Has there been any response from Dr Price's office yet?
Kim
Dear ColleaguesNot sure whether you would have seen this, but here is a copy of the letter sent by LIASA to Dr Max Price, V-C of the University of Cape Town, about the closure of the UCT's Centre for Information Literacy (CILS).This has just been posted at http://www.liasa.org.za/node/537Regards10 January 2011
Dr Max Price
Vice-Chancellor
University of Cape Town
Dear Dr Price
Re: Closure of UCT's Department of Information and Library Studies
The professional association (Library and Information Association of South Africa (LIASA)) representing the library and information sector (LIS), at its Annual Conference and General Meeting of September/October 2010, instructed the Representative Council of LIASA to communicate to you its grave concern over the likely closure of the Department of Information and Library Studies (Centre for Information Literacy) at your Institution. In the current age of exponential growth of information and knowledge, it is critical that users of information are adequately skilled in retrieving reliable and relevant information in support of hypotheses, to construct sound defense of arguments or simply for individuals to make informed choices in their personal, professional and academic lives.
Growing critical thinking in the current paradigm shift away from 'education as a domesticator' to 'education as a liberator' has been adopted at the 2009 UNESCO Conference held in Paris. Leading academic institutions have endorsed the promotion of this philosophy of critical thinking through the signing of a memorandum of understanding. Given this landmark commitment and a national imperative to substantially decrease the first-year university dropout rate in South Africa, it becomes even more important for information literacy to underpin every academic programme. Information literacy is regarded not only as a survival skill in the current information age, but it also forms the basis of lifelong learning as it is generic to all disciplines, levels of education and learning environments. Hence in view of the current transformation agenda of the country and its national imperatives, information literacy represents a core set of essential learning outcomes for the higher education sector. The University of Cape Town's Centre for Information Literacy has lead in this area in terms of scholarship of both teaching (workshop provision to students, academics and professionals) and enquiry (through research and publication). Hence the LIS discipline laments the closure of a leader in our field.
LIASA believes that UCT's Centre for Information Literacy, among the oldest and most prestigious of LIS schools in the country, is well placed to share its extensive store of intellectual capacity in LIS and related areas in the educational preparation of library and information workers to ensure that the information literacy imperatives of the country are met. As indicated by the current President of the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (Ellen Tise, who is also the Senior Director of Stellenbosch University's Library and Information Service), her sojourns around the world have revealed that knowledge and information are critical to the growth and development of a country: the "inability to extract reliable and relevant information from a surfeit of sources is tantamount to inaccessibility with the end product being the stifling of growth and development of a nation".
Research commissioned by The Department of Arts and Culture (DAC Report 2010) highlights, inter alia, the shortage of qualified librarians in South Africa. The Carnegie Corporation of New York (CCNY) in responding to these findings and recognizing the disastrous implications of this shortage to a beacon of hope on the African continent, has requested LIASA (the professional association) to collaborate with other possible partners such as DAC and LIS schools to develop a proposal for the sum of one million US dollars (as input from the CCNY) for the training of 500 to 600 librarians over the next four years. The closing down of the UCT LIS School, one of only four LIS schools in the country (and the only one in the Western Cape) currently offering the Postgraduate Diploma in LIS (CCNY's preferred targeted qualification), would be a major blow to the development of LIS in South Africa and the proposed CCNY programme.
The national programme of 'One School, One Library and One Librarian' (supported by UCT) has brought to the attention of relevant authorities the fact that more than 24 thousand school librarians need to be trained to fulfill this aim – removing a leading library school in the country from this process can only impact negatively on the process. LIASA is optimistic that the University of Cape Town would appropriately weigh these qualitative imperatives in the interest of national growth and development, against issues of financial viability.
While the LIS programme at UCT is regarded as being among the most prestigious in the country, unfortunately the Sword of Damocles that hangs over the programme has had the effect of dwindling student numbers as many potential, masters' and doctoral students particularly, have put on hold their study ambitions pending a decision by UCT. Another issue that needs to be placed on the table is the recent advertisement for the post of Executive Director for UCT Libraries which asks for a minimum of a master's degree. It is precisely LIS Schools of the caliber of the UCT programme that provide the education and training for future leadership positions such as these as well as others in LIS academe and the professional body because of the strong research and general education (liberal arts) focus. Or perhaps is South Africa resigning itself to the fact that foreign librarians are likely to fill these key posts and provide a foreign biased service which would surely be another nail to the development agenda of the country.
The National Council for Library and Information Services, which advises relevant Ministers on LIS issues, is optimistic that the Department of Arts and Culture would set aside a sum of two million Rands for investigating and legislating a statutory body for the LIS sector. This funding is to serve as an impetus for the acceleration of the revitalization and growth of the profession and it would indeed be a pity if the UCT LIS School is no longer around to contribute to this important process.
LIASA is fully cognizant of the financial constraints within which academic institutions function. It is also aware that the current cohort of LIS academics at UCT is at or close to retirement age. However, the immense experience and intellectual capacity of these individuals who are highly respected and recognized as leaders in the LIS field not only in LIS scholarship but also in the academe generally, provide an ideal opportunity for the UCT LIS School to mentor and capacity build among emerging LIS academics of colour and thus contribute to the revitalization of a development related profession and to national transformation generally.
In view of these issues, LIASA sincerely hopes that you and your administration would kindly RECONSIDER the decision to close down the LIS School at UCT – the closure would spell disaster for the LIS profession as other far less prestigious LIS schools are likely to follow suit. Closure of the UCT School is likely to have a negative effect on the LIS profession and on our developing society. Please do not hesitate to contact us if you need clarity on any of the issues raised in this letter or if you wish to engage the professional body in any way.
Best regards
Naomi Haasbroek
President
president@lliasa.org.za
CC: Dr Blade Nzimande, Prof M Nassimbeni
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UNIVERSITY OF CAPE TOWN
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