Library Management Course: Graduate School of Library, Information and Media Studies, University of Tsukuba

INDEX

Library Management Course at Graduate School of Library, Information and Media Studies, Certificate Program

Objectives

The concept of New Public Management (NPM) has attracted wide interest in recent years for the management of local governments. Some innovative management methodologies have been introduced along with it. And adopting NPM methods for public libraries management has righteously been discussed and indeed new public management practices have emerged to grow through cooperation among citizens, local governments, private companies, and NPOs.

This has led to a demand for the training of library managers who are fully versed in library activities and possess a high level of NPM-related knowledge and skills. To address these needs, the School set this Library Management Course in collaboration with the two experts on public services and public management-brought in by an endowed chair by the Toshokan Ryutsu Center (The endowed chair was initially planned to last for three years, but the sponsor was so strongly committed that they extended the endowment until 2015), and with other School faculty members in 2006.

The primary objective of the course is to give people - currently enrolled students, library managers and other concerned people - the opportunity to learn the latest knowledge and technology required for library management. Seven subjects regarding library management have been established in Master's degree program, which will develop the knowledge and skills needed especially for the personnel involved in the management of public libraries, small-to-medium-sized university libraries, or the management of a department in larger academic libraries. Students obtaining credit for these seven subjects will receive certification according to the condition described in the following. , We fully expect that our school which has been playing a core role in the cultivation and training of librarians will also contribute to the education and training of the next generation of highly skilled library managers.

Program Overview

The program consists of seven 2-credit-hour subjects: four advanced subjects and three basic subjects in the Master program. Descriptions of the subjects are provided below.

Course Completion Certification

Applicants who complete the Library Management Course requirements - enrolling as either a master program student or as a credited auditor - will be granted a certificate of completion according to the following conditions.

1 Master program student's Requirements: (a) Complete and receive credit for 4 specialized courses and 3 basic courses.
(b) Have a Master's degree from the Graduate School of Library, Information Media Studies, and the certification of librarians. Adult students or students from other departments who lack the certification of librarians may take an oral exam administered by the Approval Committee in lieu of the certification of librarians if they have five or more years of library-related practical experience. Applicants who take this oral exam are exempt from taking the oral exam in requirement (c) below.
(c) Pass an oral exam administered by the Approval Committee.
2 Credited auditor's Requirements: (a) Complete and receive credit for 4 specialized courses and 3 basic courses.
(b) Have the certificate of librarians. Applicants who lack the certificate of librarians but have earned a certain number of credits toward the certificate may take an oral exam administered by the Approval Committee in lieu of the librarian qualification if they have five or more years of practical library-related experience.
(c) Must have three or more years of practical library-related experience.

Subject Descriptions

Public Services: The subject will enable students to grasp the nature of public services from the perspective of public spending, while giving students a good understanding of how public services at the local government level are conceived, their decision-makings are processed, and the services are actually implemented, as well as the financial and accounting systems needed to support public services. Recent issues such as public disclosure of information, citizen participation, and community consensus are addressed in the context of public governance, and issues resulting from the systematic transition from a management outsourcing system to a designated manager system will be discussed.
Public Administration: At the outset Japanese local administration system and its recent issues including decentralization of power, amalgamation of local authorities, and regional system (Do-Shu-sei) adoption are examined. And then in the light of policy assessment, designated manager, PFI(Private Financial Initiative), market testing, introduction of agency system, and public accounting reform new trends in public (especially local government) management are discussed along with the consideration of library activities.
Library Governance: The public governance is understood , as the interactive process and system between the three sectors of civil society deployed in contemporary market economy. Reform of governance involves not only the reform of government management but also change of market economy and the civil society function. How library governance reform should be within this framework, and specific ways of solving the various management issues are also considered here.
Library Facility Planning: Implementation of library planning and its operation often involves refurbishment, remodeling, new building, and other construction activity. Library managers are also required to arrange periodic inspections, preventative repairs and upgrades, and other appropriate maintenance tasks for their existing facilities. The subject deals with knowledge relating to library building and facilities that are required of library managers so they can be proactively involved in these activities sketched. Intended to convey practical information, this is an interactive class involving discussion based on lectures and actual case studies.
Library Services: This subject gives the students good understanding of all kind of library service delivery including public libraries, academic libraries and school libraries. Students learn the significance of various kinds of services delivery and specific service strategies in the 21st century.
Publishing and Distribution: This subject provides students with knowledge about the various aspects of publishing and distribution. First, the student learns about basic flow of publishing and distribution, then the various publishing and distribution media, their mechanisms (e.g., publishing companies and academic societies) and systems, and the methods by which media is acquired by libraries. Once the published and distributed media is identified, the student learns standardizing, linking, and searching techniques that make it easy for patrons to gain access to and use the media. Finally, students learn about rights and laws pertaining to publishing and distribution such as intellectual property rights and public lending rights.
System Management: Focusing primarily on management systems and retrieval systems for public libraries, this course deals with the implementation of IT technology in the libraries, and also addresses some issues of data including personal information protection laws, intellectual property rights, and other factors affecting library patrons.

Open Courseware (OCW)

In light of our objectives for establishing the endowed chair in library management, this open courseware is based on materials developed over two years for the Library Management Courses and has been made publicly available over the Internet. Not only available to students enrolled in the course, but also the material has now been made available to people who plan enroll in the course in the future and to anyone who is interested in library management.

LMOCW LMOCW (Library Management Course Open CourseWare)