Recruiting, Educating, and Training Cataloging Librarians: Solving the Problems

(Hardback)

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Librarians entering the profession often shun the prospect of becoming catalogers because they perceive public service responsibilities as more rewarding than those of technical services. This is causing a shortage in the area of technical services in general and cataloging librarians in particular. A group of concerned professionals decided to investigate solutions to the problems, thus, the Simmons College Symposium on Recruiting, Educating, and Training Cataloging Librarians evolved. The editors have compiled papers presented at the symposium that propose solutions to the cataloger shortages. . . . Discussions included topics such as the evolving public/technical services relationship, the networking of professional librarians to aid in recruitment, flexible and creative education programs, and the cross training of library professionals to handle cataloging. The symposium participants, which included well-known professionals, administrators, and educators, encourage increased cataloging knowledge and involvement to support the automation and technological challenges facing libraries of today. The papers are well written and easy to read. Recommended. Library Journal Developed from a recent symposium, this informative book offers research-based analyses; it also offers realistic approaches to the concerns of catalogers and the library educators and administrators responsible for their recruitment, education, and training. It was written by more than 25 specialists who have developed solutions to particular problems within these three areas. Solutions are offered for a wide range of issues, including increased financial pressure on libraries, recruiting methods, the changing economic and professional expectations of librarians, the impact of technology, challenges for the library science curriculum, and training strategies for large and small institutions. This book will encourage library administrators to break new ground in applying creative solutions to the real-life problems of their institutions. It will help professional educators in designing or improving library and information science programs, and give students a greater understanding of critical issues in contemporary librarianship.

Reviews

. . . Since the focus of this volume is on people and interaction between people, mention is made of the attributes that make a successful cataloger. As with every profession, knowing and keeping in mind these traits when recruiting or interviewing candidates is helpful. While there is some repetition of ideas in the papers, on the whole this well-written book displays the concern and commitment of the participants to the profession.-Collection Management
. . . This book addresses areas that are of vital importance to the future of cataloguing departments, including the need for dedicated staff who require skills in management and leadership. . . . This volume is completed by a bibliography and an index (unusual in conference proceedings). This book would be of special interest to cataloguing librarians, lecturers in cataloguing and cataloguers involved in training.-Current Awareness Bulletin
In March 1989 a Symposium on Recruiting, Educating, and Training Cataloging Librarians was held at Simmons College. The papers presented at the Symposium have been gathered in this thought provoking volume, which should be of interest to anyone involved in cataloging. As the title suggests, the text is divided into three parts with nine papers on recruiting, eight on educating, and seven on training. Throughout the papers the reader frequently encounters the word change.' Cataloging is a profession subject to constant change and the papers bring this out, saying that those responsible, for recruiting, educating, and training cataloging librarians must change their methods.-Insights
Librarians entering the profession often shun the prospect of becoming catalogers because they perceive public service responsibilities as more rewarding than those of technical services. This is causing a shortage in the area of technical services in general and cataloging librarians in particular. A group of concerned professionals decided to investigate solutions to the problems, thus, the Simmons College Symposium on Recruiting, Educating, and Training Cataloging Librarians evolved. The editors have compiled papers presented at the symposium that propose solutions to the cataloger shortages. . . . Discussions included topics such as the evolving public/technical services relationship, the networking of professional librarians to aid in recruitment, flexible and creative education programs, and the cross training of library professionals to handle cataloging. The symposium participants, which included well-known professionals, administrators, and educators, encourage increased cataloging knowledge and involvement to support the automation and technological challenges facing libraries of today. The papers are well written and easy to read. Recommended.-Library Journal
Recruiting, Educating, and Training Cataloging Librarians should be on every library administrator's bookshelf and is recommended for academic and library school collections.-CLJ
"Librarians entering the profession often shun the prospect of becoming catalogers because they perceive public service responsibilities as more rewarding than those of technical services. This is causing a shortage in the area of technical services in general and cataloging librarians in particular. A group of concerned professionals decided to investigate solutions to the problems, thus, the Simmons College Symposium on Recruiting, Educating, and Training Cataloging Librarians evolved. The editors have compiled papers presented at the symposium that propose solutions to the cataloger shortages. . . . Discussions included topics such as the evolving public/technical services relationship, the networking of professional librarians to aid in recruitment, flexible and creative education programs, and the cross training of library professionals to handle cataloging. The symposium participants, which included well-known professionals, administrators, and educators, encourage increased cataloging knowledge and involvement to support the automation and technological challenges facing libraries of today. The papers are well written and easy to read. Recommended."-Library Journal
." . . Since the focus of this volume is on people and interaction between people, mention is made of the attributes that make a successful cataloger. As with every profession, knowing and keeping in mind these traits when recruiting or interviewing candidates is helpful. While there is some repetition of ideas in the papers, on the whole this well-written book displays the concern and commitment of the participants to the profession."-Collection Management
." . . This book addresses areas that are of vital importance to the future of cataloguing departments, including the need for dedicated staff who require skills in management and leadership. . . . This volume is completed by a bibliography and an index (unusual in conference proceedings). This book would be of special interest to cataloguing librarians, lecturers in cataloguing and cataloguers involved in training."-Current Awareness Bulletin
"Recruiting, Educating, and Training Cataloging Librarians should be on every library administrator's bookshelf and is recommended for academic and library school collections."-CLJ
"In March 1989 a Symposium on Recruiting, Educating, and Training Cataloging Librarians was held at Simmons College. The papers presented at the Symposium have been gathered in this thought provoking volume, which should be of interest to anyone involved in cataloging. As the title suggests, the text is divided into three parts with nine papers on recruiting, eight on educating, and seven on training. Throughout the papers the reader frequently encounters the word change.' Cataloging is a profession subject to constant change and the papers bring this out, saying that those responsible, for recruiting, educating, and training cataloging librarians must change their methods."-Insights

Author Bio

SHEILA S. INTNER is Associate Professor at the Graduate School of Library and Information Science of Simmons College. Her earlier works include Access to Media: A Guide to Integrating and Computerizing Catalogs, and she has contributed numerous articles and reviews to American Libraries, Library Journal, RQ, and Information Technology and Libraries, among others. JANET SWAN HILL was head of cataloging at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois.