The British Council's Library is a one-stop information service housing the Distance Learning Centre and Centre for Continuing Professional Development. The library is open to Hong Kong residents and has a strong emphasis on English literature and language teaching. 'The library plays an important role in supporting the other activities of the British Council's departments,' librarian Elizabeth Townson said. The video section stocks programmes on sports, travel, history, drama and comedy. It also carries more than 110 periodicals and major newspapers and magazines. A separate collection of journals on language teaching, education and linguistics is maintained for teachers. 'This is the best place in Hong Kong to find out about Britain, the way of life and [its] education system,' Ms Townson said. The library has installed the ECCTIS (Educational Counselling and Credit Transfer Information Service) system on CD-ROM. It allows users to access information on more than 100,000 courses at 900 universities and colleges. The user can type in the course name and the ECCTIS provides a printout with a list of learning institutions and a breakdown of course structure. Hong Kong's growing interest in distance learning prompted the council to set up its Distance Learning Centre last year. This provides free, detailed advice on 28 distance learning courses offered by 13 universities. The courses are mainly postgraduate level for people with working experience. Subjects cover business administration, education, law, construction, engineering and librarianship. The centre plans to add new courses covering public relations training, legal and forensic psychology and bilingual education. The council supports the theory that professional development does not stop after graduation but is a life-long commitment to update and develop skills and expertise. The establishment of the Centre for Continuing Professional Development has enabled the library to reach a new segment of the community, while also promoting training products and services. The centre supports the development needs of professionals through a collection of management training material. This includes videos, books, journals and computer-based training. The centre's facilities can be used for independent study and some material is available for loan. Companies can use the centre's resources for background and evaluation purposes, or can borrow material for use in their workshops.
