The Library School of the Province of Buenos Aires and the professionalization of the librarian (1948-1950)

Abstract

This paper investigates the origins of teaching librarianship in the city of La Plata, taking as the central axis the creation the School of Library by the Library Department of the Province of Buenos Aires. The main characteristics of educational library institutions in the province until 1950 are described, according to interpret the background that led to the formation of this school. Then, the political and social situation is presented in the context of the first Peronista government of Buenos Aires. Finally, the contents in the curricula of the careers are addressed with the aim of describe the professional librarian ideal achieved according to the provincial government's cultural policies. It is concluded that through this educational institution tries to form a professional librarian with multiple skills related to library, a cultural agent capable of guiding readers towards national books edition yet is also assigned a teacher role, closely with the teacher and students at all levels of training.