One of the key reasons for my trip to Algeria was to discover more about the library system, resources, and services. As a first year student in the MS of Library & Information Science Program as well as a devoted Algeria affecionado, I began seeking out any information I could find about the Algerian library system during the months before I left the US. After much searching, I was able to discover that the Université d'Alger had a Library Science program (although no information beyond that was available on the University website), that a center called CERIST (Centre de Recherche sur l'Information Scientifique et Technique) made some theses available online, and that in the mid-nineties, a professor named Behdja Boumarafi had written a nice survey piece on the libraries of Algeria. With the help of InterLibrary Loan, I was able to track down this article and get a copy, which gave me a good idea of the statistics, mission, and vision of Algerian libraries. Unfortunately, this article was written in the nineties and much has changed in the past fifteen or so years, both in terms of library possibilities and the political/social situation in Algeria.
Coming to Algeria would provide me with the opportunity to see how the previous decade and a half had impacted the library systems and their missions. During my first week here, I jumped on the opportunity to visit the National Library, Frantz Fanon Annex, with Brock, another American researcher staying at the CED, Les Glycines. The Frantz Fanon building is the old National Library, and while still very much in use, its collection is a bit old and picked over, and it is not automated at all. Upon my second visit, I was once again examining the card catalogues (!!), when one of the librarians approached me to help me in finding exactly what I wanted. While mainly my goal was just to learn the bibliographic format they were using, particularly in the Arabic card catalogues, we set about looking for a particular book that I wanted to find. Upon finally locating the card in question, Amara set off for the stacks--which are all closed--and kindly invited me back so that I could see the way the books were organized. Behind a large desk were six floors of journals, newspapers, books, and sheet music. Organized by number according
to a system that the French had put in place, each floor had a specific type of material. From old newspapers from the French Colonial Period to books of Arabic poetry to academic journals about Palestine Studies, the collection covered a vast variety of topics, albeit not coming up to the current day. Interesting to me as well was to observe how the library was used by its patrons. While certainly there were researchers present to use the specific materials held by the library, the majority of the patrons seemed to be students from the nearby university who came to use the "Salles de Lecture" with their long tables where they could find a good environment for quiet group work or individual work in a studious environment. On the second story terrace, students could also study outside enjoying the view of the bay and the mild weather. At the front of the building was a small café as well, where patrons could get a drink or eat their lunches from home. Definitely the Frantz Fanon Annex shows a good example of the Learning Commons model.
To my unbelievable good fortune, at the CED, the one Algerian resident is a young man named Ahcène who is in his fourth year of Library Science. He has been in the middle of exams since I have been here, but has spent quite some time with me discussing his experiences with Library Science. He has given me some very interesting powerpoints and documents on LS that are giving me a good background (and vocabulary! - they are in French and Arabic) for my further researches.
Well, that about caps off what I have done in terms of research into Algerian Libraries. I continue to have one class by distance at Syracuse. This one is a Survey of Telecommunications and Information Policy. It is quite challenging, as the name implies, but has proved to be quite interesting, particularly due to the professor's approach to the material and the interesting class discussions.
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