vignettes) providing very different contexts and challenges. Finally there is a valuable list of 14 do's (and a few don'ts) set out as a mini‐handbook for the practitioner. The fifth chapter is by Peter Stubley, Assistant Director for Academic Services at Sheffield University, and grapples with the seemingly perennial problem of engaging students and academics with information literacy. The chapter starts on a note of weariness that these problems are still with us after 30 years, which is immediately offset by the description of a new approach to engagement which seems to be offering renewed hope for progress in the era of e‐literacy. Concrete developments include reform of the old style reading lists into resource lists that interact with the VLE, and an information skills resource for WebCT. The final chapter is on collection management, by Frances Hall and Jill Lambert of the University of Aston in Birmingham. This is a useful overview and update of the issues involved in acquiring or licensing electronic content and as such is about general digital library management, but there are also some observations which relate to the specific challenges of e‐learning.

How do you get busy managers who are active in the profession to write up to date books on topics of current interest? The answer is nearly always to ask several authors to cover aspects of the topic and draw them together in an edited compilation. The danger is that it results in a work that is patchy and not more than the sum of its parts. Inevitably this compilation is open to this criticism, but only mildly so. It is a brave start to developing the monograph literature of the topic, which is complex and still in its infancy. There is a lot of good advice throughout the volume, albeit with a little repetition, and the authors are all experienced people who write in a direct and accessible manner, combining theory with practice. The book is not dense and can be read very quickly.

The book is written very much from the point of view of the librarian or service provider and although there are occasional mentions of pedagogic issues, it is light on this subject. A chapter on how information services and managers can engage with the pedagogic process and train their people to be more aware of it, would have been a welcome completion of the coverage. It is also heavily based in UK experience (except of course the Moretti chapter) and reflects the systemic national approach that is taken to information services development in UK higher education, of which readers from outside the UK need to be aware. On the whole, however, this compilation is a valuable contribution to the field and should be read by all UK academic services support people, and those engaged in strategy, and library and information managers from outside the UK will also find much of interest.

I wish to record my thanks to my colleague, Wouter Schallier of the University Library of K.U. Leuven, for his helpful observations.