After the Desk: Reference Service in a Changing Information Landscape

PATERSON, Amy (2014) After the Desk: Reference Service in a Changing Information Landscape. Paper presented at: IFLA WLIC 2014 - Lyon - Libraries, Citizens, Societies: Confluence for Knowledge in Session 101 - Reference and Information Services. In: IFLA WLIC 2014, 16-22 August 2014, Lyon, France.

Bookmark or cite this item: https://library.ifla.org/id/eprint/944
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Language: English (Original)
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Abstract

After the Desk: Reference Service in a Changing Information Landscape

We as librarians seem to know (and fear) that the Reference Desk is in decline, but as a profession, we are less certain or united about what should replace it. This paper proposes that the librarians themselves must be promoted as the primary access point for Information Services. Though line-ups at The Desk are ever-shortening, the less-cited statistic is that individual consultation and group instruction requests are increasing. Information literacy plays a key role in the new model of reference, but in a librarian-centric model, any public service plays a role in reference and research. Outreach, flexibility, and connectivity are key components of the new model.

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