Thing #15... Web 2.0, Library 2.0 and the Future of Libraries

Indeed, libraries have changed a lot in a matter of 10 years. Gone are the stuffy card catalogs, the mausoleum-like floors where you were shushed to hear a pin drop! I strongly agree with Michael Stephens (Into a new world of librarianship), that "the library of the future is a social and emotionally engaging center for learning and experience."

The library has already involved into a much more user-friendly, interactive environment where the patrons' needs seem to drive the virtual and physical materials purchased. With nowadays technology and the emergence of Library 2.0, the library of the future is bound to become even more rich in "interactivity, user participation, collective intelligence, self-service, novel and remixed content" (Web 2.0: Where will the next generation of the web it take libraries?, Tom Storey). I do worry however about the fact that the collaboration and conversation tends to be mostly online that it might negatively affect students' development of face-to-face interpersonal skills...

But it is true that library patrons (myself included) have started to expect access to everything online (digital collections of journals, books, blogs, podcasts, being able to place holds on books online...), but I still think books will remain a big component of a library. Personally, downloading a novel on a Kindle (Amazon's Wireless Reading Device) does not have the same appeal at all as holding the actual book in my hands while I am comfortably ensconced on my couch or laying on the beach! I actually want my students to experience the joy of flipping through the pages of a new book, the intoxicating smell of the black ink on its freshly printed pages, the excitement of finding an author's autograph on the cover page.

I know, I do sound a little reactionary here, but the truth of the matter too is that NOT all of the information is totally available online yet. Actually, I just found myself checking out a book on scuba-diving in Roatan, Honduras at the Houston Public Library because I couldn't find a website that actually provided me with the information I was looking for. Sure, plenty of sites popped up when I performed a search, but a lot was advertising and actually TOO much extraneous information to weed through! So, I do agree with Rick Anderson (Away from the “icebergs”) that it is crucial that we need to teach library patrons --and teachers :)-- to use note-worthy Web 2.0 interfaces as effectively as possible, so they can actually spend most time reading and learning.

Kudos to our amazing school librarian who definitely is a great role model for students and teachers alike as she not only embraces and implements today's new technology but encourages all of our campus to become technology-learners for life. SWMS is definitely dodging the "icebergs" thanks to Captain Laucher!