Syllabi as a Source of Information for Learning Support Services in University Libraries

Abstract

　The purpose of this study is to identify the potential of the syllabi as a source of information to improve learning support by university libraries in Japan. A syllabus survey was conducted for 130 universities in 2022. This paper reports the results of 111 universities, excluding 19 universities that are still in the process of work as of now (Oct. 2023). We used the syllabus system of each targeted university to find syllabi with the descriptions of “library,” and obtained 16,462 syllabi in total. Approximately 20 to 30% of the descriptions were on topics such as library use, library resources, and education on library use, and less than 10% of the descriptions referred to course support tools such as pathfinders. However, some of the items show trends by type and size of university, academic year, and academic fields, and they can be a useful source of information for understanding the needs of users. Therefore, it can be pointed out that the university libraries should make proposals for improvement of the syllabi and its system from the viewpoint of learning support services.