From Lending to Learning: The development and extension of public libraries

Ronan O'Beirne, Bradford College, UK

worth the investment and thorough reading by at least all public library managers as a catalyst for local, state and national debate
Australasian Public Libraries and Information Services

 - combines a practical approach with an accessible theoretical underpinning
 - written in an entertaining and highly readable style
 - identifies the key phases involved in establishing a public library learning service
 - uses real case studies to illustrate key areas of activity
 - identifies the key trends in the emerging e-learning agenda

From Lending to Learning provides a theoretical overview and practical guide to the functional area of delivering learning services within public libraries. It traces the development of public library service delivery and critically appraises the inherent tension between offering an educational focused or leisure focused library. The current and future policy directions are explored against the backdrop of the emerging learning society. A general overview of recent developments in learning theory is followed by an insight into the learning landscape. The issues and practicalities of setting up a learning environment within a public library are dealt with in a clear and straightforward fashion. The book concludes with an assessment of the emerging Web 2.0 technologies and gives an insight into how the whole area of social networking might shape the future.

 

Readership: Staff at all managerial and supervisory levels within Library and Information Services and learning resource centres, ILT managers within, and associated with, public libraries and students of LIS at undergraduate and postgraduate level.

ISBN 1 84334 388 6
ISBN-13: 978 1 84334 388 2
October 2010
216 pages  234 x 156mm  paperback