GlobaLIS: Efforts in Japanese LIS education for global collaboration

Abstract

The GlobaLIS Project intends to attain the globalization of Japanese library and information science (LIS) professional education by defining the requirements for internationally transparent and harmonized educational programs for LIS professionals. We asked three research questions in a stepwise manner: (1) What are the basic requirements for globalizing Japanese LIS professional education? (2) What kinds of efforts are required to attain a global collaboration between Asia and the Pacific in quality assurance of LIS education? (3) How can we attain global collaboration in the development of a common curriculum framework for LIS education in Asia and the Pacific using school librarian training as an instantiation? For the first research question, we identified the requirements of (1) establishment of an office responsible for preparing and administering mutual accreditation of LIS programs with overseas counterparts, (2) implementation of the LIS examination as a means of establishing an outcome-based assessment of LIS education, and (3) establishment of graduate level LIS education programs to be mutually exchangeable with overseas counterparts. For the second research question, we tentatively identified areas requiring efforts. For the third research question, we have begun preparation for the collaborative curriculum development of school library professionals planned for 2013.