At the Future of Academic Libraries Symposium, I had about 15 minutes to hear from the attendees about their own “heretical thoughts” about LIS education. Thanks to Dale Askey (@daskey) for capturing these while I lead the discussion:
Being more selective about who gets in to library school.
Cut down number of graduates; avoid overstocking the profession.
Deans/professors at conferences/forums, at thought leading/forming events. Where are they?
LIS schools need to manage expectations of profession; libraries are being unrealistic by demanding immediate gratification in the form of
perfectly fit graduates
Instructional design should be part of the mix
Internships integral? Yes, must be strong partnerships with host libraries and communities.
More critical thinking skills taught in library school. Crucial component.
Lighten up, be playful, take risks.
ALA accreditation? Enabler?
Teach MARC and cataloging as history course.
Reduce adjunctification, less online instruction by semi-skilled instructors, allow practitioners sans PhD into the teaching ranks as full-time faculty.
Create unflappable and intellectually curious self-starters.
Require work experience to enter library school (as support staff)
What would you add?