This was a day that everyone was looking forward to , when we would be out of the Villas for the first time after five days. I learnt to appreciate travelling to work never mind the traffic. I missed everything in my usual routine.
We embarked on a shuttle at 7h30 to visit University of Pretoria, Merensky library for the morning and would spend the afternoon at the National Library of SA.
At UP we had two presentations, one presented by Christa North about "Quality assurance" and the other by Robert Moropa on "the strategic organisation in pracitce and locating the library on the management radar screen".
About Quality Assurance, I learnt that quality assurance is not about the following:
compliance; lots of paper; fabricated evidence; nor is it compliance with externally set minimum standards. Quality Management is a mechanism to ensure that an organisation's plans for success are met. It is about improve the way the organisation functions.
The information that I got is relevant to me as my institution will be audited in May. I am now sure what is happening about quality and I will be able to transfer my knowledge to my colleagues when I get back to work.
Robert Moropa took us for a tour to see the renovations in the UP library. I like UP's library structure of having subject specific libraries according to faculties. My library is still the old fashion type arranged like a public library. I will definately propose that we subdivide our collections according to faculties.
In support to the University core function of teaching and learning, Robert spoke to us about placing and keeping your library in the radar screen. He encouraged us to be leaders and play our role to finding the solutions to institution's porblem.
We had lunch at UP the Burgandy restuarant and then proceeded to the National Library of SA. The library is the best in the country, a real state of the art. It functions differently from public libraries but is useful in that patrons can visit and use the collections and other libraries can request resources through ILL.
There is lot to brag about in the National library but what impressed me is that it matches libraries of other coutries in the world. For more information please visit: http://www.nlsa.ac.za/
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