New trends in higher education management: teachers' perception of the inclusion of libraries' e-services into LMS

Integration of academic libraries' e-services into universities' learning management systems (LMS) can be seen as one aspect of advancing the higher education management. Libraries' e-services delivered within a learning context can facilitate the process of teaching and contribute to the quality of students' learning. Academic libraries' e-services integrated into universities' learning management systems demand but at the same time develop information literacy skills of their users students and teachers. Successful information literacy instruction programs are not only oriented to teaching information literacy skills but also to designing learning environment that demands usage of information literacy skills within the context where these skills are necessary. The research outlined in this paper was conducted to explore the effects of integration of academic libraries’ e-services into learning management system at the university and its possible impact on the process of teaching and learning. This paper is focused on the teachers’ perception of the effects of such integration and their views on the possible impact on their teaching activities and on students’ learning. The results of the interviews with teachers show that teachers’ opinions about the integration of libraries’ e-services into learning management system are mostly positive. In addition, they report the immediate benefits for their teaching activities as well as for their students which consequently makes academic library more visible and accessible. Teachers pointed out that the major benefit of the integration of library eservices into the learning management system was a better usage of academic library and its resources.