Examining the Gap between Employers’ Skills Needs and Library and Information Science Education in Zimbabwe

Abstract

Against a background of constant criticism of library and information schools for not producing quality graduates, a study was carried out to evaluate library and information science curricula in Zimbabwe and this paper is an extract from the research. The paper examines the skills and competency gap that exists between library and information science (LIS) employer needs and curricula in Zimbabwe. Content analysis was used to establish curricula offering in LIS Schools while the comparative method was used to deduce the similarities and differences between the curricula and employment needs. Bloom’s (1956) Taxonomy of Objectives was used for analysis of data. Results showed that curricula were not properly covering competencies required by employers. Only 32% of the competencies were properly covered; 32% were not properly covered; while the remaining 36% were not covered at all. It was further shown that curricula covered traditional and core skills of LIS such as cataloguing and classification, abstracting and indexing, and that there was little coverage of the generic and management skills which were in demand in the employment market. The study confirmed that the problem of curricula mismatch with work requirements was a common phenomenon in developing countries. It was noted that failure to address this could see graduates failing to get employment in their own profession.