Introduction to the book

The aim of this book is to enable library and information workers to provide support to students in higher education. It is relevant to different groups working in colleges and universities, including: library and information workers, staff developers, educational technologists, educational development project workers, and educational change agents, as well as students of librarianship who are planning their careers in higher education institutions.

Anyone who works in higher education, either in a university or college, will know that we are experiencing rapid change and that it is a turbulent environment. Change factors that affect everyone include globalization, rapidly changing technologies, political instability, terrorism and environmental issues. As outlined later in this chapter, universities and colleges are positioned in a changing environment and this is requiring new approaches to supporting student learning.

This book gives an introduction to the current landscape of higher education, the very diverse nature of students in colleges and universities today, as well as changing ideas about learning and teaching. It explores different ways of providing support for students, e.g. in developing their information and digital literacy, and through face-to-face, online and blended learning courses and other forms of support.

Emerging Strategies for Supporting Student Learning is a straightforward and accessible guide to learning and teaching practices appropriate for use with higher education students and it covers a wide range of tools and techniques (relevant to face-to-face and online practices), which will suit different groups of students in different contexts. Library and information workers are involved in supporting very different groups of students, e.g. they might work with large groups of 500+ students or deliver specialist programmes to very small groups of research students. Some library staff are working in contexts where resources are tightly squeezed and there appear to be few opportunities for innovation. In contrast, many universities and colleges are investing heavily in their support systems and structures for students, and this brings great opportunities for change and innovation.

Finally, the nature and speed of the changes that are being experienced within colleges and universities means that the need for continuous professional development (CPD) is vital. Individual library and information workers now have many different opportunities to keep up to date and maintain their professional development so that they can continue to meet the needs of students and their career aspirations.