PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT FOR LIBRARIANS IN RIVERS STATE IN A DIGITAL AGE

Abstract

This study examined the professional development activities and different professional skills acquired by librarians, the different tools used, and the areas in which these tools are applied in rendering library services. A survey research design was used for the study. The population for the study comprised 99 librarians in Rivers State on the Association’s WhatsApp platform. An online questionnaire was developed and used for the study using google forms. Descriptive statistics of frequency and simple percentages were used to analyse the data collected. The findings revealed that Zoom, Webinars, and YouTube were the most utilized digital tools, while Whova and Futurelearn were the least utilized. Digital skills mostly acquired included online search techniques among others, the least acquired skills were data mining, cyber security, and metadata. A major Challenge encountered include lack of funds. The paper, therefore, recommended that librarians should be given financial support to embark on training.