A study of student assistant programs of university libraries in the Visayas

Abstract

At no other time in the history of education have there been major developments as there are today. One of these developments can be seen in the change of student attitude. Gone are the days when students meekly sat in classrooms and accepted everything that their teachers said. The picture today has changed completely. Students are clamoring more and more for their rights as well as expressing their desire to be "more involved". This study is about students, not about students in general, but about a group that has been referred to as "working students". It is, however, limited to those students who work in university libraries. At a time when students throughout the country are agitating for more personal involvement, this writer deems it appropriate to look into the role a working student might have in the management of university libraries. In the United States today, student assistants play an important role in library service. School administrators accept them as "colleagues, as companions in learning". Workshops and conferences are held by student assistants. One held in 1970 was the Third Leadership Conference in Durham, New Hampshire, where some 140 library aides from 10 Eastern States met to exchange experiences and thresh out problems in connection with their work. In the Philippines, the situation has not yet reached the stage where students are accepted as colleagues and companions in learning. However, their role as student assistants in the efficient operation of libraries is recognized. According to Cottam, it is doubtful that any library, as a major resource for teaching and learning, can reach a maximum level of service without full utilization of the capabilities, opinions, talents, and background of capable student assistants, in addition to full-time staff. Duties in libraries are usually classified into two categories, namely: professional and nonprofessional. The professional duties are those performed by professional librarians—that is, holders of library science degrees. On the other hand, nonprofessional duties are clerical and routine in nature and do not have to be performed by professional librarians; these can be discharged by clerks and student assistants. The diagram in Figure 2 shows the general library set-up and the place of student assistants in the overall organization of the library. Departmental librarians are those in charge of unit libraries, like law, engineering, commerce, and other units. Librarians in functional departments are those in charge of such functions as cataloging, reference, circulation, and so forth. This study was conducted to determine the policies, procedures and practices in recruiting and training student assistants in the university libraries in the Visayas; to know the problems which beset student assistants in their work; and to find solutions to these problems.