LIBR 256-12
Archives & Manuscripts
Spring 2011 Greensheet

Dr. Michael Q. Hooks, CA
E-mail
Office Hours: Contact via email

This course will be taught completely online using ANGEL. The password to access the course will be sent to registered students via My.SJSU by January 24. You should be enrolled in ANGEL by the first day of class, January 26.

Course Description

This course is an introduction to the theory and practice of managing archival documents, such as personal papers, institutional records, photographs, electronic records, and other unpublished material. Topics covered include manuscript and records acquisition; appraisal, arrangement and description; conservation and preservation; and reference and access.

The course will consist of material presented by the instructor, as well as assignments to be completed by the students and required weekly participation in discussions on topics and issues presented by both the instructor and the students.

Course Prerequisites: LIBR 200, 202, 204 required.

Course Objectives

Student Learning Outcomes
At the completion of this course, students should be able to:

• understand basic archival principles and practices 
• understand the variety of functions performed by archives and archivists
• understand the issues involved in acquiring, processing, and making available records to researchers
• understand similarities and differences between the roles of archivists and related information professionals 
• understand the challenges facing the archives profession today and in the future 

LIBR 256 supports the following MLIS Core Competencies:

• articulate the ethics, values and foundational principles of library and information professionals and their role in the promotion of intellectual freedom;
• compare the environments and organizational settings in which library and information professionals practice;
• recognize the social, cultural and economic dimensions of information use;
• use the basic concepts and principles related to the creation, evaluation, selection, acquisition, preservation and organization of specific items or collections of information;
• understand the system of standards and methods used to control and create information structures and apply basic principles involved in the organization and representation of knowledge.

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Course Requirements

Assignments
All assignments are to be submitted electronically and no later than by 11:59 pm PT on the date they are due. The assignments will be explained in more detail as they are given. If you have questions regarding any of the assignments, please ask via email.

1. Tour an archives and interview an archivist at the repository -  due: February 22  Students are to arrange a tour of an archives, interview a professional archivist associated with that repository, and submit a report (5-7 pages) of the tour and the interview.  Specific requirements for this assignment will be made available through ANGEL. The paper is to be shared with the class on ANGEL.
2. Complete an arrangement and description exercise - due: March 22 Students will be directed to a set of documents from an online collection, a link to which will be provided on ANGEL. These materials are to be arranged and described and a finding aid is to be created. Specific requirements will be made available through ANGEL.
3. Write a research paper - due: April 26 Students are to write a research paper (12-15 pages) on an archival topic of their choice. The paper should be on a topic of current interest in the archival profession, an examination of potential challenges facing the archival profession in the future, or perhaps a historical topic related to an archival issue.  Additional information will be made available through ANGEL. 
4. Final Exam - due: May 20  A final exam will give students the opportunity to bring together various aspects of the information learned and discussed during the semester and to demonstrate their understanding of archives, archival theory and practice, and challenges facing the archival profession.  
5. Participate in class discussions - ongoing to May 17 Students are to participate on a weekly basis in class discussions that arise from the topics presented by the instructor, from class assignments. and/or questions asked by the instructor and the class.

Assignments  All assignments are to be submitted electronically no later than 11:59 pm PT on their specific due dates. Feel free to submit assignments early. Ten percent will be deducted for each day that an assignment is late.

Course Calendar This schedule is subject to change with notice. Changes will be announced via ANGEL.

Course Grading

Textbooks and Readings

In addition to the textbook, additional readings will be listed on ANGEL.

Required Textbooks:

• Hunter, G. S. (2003). Developing and Maintaining Practical Archives: A How-To-Do-It Manual. Neal-Schuman. Available through Amazon: 1555704670.

Recommended Textbooks:

• Boles, F. (2005). Selecting and appraising archives and manuscripts. Society of American Archivists. Available through Amazon: 1931666113.

• O'Toole, J. M., & Cox, R. J. (2006). Understanding Archives and Manuscripts. Society of American Archivists. Available through Amazon: 1931666206.

• Roe, K. (2005). Arranging and Describing Archives and Manuscripts (Archival Fundamentals Series II). Society of American Archivists. Available through Amazon: 193166613X.

Grading Scale

The standard SJSU School of Information Grading Scale is utilized for all iSchool courses:

In order to provide consistent guidelines for assessment for graduate level work in the School, these terms are applied to letter grades:

• C represents Adequate work; a grade of "C" counts for credit for the course;
• B represents Good work; a grade of "B" clearly meets the standards for graduate level work;
  For core courses in the MLIS program (not MARA) — INFO 200, INFO 202, INFO 204 — the iSchool requires that students earn a B in the course. If the grade is less than B (B- or lower) after the first attempt you will be placed on administrative probation.  You must repeat the class the following semester. If -on the second attempt- you do not pass the class with a grade of B or better (not B- but B) you will be disqualified.
  
• A represents Exceptional work; a grade of "A" will be assigned for outstanding work only.

Students are advised that it is their responsibility to maintain a 3.0 Grade Point Average (GPA).

University Policies

General Expectations, Rights and Responsibilities of the Student

As members of the academic community, students accept both the rights and responsibilities incumbent upon all members of the institution. Students are encouraged to familiarize themselves with SJSU's policies and practices pertaining to the procedures to follow if and when questions or concerns about a class arises. See University Policy S90-5 at http://www.sjsu.edu/senate/docs/S90-5.pdf. More detailed information on a variety of related topics is available in the SJSU catalog at http://info.sjsu.edu/web-dbgen/catalog/departments/LIS.html. In general, it is recommended that students begin by seeking clarification or discussing concerns with their instructor. If such conversation is not possible, or if it does not serve to address the issue, it is recommended that the student contact the Department Chair as a next step.

Dropping and Adding

Students are responsible for understanding the policies and procedures about add/drop, grade forgiveness, etc. Refer to the current semester's Catalog Policies section at http://info.sjsu.edu/static/catalog/policies.html. Add/drop deadlines can be found on the current academic year calendars document on the Academic Calendars webpage at http://www.sjsu.edu/provost/services/academic_calendars/. The Late Drop Policy is available at http://www.sjsu.edu/aars/policies/latedrops/policy/. Students should be aware of the current deadlines and penalties for dropping classes.

Information about the latest changes and news is available at the Advising Hub at http://www.sjsu.edu/advising/.

Consent for Recording of Class and Public Sharing of Instructor Material

University Policy S12-7, http://www.sjsu.edu/senate/docs/S12-7.pdf, requires students to obtain instructor's permission to record the course and the following items to be included in the syllabus:

• "Common courtesy and professional behavior dictate that you notify someone when you are recording him/her. You must obtain the instructor's permission to make audio or video recordings in this class. Such permission allows the recordings to be used for your private, study purposes only. The recordings are the intellectual property of the instructor; you have not been given any rights to reproduce or distribute the material."
  • It is suggested that the syllabus include the instructor's process for granting permission, whether in writing or orally and whether for the whole semester or on a class by class basis.
  • In classes where active participation of students or guests may be on the recording, permission of those students or guests should be obtained as well.
• "Course material developed by the instructor is the intellectual property of the instructor and cannot be shared publicly without his/her approval. You may not publicly share or upload instructor generated material for this course such as exam questions, lecture notes, or homework solutions without instructor consent."

Academic integrity

Your commitment, as a student, to learning is evidenced by your enrollment at San Jose State University. The University Academic Integrity Policy F15-7 at http://www.sjsu.edu/senate/docs/F15-7.pdf requires you to be honest in all your academic course work. Faculty members are required to report all infractions to the office of Student Conduct and Ethical Development. The Student Conduct and Ethical Development website is available at http://www.sjsu.edu/studentconduct/.

Campus Policy in Compliance with the American Disabilities Act

If you need course adaptations or accommodations because of a disability, or if you need to make special arrangements in case the building must be evacuated, please make an appointment with me as soon as possible, or see me during office hours. Presidential Directive 97-03 at http://www.sjsu.edu/president/docs/directives/PD_1997-03.pdf requires that students with disabilities requesting accommodations must register with the Accessible Education Center (AEC) at http://www.sjsu.edu/aec to establish a record of their disability.

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