KLADNO

Date: 3th October 2018, 2-4 p.m.

Place: The Central Bohemian Research Library in Kladno

Participants of the panel discussion:

Ing. Zdeněk Štefek, chairman of the Committee for the Preservation, Culture and Tourism of the Central Bohemia Region
Mgr. Gabriela Jarkulišová, director of the Kutná Hora Municipal Library and Chair of the SKIP Public Libraries Section
Mgr. Jana Poláková, mayor of Byšice
PhDr. Vít Richter, director of the National Library CR Librarianship Institute
Ing. Eva Recmanová, deputy director for Library Activities from the Central Bohemian Science Library in Kladno
Mgr. Miroslava Hájková, ministerial council in the Primary Education Department of the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports
Michal Viewegh, writer

Moderator: PhDr. Jaroslav Císař, editor-in-chief of the Reader magazine

Library - a Matter of Public Discussion in the Central Bohemian Region

On Wednesday, 3 October 2018, a public panel discussion was held in the Central Bohemian Region on the subject of Library - a Matter of Public and thus concluded a series of these meetings in individual regions of the Czech Republic. It took place in the premises of the Central Bohemian Research Library in Kladno on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the founding of Czechoslovakia and also on the eve of the 100th anniversary of the publication of the first Library Act in our country in 1919. Panel discussions were attended by Ing. Zdeněk Štefek, chairman of the Committee for the Preservation, Culture and Tourism of the Central Bohemian Region, Mgr. Gabriela Jarkulišová, director of the Municipal Library of Kutná Hora and chair of the SKIP Public Libraries Section, Mgr. Jana Poláková, mayor of Byšice, PhDr. Vít Richter, director of the National Library CR Librarianship Institute, Ing. Eva Recmanová, deputy director for Library Activities from the Central Bohemian Research Library in Kladno, Mgr. Miroslava Hájková, ministerial council in the Primary Education Department of the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports and the writer Michal Viewegh. The discussion was moderated by the editor-in-chief of the journal Reader PhDr. Jaroslav Císař.

After welcoming visitors to the discussion by Ing. Eva Recmanová, the meeting was inaugurated by the video salutation of the International Federation of Library Associations (IFLA) president Glória Pérez-Salmerón. It was followed by PhDr. Vít Richter with a well-arranged presentation mapping the current state and trends in the services provided by libraries in the Czech Republic, changing demand from visitors and increasing demands on the qualification of the library staff. He stressed the need to develop digital services and simplify the legislative approach to making the digitized collection available. He also did not forget to compare the financial costs of running libraries in our country and around the world. The positive news was that abroad, the Czech Republic is rightly perceived as the Kingdom of Libraries for its dense network, based on the First Library Act of 1919.

This was followed by a presentation of the system of public librarianship in the Central Bohemian Region (by the way, most public libraries in the Czech Republic work here) and the fulfilment of regional functions, which was undertaken by PhDr. Radek Liška, head of the Regional Library Centre. From this performance, visitors learned that only 19.3 (in full-time) methodologists of the Regional Library Centre and authorized libraries (Kutná Hora, Příbram, Benešov, Kladno and Mladá Boleslav) serve a total of 817 libraries of the most populated region in the Czech Republic, which represents a total of 14% all libraries (professional and non-professional) in the Czech Republic. Thus, one Central Bohemian methodologist accounts for 42.3 libraries. However, the national average is 26 libraries per methodologist. Another interesting number is the total number of kilometres travelled in 2017 at the methodical activity - 45,968 km, which is about 6,000 kilometres more than the length of the provincial equator.

Then, the discussion started, divided by the organisers into three basic questions. The first and probably the most important topic was the financing of the activities and development of libraries, the second one addressed the future and future direction of libraries, their transformation into community centres, cultural, educational and information centres, database centres, but also places for people to meet, regardless of their social or cultural status. It also dealt with current legislation on the subject. The third set of questions dealt with the qualifications of the library staff. It stressed the need for lifelong learning for librarians, whose profession includes the full range of skills necessary to provide quality public services that are constantly expanding. He indicated the need to replicate changing demand and to respond to current trends in emerging technologies. In conclusion, the participants agreed that the need for libraries arises primarily from the requirements and needs of the citizens of the municipalities concerned, and must therefore come primarily from "below". In many places, it serves as a low-threshold facility for all, facilities for meeting, chatting, cultural and educational activities. Unfortunately, schools focusing solely on librarianship have disappeared from secondary vocational education. This is a problem in attracting qualified staff to libraries. Although the public mostly perceives libraries as educational institutions, they do not fall under the responsibility of the Ministry of Education of the Czech Republic and only a very limited number of libraries fall under the Ministry of Culture. The founders of public libraries are mainly municipalities and regions. There is still a lack of common consensus between the education and culture sectors. 70 people attended the panel discussions; The event was also covered by media - an interview with the director of the National Library CR Librarianship Institute, Vít Richter, was recorded by Kladenské listy and Prague TV, the Kladno diary took part as well.

Librarians Award - Central Bohemian Kramerius 2018

The panel discussion was followed by the 7th year of the Central Bohemian Kramerius 2018, where the best volunteer librarians from five regions of the Central Bohemian Region are appreciated. This year's awarded have been: Marie Vrbová from the Municipal Library in Ratměřice (Benešov region), MgA. Zuzana Brychtová Horecká and colleague Mgr. Barbora Černohorská from the J. M. Hovorka Library in Statenice (Kladno Region), Bc. Anna Holubová from the Municipal Library of Bohdaneč near Zbraslavice (Kutná Hora Region), Jana Kuncířová from the Municipal Library of Byšice (Mladá Boleslav Region) and Dana Schovánková from the Municipal Library in Bzová (Příbram Region). They received the awards from Ing. Zdeněk Štefek and Mgr. Tomáš Procházka, head of the Central Bohemian Region Culture Department. At the end of the ceremony, the author Michal Viewegh read several of his feuilletons. An interesting moment was the response of the award-winning librarian Mgr. Barbora Černohorská on the inquiry of the moderator Jaroslav Císař, what the Central Bohemian Kramerius Award means for her next work: it is a huge motivation for me, after all, this is something like a library Oscar. "

40 guests attended the award ceremony, the media were covered by the Central Bohemian press department, the Kladenské listy and the Kladno daily.