Thing 10: Future Trends

I read Joyce Valenza's "Manifesto for 21st Century Librarians" because I knew I would be inspired... and I was. When I go to school tomorrow, I am going to print the entire thing out and put it up in my office - or maybe just outside my office. She always reminds me of new ways to push myself to be better - and I also feel pretty good when I see something I already do. :)
So, what will my library look like in the year 2020? I am excited to say that I'm not sure. Our futures are, in many ways, what we make them. Some things, however, are out of our control. I know I hope it will be (caught) up in terms of technology. We are behind right now, but I'm hoping that with the right amount of advocacy and hard work, we will get caught up. It's very tough right now for schools to find money for new technology in their budget. The farther we slip behind, the more costly it will be to get caught up. It makes me a little nervous. I didn't mean to be negative here - but it is a reality we have to face. I think it is so important for us to be seen as educators. I think we need to be more clear about what exactly our students are learning, and we need to communicate it in a way that people outside our library world can understand and be excited about.
With that, I think the ideal library in 2020 will be an even more integral part of the school, and I think we will be serving more people in more ways. The basic reason for this is that it is economically smart. Centralized resources just make sense, and if you put an expert in charge of ordering and managing those resources, you are simply getting more bang for your buck. Additionally, we all know that being smart consumers of information is an increasingly important skill, and this is a huge part of what we teach. Students are using more resources and thinking about information in more formats at younger ages. It is our job to prepare them. I do not think the library of 2020 will be bookless - it's only 9 years away. Books are magical, and it isn't just us "old-timers" who think that. Elementary students LOVE books. That said, it is imperative that we figure out how to also effectively use ebooks in our libraries. It is our responsibility to prepare students for the real world - ebooks are a big part of the future.
The technology that I think will most affect how libraries operate are tablets like iPads. It is a portable gateway to the world, and students still need help thinking critically about information. Who knows what tools can come built in to tablets in the future? I think it's very exciting.
As for new services, I am ready for anything. I definitely see myself helping teachers find quality online sources more and more frequently. If I am teaching students how to attack real world problems and to think critically, I am doing my job. I welcome the new challenges that the future holds - even if it can be a little scary at times. I firmly believe that if we are constant advocates and show people what the library can do, and how we can grow, we'll be around for as long as people need to know something. :)