| Time for reflection: the
Associateship experience NICK
LEWIS
The purpose of this article is to outline what I learned from taking part in the Library Association's Associateship scheme. Whilst the experience I have to draw on as a Liaison Librarian in the Higher Education sector will differ from that of colleagues working in other parts of the sector, I have tried to make my observations of general relevance to anyone embarking on the scheme.
Why take part?
Before looking at my own experience, it is worth making a few points about how the Associateship scheme is perceived in the sector and why I believe it is still important to take part. The main criticisms of the scheme in recent years have been that it is no longer necessary for gaining a good job in the sector and that, with a pass rate of 96%, it is not rigorous enough. To some extent the first assertion is true, as the nature of library and information work has been changing rapidly. This has led to increased opportunities in what we might call 'non-traditional' library and information posts. At the same time, the distinctions between professional and paraprofessional levels of work have been blurred, with non-qualified staff taking on responsibilities for technical and specialist functions that were previously the prerogative of qualified professional staff. It is true that fewer employers seem to require candidates to be Chartered, but to see the Associateship scheme solely as a certificate to gain access to a better job or higher salary is to miss the point. The value of a qualification at this level surely lies in the process itself - the discipline of evaluating your own work - rather than simply on the outcome. So whilst Chartered status may not be an essential requirement for the next job, the value of having gone through the scheme provides the employer with evidence of your commitment to the profession.
In terms of the other criticism about the rigour of the qualification, the pass rate alone cannot be seen as a reliable indicator of this. Completing the qualification requires considerable time commitment and a willingness to get to grips with its detailed requirements. It may well be that weaker candidates are put off at the early stages and never reach the stage of submitting, hence the relatively high pass rate.
The scheme is not perfect but it is an effective way of assessing, with some degree of objectivity, how far a newly qualified librarian has been able to put theory into practice and their potential for future development at a professional level.
Route A training
My experience of the scheme is as a Route A candidate. This allows you to ‘fast track’ the process by completing it in the minimum amount of time which should be "not less than one year"
[1]. This route has to be underpinned with an approved training programme. I was the first candidate in our university library to follow this programme, which was put together by the institution and then accredited by the Library Association. Initially I found it a challenge to cover the range of topics whilst getting to grips with my new post. I found that the best way forward was to be proactive, rather than waiting for training sessions to be organised for me. The advantages of this approach were two-fold: firstly, it meant that the training did not conflict so much with busy periods of term and, secondly, it allowed me to negotiate directly with colleagues who had been assigned to deliver the training. This helped to ensure that the training I received on any particular issue was relevant to my work and timely in its delivery.
Evaluation and reflection
One of the main challenges in writing the Professional Development Report (PDR) was how to ensure there was adequate reflection on, rather than simply description of, the professional work I had undertaken. The PDR has to be an "evaluative and analytical report"
[2]. The best advice on this was to focus on what I had learned during the year
[3]. I briefly listed my routine duties and tasks and only expanded on the ones that had been the most demanding professionally. For example, in my report I included a section on communication in which I outlined the range of people I had to communicate with and the types of verbal and written communication involved. However, I only selected a couple of issues to develop in detail, such as liaison with the Heads of Department for example. I reflected on the problems I had had and how these had been overcome, mentioning the successes, but also not being afraid of noting some of the things that had gone wrong. The key was to emphasise what I had learned from the process and how I might approach things differently in the future.
Professional work
The other challenge is to be clear about what 'professional work' actually means in your library or information centre. As previously mentioned, the distinction between professional and paraprofessional in the sector is becoming less clear. Professional work used to be seen as the specialist and technical functions, such as cataloguing, acquisitions, abstracting and indexing, for example. Increasingly, much of this is being done at paraprofessional level which has led to some confusion about how professional work should be defined.
I approached this by trying to identify which aspects of my work were different from those of colleagues working at a paraprofessional level. My first observation was that we had much in common, but the differences tended to be ones of emphasis and the degree of responsibility. In my case these included responsibility for managing competing expectations, improving systems and processes, problem-solving and decision-making, and teaching and facilitating learning. This process also helped me to identify the aspects of my job which involved managerial skills as opposed to more routine or supervisory functions. Most of my opportunities for managerial work came through involvement with projects, such as a major stock move and the implementation of a new library management system.
Service objectives
Another important aspect is the requirement to explain how your role fits with the service objectives of the library or information centre. I gathered ideas from various strategy documents and annual reports but soon found that I was overwhelmed with information. In the end, I summarised the library strategy in bullet points to set the scene and only concentrated in detail on those aspects that directly linked with my own work.
If the organisation's objectives do not exist on paper, it is still possible to identify them. The way to do this is to carry out a straightforward SWOT analysis
[4] of the library service as you see it. What are its key strengths and weaknesses and, looking ahead, what new opportunities are there for service development and what are the constraints or threats that may hinder this? The key to this section is to do some desk research first and then when you have a reasonable understanding, talk through the details with more experienced colleagues.
Supervisors
Concerning support from colleagues, I found the supervisor framework helpful. Once again, it was important to be proactive in this relationship rather than waiting for the supervisor to set the agenda. Their role is more one of mentor than trainer and they are not there to run the programme for you. We met monthly during the year to review progress and, more importantly, debate issues that had arisen. It was helpful to have a colleague who could provide encouragement but also to whom one could be accountable. This was very important in terms of motivation and trying to set some kind of deadline for each stage of the process.
Professional issues
In terms of the requirement to show an "awareness of current professional issues"
[5], I tried to mention these throughout the report. This was to ensure that the issues were not raised in isolation without at least some reflection on their implications for my own library service as well as the sector as a whole. Having said that, I did include a separate section looking at two issues I had been particularly involved with during the year, namely Copyright and ILS NVQs. The challenge of this section is to be careful in the selection of issues and to avoid the temptation to comment on everything. A good starting point for ideas about professional issues is the Library Association's Web site
[6].
Personal development and training
To meet the personal development and training requirements, it was important to demonstrate that learning had taken place during the year. I realise I was in a privileged position here as I had support to attend several external events. Much of what I learned by attending these events could have been obtained from other sources, though, including library journals, books and the World Wide Web
[7]. In terms of evidence of continuing background reading, I found on-line journals such as Ariadne
[8] invaluable, as well as books on professional issues such as The new professional's handbook: your guide to information services management
[9]. Such resources are also useful for identifying a few quotations which can be used in your report to illustrate the theory that underpins the practice. This demonstrates that you have taken steps to update the learning you carried out at library school.
Chartership events
I also attended one of the courses about the Chartership process organised by the Career Development Group and its network of Registration Liaison Officers (RLOs). This was helpful in terms of clarifying the regulations and seeing examples of Professional Development Reports that had been successful. Anyone who is a member of the mailbase list lis-la-charter
[10] will also be aware of the increasing number of informal events being arranged which act as self-support groups for those going through the process. The latter are particularly useful for networking and are likely to be timetabled more flexibly.
Future development
When writing about your future development, it is essential to leave enough space in the report to discuss training needs and how these might be met. Initially I gave this aspect of the report cursory treatment and my supervisor picked up on this in my final draft. This section should not simply be a training wish-list but give a firm indication of how you see your career developing over the next few years. It should show that you are thinking about your continuing professional development, that you are engaging in dialogue with your managers about this, and that you do not see the completion of the Associateship Scheme as the end of the process.
This article has identified some of the key issues that I found helpful when writing up and submitting my application for Associateship. In terms of guidance, the Library Association's regulations book is essential and, provided that it is read carefully, will answer most questions. What it does not cover is how to tie in your specific experience with its requirements, but plenty of advice should be available from your supervisor, the Library Association's Professional Development department, and the Chartership mailing list.
The Career Development Group has also just published a new book entitled Chartership: A Reader
[11], bringing together a selection of articles that have been written about the process. If approached in a positive way, the Associateship scheme is a worthwhile experience and it can be a useful tool for ensuring that one's role is developed in the organisation. The skills of reflection and evaluation learned during the process make the prospect of maintaining some form of Continuing Professional Development in the future easier to contemplate. I found it a challenging, but not a difficult, process and I hope this account will encourage those who have yet to take the plunge.
References
[1] Library Association, Associateship regulations and notes of guidance, 1997, p. 1
[2] ibid. p. 21
[3] Atton, Chris. 'Professional development report: a writer's guide (2).'
Assistant Librarian, 87:8, 1994, pp. 118-19.
[4] ibid.
[5] Library Association, op. cit. p. 22
[6] Library Association, 'Professional issues' at http://www.la-hq.org.uk/directory/prof_issues.html
[7] See BUBL, 'BUBL LINK Catalogue of selected Internet resources - Library and information sciences'.
http://link.bubl.ac.uk/lis/
[8] Ariadne. http://www.ariadne.ac.uk
[9] Corrall, Sheila and Brewerton, Anthony. The new professional's handbook: your guide to information services
management. London: Library Association, 1999. For a detailed reading list see the Library Association's Web site: 'A suggested reading list for registration candidates' at
http://www.la-hq.org.uk/directory/careers/readlist.html
[10] Join at http://www.mailbase.ac.uk
[11] Details from the Career Development Group at http://www.careerdevelopmentgroup.org.uk/chartershipbook.htm
Nick Lewis is currently Liaison Librarian for Classics and Modern Languages at Royal Holloway, University of London. E-mail:
n.lewis@rhbnc.ac.uk
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