Issues include:
Who really wants links to the library?
It has been noted that the vast majority of published evidence suggests that initiatives to link libraries and VLEs come from the library perspective: there is little evidence that education practitioners, strategists or theoreticians have identified the issue as being of significance. This has resulted in a major gap and weak pedagogical underpinning of many initiatives that have taken place.
How do different bodies of students access online resources?
One project found that campus-based students do not necessarily log into the VLE. The different student behaviour of place-based to distance students has meant that it was more useful to locate the material outside the VLE even though distance students can still access it from within the VLE. This minor project revision draws attention to a significant issue that all projects might need to consider. The integration of digital libraries with VLEs will potentially bring together different student bodies with quite different ways of relating to both the VLE and to library services.
Other problems have been uncovered for some students in relation to their VLE. In one case the VLE was not highly visible to the students, some of whom did not know it was there, while in another it became apparent that a minority of students have not adapted to using the VLE. In a further instance it became apparent that some student resistance developed to the VLE based on the particular features of the VLE in question. Given these problems, it cannot be taken for granted that students will react positively to the integration of library services and VLEs. This is a concern not only in relation to VLEs in general but also in relation to the particular features of some particular versions of some VLEs.
A further issue is the impact on library and teaching staff. There is evidence that library staff need the same standard of VLE training as academics, and that this is not always provided. There are warnings of the impact that the move to an integrated digital library and VLE teaching environment may well have upon the job roles and practices of the teaching community.
The implications of these findings are that integration of libraries and VLEs should:
Forthcoming..... contributions gratefully received