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08 June 2021 | Story Legopheng Maphile | Photo Charl Devenish
Nthabiseng Kotsokoane in front of the Sasol Library on the Bloemfontein Campus of the University of the Free State. She is wearing a pink blouse with floral patterns and leaning with her left elbow against a ledge whilst looking into the camera.
Nthabiseng Kotsokoane is a renowned library professional whose passionate efforts to advance library and information services in Africa and beyond are widely acknowledged Photo: Charl Devenish

The University of the Free State is proud to announce the appointment of Nthabiseng Kotsokoane as chairperson of the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) new Regional Council and member of the IFLA Governing Board 2021 – 2023.

IFLA is the leading international body representing the interests of library and information services and their users. It is the global voice of the library and information profession.

Nthabiseng Kotsokoane is currently the Assistant Director at the University of the Free State Library Information Services. She previously worked at Monash University for 10 years as a director of the library services. Ms Kotsokoane is a renowned library professional whose passionate efforts to advance library and information services in Africa and beyond are widely acknowledged. She has vast experience in serving at various committees regionally and internationally. She served as a member of the IFLA women information Libraries Special Interest Group. She was later elected by LIASA into the IFLA IT committee. She is the current IFLA Africa section Chair 2017-2021.

 

Serving the international library community

Nthabiseng is not only active in IFLA but on the African continent as well, she is the past chair for the African Library & Information Associations & Institutions (AfLIA) academic library section Chair and a member of the AfLIA Governing Board.

As IFLA’s Regional Chair her key role will be to in increase the presence of world regions in IFLA and IFLA’s presence around the world focusing on advocacy and building capacity. She will lead efforts to provide input on IFLA advocacy work and review success in developing the regional dimension of the IFLA Strategy, as well as work to promote IFLA membership and fundraising in the regions.

This will include coordination and development of Regional Division action plans, review Regional Division activities in the following regions Regional Council and Regional Divisions for Asia and Oceania, Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean, Middle East and North Africa, North America and Sub-Saharan Africa. With her passion of developing and mentoring new library professionals we are certain that this new role will be of benefit to the international library community.

News Archive

University helps design new test of academic literacy for postgraduates
2012-09-04

The Inter-institutional Centre for Language Development and Assessment (ICELDA), of which the University of the Free State (UFS) is a founding partner, has secured a joint agreement with the Language Centre at the Radboud University Nijmegen in the Netherlands to design and develop another test of academic literacy for postgraduate students.

ICELDA is a partnership between four multilingual South African universities: Pretoria, Stellenbosch, North-West and Free State.

This design that ICELDA is coming up with will focus mainly on diagnostic purposes and follow in the footsteps of TALPS, the current test of academic literacy for postgraduate students at the four universities.

Prof. Albert Weideman, Head of the Department of English says TALPS has recently been the topic of a redesign and in-depth analysis undertaken by Colleen du Plessis, a junior lecturer in the Department of English for her master's dissertation. She is developing two further versions of it for ICELDA and the new project will involve Rebecca Patterson, who will do her long assignment for honours on the diagnostic value of the current test. A former doctoral student of the Department English Tobie van Dyk will be the project leader.

“The rationale for the project is that one can no longer take the academic literacy levels of postgraduate students for granted. We wish the investigating and development team that Tobie will put together, every success.”
 

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