Relevance of Cataloguing and Classification in Library and Information Science Curriculum (A Case Study of IMSU and FPNO Library)
Chapter One
OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
Objectives serve as a guide to any researcher. They enable the researcher to focus his or her mind on specific areas of the research without being influenced by personal prejudices. Therefore the objectives of this study are:-
- To find out the importance of cataloguing and classification in library services.
- To identify the cataloguing code or scheme used in the libraries under view.
- To ascertain the role of cataloguing and classification in the arrangement of library materials.
- To ensure easy accessibility and retrieval of library materials.
- To determine the problems that militate against cataloguing and classification.
- To proffer solutions to the identified problems.
CHAPTER TWO
LITERATURE REVIEW
A lot has been written in the field of cataloguing and classification that it will be very difficult, if not impossible; to accommodate the various views expressed by different writers and scholars in this literature for want of time. However, extra effort will be made to accommodate those that fit well into this study.
For one to appreciate the relevance of cataloguing and classification in library and information science curriculum, one has to think about the volume of literature that is being generated everyday in all field of life.
Obafemi Awolowo (1968) tried to make the picture clearer in our minds when he said “for my part, I regard the whole world as man’s laboratory. Since Aristotle and other men of logic and science, innumerable facts and data required by man in unraveling any social problem with a high degree of precision have been accumulated in this laboratory and the method for accumulating more facts and data are no longer in doubt. For about forty centuries now, man has been performing various experiments in this laboratory.
These numerous facts and data generated in the form of literature will not be meaningful and useful to mankind until they are collected together and processed to make them easily accessible to mankind.
John Horner (1970) emphasized this when he said that “there are two basic purposes of libraries: the conservation and the exploitation of library materials: cataloguing and classification are the two technical processes among others employed by libraries and information service centers and other institutions for effective and efficient conservation of materials and knowledge.
CATALOGUING
Many definitions of cataloguing have been given by various authors and scholars for varied angles. Horner sees cataloguing as the recording of the stock of the whole bibliographic items of the library. He further advice that the recording has to be within defined limits, that is “a complete record” and “a record arranged in a useful order or more usually in several orders, or with several approaches.
CHAPTER THREE
RESEARCH PROCEDURES AND METHODOLOGY
The research design used in this study was the survey method.
It enable the researcher to have a comprehensive and accurate data of given events and described precisely what the researcher discovered. The survey method involved gathering information from various persons through questionnaires. This is confirmed by Busha and Herter (1980), that the survey method allows generalization to be made about the characteristics, opinion, beliefs and attitude of the population.
POPULATION OF THE STUDY
The population of this study comprises of students of two academic libraries. They are: Imo state university Owerri, and Federal polytechnic Nekede, Owerri both in Imo state. The measure which I will adopt in this study is the questionnaires.
This is because the study is a fact finding targeted at the relevance of cataloguing and classification in library and information science curriculum in the above tertiary institutions.
In order to obtain data for the study, I will design a close and partly open-ended questionnaire. This will allow the respondents to freely express and give correct answer.
CHAPTER FOUR
DATA PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS
The focus of this chapter is on the presentation of data and analysis. The data collected was systematically analyzed with the aim of determining the relevance of catalogue and classification in library and information science curriculum. Tables were used in presenting the analysis for easy understanding and comparism,. However, it is only the research question in section B that would be analyzed.
CHAPTER FIVE
CONCLUSION/RECOMMENDATIONS
CONCLUSIONS
Analysis of data collected has led to the conclusion made in this chapter
From the knowledge of the respondents, cataloguing and classification occupies very high places in the organization of materials and information retrieval in library practice.
The popular cataloguing code- the second edition of the Anglo-American cataloguing rules and the classification schemes are not all the adequate due to certain limitations.
These limitations have resulted in the imposition of different forms of house style arrangements to ensure efficient and effective organization and information retrieval system in libraries.
Another conclusion that results from this study is that academics libraries favour the use of library of congress classification scheme and adopt the classified catalogue arrangement to suit the academic need of the institution.
The analysis on table 11, leads to the conclusion that among other factors lack of fund plays a major role for the inadequate maintenance of an efficient cataloguing and classification system in the libraries.
RECOMMENDATIONS
From the conclusions arrived in the study, the following recommendations are preferred in the belief that adherence to them will bring cataloguing and classification to their enviable position in the library system.
First of all, the institutions that found the various libraries should attempt to provide adequate funds to make their libraries functional. The libraries in turn should disburse enough fund from the libraries budget to the technical services department for cataloguing and classification.
The librarians should feel concerned on the lack of adequate utilization of their catalogue by users of the library. Therefore, the library should form time to time mount or organize “a library use programme” to teach the patrons on the use, as well as the important of cataloguing in the exploration of the library collections. This will lead to maximization of user’s satisfaction and will definitely enhance the library’s image among her clientele.
Librarians should ensure the maintenance of uniformity and consistency Son whatever types of house-style imposition on cataloguing and classification of library materials in their applications. They should be mindful of their clienteles’ level of understanding before adopting such approach.
The library catalogue should always be updated by interfiling and withdrawal of catalogue cards of newly acquired and processed materials and that of needed or lost materials respectively. This will make the cards less bulky and saves users time.
Finally, it needs no emphasis to convince anybody the cataloguing we use in Nigeria are “foreign culture bound”. Our cataloguing experts should now look forward to fashioning out level schemes and codes that will be generally acceptable instead of over reliance in foreign ones.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
- ALLEN, Geoffrey .G. (1986), Change in the catalogue in the context of library management. The journal of academic librarianship. Ann Arbor; mountain side publication Inc. Vol. 12, No 3 July, 1986.
- ATHERTON Pauline (1977). Handbook for information system and services. Paris: UNESCO, 1997.
- BERWICK, Sayer, W.C (1929). An Introduction to Library Classification. 3rd London: Grafton & co. 1929.
- CUTTER, Charles (1907). Rules for a dictionary catalogue. 4th Washington D.C, Government printing office, 1907, p.166.
- GROSS, M.N and Live M.B (1968). On the construction and care of white elephant. Some fundamental questions concerning the catalogue. Library association record, Vo. 7 No 1. January 1968.
- John, Horner (1970). Cataloguing. London: T & A constable Ltd. 1970.
- KELLY, J.H. (1972). The foundation of education for librarianship, new York Becker and Mayer P. 15
