Call for papers: International LIS Practice

3 MARCH 2021

INTERNATIONAL LIBRARY AND INFORMATION SCIENCE PRACTICE: EXCELLENCE IN LEADERSHIP, MANAGEMENT AND MENTORSHIP

A FESTSCHRIFT IN HONOUR OF DR. HELENA ASAMOAH-HASSAN

Background

This festschrift is in honour of Dr. Helena Asamoah-Hassan, a well-known international icon in the field of library and information science (LIS). The title has been chosen to reflect her areas of interest and sphere of influence in the profession. We invite you to join us in celebrating this librarian par excellence by contributing a chapter in a book in her honour. The book will be a ready reading text for students of librarianship in general, but especially for those interested in understanding good practices in leadership, management and mentorship. Furthermore, young library and information professionals, particularly those in Africa will gain ample insight into managing their career progression such as will enable them attain leadership positions and self-actualisation.

Synopsis

The role of information in the fourth industrial revolution has been the subject of discourse in recent times. The opportunities presented to us as library and information professionals in this era are numerous and must be explored in order to re-position, re-engineer and re-invent the library and information field. Questions that seek solutions to the new role of library and information professionals in the post COVID-19 pandemic, their role in managing infodemics and fake news; new curricula that refocuses the key skills and competences required, the continuous professional development practices that will fill the gap, leadership and management roles and mentorship are some of the issues that will be explored in this book.

The sub-themes that have been selected for this festschrift include but are not limited to the following:

1. African Library and Information Associations and Institutions (AfLIA): Africa’s success story
2. African librarianship in the fourth industrial revolution
3. Innovative services in African libraries in the 21st century
4. Library and information services in the post-COVID-19 era in Africa
5. Role of library and information professionals in managing infodemics
6. Fake News: types, detection, management, and implication for library and information professionals
7. Libraries as veritable partners in the attainment of Sustainable Development Goals
8. Town-Gown relationship: new perspectives in academic librarianship
9. Emerging trends in the management of university libraries
10. Standards in academic libraries in Africa
11. Scholarly publications and institutional repositories in university libraries
12. Library and information policies in Africa
13. LIS curriculum in the 4th Industrial Revolution (4IR)
14. LIS education and training in the new world order
15. Knowledge Management practices in academic libraries 
16. Social media marketing and digital marketing strategies for libraries and information centres
17. Good practices in mentorship and coaching in the LIS profession
18. Media and information literacy for LIS professionals in the fourth industrial revolution 
19. Resource sharing and consortium-building in libraries in a developing economy 
20. Collaborations and partnerships in LIS practice in Africa
21. Funding of African university libraries
22. Successful LIS advocacy models in Africa
23. Trends in LIS research in Africa
24. Evidence-based research in African librarianship
25. Trends in continuing professional development, including MOOCs, in the library and information field in Africa
26. New roles, new skills and new competencies for library and information professionals
27. Role of library associations in developing new practices for the LIS field
28. Collection development: equity, inclusion, learning and research
29. Open Educational Resources (OERs) and Open Access trends in African university libraries
30. Digital library services in the post COVID-19 pandemic era, including digital literacy and digital citizenship
31. Digital library services and digital core competencies for LIS professionals and in the post COVID-19 era
32. Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Robotics: skills and strategies for library and information professionals 
33. Human Computer Interaction (HCI) designs for library services technologies 
34. Webometrics and infometrics
35. Information Architecture (IA) and social tagging for Competitive Intelligence (CI)
36. Digital curation, records and archives management in university libraries in Africa
37. Cloud and database systems design and management for African libraries and information centres 
38. User-centred technologies and library services
39. Collaborative learning and libraries
40. Trends in information culture and information behavior 
41. Linked data and big data for improved library and information services
42. Key issues in copyright and intellectual property in the digital era
43. Application of Internet of Things (IoT) in library and information services in Africa
44. Disaster management and Risk-taking in libraries in Africa
45. Public libraries as engines of sustainable development in nation-building
46. Emerging international voices from the African library scene
47. Challenges and opportunities for LIS professionals in the new era

Instructions for Authors

Before you submit your manuscript, it is important you read and follow the guidelines below:

• A concisely worded title should be provided.
• The names of all contributing authors and affiliations should be added on the front page.
• Article files should be provided in Microsoft Word format, Times New Roman 12 font size and 1.5 spacing. 
• Submitted manuscripts will be subjected to turn-it-in software to ascertain their quality and similarity index. A maximum similarity index of 15% will be accepted for publication in this book of readings.
• Articles should be about 8-12 pages (4000 words maximum) in length. This includes all text, for example, the structured abstract, references, all text in tables and figures, and appendices. 
• Co-authorship is allowed but should not exceed three in a chapter. Brief biography of the author should be included on the last page of their manuscripts.
• The citation and referencing style of American Psychological Association (APA), 6th edition, 2010, which is accessible via www.apastyle.org should be used.
• Articles will be selected based on the originality, rigour in research methodology, significance of research findings, presentation, consistency in citations and contribution to knowledge. Papers submitted MUST not have been previously submitted for publication anywhere else.
• A rigorous peer-review process will be followed. After peer-reviewing, editing and proofreading of the submitted chapters, the cost of publication will be ascertained from the publisher. Then chapter contributors will be required to pay a requisite publication fee for their contribution. 

Publication Timelines

Contributors should adhere strictly to the following timelines:

Activity	Date
Announcement / Call for chapters	3rd March, 2021
Submission of chapters	8th August, 2021
Assessment and return of chapters to successful authors	16th September, 2021
Return of corrected chapters by successful authors	30th September, 2021
Final proofreading for the press	16th October, 2021
Publication of book	30th November, 2021

The publication committee expresses her profound gratitude to all prospective contributors. It is our hope that the book will serve as a collection of scholarship and a reference material for students and teachers in librarianship in particular and the general public. 

Submission

All submissions and enquiries should be sent to:

1. Dr. Victoria Okojie @ : vicokojie@yahoo.com

and

2. Dr. Ismail Abdullahi @: ihabdullahi03@gmail.com