Abstract:
The aim of this study is to outline the problems, strategies and policies of the training and development of library-information specialists in the Republic of Bulgaria throughout the 1989–2009 periods. They are drawn within the context dynamically changing requirements towards representatives of the profession of librarians. The study takes into account recommendations and strategies of international organizations (IFLA, UNESCO, EBLIDA and others), of leading national and specialized associations. Out-lined are the educational policies in Europe, based on the principle of forming common educational areas. An analysis of transformations in the field of library education is of-fered and the training of librarians in Bulgaria at the background of developments on a global scale. The discussions of the fields examined and discussed have lead to the idea of providing a view of this major field for the development of the library sector in Bulgaria. The study contains major issues related to the promotion of education the pro-fessional growth of the library community, namely:
Recommendations of international organizations and leading experts on the transformation of the library profession and library education;
Reactions to international policies to developments in the library sector in Bulgaria.
The situation of training of library-information specialists in Bulgaria.
Prerequisites and factors of change in the policy for the training of library-information specialists.
The educational level and training of Bulgarian librarian-information specialists.
Tendencies and policies in the training of librarian-information specialists in the Republic of Bulgaria.
The chronology of the establishment of institutes and the development of Higher education in Library-Information Sciences after 1989.
The state of qualification and other forms supporting the development of Library-Information specialists.
The main subjects in the field of training and development Library-Information specialists – the Bulgarian Library Information Association (BLIA), the Chair of Library-information Sciences at the „St. Clement Ohridsky” University of Sofia and similar departments at other higher schools, The National Library „St. St. Cyril and Methodius” and regional libraries, foundations – „Open Society" Found, „Bill and Melinda Gates” Foundation, foreign information centers – U.S.A, the British Council, Goethe-Institute etc. with their major projects and activities.
The Public Library Act and the requirements for educational standards for library personnel.
The following conclusions and evaluations have been drawn based on the studies. A tendency is increasingly spreading of life-long constant education of the hu-man factor, in the coming years it shall call for such a strategic policy for its spread among Bulgarian library circles. Moreover library-information specialists are called on to work with innovations, to work and preserve knowledge and innovation and take part in the process of changes in communications. Thus professional librarians are called on to become leading figures in a society, whose future and hopes are addressed to infor-mation, information technologies and the economy of knowledge.
