Training for digital reference: A South African experience

The ever-changing digital environment has had significant impact on the scope and nature of reference work. The question explored in this article is whether the necessary skills for efficient digital reference librarianship are being in library schools. For students to become effective practitioners in the digital environment they need not only theoretical knowledge but also practical experience in the application digital reference technology. This article provides an overview of a practical course in reference work that was developed at the Department of Information Science, of Pretoria, South Africa, in 2005. Practical sessions in computer laboratories covered a range of synchronous asynchronous technologies providing students with into and hands-on experience with digital reference. Continuous assessment throughout the course, and feedback the students, identified possible shortcomings in the training programme, and specific suggestions are made to dress these in the future.