User education and user studies

This chapter focuses on user education and user studies in the last British librarianship and information work Colin Harris reported that work on user education during the period 1986–1990 was thin but he made some fairly accurate forecasts for the future. Harris observed that during the second half of the 1980s it was 'only in schools that user education has ceased to be regarded as something separate from the mainstream activity of the institution'. This trend continued in schools with well resourced and properly staffed libraries. The British Library sponsored useful research into the implications of curriculum and teaching changes. A major project on Information Skills in GCSE and the Role of the Librarian was undertaken 1989–1990, but reported in 1991. The user studies literature increased enormously over the decade. The types of user being studied varied, although certain groups such as nurses continued to feature strongly.