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Information Literacy in Practice: engaging public library workers in rural South Africa

Information & Library Studies at the University of Cape Town, karin.dejager{at}uct.ac.za, Department of Information & Library Studies, Centre for Information Literacy, Hoerikwaggo Building, University of Cape Town Upper Campus, Private Bag, Rondebosch, Cape Town 7701, South Africa

Mary Nassimbeni

Information & Library Studies at the University of Cape Town, Department of Information & Library Studies, Centre for Information Literacy, Hoerikwaggo Building, University of Cape Town Upper Campus, Private Bag, Rondebosch, Cape Town 7701, South Africa

Mpumalanga Provincial Library Services, South Africa, offers public library services in a largely rural `new' province created in 1996. Many of the libraries are in isolated areas and have to meet the very diverse needs of their communities. This paper reports the results of an information literacy intervention designed for public library workers in this province. The campaign, a first of its kind in Mpumalanga (and South Africa), gave public library workers the opportunity to develop their information literacy skills and to apply them in their libraries. This paper discusses the information and training needs that were identified, the campaigns that were constructed, their progress and the outcomes. From the outset, emphasis was placed on the importance of measuring and evaluating activities throughout their campaigns in order to be able to assess the impact of their interventions. The paper attempts to show what difference even small public libraries with unqualified library workers can make in tackling social exclusion in disadvantaged communities.

Key Words: Information literacy • public libraries • public library staff • training • disadvantaged communities • Mpumulanga Provincial Librray Services • South Africa

IFLA Journal, Vol. 33, No. 4, 313-322 (2007)
DOI: 10.1177/0340035207086057


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