ALA's Core Competencies of Librarianship
Final version, as posted on ALA's website
Approved by the ALA Executive Board, October 25th 2008
Approved and adopted as policy by the ALA Council, January 27th 2009
Approved by the ALA Executive Board, October 25th 2008
Approved and adopted as policy by the ALA Council, January 27th 2009
Foundations of the Profession
ILS 503 Biography of Mayme Agnew Clayton (.doc)
ILS 560 History of Academic Libraries (.doc)
- The ethics, values, and foundational principles of the library and information profession.
- The role of library and information professionals in the promotion of democratic principles and intellectual freedom (including freedom of expression, thought, and conscience).
- The history of libraries and librarianship.
- The history of human communication and its impact on libraries.
- Current types of library (school, public, academic, special, etc.) and closely related information agencies.
- National and international social, public, information, economic, and cultural policies and trends of significance to the library and information profession.
- The legal framework within which libraries and information agencies operate. That framework includes laws relating to copyright, privacy, freedom of expression, equal rights (e.g., the Americans with Disabilities Act), and intellectual property.
- The importance of effective advocacy for libraries, librarians, other library workers, and library services.
- The techniques used to analyze complex problems and create appropriate solutions.
- Effective communication techniques (verbal and written).
- Certification and/or licensure requirements of specialized areas of the profession.
ILS 503 Biography of Mayme Agnew Clayton (.doc)
ILS 560 History of Academic Libraries (.doc)
Information Resources
ILS 504 Reference Selection and Evaluation Exercise (.doc)
ILS 506 Original Cataloging (.doc)
- Concepts and issues related to the lifecycle of recorded knowledge and information, from creation through various stages of use to disposition.
- Concepts, issues, and methods related to the acquisition and disposition of resources, including evaluation, selection, purchasing, processing, storing, and deselection.
- Concepts, issues, and methods related to the management of various collections.
- Concepts, issues, and methods related to the maintenance of collections, including preservation and conservation.
ILS 504 Reference Selection and Evaluation Exercise (.doc)
ILS 506 Original Cataloging (.doc)
Organization of Recorded Knowledge and Information
ILS 506 Comparison of Online Public Access Catalogs (OPACs) (.doc)
ILS 537 Comparison of Information Systems (.doc)
- The principles involved in the organization and representation of recorded knowledge and information.
- The developmental, descriptive, and evaluative skills needed to organize recorded knowledge and information resources.
- The systems of cataloging, metadata, indexing, and classification standards and methods used to organize recorded knowledge and information.
ILS 506 Comparison of Online Public Access Catalogs (OPACs) (.doc)
ILS 537 Comparison of Information Systems (.doc)
Technological Knowledge and Skills
ILS 501 Software Issues (.doc)
ILS 570 Audio-visual Online Catalog Tutorial (YouTube video)
- Information, communication, assistive, and related technologies as they affect the resources, service delivery, and uses of libraries and other information agencies.
- The application of information, communication, assistive, and related technology and tools consistent with professional ethics and prevailing service norms and applications.
- The methods of assessing and evaluating the specifications, efficacy, and cost efficiency of technology-based products and services.
- The principles and techniques necessary to identify and analyze emerging technologies and innovations in order to recognize and implement relevant technological improvements.
ILS 501 Software Issues (.doc)
ILS 570 Audio-visual Online Catalog Tutorial (YouTube video)
Reference and User Services
ILS 504 Teaching Information Literacy to Children (.doc)
ILS 521 Community Analysis (.doc)
- The concepts, principles, and techniques of reference and user services that provide access to relevant and accurate recorded knowledge and information to individuals of all ages and groups.
- Techniques used to retrieve, evaluate, and synthesize information from diverse sources for use by individuals of all ages and groups.
- The methods used to interact successfully with individuals of all ages and groups to provide consultation, mediation, and guidance in their use of recorded knowledge and information.
- Information literacy/information competence techniques and methods, numerical literacy, and statistical literacy.
- The principles and methods of advocacy used to reach specific audiences to promote and explain concepts and services.
- The principles of assessment and response to diversity in user needs, user communities, and user preferences.
- The principles and methods used to assess the impact of current and emerging situations or circumstances on the design and implementation of appropriate services or resource development.
ILS 504 Teaching Information Literacy to Children (.doc)
ILS 521 Community Analysis (.doc)
Research
ILS 580 Special Project
- The fundamentals of quantitative and qualitative research methods.
- The central research findings and research literature of the field.
- The principles and methods used to assess the actual and potential value of new research.
ILS 580 Special Project
Continuing Education and Lifelong Learning
ILS 521 Development of Children's Programs (.doc)
ILS 537 Critique of an Information Seeking Theory (.doc)
- The necessity of continuing professional development of practitioners in libraries and other information agencies.
- The role of the library in the lifelong learning of patrons, including an understanding of lifelong learning in the provision of quality service and the use of lifelong learning in the promotion of library services.
- Learning theories, instructional methods, and achievement measures; and their application in libraries and other information agencies.
- The principles related to the teaching and learning of concepts, processes and skills used in seeking, evaluating, and using recorded knowledge and information.
ILS 521 Development of Children's Programs (.doc)
ILS 537 Critique of an Information Seeking Theory (.doc)
Administration and Management
ILS 565 Prioritizing Emergencies as Director (.doc)
ILS 565 Cost-Finding Exercise (.doc)
- The principles of planning and budgeting in libraries and other information agencies.
- The principles of effective personnel practices and human resource development.
- The concepts behind, and methods for, assessment and evaluation of library services and their outcomes.
- The concepts behind, and methods for, developing partnerships, collaborations, networks, and other structures with all stakeholders and within communities served.
- The concepts behind, issues relating to, and methods for, principled, transformational leadership.
ILS 565 Prioritizing Emergencies as Director (.doc)
ILS 565 Cost-Finding Exercise (.doc)