Professor of Library and Information Science, Prof. Boma Beatrice Obi, has called for the expansion of Library School Curriculum to incorporate courses in Information and Communication Technology (ICT) programmes to enable Library Schools churn out 21st century librarians.
Obi made the call while delivering her Inaugural Lecture with the title, ‘Answering Query In The Growing Organism’ at the Auditorium of Ignatius Ajuru University of Education (IAUE), Main Campus, Rumuolumeni, PortHarcourt, last Thursday.
Obi noted that the library profession had changed and evolved tremendously, maintaining that there is the need for the introduction of new courses on ICT to aid library graduates learn and communicate in the technological virtual environment.
Obi, who is also the University Librarian explained that the library is a collection of book or nonbook materials or other forms of recorded information or knowledge purposely selected and methodically organised by a qualified Librarian for use by a target group, averring however, that the qualification can be guaranteed through the training and retraining of librarians to function in the information revolutionary era.
She said, with the trending information technology, libraries have become the dynamic and complex institutions with multiple roles and a host of related operations and services developed over the years. There is the new aggressiveness in the library activities in which librarians are repositioning themselves to be the light to education advancement by integrating knowledge systems and references”. 
The don revealed that the evolving scenario had called for the concept of Reference Services which she said was the Answering of Query from library users.
“The attendant difficulty usually experienced by users in locating any information needed amidst the library stock of varied large volumes of sources gave rise to the reference service, which basically is the Answering Query. Reference Service does not only end in aiding the user borrow books for home reading, it is also a personal service to the individual to enable him obtain the particular information he requires to solve his problem with the greatest ease and the least possible day”  made possible with the up-to-date librarian.
 In his closing remarks, the Vice Chancellor, IAUE, Prof. Ozo -Mekuri Ndimele revealed that the last accreditation of the institution got a 100 percent score courtesy of its good up-to-date library.
Represented by the former acting Vice Chancellor of the institution, Prof Joseph kinanee Kinane, Ndimele charged staff and students of the institution to take advantage of the institution’s library for an up-to-date information in their fields of studies.

By: Lady Godknows Ogbulu