Introduction to Library Services

2. Compare and contrast the focus and purpose of the four major types of libraries (school, public, academic, special)

3. Conceive a personal philosophy of library service and write a
mission statement.

All classes meet at Tulare County Office of Education Educational Resource Services, 7000 Doe Ave. Visalia Call 651-3031 for directions.

Monday January 22
                PowerPoint on the history of libraries
                Various kinds of libraries (include “virtual" library)
                Teach MS Publisher

Wednesday January 24
                 Allow time to work on Illumination
                 Organization of libraries
                                   Importance of libraries
                  How does your library rate?

Assignment: Begin ten hours of observation in a library (where student does not work.) Report will be due on this last day of class.

                Parts of a book
                    How to shelve
                    Information literacy - Standards of Library Service from Information Power
                    Library resources

Wednesday February 14
           Final...the following are due:
                  Procedures Manual
                  Mission Statement
                  Orientation PowerPoint
                  Illuminations page

LS 201 will challenge the student to think in new ways about libraries, whether or not he or she is now working in a library. Students will discuss topics and present their views to the class. The Instructors will lecture, followed by small group discussions. Videos will be shown on topics of interest. Students will gain hands-on experience both in class and during their observation of another library.

Students will be graded on the basis of their class attendance and participation(40%), their written reports (30%), and their oral reports (30%).

Students are required to attend all classes. Notify teachers in event of unavoidable absence.

It is the student’s responsibility to fill out and turn in the correct form or forms to drop the class before the final withdrawal date. No incompletes will be given.

Note: Cheating or plagiarism will be dealt with according to the Student Code of Conduct which includes consequences ranging from reprimand to expulsion.

1. Procedures Manual. This is a project you will work on throughout your Library Technician Certificate classes. It will be finished when you have taken all the classes. Your instructors will follow your progress on it in each class. You will bring it to class and show it to everyone on last day of class.

2. Lexicon. We will hand you a vocabulary booklet. It is your way to keep track of the new vocabulary you are learning – the library jargon. Prizes will be given for this! The lexicon will be due on last day of class.

3. Illumination. This will be a page made in Publisher on a topic assigned in class. Due last day of class.

4. Resume. Each Student must hand in a revised resume based on the tenets of resume writing taught in class. This assignment is in accordance with COS requirements.

7. Observation: Part of your homework is to spend ten hours helping and observing in a library. If you already work in a library, you will do your observation in another library, preferably another type of library. You can work with a classmate, or ask the instructors for ideas of places to observe and people to work with. You will write up your observations in two or three pages using this format:

You may add other elements as you see the need, but this should be the basic outline.

Table of Contents

Check-off, comments

I. Calendar of dates important to library

A. School/Vacation schedule

B. Hours of operation

II. Mission Statement, philosophy of service

A. Library Plan

III. Staff list

A. School or main library

B. Important/Emergency telephone #s

C. Volunteers/Student workers

IV. Floor plan, emergency exits

A. Emergency Procedures

V. Information for substitute

VI. Patrons

A. Method of scheduling class visits

B. Rules for patron use

VII. Circulation

A. Patrons (staff, students, etc.)

B. Materials (Reference, CDs, periodicals, books, Vertical file, etc.)

C. Reserve

D. Equipment, textbooks, etc.

E. Interlibrary Loan

VIII. Central Services

A. Main library/County Office

IX. Budget

X. Acquisitions

A. Selection Policy

1. Gifts

B Complaint forms and procedures

C. Cataloging, Processing procedures

D. Weeding policy

XI. Inventory

XII. In-service Training

XIII. Standards

A. Local, State, National

XIV. Glossary

XV. Appendix

A. brochures describing services

B. Manuals

C. Friends of the library info.

XVI. Notes

The Library Procedures Manual is a work in progress in any library. Those of you who are now working in libraries will find it an invaluable aid to your work, but also a way to pass on your procedures to substitutes or new people. For that reason, it must be kept up to date, so write down every policy change you make over the years. Those of you who are not yet working in a library will need it desperately unless you take over a library from one of your fellow students in these classes. Most of you will find that procedure manuals are either outdated or non-existent. The few of you who have complete, up to date procedures manuals still have an assignment, though. Your job is to investigate each policy, compare it to both the reality at your site and to the guidelines and discussions you will get in class, then decide if changes are needed, and work to make them happen.

In the C.O.S. Library Tech program, you will add to it in every class. Elainea and George will refer to it often enough to make you sick of it, but remember that it is yours. We will look at it for completeness, but since procedures vary at each site, we will not be worried about the details of what each part of it says. You will not have to bring it to every class, but you will need to bring it when we ask you to.

*************************************************************

August, 2006

To supervisors of students in C.O.S. Library Media Technology classes:

One of the requirements for the Library Technician Certificate is experience outside of one's own workplace. This gives the student a broader perspective of libraries, generates new ideas to improve their own job, and reduces their sense of isolation by allowing them to form working relationships with people in similar jobs. We feel it is very important to the student's success in this program.

Ten hours of observing at another library are required this semester. With travel time, this makes a large commitment on your employee to find the time to visit other libraries. Your employee who is enrolled in the Library Technician Program may ask you for time to fulfill this responsibility. Please remember that most libraries are open only during the day and please try to make accommodation as needed.

If you have any questions regarding the Library Media Technician Certificate classes, please call either of us.

Sincerely,

George Pilling, Adjunct Professor, College of the Sequoias and Director of Library Media Services, Visalia Unified School District 559-730-7349

Elainea Scott, Adjunct Professor, College of the Sequoias and Program Manager, Educational Resources, Tulare County Office of Education 559-651-3031