2005 Final Exams Questions

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April 8, 2005

1. Staffing is generally considered one of the primary functions of library management. What activities are typically parts of the staffing function? From the perspective of a type of library of your choice (academic, school, public, special, etc.) discuss how developments of the last twenty years or so (both inside and outside libraries) have impacted the staffing function in library management. What are the challenges that library organizations face?

2. As the volume of information available has drastically increased in the recent decade, the use of metadata has become increasingly important, and as a consequence, it has been adopted in a wide range of information environments. Describe the current state of metadata use in electronic information environment and identify and discuss current issues.

3. What is an index? Discuss and explain the function and significance of indexing and indexes in information retrieval and why they are important to reference sources and services.

4. According to the study, "Reading at Risk: A Survey of Literacy Reading in America" released by the National Endowment for the Arts, there has been a dramatic decline in the number of American adults reading literature. The study reports that less than half of the American adult population now reads any literature at all. What roles have libraries historically had in promoting literature and literacy? What demographic, technological, and societal changes might account for this decline in reading and how can libraries respond? How does this trend influence the future of information professionals and libraries?

5. Google has recently announced a collaboration with a number of major academic and public libraries to digitize, and provide access to, large portions of their print material. This effort has been widely heralded as a boon to enhancing access to these library materials, but some information professionals, as well as publishers, have expressed concerns about this effort. Identify and discuss the major issues this initiative raises as well as the impact you believe this project may have on the future of libraries, users and the profession.

July 15, 2005

ANSWER 3 OF THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS, EACH IN A SEPARATE EXAM BOOKLET. PLACE THE QUESTION NUMBER ON THE SUBJECT LINE OF THE EXAM BOOKLET. DO NOT PUT YOUR NAME ON THE EXAM BOOKLET ITSELF.

1. Library collections, commercial databases, and the Internet are among the basic avenues for retrieving information. Discuss the scope and the contents of these sources and compare and contrast methods and tools for retrieving information from them.

2. The Internet has driven an enormous amount of change in libraries over the last 15 years. From a library perspective of your choice (school, public, academic, or special), discuss the major Internet-based technological developments during this time and how they have changed the way users perceive and use libraries, the management of library resources and services, and the role of librarians.

3. From the perspective of a library or information organization type, define strategic planning and explain how strategic planning differs from conventional planning. Explain why strategic planning is important to an organization including some of the most important outcomes. Also comment on any special aspects of strategic planning that are particularly relevant to the library type you have selected.

4. In recent years there has been much discussion of a possible "Digital Divide" -- unequal access to electronic information and services, across various economic, ethnic and educational segments of the U.S. population. Why is this a serious problem about which librarians need to be concerned? What can libraries and librarians do to promote equal access to information in the electronic future?

5. In contemporary Western society, there has been a fundamental shift away from ownership to access, and that access has become increasingly important. Assuming that this is correct, describe how this fundamental change has become evident in the structure, composition, processes and services of contemporary library and information centers.

November 18, 2005

ANSWER 3 OF THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS, EACH IN A SEPARATE EXAM BOOKLET. PLACE THE QUESTION NUMBER ON THE SUBJECT LINE OF THE EXAM BOOKLET. DO NOT PUT YOUR NAME ON THE EXAM BOOKLET ITSELF.

1. Two main methods for information retrieval are full-text and retrieval through surrogate records. What are the differences between these approaches? Discuss with examples of the pros and cons of each. Discuss different standards for creating surrogate records.

2. Describe various measures used to evaluate the success of library and information services and resources. Compare these measures in terms of implementation, cost, effectiveness, etc.

3. One of the most difficult issues facing this profession is establishing and maintaining the appropriate balance between the competing ethics of privacy and freedom of information. Discuss these competing ethics both from a theoretical foundation of each ethic and the trends in contemporary society that challenge them. Conclude by discussing the task of balancing these conflicting ethics.

4. Many information professionals consider the development of a society that is information literate an important national goal. What does the information profession mean by the term "information literacy," and what kinds of things could libraries and librarians do to contribute to the accomplishment of this goal?

5. Computer and information technologies have transformed the role of libraries and the services provided to clients. From the perspective of a library or information agency type, including academic, public, special, or school libraries, identify and discuss three technologies that you believe are among the most important transforming technologies of the last few decades and discuss how each has changed the library, its services and the profession. Then discuss what you think the future of each of those technologies will be in the decade to come.

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