Abstract
This paper explores the current educational programs of some library and information schools in the Asia Pacific region using the traditional curriculum framework developed by Hayes, and examines the threats to the future of these schools caused by developments in computer and communication technologies, and by major shifts in the way that information services are delivered. Changes in the patterns of scholarly communication, electronic publishing, the delivery of online information services, and the new flexible learning environment should encourage library schools to examine the relevance of their present curriculum. The paper suggests that the revised curriculum should be built around the model of the virtual library service. It argues that the virtual library service is not synonymous with the electronic or digital library, but is virtual in the sense that the end user can access a range of analogue (book) and digital resources transparently wherever these are located through a common interface. As long as library schools are willing to re-engineer themselves to teach the new knowledge and skills required in the coming century, librarianship as a professional will not become extinct.
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