The crisis of professionalism in Japanese school libraries

Abstract

Japan is a country where the “School Library Law” governs the school library. The original idea for this was “imported” into Japanese society just after World War II during American governance. The framework of the western-styled library, open to the public, was introduced in town and school but, until now, the perception of a “library” and associated professionals has not been digested enough in social context in Japan. This article is an attempt to examine the library professional in the Asian region.