A curriculum for digital librarians: a reflection on the European debate

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to analyse the trends for digital library education in Europe. It addresses two questions: what are the roles for digital librarians? How should they be educated? Design/methodology/approach – The analysis is based on the results of the project “European Curriculum Reflections on Library and Information Science Education” and the proceedings of the Workshops on Digital Library Education, held in Italy in 2005 and in Croatia in 2006. Findings – Three approaches to education for digital library are described: the emergence of the concept of “memory institutions”; the library-based approach to knowledge management; and the isolation of IT from library and information science (LIS) schools. Research limitations/implications – The roles of the digital librarian are suggested, and the structure of a course for digital library education is proposed, but further research is needed on the definition of the digital library concept. Practical implications – A digital librarian should have a combination of technological and librarianship competences. Originality/value – The paper addresses the issue of education needed for digital librarians in Europe.