Melling defines electronic learning broadly and inclusively as “learning facilitated and supported through the use of information and communication technologies.” These essays address strategic and operational issues that library and information services managers must consider to support and effectively manage e-learning. This collection shares common themes that underlie the successful support of e-learning. A recurring theme is that one size does not fit all institutions; e-learning needs to be more focused and relevant in the library and information world for useful contribution. The most basic conclusion of all the chapters collectively is that a “one-size-doesn't-fit-all” approach is necessary to successfully manage e-learning by integrating interactions between libraries and e-learning environments.
It is essential to understand the main areas of interdependence among aspects of e-learning and learning support infrastructure, including pedagogy, learning methodologies, and technology. Another common theme is that e-learning requires a process-based approach rather one constrained by structural boundaries. Accordingly, faculty, information technology staff, administrative staff, and librarians all have roles and responsibilities in content management, meaning that collaboration and cooperation are crucial.
In the digital environment, the question of ownership becomes blurred because libraries provide access to digital materials whose access is only purchased on a time-limited basis from a vendor, while they are also creating metadata and access to learning objects created by, and possibly repurposed by, colleagues in a variety of disciplines and subjects. Finally, in such a fluid environment, successful support for e-learning requires flexibility and creativity.
Key areas in the book focus on the importance of mainstreaming integrated systems and the increasing needs of multidisciplinary teams to be more proactive, particularly in terms of framing e-learning programs with respect to the veritable ubiquity of Web-based applications. Another area emphasizes the need for information managers to scan and analyze the environment to develop locally contextualized support processes. Also underscored is the need to embed e-learning into staffing and workflow considerations.
A third theme discusses the increased need to be flexible and proactive for creative purposes. Guidelines for best practice include not considering technology an end in itself and being honest about the time, effort, and commitment required to ensure the successful introduction and management of e-learning. Contributors strongly advocate cooperation between librarians and academics. Librarians and information managers must create new partnerships with academics to create relevant e-learning programs and to fully integrate e-learning into curricula. A final essay describes how awareness of electronic resources must be an integral, if not essential, component of all information literacy programs.
E-learning is becoming more common in academic institutions as a delivery mechanism for information content. However, successfully deploying e-learning technologies requires cooperation and exchange among professors, educational coordinators, systems librarians, education librarians, and information technology professionals. Increasingly librarians and information managers are directly involved in developing e-content and delivering services to support e-learning. It is vital that information managers appreciate the realities of e-learning and, more importantly, exploit its full potential as an information literacy platform. The contributors of this volume help readers understand how e-learning theory can be translated into practice.
This book will be useful for all managers of library and information services, as well as for any librarians involved in establishing policies for implementing and managing e-learning services. It will also be valuable for new professionals and as a text for advanced library and information science students.