Recomemendations
It is recommended that initial interventions happen aligned with the motivations of those involved with public libraries in the country. It would be of little use to invest in public equipment, connection and training library staff if the Brazilian Public Library does not wish to take new paths. It is important that the innovation process grows within the library, that it is caused by the presentation of new possibilities, that it awakens motivations and then finds opportunities and paths to take to develop new services. It is necessary that public libraries comprehend the role of technology and establish goals so that a long term policy manages to sustain a qualified use of technology that takes it to a new level of interaction with its public and society in general. The sustainability of a continuous project is necessary for the acquisition of equipment (which quickly depreciates) as well as for the continued training of staff.
During the fieldwork, at the end of interviews with managers of public libraries, conversations took place between the researcher and the interviewees about the integration of technology in cultural activities, which could exemplify interesting opportunities. While a motivation appeared to follow such path, there were also complaints about the need of training library staff, need for better internet connection and sometimes the need for better equipment. In these conversations, many managers criticized their staff’s professional development both in librarianship schools as well as in short duration courses for the training of library attendants (training often promoted by state or municipal systems).
In one of the libraries visited, when addressing the issue of the a shared policy for digital inclusion, and access to technology being isolated from library programs, the researcher traced the hypothesis that certain groups such as that of ladies that request knitting and cooking workshops (existing group in such library) would not start using technology to research and publish on these themes with motivation if there wasn’t a leadership and support from library staff in this sense. Then the interviewed users (members of the library coordination) understood, appreciated and expressed the understanding of an evolution that could happen:
The library attracts people to workshops, then promotes reading about the topic, and then these people could consult about such topic on the internet and then discuss about it in a social network group (public or private) and still construct more relevant content for local users, exerting authorship on the internet.
Faced with these issues, the recommendation of this research differs from training and the suggestion of specific indicators, and proposes stimulating the commitment to a technology integration plan. Instead of recommending courses and indicators, it proposes steps for a technology integration plan.
It is suggested here that resources should be invested in a guidance service for libraries for the integration of technology which would work at the same time as the accreditation of these libraries for the continuity and expansion in the transfer of government resources. Although in a very generic way, here are some steps for an integration plan. The objective of this outline is to facilitate the comprehension of the proposed process. It is not intended here to propose the specified definition of each step, for it is believed that the involvement of national subjects is necessary for the construction of the stages of this integration plan.
It is proposed that libraries are motivated to engage in a technology integration plan. This proposal would occur in a pilot project with some Brazilian libraries that would receive orientation, but also some financial support to take care of complementary actions demanded to go through the stages of the plan. It is suggested that a team leads the project on a national level (or the level defined for the pilot project) to establish definitions and work on the orientation and animation of the participating libraries through some preplanned steps.
Steps for a technology integration plan
1. GOAL SETTING for the use of technology, for example: attracting more public, serving the public better, developing new services that include missions or functions that were not included by the library (or were included in a limited way). Defining a list to facilitate that libraries choose some among the suggested goals.
2. Using a LIST OF POSSIBLE SERVICES with the use of technology in public libraries worldwide. This list would be initiated in a pilot project but fed continuously by its users and managed by the SNBP or an organization that would implement a pilot project. A form with a simplified structure would allow the participation of library staff who would feed this list with suggestions that would be evaluated and revised by the SNBP (or the team leading the project) and then incorporate the collection (list) of services with technology for public libraries. In this descriptive structure should appear a suggestion of an indicator of use of these services and means of verification, and if possible, the estimated cost to start and maintain these services. This cost does not need to appear in numbers but can be described as such: a professional with training in communication with 30 weekly hours of dedication. Equipment with such characteristics, space with such characteristics.
3. A WEB PAGE for EACH of the MOST POPULAR SERVICES among the public libraries involved would communicate the characteristics of the services, examples and links to each group discussion (social network) from the libraries that practice or are interested in practicing this service. This webpage would highlight the indicators used to evaluate the service and communicate the results from participating libraries, not only cases of success (as are most usual) but with previously determined indicators. The webpage would count with the participation of representatives from libraries that develop the service with links available in this page, challenges and achievements related to this service from the public library. Having an animation managed by the project (pilot project team leader) with a priority focus on service indicators, as well as the dissemination of new services. The page would have small videos where public representatives from the protagonist public libraries share how they develop the service in their organizations. Simple videos recorded with a laptop’s webcam and edited on Movie Maker (or similar) with photo addition from the service in public libraries. Always highlighting objectives, indicators and results, for technology costs money and budgets need proposals with clear objectives and consistent reports to enable the renewal of resources over the years. Technology needs constant investment not only to maintain the internet, but to renew the equipment and make learning or professional involvement from the teams involved possible.
Producing Libraries
The pilot would have online spaces with a focus on “How we integrate Technology in our public libraries". For each service highlighted, under the leadership of the team that leads the pilot project, the protagonist public libraries would receive support to produce materials and content for the initial supply of this network. The support would happen with training in technology but if possible also with funds to support directly the participant public libraries. The production of digital works that report libraries' practices would be important also for the staff's professional development, since they would use the same software or application that they would disseminate among libraries' users.
The productions of public libraries on certain services should highlight the goal, indicator and result, but also with the illustration of the process that will captivate and motivate other public libraries and develop such service. In this context, distance training would emerge on demand for those public libraries interested and active in specific services. Some services would be established by the program coordination to launch this process. The researcher’s suggestion would be:
1. TECHNOLOGY INTEGRATION IN CULTURAL ACTIVITIES conducted with children and young people with the objective of stimulating reading. Use of software for design, animation, comics, building e-books (with templates for children) and websites for representing characters, facts of literature crafted by library staff for story telling or theater plays. Use of the internet also for research about the history in focus, characters and facts and environments.
Besides the interaction in existing workshops, one new service could happen: free software courses specifically for cultural production (children and adults). These courses would initially be offered by the pilot project then organized in Webinars and mediated or animated by local instructors, or by a distance instructor in another public library which would appear on the screen projected in the environment of the participating public libraries.
2. COMPUTERIZATION OF THE LIBRARY COLLECTION – a group with an administrative profile would lead actions to share processes, costs and time neecessity, this group would work on standarizing practices with the following goals:
3. THE USE OF TECHNOLOGY TO STIMULATE THE ACCESS TO INFORMATION would be worked on a second moment of the project. Even considering that to foster the use of information and communication for development is the main goal of this project, it is important to note that this is not a relvant function or role among the Brazilian public libraries today (June 2013). In this context
it is suggested that the investment meets first the built of fluency in the use of technology, and along with it, the comprehension of possibilities brought by technology as well as the attraction of a new crowd for the new services and then finally build the concept and the services that take more objectively the integration of technology to improve the life quality of the local population.
During the fieldwork, at the end of interviews with managers of public libraries, conversations took place between the researcher and the interviewees about the integration of technology in cultural activities, which could exemplify interesting opportunities. While a motivation appeared to follow such path, there were also complaints about the need of training library staff, need for better internet connection and sometimes the need for better equipment. In these conversations, many managers criticized their staff’s professional development both in librarianship schools as well as in short duration courses for the training of library attendants (training often promoted by state or municipal systems).
In one of the libraries visited, when addressing the issue of the a shared policy for digital inclusion, and access to technology being isolated from library programs, the researcher traced the hypothesis that certain groups such as that of ladies that request knitting and cooking workshops (existing group in such library) would not start using technology to research and publish on these themes with motivation if there wasn’t a leadership and support from library staff in this sense. Then the interviewed users (members of the library coordination) understood, appreciated and expressed the understanding of an evolution that could happen:
The library attracts people to workshops, then promotes reading about the topic, and then these people could consult about such topic on the internet and then discuss about it in a social network group (public or private) and still construct more relevant content for local users, exerting authorship on the internet.
- But how to introduce this new concept of using technology in libraries?
- Would a professional development session arouse the interest of library staff?
- How to communicate these new possibilities and how to define this professional development?
- How will these new actions be monitored?
- Which indicators of the use of technology should be used?
Faced with these issues, the recommendation of this research differs from training and the suggestion of specific indicators, and proposes stimulating the commitment to a technology integration plan. Instead of recommending courses and indicators, it proposes steps for a technology integration plan.
It is suggested here that resources should be invested in a guidance service for libraries for the integration of technology which would work at the same time as the accreditation of these libraries for the continuity and expansion in the transfer of government resources. Although in a very generic way, here are some steps for an integration plan. The objective of this outline is to facilitate the comprehension of the proposed process. It is not intended here to propose the specified definition of each step, for it is believed that the involvement of national subjects is necessary for the construction of the stages of this integration plan.
It is proposed that libraries are motivated to engage in a technology integration plan. This proposal would occur in a pilot project with some Brazilian libraries that would receive orientation, but also some financial support to take care of complementary actions demanded to go through the stages of the plan. It is suggested that a team leads the project on a national level (or the level defined for the pilot project) to establish definitions and work on the orientation and animation of the participating libraries through some preplanned steps.
Steps for a technology integration plan
1. GOAL SETTING for the use of technology, for example: attracting more public, serving the public better, developing new services that include missions or functions that were not included by the library (or were included in a limited way). Defining a list to facilitate that libraries choose some among the suggested goals.
2. Using a LIST OF POSSIBLE SERVICES with the use of technology in public libraries worldwide. This list would be initiated in a pilot project but fed continuously by its users and managed by the SNBP or an organization that would implement a pilot project. A form with a simplified structure would allow the participation of library staff who would feed this list with suggestions that would be evaluated and revised by the SNBP (or the team leading the project) and then incorporate the collection (list) of services with technology for public libraries. In this descriptive structure should appear a suggestion of an indicator of use of these services and means of verification, and if possible, the estimated cost to start and maintain these services. This cost does not need to appear in numbers but can be described as such: a professional with training in communication with 30 weekly hours of dedication. Equipment with such characteristics, space with such characteristics.
3. A WEB PAGE for EACH of the MOST POPULAR SERVICES among the public libraries involved would communicate the characteristics of the services, examples and links to each group discussion (social network) from the libraries that practice or are interested in practicing this service. This webpage would highlight the indicators used to evaluate the service and communicate the results from participating libraries, not only cases of success (as are most usual) but with previously determined indicators. The webpage would count with the participation of representatives from libraries that develop the service with links available in this page, challenges and achievements related to this service from the public library. Having an animation managed by the project (pilot project team leader) with a priority focus on service indicators, as well as the dissemination of new services. The page would have small videos where public representatives from the protagonist public libraries share how they develop the service in their organizations. Simple videos recorded with a laptop’s webcam and edited on Movie Maker (or similar) with photo addition from the service in public libraries. Always highlighting objectives, indicators and results, for technology costs money and budgets need proposals with clear objectives and consistent reports to enable the renewal of resources over the years. Technology needs constant investment not only to maintain the internet, but to renew the equipment and make learning or professional involvement from the teams involved possible.
Producing Libraries
The pilot would have online spaces with a focus on “How we integrate Technology in our public libraries". For each service highlighted, under the leadership of the team that leads the pilot project, the protagonist public libraries would receive support to produce materials and content for the initial supply of this network. The support would happen with training in technology but if possible also with funds to support directly the participant public libraries. The production of digital works that report libraries' practices would be important also for the staff's professional development, since they would use the same software or application that they would disseminate among libraries' users.
The productions of public libraries on certain services should highlight the goal, indicator and result, but also with the illustration of the process that will captivate and motivate other public libraries and develop such service. In this context, distance training would emerge on demand for those public libraries interested and active in specific services. Some services would be established by the program coordination to launch this process. The researcher’s suggestion would be:
1. TECHNOLOGY INTEGRATION IN CULTURAL ACTIVITIES conducted with children and young people with the objective of stimulating reading. Use of software for design, animation, comics, building e-books (with templates for children) and websites for representing characters, facts of literature crafted by library staff for story telling or theater plays. Use of the internet also for research about the history in focus, characters and facts and environments.
- Objective of stimulating reading through technology.
- Developing the skill of using technology.
- Creativity, collaboration, communication, digital citizenship, skills to research about information and critical thinking (NETS).
Besides the interaction in existing workshops, one new service could happen: free software courses specifically for cultural production (children and adults). These courses would initially be offered by the pilot project then organized in Webinars and mediated or animated by local instructors, or by a distance instructor in another public library which would appear on the screen projected in the environment of the participating public libraries.
2. COMPUTERIZATION OF THE LIBRARY COLLECTION – a group with an administrative profile would lead actions to share processes, costs and time neecessity, this group would work on standarizing practices with the following goals:
- Minimize the reworking on registration of titles on digital catalogs
- Improve the technical knowledge for the use of software
- Explore solutions for libraries of various sizes and in different situations, from those without cataloging of the collection; those that use paper notebooks or catalog cards to register book loans; those that use Excel spreadsheets to manage the collections; those that began the computerization process but it happens so slowly and seems endless; and finally those that have an operating computerized catalog system but it runs only inside the library, the catalog is not posted on the internet. The group responsible for this service would make available indicators to inform costs as well as to indicators related to the increase of circulation of collections from computerization, among others.
3. THE USE OF TECHNOLOGY TO STIMULATE THE ACCESS TO INFORMATION would be worked on a second moment of the project. Even considering that to foster the use of information and communication for development is the main goal of this project, it is important to note that this is not a relvant function or role among the Brazilian public libraries today (June 2013). In this context
it is suggested that the investment meets first the built of fluency in the use of technology, and along with it, the comprehension of possibilities brought by technology as well as the attraction of a new crowd for the new services and then finally build the concept and the services that take more objectively the integration of technology to improve the life quality of the local population.