Outline of the “Department of Library Science”
With the dramatic development of information communication technology in the second half of the twentieth century, our society has gone through tremendous changes in terms of information and knowledge. People navigate the sea of information made from various media such as the Internet and enjoy a multitude of benefits brought by the information society. However, these developments are not without problems. Major new issues are arising with such frequency and in such complex circumstances that we cannot address them through any conventional legal or technological framework.
For example, we face the following
- Our advanced information society sometimes makes it difficult to obtain the exact information that we really need.
- In new types of information media, there is information overload, and much of the information is arriving with uncertain origin, veracity, accuracy, or copyright status.
- Current social problems, such as the mismanagement of pension plans and diplomatic documents, misleading food safety information and the falsification of court documents, have cast doubt on the operation and management of many organizations.
Under these circumstances, the emerging issues with the most urgency involve how to manage information and knowledge properly and how to secure our access to information. People need to obtain knowledge and information appropriately when they set out to engage in creative activities. Reliable systems of information distribution, management and utilization serve as a foundation for creativity. Also, in order to create effective organizational strategies, in either the public or private sector, it is essential to obtain the compliance of stakeholders and citizens, to disclose information properly, and to have an appropriate data storage and management system.
This department provides an interdisciplinary approach to the complex nature of issues such as these, from multiple fields such as humanities, social science, learning science, and informatics, and seeks to develop a highly specialized human resource pool that can address practical issues as needed.
Graduates receive the following degree:
- Master’s Program: Master of Library Science
- Doctoral Program : Doctor of Library Science