Inför höstterminen 2007 förändrades grundutbildningen i biblioteks- och informationsvetenskap vid Umeå universitet, men någon alumnuppföljning har aldrig gjorts. I denna kandidatuppsats utvärderas utfallet av lärosätets nya kandidat- och magisterprogram utifrån alumnernas etablering på arbetsmarknaden samt värdering av utbildningarnas färdighetstränande inslag och relevans i arbetslivet. Studien genomfördes nov-dec 2013 i form av en brevenkät, vars svarsfrekvens uppgick till 71 procent (n=77). Cirka åtta av tio respondenter har haft ett utbildningsrelevant arbete sedan studietiden. De flesta alumner bor kvar på utbildningsorten, vilket enligt dem orsakar hög konkurrens på den regionala arbetsmarknaden.

TitleThe profession of Children's Librarians. Identity and vocation.AbstractThe aim of this Master's thesis is to investigate the professional identity of Children's Librarians in order to contribute to a deeper understanding to the professions of librarians. This places the thesis in the field of Library and Information Science that studies the profession. The definition we use to understand profession suggests that all librarians take an active part in negotiating their professional role and library enterprise.Our empirical material consists of interviews with eight Children's Librarians. Using a qualitative method was the best way to gain an understanding for the participant's own experiences of their professional identity.

Syftet med vår rapport är att undersöka barnlitteraturen som ett specialpedagogiskt verktyg. Vi lyfter barnlitteraturens möjligheter och vi vill bidra med ett specialpedagogiskt verktyg. Vi har producerat en bilderbok som riktar sig främst till barn i koncentrationssvårigheter i åldrarna 3 till 5år. Barnboken syftar till att stärka barns självkänsla och identitetsutveckling samt att skapa förståelse och igenkänning hos barn i behov av särskilt stöd. Berättelsen i vår barnbok handlar om fyra karaktärer, alla med olika egenskaper som kan relateras till olika typer av koncentrationssvårigheter, där var och en av egenskaperna framställs som något positivt och som har ett värde i sig.

The purpose of this Master's thesis is to make suggestions as to how librarians can promote young reluctant readers to help them find the joy of reading. We want to show how the comprehension of these children and adolescents can be translated into action in the librarians work with reading promotion.Our main questions are:? What attitudes do the librarians find that children and adolescents, ages 9-15 with reluctance to read, have towards reading?? What do public- and school librarians do to stimulate children and adolescents, ages 9-15 that are reluctant to read, to feel the joy of reading?? What role or which roles can the public- and school librarians have in the work of reading promotion, targeting children and adolescents with a reluctance to read?We have used Beers's theories about reluctant readers and reading promotion, Chambers's model and theory ?Reading Circle? and his theories about conditions that promote a ?good reading environment?. We have also used Smidt's theories about the librarian's different roles in the work of supplying literature.The method we have used is qualitative and based on literature and interviews with 7 children- and school librarians that all of whom work or have worked with reading promotion for children and adolescents in the ages between 9-15, that are reluctant to read.Our results show that in order to gain understanding about the attitudes towards, and relationship to reading, our targeted group have, the librarian has to be aware of the inner conditions that these children and adolescents have. These inner conditions are going to affect the work and the result of the reading promotion activity.

The purpose of this Master's thesis is to study how children's and youth librarians mediate non-fiction books in public libraries. Our overarching research question is as follows: to which extent, how, and for what reasons do children's and youth librarians mediate non-fiction? We have chosen to limit our study to the practice of booktalking.In order to answer questions on extent we conducted a quantitative survey of booktalking children's and youth librarians in Skåne. To answer our other questions on behaviour and attitudes we conducted observations and interviews with six librarians who include non-fiction in booktalks for children in primary school. As a way to study behaviour we examined librarians' selection criteria and methods.