VINE 122 — 41
Electronic information
delivery: joint working
at UCE
by Sarah Rudge, Lecturer, School of
Information Studies and Isobel Wilson,
Faculty Librarian, Library Services,
University of Central England
The increasing availability of electronic
information is changing the role of the librarian
and information professional. This article
examines how joint working between the
School of Information Studies and the Library
at the University of Central England is crucial to
successfully deliver electronic information
resources to students and staff. It also
illustrates how co-operation and collaboration
has helped them both to adapt to the changing
needs and culture of today’s electronic
environment.
We believe that the Library at the University of
Central England (UCE) has met the challenge
presented by the increasing availability of electronic
information resources. It has provided their users,
both students and academics alike, with an increas-
ing range and variety of electronic information
resources, all of which are accessible through UCE
Libraries’ home page (http://www.uce.ac.uk/library/
public/).
From the Libraries’ home page, users can access the
Library catalogue, a range of full-text and biblio-
graphic databases, and approximately 1300
electronic journals. Each Faculty Librarian has
developed their own web pages, which contain links
to useful web sites, internet gateways and subject
specific web based resources.
Library Services has also embraced the University’s
vision of ‘mode neutrality’ (where students should
have equal access to resources whether they are
studying full-time, part-time or via distance learn-
ing). This has been achieved through the provision
of an extensive and increasing range of electronic
resources to users off-campus.
As a result, the user can now access a wealth of
information electronically from a PC with an
internet connection. They might choose to use the
information provided for their leisure or personal
interests, to support their learning or teaching, or
for business or professional interests. Whatever
the need, UCE Libraries provide students with the
same opportunities to access electronic informa-
tion resources from their own desktop, regardless
of their chosen mode of study.
The contribution of academic
libraries to electronic
information delivery
Academic libraries have taken a proactive ap-
proach to providing greater levels of access to
information through electronic means. A good
example is the development of library web sites
and the introduction of digital libraries.
UCE Case:
In August 2000 UCE successfully acquired
HEFCE funding for just over £1 million to
develop a digital library over the next three
years. UCEEL (UCE Electronic Library)
aims to integrate digitised text, image, audio
and video resources from the distributed
UCE sites and deliver them across the
network to on-site and remote UCE users.
This will enable UCE to provide wider
access to teaching and learning resources to
all users, regardless of location.
The Faculty of Computing, Information
Studies and English (CIE) is one of two pilot
faculties, and is currently considering ways
in which it could use UCEEL to enhance
teaching and learning. These include using
the digital library to:
Support student centred learning
Provide an integrated resource
collection combining course material
and appropriate external resources
Support distance learning courses and
modules
Provide an enhanced learning
environment utilising multimedia