Collection Development Policy - Essay Example

? Msc Econ Information and Library Studies Collection Development Policy (CDP) is a written management guideline meant to facilitate continued growth and maintenance of library collections. CDPs are meant to offer guidelines that direct the systematic build-up of library collections in servitude to teaching, study, research and recreational needs. The process involves acquisition, selection and de-selection or retrospective and current material. CDP seeks to facilitate the planning and implementation of policies that ensure continued acquisition and evaluation of reading material, and how well they serve their users’ needs. CDP articulates collection goals and policies which help ensure that the literary requirements of the communities they serve are effectively and efficiently met. CDPs are designed to allow for input from faculty, students, administrators and librarians through forums that is meant to avail opinions and suggestions on how to improve library services. The core values or principles that are at the centre of CDP are policy formulation, selection and de-selection, budgeting, collection evaluation and acquisition. According to most professionals with insight into CDP, the process encompasses three core levels. These levels are the planning or formulation stage of the policies that guide the whole process, which is followed by the second level of selection. The third and final level is the acquisition stage that gets the books and other literature material into the library. This paper seeks to discuss the contribution that a formal CDP can make in managing the collection and services of library or information unit, and analyse the constraints to formulating and administering such a policy. Libraries are founded on the basic principle of availing and propagating information and promoting education missions by authorities that fund and run them in the community. CDP ensures that its principles and goals are service oriented in a manner that satisfies the readership’s quest for knowledge and information. CDP is a necessary tool and as a leading benchmark towards making informed and consistent decisions. This is achieved by diversifying the CDP document and making dynamic; it is supposed to exhibit life in the sense that it should be updated and revised regularly. According to Evans & Saponaro (2005), a CDP organizes and guides the process of acquiring and providing access to materials and information sources. It integrates these into coherent collections and manages their growth and maintenance through concrete decision making that ensures the integrity of this processes. CDPs are tasked with clarifying the objectives by facilitating the coordination and cooperation within and without the library context and systems (Evans & Saponaro, 2005). A CDP establishes a clear thinking framework for library staff to focus and apply their capabilities towards achieving library goals by committing themselves to the fruition of these goals. In this endeavour, they are required to identify short and long-term needs of users which facilitate the establishment of priorities for allocating funds CDPs ensure that libraries commit to serving all parts of the community both in the present and in the future through deliberative and decisive decision making practices. It takes on the task of setting up standards that are followed during the selection and weeding out of out-dated and irrelevant material. CDPs are important tools used in passing on information to users, administrators and other libraries of their collection scope, therefore facilitating coordination of collection development among institutions (Evans & Saponaro, 2005). CDPs help minimize individual or personal bias that can be propagated by selectors, and it also functions to highlight imbalances in selection criteria. I also serves as an in-service training tool for new staff and when their revisions and changes, it facilitates a quick and efficient transition between the old to the new system and/or practices. CDPs ensure that there is continuity of collections of any size by providing patterns and frameworks that ease the transition from between caretakers or librarians, from one to the next. Through CDP, internal and external evaluation can be carried out by inspection of the CDP, which gives an insight into the effectiveness and efficiency of the library services being provided by the institution under question (Clayton & Gorman, 2011). The professionalism of a library’s service can be gauged through its CDP and whether its operations are being run like a business, which provides information that is used to assist in budget allocations by the relevant authorities. A CDP contributes to operational efficiency in the sense that it acts as a tool through which routine decisions are made. Public and private complaints are channelled through protocols and mechanisms devised and formulated by the CDP, which can be with regard to inclusions or exclusions of material in the library (Evans & Saponaro, 2005). The value of a formally written CDP is to draw awareness to changes that occur through time by acting as a collection of baseline data for current activities and operations and as an ideal starting point for future development (Evans & Saponaro, 2005). A CDP describes the purpose and scope of an information unit or library’s collection, and the program’s they serve in their respective capacities in their constituencies. A CDP is a practical guide for those who manage and routinely administer library and information units’ collections. CDPs have the ability and in most cases possess the capability to protect the libraries and the materials held therein from illegal, unreasonable and unethical pressures. This protection is achieved through the CDP development process where the writing process involves including the Library Bill of Rights alongside other intellectual freedom descriptions into the CDP (Clayton & Gorman, 2011). This helps in providing protection from censorship that can damage the effectiveness and efficiency of library or information unit’s ultimate goal of providing unbiased information. In order to ensure that this protection effectively addresses the community’s immediate intellectual needs, the CDP should be tailor made to these specifics. In this endeavour, the CDP provides the library with protection from unwarranted pressure to provide access to irrelevant and inappropriate materials (Evans & Saponaro, 2005). Writing a CDP which includes the above mentioned clauses offers a library protection from inappropriate handling of gifts. This is the sense that these guidelines help a library avoid the encumbrance of unwanted, un-disposable, inappropriate and irrelevant materials. Writing a well thought out CDP enables the defining of appropriate policy regarding security and protection of all those involved. Defining procedures and policy meant to accept, decline, appraise, acknowledge, accession and processing gifts provides librarians and donors with legal protection (Clayton & Gorman, 2011). Challenges presented by logistical factors expose information units and libraries to litigation from suppliers due to cancellations and weeding out of material that is considered irrelevant. Libraries and information units select, maintain and provide access to appropriate and relevant representative information resources to those who require and need them in the community. In today’s world, there is increased advancement towards the adaptation of technology in all spheres of life especially when it comes to handling information. Technology has improved the dissemination of information and changed the medium through which messages and information flow from one point to another. This has led to the need for new ways of presenting and relaying this information in ways that are efficient and in time with the new technological developments. This requires information units and libraries to move from holdings to access strategies (Evans & Saponaro, 2005). This means that these institutions have to shift focus from acting as holding and preservation facilities to institutions that offer just-in-time access to information that is relevant and representative. Electronic resources are increasingly being relied upon, therefore, selection decisions regarding electronic information should be made within an explicit CDP (Clayton & Gorman, 2011). The criterion for collecting items lies in the relevance of their content, accessibility and viability in line with the set objectives. In line with this, CDPs should embrace technological advancements by including provisions that cater for these applications. Information units and libraries are shifting from conventional practices that are paper based to information technology (IT) based mediums and platforms. A good example can be accrued from the fact that most modern libraries have adopted computerized catalogues, which is a move away from paper and shelf based catalogues. Electronic sources and computer based systems have proven effective and efficient to. This is because they are easier to use in terms of updating, data entry and security. There is an increasing trend by authors and publishers to offer both paper based and electronic based publications. More and more books are being translate or transformed into e-books which are readily available on the internet. This is an indication of the increasing need to strongly consider the implication of advancements in technology when formulating CDPs. They should be formulated in a manner that illustrates stability and flexibility with the changing times. Growth of collections should be projected towards establishing an effective collection building capacity. This should enable information units and libraries the ability to cater for the needs of the community that they serve through time, in an effective and efficient manner. Writing a CDP involves going through a myriad of processes and stages in order to come up with responsible and effective document that ensures the integrity and functionality of the outlined objectives. The development of a CDP starts with a mission statement that outlines the purpose behind the policy, and the goals it is supposed to achieve both short and long term (Clayton & Gorman, 2011). The CDP addresses the target population or audience whose intellectual needs wants it is setting out to satisfy. This is accomplished by setting up standards that enable proper definition groups under the scope of the CDP. This translates to assessing their educational backgrounds and demographics that influence their needs and use of information units and library resources available (Evans & Saponaro, 2005). A description of the programs and patron’s needs are required in order to come up with clear framework of how to address these issues. This is exemplified by ascertaining the nature of user’s need for these resources which may be for educational, recreational, research or social. A collection’s description and the resources from which it sources its materials from, and their nature in terms of whether they are periodicals, monographic volumes, electronic and languages represented (Clayton & Gorman, 2011). Information about cooperative or collaborative collections should be included in order to provide avenues for laying down clauses that govern the sharing of material among libraries and the borrowing criteria to be followed. A CDP should make it clear if interlibrary loans, patron direct access, internet access and other collections have an effect upon the management of the library (Clayton & Gorman, 2011). General priorities, limitations and acquisition policies are a section of CDP development and formulation that determines how the collection adheres to principles, responsibilities and rationales for the character of information resources (Clayton & Gorman, 2011). Chronological and retrospective coverage of materials is determined and established for future reference. Special considerations are made about non-print formats and duplications which entails determining the appropriateness of these materials. This enables an information unit or library to decide the relevance and significance with relation to the community or society’s needs. This is where the issue of embracing technology should be addressed in order to which formats to replace, maintain and introduce within the system by laying down regulatory frameworks and guidelines. Funding considerations and options are assessed; their viability and appropriateness determined to ensure that financial obstacles do not hamper the CDP process or expose the process to legal implications of litigation. This also falls under the considerations that are supposed to be addressed regarding the responsibilities and processes. This translates to clearly setting it out in the CDP who holds the ultimate legal responsibility for materials and information held by information units and libraries (Evans & Saponaro, 2005). CDPs are required to clearly state the gift and exchange policy of such items and other special source materials. The intentions of an institution towards the physical and intellectual maintenance of materials are outlined at this juncture in CDP writing. This is done to facilitate proper delegation of duties and protocols with regard to care and security of materials. Censorship and intellectual freedoms need to be included in order to offer protection to institutions from litigation and unwarranted pressure. Formats or special collection profiles are based on information garnered from collection assessments, and they should be updated need basis depending upon the progress toward or away from collection goals (Evans & Saponaro, 2005). This includes providing a detailed description of the collection on what subjects or disciplines are included, which give the extent or size of the collection. Each collection of information and material in an information unit or a library should have purpose statement describing their significance and relevance with regard to the general policies of the library. This gives insights into the purpose behind the collection whether it is for its high degree of currency value or if it possesses historical and retrospective significance (Evans & Saponaro, 2005). The format under which a collection falls is given consideration as to how it is handled and determine if there any special requirements with regard to handling a format or collection. Subject profiles are based on collection assessment information which is presented as a set of conspectus reports or in a narrative form. They require periodical updating to reflect progress towards goals and revision of goals brought about changing circumstances. A conspectus approach involves creating a hierarchical structure and concept for the main library or information unit classification schemes. This is the core of subject profiles that are based on collection evaluation or assessments that are presented as conspectus reports. In essence a conspectus represents an overview or summary of collection intensities and strengths that are arranged by subject, languages of materials collected and classification (Clayton & Gorman, 2011). According to Clayton & Gorman (2011), this conspectus represents a synopsis of a library’s collection that is a coordinated and collaborative initiative to achieving the goals of a CDP. A conspectus provides divisions, categories and subjects that are evaluated by libraries and information units. This is achieved through a number of steps that include planning, assigning depth indicators/levels and language codes, and gathering data. Collection evaluation and assessments are either collection centred or client centred. Collection centred methods examine the content and characteristics of information resources in order to compare the demographics to external standards (Evans & Saponaro, 2005). Client centred techniques describe the use, relevance and effectiveness of a collection relative to users. Collection assessment produce the most accurate and useful results if the above mentioned methods are combined with the use of both qualitative and quantitative techniques (Clayton & Gorman, 2011). Narrative statements are another way of presenting subject profiles which depicts a community or society’s unique needs, wants and demands with regard to intellectual material and information (Clayton & Gorman, 2011). These statements are made of unique format or subject collections that represent special material for which guidelines apply, and which formats are excluded. Narrative statements should be written in a manner that describes the scope of the coverage in terms of languages collected or excluded, geographical areas covered and chronological periods of the collections (Evans & Saponaro, 2005). In a narrative statement, subjects should be described in terms of a library’s or information unit’s subject descriptions and classification schemes, and library unit or selector responsible for the collections. Narrative statements can also include useful information that relates to interdisciplinary relationships, policies for acquiring access to information and consortial relationships (Clayton & Gorman, 2011). CDP is highlighted by the invaluable aspects provided therein that provides a means by which information units and libraries select and manage their collections. A CDP represents a contract between these institutions and the community or society that they serve. This is because a CDP provides a framework through which complex decisions are made reasonably and consistently. References Clayton, P & Gorman, G. E. (2011). Managing Information Resources in Libraries: Collection Management in Theory and Practice. London: Library Association Publishing. Evans, G. E. & Saponaro, M. Z. (2005). Developing Library and Information Centre Collections. 5th Edition. London: Littleton Co.: Libraries Unlimited. Read More