Distance and Open
Learning Courses in Information & Library Studies
There is
a tendency to think of education only in terms of the teacher, surrounded by
students, imparting to them his or her knowledge through lectures, seminars, or
other didactic means. Much of our formal education is conducted in this manner,
by trained teachers, working to agreed curricula, using tried and tested
teaching methods, within campus-based institutions devoted to this specific
purpose. Yet this is but one of many different means by which individuals become
educated, both in terms of the acquisition of learning, and the development of
the skills necessary for them to discover further information for themselves. We
learn also by emulation or through our own experience or investigation - indeed
the whole idea of apprenticeship was based on such emulative and experiential
learning.
Formal
systems of education are best suited to younger students, particularly those
without the financial or social responsibilities that might prevent them from
attending classes at fixed times and places or otherwise hinder them from
devoting most of their attention to the learning goal. Thus there tends to be a
common age at which children begin their schooling, or most young persons move
from the broad-based general education provided by primary and secondary schools
into the more academic or vocational courses provided by universities or
colleges of further education. However individuals are learning throughout their
childhood and adult lives, and their individual aspirations and financial
circumstances may well change. Also during a period of rapid technological and
social change, the skills and knowledge acquired at the outset of a career may
become increasingly out of date and irrelevant to their original purpose.
Education
is no longer seen as a once and for all opportunity which may be acquired during
the first two decades of our lives, and never again thereafter. It is now
recognised as a continuing and evolving process that happens throughout our
lives, and should be adaptable to suit our particular needs and circumstances. A
lifetime’s education may well involve a number of different modes of study,
following different kinds of curricula, directed at different goals. Such study
may be designed to take place within formal educational institutions, at home,
and also perhaps in the workplace. A number of alternative modes of education
and instruction have developed to take account of this evolving educational
process. Concepts such as Continuing Education, Adult Independent Learning, Open
Learning, or Distance Learning are all now accepted as an integral part of the
educational framework of a society, and as legitimate and effective a means of
course delivery as the traditional institutional based education. These
non-traditional forms of education are not exclusive from one another but all
overlap to some degree.
As its
name indicates, Continuing Education encompasses “the continuing processes of
learning and teaching, which do not have an end-product as their goal” (Haythornthwaite
and White, 1989). It may lead to the acquisition of qualifications or
certificates as an incidental part of the process, but is primarily undertaken
as a means of updating skills, broadening knowledge or else for enjoyment.
Continuing Education courses may be of a few hours duration or else extended
over one or more years. They may be delivered during the daytime, at evening
classes, residential study schools or through correspondence or other distance
learning materials. They may be organised by organisations such as the Workers
Educational Association (WEA), by professional organisations, commercial
companies or training agencies, or else by the Extra-Mural or teaching
departments in Universities or other higher educational institutions.
Adult
Independent Learners (AILs) are defined as 'any members of the public who engage
in specific learning activities on a regular or an occasional basis - either as
individuals or in groups - without enrolling for a course with an education or
training agency' (Smith, 1987). In a survey
conducted by the University of Lancaster at the end of the 1970s, four out of
five among the adult population considered themselves to fall within this
definition.
Some
learners may be pursuing hobbies, some trying to cope with short-term projects
(often of a practical nature), some trying to improve their [word missing], some
trying to gain qualifications, some seeking to improve work related
competencies, some concerned with community or civic issues and others simply
following a topic or author of interest (Smith,
1987 p.22).
Two-thirds
of all such learning projects are self-planned and self directed. Most of this
study has until recently gone unrecognised and has been referred to as an adult
learning iceberg (Dale, 1979).
Distance
education is defined by Holmberg as encompassing “the various forms of study
at all levels which are not under the continuous, immediate supervision of
tutors present with their students in lecture rooms or on the same premises, but
which, nevertheless, benefit from the planning, guidance and tuition of a
tutorial organisation” (Holmberg, 1977).
Other terms used to describe this mode of education include
correspondence courses, Directed Private Study (DPS), or Independent Learning.
Courses may be conducted entirely through the use of packaged learning materials
and the return of written assignments, or more usually through a combination of
correspondence course and intensive study schools.
Distance
learning has a long tradition in the UK, principally through the provision of
correspondence courses designed for basic academic, commercial and secretarial
qualifications. Until the 1970s this method of course delivery was rarely used
for advanced or academic courses. However, following the establishment of the
Open University in 1971, new and flexible methods of course delivery were
developed, which have gained in popularity and credibility. These have been more
student-centred than the traditional correspondence courses and have involved
the use of a range of printed and audio visual media as well as such innovations
as self-assessment questions. The Open University was world’s first university
to teach only at a distance, and quickly became a model for a number of similar
institutions throughout the world, and for other distance learning courses
offered by other UK institutions.
According
to a UNESCO study “Open learning is an imprecise phrase to which a range of
meanings can be, and is attached. It eludes definition” (Mackenzie,
Postgate and Scupham, 1978). The term describes a philosophy of education in
which as many of the traditional constraints or boundaries on the learning
process as possible have been removed. Such constraints may relate to the time
and place of study, the methods of finance, entry requirements, the mode and
order of course delivery, and even such matters as the learning objectives and
assessment methods. Most non-traditional forms of education include certain
elements of flexibility usually associated with open learning, although without
perhaps embracing the whole philosophy. The Open University in particular was a
pioneer in admitting students to its courses with little or no formal
educational qualifications, and embraces many of the elements of open learning.
Distance
learning courses may include the same academic content, entry requirements, and
lead to the same forms of assessment as campus-based courses. Alternatively they
may be include more of the features of open learning, with more flexible entry
requirements, together with alternative means of course delivery and assessment.
Whilst virtually all Open Learning courses will be taught at a distance, not all
distance learning courses will encompass all the ideas of open learning. For the
purposes of this chapter, courses taught at a distance, but which have a fixed
starting point are described as distance learning, whereas those which may be
commenced at any time are referred to as open learning. The term correspondence
course is used to refer to earlier generation of distance learning programme
designed to prepare candidates to sit an external examination along with
full-time students.
All of
these non-traditional modes of education rely to some degree on the availability
of a range of background reading materials, and therefore require the support of
the public library service in particular. Likewise they each have some role to
play within the education and training of professional librarians and
information workers in the United Kingdom (Watson
and Blackie, 1981).
A wide
range of continuing education courses are run by professional bodies such as the
Library Association, Aslib, or else by commercial organisations such as Task
Force Pro-Libra, as a means of keeping professional librarians up to date with
new technologies or techniques. Yet other continuing education short courses are
organised by the Departments of Information and Library Studies, as an offshoot
of their work in educating young librarians and as a means of retaining links
with the professions. Likewise many information workers and those responsible
for staff training would include themselves with the definitions of Adult
Independent Learners, either to develop new skills or broaden their educational
horizons. However, it is chiefly within the areas of distance and open learning
that there has been the most profound and far reaching effect on professional
education. Distance Education has featured in UK information and library studies
for more than ninety years in many different guises, but it is primarily during
the last decade that the concept has excited most interest.
Until
the mid-nineteenth century most professional education in Britain was conducted
according to the apprentice model, with potential practitioners learning from
their senior colleagues. However, in the latter half of the century there was a
gradual reform of the older professions such as medicine and law, and the
introduction of a number of newer one. The various professional bodies began to
assume the role of ‘qualifying bodies’ and to introduce examinations to test
the competence of candidates. The first examinations to be set by the Library
Association took place in 1885, but at the time there was no formal educational
courses that might be followed, merely a number of part-time training schemes at
some of the larger academic and public libraries. This situation was just about
adequate for those candidates working for libraries operating such schemes but
limited the opportunities for those in other areas, and therefore hampered the
development of the new profession. The Association therefore sought to provide
other opportunities for training and qualification.
The
Library Association was in fact the first professional body in the United
Kingdom to concern itself not just with the examination and accreditation of its
members, but also directly in their education. After various abortive attempts
at establishing study circles and other informal schemes of study, the
Association went ahead and established the first professional correspondence
course for librarians in 1904 (Bramley, 1981,
pp.61-2). This was offered as an alternative to various other educational
initiatives then taking place including classes offered initially by the London
School of Economics and then by University College London, and summer schools
held at the University College of Wales in Aberystwyth. These courses quickly
proved to be popular, and for a quarter of a century they provided the only
means of study and qualification to many individuals throughout the country,
without access to other means of professional education.
However,
in 1926 the Association of Assistant Librarians introduced its own series of
correspondence courses for the examinations of the Library Association which
were somewhat cheaper than the official equivalents. For a few years the two
courses ran in parallel, but following the affiliation agreement between these
two bodies in 1929 the Library Association phased out its own courses, and left
all responsibility for correspondence courses to the AAL (Bramley,
pp.108-9). The provision of the AAL correspondence courses came to be the
most important feature of the work of this organisation, and an important factor
in its recruitment until the early 1960s. The course ceased to operate in 1964
following the revision of the Library Association syllabus, although there were
still a few registered students completing examinations until 1968. Thereafter
the National Extension College offered preparation for the Library Association
examinations by correspondence until the mid-1970s although this course was
never recognised by the association.
The
system of professional education in librarianship and information work had
developed somewhat during the years between 1930 and 1960 with the introduction
of several new schools of librarianship throughout the country offering both
full-time and part-time courses leading to the Library Association examinations,
as an alternative to correspondence courses. However the system continued to
have many limitations, most of which were reflected equally in the campus-based
and correspondence courses. All qualifications in librarianship continued to be
administered and examined by the Association rather than the institutions which
provided the instruction; the courses were of sub-degree level, and largely
practice based. Obtaining qualifications under the old syllabus was a
long-winded and fragmented process which tended to reinforce the student's
knowledge of local practices and procedures at the expense of providing them
with a broader picture. Also the qualifications obtained tended to limit their
holders to one career and did not have any transferable value or recognition
elsewhere. The system was democratic in so far as it was open to all with basic
educational qualifications, but it tended to consist of a series of hurdles with
many talented individuals falling at the wayside and remaining only partially
qualified throughout their careers.
Over the
next two decades the pattern of education changed to being primarily full-time,
of degree or postgraduate level, and administered by the universities or
equivalent higher educational institutions. Some schools continued to offer
part-time courses, and in the later 1970s Leeds Polytechnic even began to
investigate offering its part-time BA degree course by distance learning,
although they eventually did not proceed with the plan (Taylor,
1982). During this period of rapid expansion of higher education during the
1960s and early 1970s, part-time education and correspondence courses in
particular were portrayed as being an inferior alternative to campus based
education - modes of delivery more suited to the needs of professional training
in librarianship, rather than the emerging disciplines of information and
library studies and information management. Most UK library schools were then
seeking to establish their academic credentials as the providers of new graduate
or postgraduate educational qualifications. Thus there were few regrets when the
correspondence courses offered by the AAL. were phased out together with the
professional qualifications administered by the Library Association.
During
the 1970s as the library schools were withdrawing from teaching for the Library
Association syllabus in favour of their own degree courses, an alternative
distance learning course was developed in Scotland. Between 1973 and 1981 Napier
College in Edinburgh developed an entirely new course “by directed personal
study” aimed at preparing students for the Library Association examinations.
Although not a fully accredited library school, Napier College’s Department of
Library and Information Resources had been operating short courses in
librarianship and information science since 1964, directed towards
mid-professional and senior sub-professional staff (McElroy,
1978). Prospective students for the Library Association course had to have
both the academic qualifications to secure them entry on to a full time course
and some work experience. Considerable effort was put into the preparation of
suitable teaching materials and study guides, but even those running the course
seemed to consider it to be a second best.
Each
student must also satisfy the college that he has good reasons for not going to
a full-time course at a library school. Educationalists are in agreement that
full-time courses have better long-term effect, academically and personally.
The
Napier College course was perhaps introduced too late to have much impact on the
pattern of professional education. It continued to operate until 1981, and was
then withdrawn and converted into a sub-degree level Higher Certificate course (Craig
and McElroy). By the beginning of the 1980s it was obvious that the Library
Association would not remain an examining body for much longer, and the
professional qualification was eventually withdrawn in 1985.
The
establishment of the various full-time degree programmes in information and
library studies during the 1970s and 1980s dramatically improved the quality of
education in information and library studies. However it also had certain
disadvantages. The new system had the effect of preventing those potential
students who, for domestic or other reasons, felt unable to interrupt their work
in order to attend one of the library schools, from ever progressing within
their chosen career. Also there was a tendency for the library schools to impose
artificial and inflexible barriers to entry to their newly established degree
courses in terms of a narrow range of academic qualifications, greatly adding to
the difficulties encountered by late developers or new entrants to the
profession in gaining entry. Thus the changes may have served to create a whole
generation of individuals who might have benefited from further or higher
education, and made a substantial contribution to their profession, but were
prevented from doing so.
One
partial response to this problem was the establishment of sub-degree level
courses for assistants working in a library environment, but who were unwilling
or unable to attend a full-time course at a library school to achieve formal
qualification. The most important of these was the Library Assistant’s
Certificate, validated by the City and Guilds of London Institute. By the mid
1970s, this course was attracting about 600 students a year, working at nearly
50 part-time centres (Whatley, 1977). In
Scotland, the equivalent qualification was a National Certificate in Library and
Information Science originally validated by the Scottish Technical Educational
Council (SCOTEC) and subsequently the Scottish Vocational Education Council (SCOTVEC).
This course has been operated by Edinburgh’s Telford College since 1985 in a
number of different delivery modes, including full-time, part-time, day-release
and by open learning. This has attracted in the region of 120 students each year
each year studying for between one and six modules. The following year an open
learning course studying for the City and Guilds examinations, principally for
students based in England, Wales and Ireland, and which has attracted an annual
intake of between 100 and 180 students (information from Donald Steele,
Edinburgh’s Telford College).
There is
also a Higher National Certificate in Library and Information Science as a
natural progression for those with the National Certificate or City and Guilds
examinations. Telford offers the only full-time course in the UK, along with
day-release provision. However it was this qualification, to which the original
distance learning course at Napier College was adapted in 1983 (Craig
& McElroy, 154-7). After running successfully with an intake of about
twenty-five students for five years, the curriculum was overhauled and it was
re-introduced by the newly re-titled Napier Polytechnic in September 1989 (Craig,
1988). Napier have also used many of their distance learning materials in an
initiative involving the Mauritius College of the Air to train school
librarians.
Although
Distance Education was not available for any degree level or professional
qualification in librarianship and information studies after the demise of the
first Napier College Course, this teaching mode was adopted for a number of more
specialised continuing education courses intended to enhance the skills and
update qualifications of those working in this area. By the end of the 1980s
there was a feeling that distance education “should be a mode of instruction
uniquely suited to librarians and information specialists. This curiosity about
the topic has led to a respectable number of meetings and seminars but, as yet,
surprisingly few packages” (Haythornthwaite and White, 1989).
It was at one of these seminars held at Loughborough in 1987 that Peter Havard-Williams
presented a paper in which he perceived the need for a survey of distance
education the courses available in the UK, and a comparison with the situation
overseas (Havard-Williams and Burrell, 1986).
Such a survey was carried out by Jo Haythornthwaite and Frances White,
in 1988, and published by the British Library the following year as Distance Learning in Library and Information Studies. It identified
seven existing courses of widely differing academic levels and durations from a
variety of educational institutions. However one of the inescapable conclusions
from this report was that until then this mode of course delivery had had a
limited impact on the UK LIS education scene, particularly when compared with
some of the developments taking place elsewhere in the English speaking World,
notably in Australia and South Africa. One reasons for this may well be the
pattern of funding in UK higher education, where resources follow students on
new courses, rather than precede them. Thus the development of innovative new
courses either requires specific funding from special programmes or else the
investment of existing operational funds.
The
earliest venture into distance education by one the accredited library schools
was a 13-week course entitled ‘Statistics for librarians’ developed by
Newcastle Polytechnic in 1982/3 There was a perceived need for qualified
information workers to be able to use statistical techniques and present data
more effectively, which was shown by the success of Ian Simpson’s textbook of
the same title (Simpson, 1975). This need
formed the basis of an application for funding under the Department of Education
and Science Professional, Industrial and Commercial Updating (PICKUP) initiative
to fund the development of appropriate distance learning materials from an
existing ‘presentation of statistics element’ taught. The grant paid for the
services of a Research Assistant for fifteen months to co-ordinate the
production of the course materials, administer the initial cohort of students,
and evaluate the project, whilst the course materials were written by the
academic staff (Blackie, 1983). Although
the course, was judged to be a success, it only survived for three cohorts of
students. This was due in part to the retirement of the member of staff most
concerned and the lack of continuing administrative support. However the
Department did subsequently use some of the experience gained from this course
in developing distance learning materials for training school librarians in
Papua New Guinea. In this case the units were developed by staff of the
department and supported by local workshops and a summer school.
This
survey also included a number of other specialised short courses such as a
40-hour distance learning course offered by Edinburgh’s Telford College, in
Modern Library Technology. This was not aimed at any specific qualification,
rather a College Certificate, and was intended for “librarians at any level
wishing to update their knowledge and familiarise themselves with new
technology” (Haythornthwaite and White, 1989, p.40).
Information technology is a notoriously difficult subject to teach in a
traditional distance learning mode, and so in addition to forty hours of
correspondence materials, those participants able to attend the college were
also offered three optional practical evening sessions. Haythornthwaite and
White also noted book indexing courses by the Rapid Results College Society of
Indexers, a Postgraduate Diploma in Education Technology offered by Jordanhill
College of Education, and an intensive (and partly residential) MBA in
Information Management offered by the International Management Centre from
Buckingham.
Two
further short courses were introduced by Telford in 1989, each of 80-hours
duration. These were entitled Running a School Library - intended for teachers
responsible for collections without library qualifications - and Management for
Senior Library Assistants. These have attracted some twenty and forty students
per year respectively (information from Donald Steele, Edinburgh’s Telford
College). Distance learning programmes in media librarianship and educational
technology and also for medical librarians were being developed at Leeds
Polytechnic during the academic year 1984/5, (Bromley
and Allott, 1988, p.40) but appear to have been abandoned soon afterwards on
the retirement of the member of staff responsible. Other ventures by library and
information schools have included the conversion of specific modules for
distance learning delivery, frequently associated with franchising agreements
with overseas institutions. One example is the use by the University of
Sheffield of distance learning techniques for the delivery of a part of its Msc
in information management to students in Lisbon (information from Professor Tom
Wilson).
The
first substantial venture into distance education by a UK library school began
in November 1985, when the College of Librarianship Wales accepted fifteen
students on to a three-year course leading to a Master’s degree in the
management of library and information services. The course was not intended to
provide an initial qualification in information and library studies, but rather
as a means of equipping qualified and experienced staff with the necessary
skills to take management posts. It was open to both existing graduate
librarians or the holders of postgraduate qualifications, together with the
holders of non-graduate professional qualifications together with substantial
work experience.
The
course attracted considerable interest among working librarians who felt that
either the skills required to be updated or else their professional
qualifications needed enhancement. The following year numbers were increased to
allow for an annual intake of about thirty-five students, which has been
maintained ever since. The Aberystwyth course consists of four taught modules
taken over two-years (including compulsory attendance at two summer schools)
together with a further supervised year undertaking a 20,000 word dissertation.
Study packs for the modules included both printed materials and audio lecture
tapes. Learner support is provided by individual academic staff who would be
appointed as personal tutors to individual students, meeting them at study
schools and subsequently providing detailed feedback on written assignments
either by correspondence or telephone.
The
first cohort of students were still in process of completing their work in 1988
as Haythornthwaite and White were completing their survey, it was therefore
difficult for them to asses the likely impact of the course. However a detailed
report by those responsible for its design subsequently appeared in the journal Education
for Information (Edwards, Roberts &
Tunley, 1990). The primary reason for the establishment of the course in
this delivery mode was claimed to be ‘the needs of the LIS community in the UK
as reflected in formal and informal market research’, including survey work by
Aslib and others pinpointing ‘the need for continuing education and staff
development with a management focus’. Another factor in the college’s
decision to move into this area of education was the need to maintain student
numbers and if possible expand its masters programmes. This was particularly
important as it was then negotiating a merger with the neighbouring University
College of Wales, to become the University of Wales Aberystwyth, Department of
Information and Library Studies. The size of the library school and its
geographical location remote from any major areas of population hindered any
attempts at providing part-time courses, and therefore made distance learning
seem a more attractive option. It was also clear by 1990 that the quality of the
students recruited on to this course, and the standard of work submitted was at
least as good, and sometimes better as those to be found on the more traditional
full-time masters degree courses. At this level of education, the ability to
relate essays, course assignments and dissertations to workplace situations more
than counteracted the inherent disadvantages of the distance learning mode of
delivery.
Immediately
following the successful merger in 1989, the new department began to form plans
for extending their range of distance learning programmes, and marketing some
the existing courses overseas. The first of these developments concerned the
production of a double module in ‘Schools and Young People’s
Librarianship’ intended to provide some degree of optionality to the
second-year of the existing management course. The plans for this course were
drawn up following discussions with professional bodies, and an assessment made
of the likely demand. Once again, there has been a steady takeup of places,
indicating a substantial latent demand among qualified librarians in employment,
for this level of education provided in a distance learning mode. From September
1994 an additional Collection Management module was added, providing a greater
degree of choice in the second year of this course.
The next
Aberystwyth venture followed a number of enquiries from individual students and
from British Council offices overseas. Initially these were discouraged since
the course had been designed and structured entirely for the UK market, and it
was felt that the distance learning course would not be able to take account of
the local situation, whereas the full-time equivalent courses operated by the
Department could. However, early in the 1990s it became apparent that there was
a substantial, albeit temporary, market for masters level courses in Hong Kong
during the period in the run-up to the return of the colony to the government of
mainland China in 1997. With the assistance of the local British Council, the
department began to market its distance learning courses in the colony, and the
numbers of students were sufficient to warrant sending appropriate Aberystwyth
staff to conduct special study schools there. The Hong Kong venture certainly
proved to be most successful in its early years, but recent numbers have not
been as high. The Department is therefore reviewing extending the course
elsewhere in South-east Asia and other locations overseas.
One
further highly successful Aberystwyth venture into distance learning was a
separate M.Sc. in ‘Information Systems and Services for Health Care’
designed primarily for those working within the UK’s National Health Service (NHS),
concerned with the management of health related information, within both
libraries and other information services. The management changes that were then
taking place within the health services and the rapid introduction of
information technology was creating a considerable market for such courses. The
intended market, and the educational rationale for such a non-generic
information management course was set out in a paper by John Hepworth:
It
is to the discredit and disadvantage of the NHS that it has largely failed to
follow private sector organisations and local government in recognising the
value of these [i.e. Information Management] university and professional
qualifications. By its failure to establish any specific information grades,
employing many information workers on clerical or administrative scales, the NHS
has been uncompetitive with employers in other sectors.
...
The Msc draws upon the disciplines of information science and information
management to select that body of transferable principles which best inform the
handling of all kinds of health information. Its target audience is those who
perceive that information skills are central to their current posts or to
anticipated career directions - the emphasis therefore is upon those whose major
concern is the collection, organisation, provision and exploitation of
information (Hepworth, 1993, p254 & 257).
A brief
survey of the relevance of this course to needs of the students’ in their
working environments was conducted in 1993, after it had been in operation for
nearly three years. This indicated that by the end of the second year a large
majority had already been able to apply the assignments, skills, knowledge or
information gained on the course to enhance their jobs.
From
September 1993, the course was renamed ‘Health Information Management’ and
an alternative exit point was provided leading to a Postgraduate Diploma rather
than a Master’s Degree for those candidates who successfully completed the two
year’s guided tuition, but were unwilling or unable to proceed to the
completion of a dissertation. The new course had begun in a small way with 11
students admitted in 1990, but numbers quickly increased to an annual intake of
about thirty students which has since been sustained. As with the ‘young
people’s librarianship’ course, the ‘Health Information Management
course’ initially made use of some of the Distance Learning materials provided
for the earlier management course, but these were fairly rapidly replaced by
newer materials which covered the topics or provided learning materials more
directly related to the health context.
The
University of Wales Health Information Management course has proved to be so
successful that it has both attracted substantial funding support from the
National Health Service, and has since been emulated by other institutions
offering campus-based or part-time equivalents. The course materials were also
subsequently repackaged to be offered to full-time students at Aberystwyth. This
is the reverse of the usual trend whereby distance learning programmes are
adapted from existing full-time equivalents. Whether it can retain this level of
success in the face of competition and reduced funding for training within the
National Health Service remains to be seen, but it is widely recognised that
there is an ongoing need for education in this field.
A hybrid
M.A. course in Information and Library Studies was introduced by Brighton
Polytechnic (now the University of Brighton) in 1991 with the first five
students graduating in 1995. Under this scheme students stay spend one week at
college for each of ten modules, having previously been sent introductory
readings and other course materials. After this period of study they will return
to their homes for further study and to complete their assignments. It is an
examples flexible scheme designed for an annual intake of about twelve mature
students in work, who are able to schedule periods of leave to coincide with
their periods of attendance (information from Nicola Smith, University of
Brighton).
Although
the AAL correspondence courses survived until the end of the 1970s, for the
final decade, they were leading to what was increasingly regarded as a
second-class qualification. Thereafter all distance learning courses in library
and information studies were either at a sub-professional level - for those not
intending to proceed to a career, or else were designed for students who had
already obtained a basic qualification by full-time study but who subsequently
wished to enhance or update them. Thus there was no route by which those
candidates unable to attend a library school might attain a basic professional
qualification. Yet there was a prolonged and continual demand from both
employers and potential students for just such a course.
In 1992
the University of Wales obtained funding, under the Universities Funding Council
Flexible Learning Programme to investigate the introduction of a first degree in
information and library studies by distance learning, incorporating a number of
features of open learning. This would be available to mature students without
any specified entry qualification, rather a basic level of educational
achievement together with at least one year of experience working in a library
or information environment (the number of years experience required depends on
the other qualifications held). The combination of substantial experiential
learning in the workplace together with other academic qualifications such as
the Higher Certificate is used to gain students exemption from the Part 1 of
their degree course (equivalent to their first year studies). Students are given
the opportunity to develop their skills in Information Technology and Human
Communication at an intensive introductory study school, followed by an
equivalent period working on their own.
The
complete degree scheme involves the completion of a further twenty modules and
an undergraduate dissertation (which equates to a double module). Unlike the
Aberystwyth masters courses, there was no tightly specified periods of study.
Students are allowed to work through the modules at their own pace, taking
between three and five years to complete the course.
The bulk
of the course delivery for this degree is through printed materials, together
with photocopied readings - along the lines of Open University modules, but
audio, video and computerised learning materials are also be used as well as
annual attendance at three five-day study schools. Access to an IBM 386 or
equivalent microcomputer, together with a basic integrated applications package
such as Miscrosoft Works, either at
home or at work, is also a pre-requisite to acceptance on the course. The
content, delivery, and the means of assessment of the proposed new degree scheme
was most rigorously scrutinised by a hitherto traditional university, founded in
the nineteenth century, and jealous of its academic traditions. Several of the
more radical innovations, such as the abolition of unseen examinations, had to
be sacrificed during this process in order to reassure those with any doubts
about the standards to be upheld. The scheme was also subject to the validation
procedures of the Library Association and Institute of Information Science.
Without
any formal publicity, and prior even to approval of the new course by the
University of Wales, the Department began to receive a stream of enquiries and
then applications, from potential candidates, throughout Great Britain, and
occasionally on the Continent, many of whom had been waiting for years for such
an educational opportunity. Typical candidates are individuals with several
years of experience in information work, but unable to progress to more
responsible posts. The majority also had the academic qualifications necessary
to attend a full-time university course as a mature student, but felt unable to
do so. Indeed many had only discovered their chosen career path after they had
married, had children, and acquired the usual financial commitments which tend
to prevent adults from giving up their jobs and going to college. Some
candidates had already been to university and had first degrees in other
subjects, but in the absence of any distance learning postgraduate opportunities
for a first qualification in information and library studies, have chosen to
study for a second bachelor's degree in order to qualify. The demand from
good-quality candidates was so great that the initial plans for an intake of
about fifteen students each year were enlarged to allow for two intakes per
year, each of about thirty students. From the initial intake in December 1993
the course has been consistently oversubscribed, with many suitably qualified
candidates having to wait for places on later intakes.
The
initial funding for the undergraduate course covered a feasibility study and the
employment of staff to within a newly established Open Learning Unit to
administer and support the course. The content of each module, the detailed
feedback provided in response to assessed course work, and the teaching at study
schools is however the responsibility of the existing academic staff.. The
University of Wales, Aberystwyth, Open Learning Unit was set up to provide
support for all the distance and open learning activities of the university,
although to date these have been mainly concerned with the undergraduate
distance learning programmes in information and library studies (World-Wide Web
Home Page http://www.aber.ac.uk/~olu/olu1.html).
The role of this group of staff has included recruitment and financial
administration, staff training, organising the study schools, co-ordinating the
production of the modules and other teaching materials, and providing individual
student support and guidance by means of a telephone hot-line, and where
possible email. They also produce a periodic newsletter Voluble
which is sent to all of the Department’s distance learning students in an
attempt at fostering contact between students who might otherwise feel rather
isolated. The production of a sufficient number of modules has placed, and
continues a considerable strain on the teaching resources of the Department.
This was particularly so as the numbers of students on the course, and the speed
at which many of them have completed the available modules have exceeded initial
expectations. However the challenge of preparing them has given academic staff
the opportunity to re-assess the range of their teaching.
On the
evidence of the first three intakes, it appears the overall performance of the
distance learning undergraduate students is equally as good as those on the
full-time courses, and there has been a very low drop-out rate. Support from
employers to those attending the course has also been extremely varied, ranging
from fairly generous help with fees or the purchase of books, together with the
provision of study leave at one extreme, to positive obstructionism - such as
the refusal to allow candidates on the course to receive telephone calls from
the college staff during working hours - at the other. The older students on
this course are sometimes portrayed as slower to pick up new ideas and
techniques, particularly in a subject such as information technology, when
compared with their younger counterparts on the full-time course. However if
this is the case it is more than compensated for by their increased commitment,
a greater level of maturity, and the breadth of practical experience. The
standard of written work has also been good, and with isolation from other
students, and an occasional lack of self-confidence as the most common stumbling
blocks.
There
have also been difficulties experience by a proportion of students in gaining
access to essential background readings which has necessitated special
arrangements with the departmental library, and the purchase of specific
‘distance learning’ copies of basic texts which are not available for loan
to campus-based students. The Open Learning Unit has also sought to gain
copyright clearance for the reproduction of newspaper and journal articles, and
excerpts from books in special ‘readings packs’ to be supplied alongside the
basic course materials. This practice was necessitated because so that the
individual course materials or the complete course could be sold to individuals
who were not registered students, or else franchised to other institutions at a
later date. Experience in negotiating the relevant copyright clearances for
readings packs with a range of commercial and professional publishers has been
both time consuming and problematic, with examples of considerable generosity
and also demands unreasonable reproduction fees coming from the most unexpected
quarters.
Over the
last decade distance learning courses in information and library studies have
made a comeback, and at the time of writing several UK schools are either
preparing programmes or else investigating possibilities of adapting existing
materials both for the home or overseas. The University of Northumbria (formerly
Newcastle Polytechnic) are currently developing distance learning materials for
a postgraduate diploma in Records Management, and the University of Wales
Aberystwyth are about to introduce an undergraduate Certificate in Health
Informatics (information from Joan Day, University of Northumbria and Jane
Goodfellow, University of Wales Aberystwyth.). Sheffield are also exploring the
distance delivery of modules in their MSc in Health Information Management and
have applied for curriculum development funds from the University (information
from Tom Wilson). Similarly the Department of Information Studies at the
University of Strathclyde is taking part in a faculty-wide investigation into
adapting its existing Diploma/MSc course for distance learning purposes
(information from Paul Burton, University of Strathclyde).
Edinburgh’s
Telford College is also introducing a number of further open learning short
courses during 1995. These include User Education and Libraries aimed at staff
of any level who are involved in this task, and an Higher National Certificate
in European Information Services. Likewise Open Learning in Public Libraries is
provided for staff supporting adult learners under the ‘Open for Learning’
scheme. Napier Polytechnic has recently been awarded university status and is
currently re-assessing its distance learning programmes, with aim of moving
towards the introduction of a full degree programme in information and library
studies, aimed at both the UK and overseas markets either by itself or else
perhaps in collaboration with another institution (information from David Craig,
Napier University).
Radical
developments in distance learning are likely to involve the greater use of IT
and computer networks as a means of overcoming student isolation. The advent of
electronic mail and the formation of discussion groups and electronic seminars
would appear to have great potential utility in this area. Staff at Aberystwyth
considered using email as an essential component of their undergraduate course
but eventually had to defer the idea as so few of the potential students had
access to modems or other Internet connections. Email is however used by those
who do have such access for keeping in touch with the college, and the number is
increasing with every intake. At the time of writing, the University of Brighton
is seeking funding to provide all the students on their course with a modem, for
the same purpose (information from Nicola Smith). Likewise Sheffield is
experimenting with the use of CD-ROM as a means of delivery and is also looking
at the use of World-Wide Web, whereas Aberystwyth are seeking further funds to
develop computer assisted learning (CAL) packages in this area.
Although
all of the degree level and postgraduate courses established in the last decade
contain some elements of flexibility when compared with traditional campus-based
education, none of them can be described as embodying all of the principles of
‘Open Learning’ In every situation there is some form of prior educational
requirement, fixed order of study, and traditional means of assessment. There
have also been discussions as to whether there is a place for adapting the ideas
and principles of open learning to the LIS curriculum, although to date no
specific proposals have been made. Whether such proposals will ultimately be
able to satisfy both the academic requirements of the educational institution
concerned and the accreditation requirements of the appropriate professional
bodies remains to be seen.
Although
the non-traditional courses outlined above have been subject to the same levels
of academic scrutiny as campus-based courses, and in spite of the excellent
performance by many of the students on these courses, the re-introduction of
distance learning has nevertheless given rise to some disquiet among traditional
educationalists in the area (Stoker, 1995).
The concerns centre upon the use distance learning schemes for the provision of
generic LIS qualifications (such as the Aberystwyth undergraduate course) rather
than the more specialised or sub-degree level courses. Several of the author’s
colleagues who either witnessed or else themselves went through the part-time or
correspondence based professional education during the 1950s and 1960s, and who
have struggled for the establishment and recognition of full-time graduate
courses in information and library studies, have seen this new development as a
retrograde step. Fears have been expressed that the Aberystwyth undergraduate
course sets a dangerous precedent which could ultimately serve to undermine the
viability full-time courses, by providing a cheaper, more flexible, but
ultimately impoverished student experience, although equal in academic standing.
A future government might use it any generic postgraduate diploma/masters
equivalents as a model for all future professional education and therefore cease
to provide support for full-time courses. Alternatively, impecunious students
may in future feel pressurised to opt for distance learning as an alternative
because they are worried about getting in to debt. Such a change, if it ever
took place, would be bound to be to the detriment of the majority of students,
who currently derive substantial benefit from full-time, uninterrupted study
away from the pressures of family or work, and in an environment where the
teaching expertise and learning materials are readily available.
On
the other hand, proponents of distance learning would portray it as a welcome
means of complementing the existing pattern of education by providing
alternative educational routes to the same end. They would argue that
educational philosophies and teaching methods have changed dramatically and the
current distance learning courses cannot be compared with the correspondence
courses of thirty years ago. In this interpretation distance learning courses
might be portrayed as better suited to the needs of mature students or those
with domestic or financial commitments that would otherwise prevent them from
following any alternative.
Experience
has shown that distance learning is neither an easy option for those students
who choose to study in this way, nor a particularly cheap method of delivery for
those colleges providing the courses. The start-up and administration costs for
a properly run distance learning programme can be quite substantial. However,
over a period of years those costs can be recouped, and from the point of view
of the government there are decided advantages in having a substantial student
body that does not require maintenance grants, and is also paying taxes during
the course of its education.
Few
would argue that distance learning is a most useful and cost-effective means of
enhancing or updating existing information and library skills and
qualifications. However, it needs to be monitored carefully if it is also to be
applied to entry qualifications for the profession. Full-time graduate or
postgraduate education in a library school ought to remain the usual and
preferred route for all those who are able to take advantage of it. Any attempt
by government to undermine this situation for financial reasons should be
resisted - particularly by those who have already benefited from the many
advantages of full-time education.
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