1. Teaching library skills has always been one of the major responsibilities of the library. Now the rise of "end-user searching" appears to have increased the significance of that role. Define and describe the instructional responsibilities of the library today, noting how the influence of electronic systems has expanded and influences these responsibilities. How might this instructional role vary in different kinds of libraries, archives, and information centers?

2. The rapid development of CD-ROM, Optical Character Recognition, and image technology in the past few years has altered the way in which information is stored and retrieved. Discuss the implications of these technologies in various information institutions, such as libraries, records centers and archives. Under what conditions is their use appropriate? What problems might be encountered?

3. It has been observed that access to information, instead of ownership of resources, has become the emphasis of libraries in recent years. Explain why this shift in emphasis has taken place and discuss the implications of such a shift for collection development librarians, catalogers, and reference librarians.

4. In Fairfax County, some citizens groups have requested that material on such topics as the occuft and homosexuality be kept in an adults only section of the library. What are the issues involved in such a proposal? Discuss the ways in which libraries and librarians might respond.

5. Nancy Van House recently stated in Library Trends that "An important trend in library management over the last two decades has been the increasing use of measurement for management decision making." Identify various aspects of library/information service that can be subjected to performance measurement and suggest specific measures that can be used for decision making in each area.

6. Librarians often use subject headings or descriptors to indicate the subject contents of documents. Compare subject headings and descriptors in terms of

• 1) how they are created,
• 2) how they are assigned, and
• 3) how effective they are for information retrieval.
  
  

7. Why should a library or information center have a mission statement? Who should be involved and what should be considered when formulating such a statement? How is it helpful in management? Discuss how libraries of the same type might serve dramatically different missions. In your discussion include examples from various types of libraries, information centers and/or archives.

• 1) the masters degree program in library and information science
• 2) a library professional's understanding and dedication to library philosophy and precepts, competence, and professional growth and
• 3) to the viability of the profession as an intellectual and academic enterprise.
  
  

9. Electronic databases can be accessed in a number of ways, such as by interactive online and CD-ROM.In choosing among various access methods, what factors should managers of reference services take into account? Discuss the strengths and limitations of various access methods.

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