Libraries, literacies and lifelong learning: The practices within higher education institutions

Abstract

Individuals working in academic institutions are now required to engage in increasingly complex learning processes and interact with a vast array of information and range of literacies to complete their academic and professional tasks. In order for academics to maintain participation within this evolving context, it has become essential for them to embrace an evolving concept of knowledge, a breadth of learning and an array of learning strategies and learning technologies. In this context, acceptance of the imperatives of lifelong learning is vital for both individuals and academic institutions. As an individual’s academic and professional objectives are impacted on by this evolving context, the ways in which individuals achieve their objectives and the sources of their support are required to adapt in order to ensure that they respond to their changing needs.