Authors : Destiya Prabowo S. Hum and Tamara Susetyo-Salim
Abstract: School library as a learning center has an important role to help students working on their assignments with reference service. However, various devices, emerging internet and popular search engines and online encyclopedias run them to search information from virtual space instead of library and therefore are marginalizing library reference service. Nevertheless, the richness of information resources from the internet has counterproductive effects on students in constructing and articulating information based on their understanding. Derived from there, this study is going to study how reference service transformation is beneficial for students in learning process at school. This study is using qualitative approach with in-depth interview and non-participant observation at Surya International School Jakarta (SISJ). Findings from this study show that students would rather search information online from their own gadget than go to the library to research on their assignments. The result of this study is school library has to transform reference service from conventional to virtual based on the newest ICT commonly used by students. Ask librarian one of the device based reference services can be an alternative solution for students in working on their assignments. This study is expected to give a new perspective on school library reference service in digital era.
Destiya Prabowo S. Hum and Tamara Susetyo-Salim, 2017. Reference Service at School Library: Going Virtual or Not?. The Social Sciences, 12: 227-231.