As new technology and opportunities emerge through the revolutionary impacts of the digital age, the function of libraries and librarians and how they provide services to constituents is rapidly changing. The impact of new technology touches everything from libraries' organizational structures, business models, and workflow processes, to position descriptions and the creation of new positions. As libraries are required to make operational adjustments to meet the growing technological demands of libraries' customer bases and provide these services, librarians must be flexible in adapting to this fast-moving environment. This volume shares the unique perspectives and experiences of librarians on the front lines of this technological transformation. The essays within provide details of both the practical applications of surviving, adapting, and growing when confronted with changing roles and responsibilities, as well as a big picture perspective of the changing roles impacting libraries and librarians. This book strives to be a valuable tool for librarians involved in public and technical services, digital humanities, virtual and augmented reality, government documents, information technology, and scholarly communication.

Sage advice and career guidance is offered by sixty-four information professionals from diverse positions and workplaces. This practical guide addresses a wide variety of career issues. The advice is aimed at librarians in various stages of a career: prospective librarians, M.L.S. students, and entry-level librarians, as well as experienced information professionals. Covers: - Career options - Education - The job search - On-the-job experience - Professional development - Essential skills and strategies for enjoying your career

Develop a library staff training program that really works! To stay on top of the lightning-fast changes in the library field and provide your patrons with the best service possible, you need to establish and sustain an effective program for training your staff. The Practical Library Trainer examines the concept of the library as a learning place for patrons and staff, offering a comprehensive view of training from an administrator’s perspective. Bruce E. Massis, author of The Practical Library Manager (Haworth), addresses the essential issues of how to develop a strong program of continuous instruction, including customer service, reporting, recruitment, and retention of staff. The book focuses on the integration of staff training as a blended activity instead of an intervention, quelling the notion of training as an “add-on” to existing staff duties. The current information-rich environment provides your patrons with an abundance of resources to choose from for their research needs. But they can’t do it alone-they need direction from a knowledgeable librarian who can recognize the pedigree, currency, and validity of licensed resources, particularly those available through electronic means. The Practical Library Trainer uses the goal of long-range customer service as a starting point, emphasizing the return on investment possibilities from blended training methods as a key to meeting your patrons’ high expectations of service. The book also provides examples from outside the library community to demonstrate the importance of training on a non-library setting and looks at future training issues. The Practical Library Trainer examines: types of staff training (formal, informal, employer-provided, qualifying, skill improvement) strategies for recruiting and retaining a staff blended learning e-training in-house training how to use professional conferences as continuing education opportunities how to evaluate your training program a sample of an “anywhere, anytime” education and training program and much more! The Practical Library Trainer is an important resource for making sure your patrons get the most from your library—and your staff.

"This book is for teachers who have good days and bad -- and whose bad days bring the suffering that comes only from something one loves. It is for teachers who refuse to harden their hearts, because they love learners, learning, and the teaching life." - Parker J. Palmer [from the Introduction] Teachers choose their vocation for reasons of the heart, because they care deeply about their students and about their subject. But the demands of teaching cause too many educators to lose heart. Is it possible to take heart in teaching once more so that we can continue to do what good teachers always do -- give heart to our students? In The Courage to Teach, Parker Palmer takes teachers on an inner journey toward reconnecting with their vocation and their students -- and recovering their passion for one of the most difficult and important of human endeavors.