Quality Assurance in LIS Education

Quality Assurance in LIS Education

Makiko Miwa Shizuko Miyahara Editors Quality Assurance in LIS Education An International and Comparative Study

Editors Makiko Miwa Center of ICT and Distance Education The Open University of Japan Chiba-shi, Japan Shizuko Miyahara Sagami Women s University Sagamihara City Kanagawa, Japan ISBN 978-1-4614-6494-5 ISBN 978-1-4614-6495-2 (ebook) DOI 10.1007/978-1-4614-6495-2 Springer New York Heidelberg Dordrecht London Library of Congress Control Number: 2014948174 Springer Science+Business Media New York 2015 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. Exempted from this legal reservation are brief excerpts in connection with reviews or scholarly analysis or material supplied specifically for the purpose of being entered and executed on a computer system, for exclusive use by the purchaser of the work. Duplication of this publication or parts thereof is permitted only under the provisions of the Copyright Law of the Publisher s location, in its current version, and permission for use must always be obtained from Springer. Permissions for use may be obtained through RightsLink at the Copyright Clearance Center. Violations are liable to prosecution under the respective Copyright Law. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. While the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication, neither the authors nor the editors nor the publisher can accept any legal responsibility for any errors or omissions that may be made. The publisher makes no warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein. Printed on acid-free paper Springer is part of Springer Science+Business Media (www.springer.com)

In Memory of Mohd Sharif Bin Mohd Saad Mohd Sharif Mohd Saad, Ph.D., President of the Librarians Association of Malaysia, 55, passed away on December 9, 2013. He spent his undergraduate years at the Universiti Teknologi MARA, Malaysia (UiTM) and obtained his Masters in Librarianship from Syracuse University, New York, USA. He received his Ph.D. from University of Malaya, Malaysia. The Faculty of Information Management, UiTM became his home as an undergraduate and continued to serve as that special place in his heart for the rest of his life. A prominent Malaysian Librarian, academician, and an ardent activist for library international networking, Mohd Sharif strongly believed that relations with colleagues around the world would bring international perspectives and benefits to the local librarians community. Malaysian librarians always referred to him for advice on collaborative activities, organizing international events, conference travel packages, and study tours arrangement. His involvement and presence at major international events was always comforting and reassuring to both hosts and guests alike. He was involved in many national and international conferences, seminars, and training programs and his much sought after advice and contributions for several forthcoming seminars and conferences will be sadly missed. The proposed international digital library conference, to be organized by National Library of Malaysia, was yet another major event where he was expected to assume a key role. In the information literacy (IL) arena, he was the country s resource person not only manifested through his list of writings on IL, but his direct involvement in this specialized field. A local champion like him has enhanced the ability of this part of the region to be on the right track of IL initiatives, and is coming together with desired outcomes given by UNESCO. He had initiated IL programs in various library institutions in Malaysia. It has brought together Library and Information Studies (LIS) students, educators, and public librarians to instill the importance of having the right perception on IL and imparting IL skills to different levels of learners. In the current few years, the Librarians Association of Malaysia has

managed to obtain the Malaysian government-linked corporations to support the IL programs through direct funding and other meaningful contributions. Beside his academic work, Mohd Sharif has a very cordial relationship with LIS leaders and educators not only in Southeast Asia but also from many parts of the world. His ability to bring himself in various communities connected him with people in the industry beyond mere academic confines. Mohd Sharif s involvement with both practising librarians, national and international, and academia was truly synergistic in his latest role as Deputy Dean, Research and Industrial Linkages, Faculty of Information Management, UiTM. He was consistently hard at work even in the months leading to his passing away. In October, he led the Librarians Association of Malaysia on a mission for an outreach program in Cambodia. Later in the same month, he was in Istanbul, presented a paper for the European Conference for Information Literacy. One day before his passing, he welcomed Prof. Dr. Ursula Georgy from Cologne, Germany to the Faculty of Information Management of UiTM. His absence at the May 2013 CONSAL Executive Board Meeting was clearly noticed and colleagues and buddies like Antonio M. Santos and Dr. Prachark expected his presence at the forthcoming meeting at Chiengmai in May 2014. He was at the A-LIEP 2013 (Asia-Pacific Conference on Library & Information Education & Practice), and presented a paper in July. The Application form for potential host countries for RSCAO Mid Term Meeting was submitted by Mohd Sharif on 1st October 2013 following an invitation by RSCAO through Dr. Dan Dorner, former RSCAO chair, and Dr. Chihfeng P. Lin, the current Chair of RSCAO. Despite Mohd Sharif s demise, the efforts lived on, and the meeting was held in Kuala Lumpur as scheduled. This citation is in no way exhaustive, but in summation Mohd Sharif was a dear friend to many and he is a great loss not only to the profession and the industry but also to the nation as a whole. He will be greatly missed, and his memory will be cherished forever. Balqis Suja Dr. Rusnah Johare April 2014

Foreword This book is published as one of the GlobaLIS (Global Library and Information Science) projects. The purpose of the GlobaLIS project started in 2010 will take an initiative in attaining the globalization of Japanese LIS (Library and Information Science) professional education (see Chap. 2). Main members of the Project are four Japanese scholars; Dr. Miwa (The Open University of Japan), Dr. Kasai (Tamagawa University), Prof. Takeuchi (Chiba University), and Ms. Miyahara (Sagami Women s University) who have wide-ranging experience overseas to share ideas and insights with one another about the LIS educations in the world. Until 2013, we have studied quality assurance and accreditation systems of LIS education in the World focusing on the transparency and reciprocity of professional qualification and academic degrees in LIS. This book is an outcome of the Project. The purpose of this book is to review and examine the quality assurance systems of LIS education in the specific countries and regions. In the recent progress of globalization, the number of LIS professionals who wish to work overseas has been increasing. However, the standards of the qualifications as an LIS professional are different in each country; therefore the case would be that the qualification of LIS professional is not accepted and authorized in a foreign country. To be qualified as a professional in a foreign country as well as local, the global standard of quality assurance system is an urgent need for the local LIS degree and/ or certification holder. As a reflection of this trend, the great interest in quality assurance system is growing in the study of higher education. However, we can find only few scholars discussed this topic at international conferences and contributed articles to international journal in the LIS study. Although there are some books on comparative LIS education published recently as stated below, no book on LIS quality assurance system has been published until now. As a specialist of LIS education, therefore, we decided to focus on the quality assurance system of LIS professional education at the university level. This project is the first collective work on LIS quality assurance system which covers various countries, and all authors of the articles are top-level LIS scholars in each country. vii

viii Foreword We have no doubt that this book has been expected to be published by many LIS scholars, researchers, and students. It is also highly expected those LIS faculties and students use this book as a textbook at graduate/undergraduate LIS program. This book is divided into three main parts for theoretical and geographical reasons. The first part discusses the background and some theoretical aspect of the recent LIS education. It has three chapters; the first, by Makiko Miwa, GlobaLIS: Toward the Regional Cooperation of Asia-Pacific details the history and current situation of library and information professional education and certification systems on a global level, and it explores opportunities for collaboration in the curriculum development and quality assurance of professional education in the Asia-Pacific region through GlobaLIS (Global Library and Information Science) project. The second, by Shizuko Miyahara, Regional Quality Assurance System for Higher Education in Southeast Asia examines the current trend and discussions of the quality assurance system in the higher education field in Southeast Asia and, more specifically, the evolution of multilateralism in the region. And the third, by Yumiko Kasai, International Developments in School Library Studies discusses the reforms and reorganization of library and information science study and education with the recent collective work through the Library and Information Professions and Educations Renewal (LIPER) project. The second part comprises seven chapters which deal with specific countries in Asia-Pacific region with reference to the development of LIS Education and Quality Assurance System. Chapter 4, Japan by Akira Nemoto, describes the current LIS/ LISE situations in Japan and discusses how the Japanese experience will be helpful for considering the situations of other Asian and Pacific countries in the twenty-first century. Chapter 5, China by Li Changqing, discusses the development of LIS education in China and measures LIS education in China qualitatively. Chapter 6, Taiwan by Chihfeng P. Lin, discusses the stages and practices of quality assurance mechanism with reference to the roles of authority, such as the Ministry of Education in Taiwan. Chapter 7, Malaysia by Mohd Sharif Mohd Saad, Rusnah Johare, and Fuziah Mohd Nadzar introduces the history of LIS education in Malaysia and presents a report on the development of library and Information Studies education, i.e., quality assurance policies and systems implemented in the actual site of university education. Chapter 8, by Lourdes T. David, pointed out that the Philippines has a unique system of ensuring the quality of library education and practice by virtue of the Republic Act 9246 known as the Philippine Librarianship Act of 2003. Chapter 9, Thailand by Sujin Butdisuwan, examines the concept of quality assurance in higher education and provides an overview of Library and Information Science (LIS) education and the existing situation of quality assurance systems, guidelines, and standards in Thailand. Chapter 10, Indonesia by Sulistyo-Basuki, L., LIS Education and Quality Assurance System in Asia Pacific: Indonesia reports on varied quality assurance for LIS education in Indonesia. The third part comprises six chapters which focus on the specific regions in the world. Chapter 11, Europe by Anna Maria Tammaro, defines an influence of globalization to the quality assurance in LIS education and figures out a theoretical and

Foreword ix practical current discussion around the quality of LIS education. Chapter 12, North America by Beverly Lynch, describes a great diversity of institutions and programs of LIS educational accreditation in United States and focuses on the voluntary and self-regulatory nature of accreditation for providing a model to meet accreditation requirements on a more global scale. Chapter 13, South America by Monica, describes the accreditation processes of Library and Information Science (LIS) programs in South America and makes a brief account of the outcomes and lessons learned from the experiences in the selected countries such as Mexico, Colombia, and Costa Rica. Chapter 14, Southeast Asia by Shizuko Miyahara, Diversified LIS Programs in Southeast Asia: Historical Background of LIS Education explores a cause of diversity of LIS education in the area with a historical perspective such as colonial legacy and suggests a regional cooperation to overcome such a diversity among developing countries. Chapter 15, Middle East by Sajjad ur Rehman, focuses on the term Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) nations and explains how those six nations in the Middle East create an LIS education community. The chapter writers for the area studies were provided common frames of the development of discussion as well as common questions. The first of these guidelines was that authors should focus on more contemporary developments of LIS education or accreditation after an introduction of brief historical overview in each nation or area. Contemporary developments were then specified as those occurring within the area or beyond the border. As discussed in each chapter, we can observe many aspects and cases of LIS cooperation in the nation or region. In preparing this book, we called many eminent scholars in this area who represent all regions of the globe. Chapters in this book include papers submitted by those authors who responded enthusiastically to our call. We sincerely thank all contributors of this book. Without them we could not complete our mission. We received a sad news that one of our coauthor Dr. Mohd Sharif Mohd Saad suddenly passed away due to a heart attack on December 9, 2013. We offer our deepest sympathy and condolence to him and hope this book remind everyone of Dr. Sharif and his eminent works. Chiba-shi, Japan Sagamihara City, Kanagawa, Japan Makiko Miwa Shizuko Miyahara

Contents Part I Background of the Quality Assurance of the LIS Field 1 GlobaLIS: Toward the Regional Cooperation in the Education of Library and Information Professionals in the Asia-Pacific Region... 3 Makiko Miwa 2 Regional Quality Assurance System for Higher Education in Southeast Asia... 25 Shizuko Miyahara 3 International Developments in School Library Studies: A Report on the School Library Initiatives for Asia and Pacific (SLAP) Forum... 39 Yumiko Kasai Part II Country Report: LIS Education and Quality Assurance System in Asia-Pacific 4 Is the Galapagos Phenomenon Over? Second Consideration of Japanese LIS Education in the International Setting... 53 Akira Nemoto 5 Qualitatively Maintaining Library and Information Science Education in China... 71 Changqing Li 6 LIS Education and Quality Assurance System in Asia-Pacific: Taiwan... 89 Chihfeng P. Lin xi

xii Contents 7 LIS Education and Quality Assurance System in Asia-Pacific: Malaysia... 103 Mohd Sharif Mohd Saad, Rusnah Johare, and Fuziah Mohd Nadzar 8 LIS Education: Quality Assurance System in the Philippines... 113 Lourdes T. David 9 LIS Education and Quality Assurance System in Asia-Pacific Region Thailand: Recent Trends and Issues... 135 Sujin Butdisuwan 10 LIS Education and Quality Assurance System in Asia Pacific: Indonesia... 151 L. Sulistyo-Basuki Part III Regional Quality Assurance System of LIS Education 11 Current Trends of Quality Assurance Models in LIS Education... 169 Anna Maria Tammaro 12 Accreditation in North America, A unique Quality Assurance Program... 187 Beverly P. Lynch 13 Accreditation Processes in Latin America: An Exploration into the Cases of Library and Information Science (LIS) Programs in Mexico, Colombia, and Costa Rica... 197 Mónica Arakaki 14 The Diversity of LIS Programs in Southeast Asia... 221 Shizuko Miyahara 15 Regional Quality Assurance System: Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Member Nations in Middle East... 235 Sajjad ur Rehman Index... 259

Contributors Mónica Arakaki Pontifical Catholic University of Peru, Lima, Peru Sujin Butdisuwan Mahasarakham University, Maha Sarakham, Thailand Changqing Li Peking University, Tokyo, China Lourdes T. David Ateneo de Manila University, Quezon City, Philippines Rusnah Johare Universiti Teknologi MARA, Selangor, Malaysia Yumiko Kasai Tamagawa University, Tokyo, Japan Chihfeng P. Lin Shih Hsin University, Taipei, Taiwan Beverly P. Lynch University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA Makiko Miwa The Open University, Chiba-shi, Japan Shizuko Miyahara Sagami Women s University, Sagamihara City, Kanagawa, Japan Mohd Sharif Mohd Saad Universiti Teknologi MARA, Selangor, Malaysia Fuziah Mohd Nadzar Universiti Teknologi MARA, Selangor, Malaysia Akira Nemoto University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan Sajjad ur Rehman Kuwait University, Kuwait, Kuwait L. Sulistyo-Basuki University of Indonesia, Depok, Indonesia Anna Maria Tammaro University of Parma, Parma, Italy Author (Mohd Sharif Mohd Saad) was deceased at the time of publication. xiii