Post 15 - The Future of Libraries in Higher Education

As I was reading through the NCTE (National Council for Teachers of English) Inbox for the past week, I came upon an article that I felt was timely for both LIS 2600 and LIS 2000. The article deals with the future of academic libraries and how academic institutions will function as technology develops over the next 15 years. The article entitled "The Librarian's Crystal Ball" highlights a study released by the Association of College and Research Libraries about the impact of technology and open source technology in higher education within the next 15 years. The article outlines possible scenarios within higher education that would allow more people to pursue higher education when previously it may not have been affordable or possible due to specific life situations. The article talks about the use of open educational resources that professors develop and release for student and course use without the price of a textbook. This use of the open source technology allows those who may have been deterred by high price of materials to engage with the same information for only the cost of the course (not the cost of the materials too). The article also highlights the importance of "scholar/practitioner" interconnectedness in order to help both develop knowledge and experiences within the field. This openness also allows advances within a field to come sooner because of the open communication. Finally, the idea of bridging the gap between the haves and have-nots when it comes to technology usage was of interest to me because students from lower socio-economic situations may not have had the same experiences of other students with technology, therefore these students must learn to utilize the technology in order to maintain a presence within the 21st century world. This divide opens the opportunity for librarians in academic institutions to teach and help students develop the essential skills for success in a technological age.

The full article can be found at: http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2010/06/23/futures