Update for 2008
The work of the group continued during 2007 and a number of meetings were held on a quarterly basis. It is anticipated that this phase of the work of the group will come to end this Spring. The group is currently reviewing, collating and drafting a cross-sectoral report and recommendations, on information skills in the library and information services sector in Ireland, as per the group’s original objectives. We expect to have this completed and finalized for submission to the Executive Board of the LAI in advance of the Annual Joint Conference in April. An executive summary will also be made available.
The broad aims of this report will be: * To promote the understanding and development of information skills in Ireland and provide advocacy for it. * To make recommendations for the practical development of information skills in the library and information services sector in Ireland. * To provide a broad outline of information skills in the LIS sector in Ireland. * To disseminate information about information skills initiatives, development, and practice in Ireland.
In terms of dissemination and advocacy, members continue to raise awareness of the group and the role of information literacy in Irish library sectors through participation at meetings, seminars, and conferences.
Amongst the other activities carried out by the group during 2007 included –
- Presentation on work of the group to LAI Executive Board (Philip Russell)
- Keynote speaker at Academic & Special Librarians group AGM at the Royal Irish Academy (Terry O’Brien) entitled (copy of presentation attached)
- A number of members of the group also attended LILAC 2007 at Manchester University in April. LILAC is an internationally renowned conference on information literacy best practice, innovation and research.
- The group also had a paper published in the most recent edition of SCONUL Focus – entitled “The Irish Working Group on Information Literacy: a cross-sectoral approach” (A full text version available
- An update in the LAI Annual Report 2006 and 2007
- Claire McGuinness of the Department of Library & Information Studies, UCD and a member of the group, also published a significant article on IL during 2007 – “Exploring strategies for integrated information literacy” in Communications in Information Literacy a peer-reviewed online journal dedicated to IL. A full text version available in pdf
- Members of the group also attended the recent (Jan. 2008) CONUL/SCONUL seminar on the role of IL for researchers at Dublin City University.
- The group was also recently invited to present a paper at LILAC 2008.
As at end of January, membership of the group remains:
* Philip Russell, IoT Tallaght (Academic & Special)
* Terry O’Brien, WIT (Academic & Special)
* Sue Miller, Dublin (Schools Library Sector)
* Kate Kelly, RCSI (Health)
* Jamie Ward, DkIT (Academic & Special)
* Rebecca Ford (Schools Library sector)
* Claire McGuiness (SLIS Dept., UCD)
* Olivia Fitzpatrick, UCC (Academic & Special)
* Peter MacKenna, DkIT (Academic & Special)
* Susan Kelly, Wexford County (Public Libraries)
Dr Philip Cohen, Head Librarian, Dublin Institute of Technology, has recently been designated as the LAI Executive Board contact for the group.
For further information, please contact:
Philip Russell, Institute of Technology Tallaght, 01-4042202
Terry O’Brien, Waterford Institute of Technology, 051-302829