LIBR 220-12
Resources and Information Services in the Disciplines and Professions
Topic: Music
Spring 2012 Greensheet

Dr. Timothy J. Dickey
E-mail
Office Hours: Tuesdays 10am Pacific time, or by appointment. Your email questions about any other course question during the week should be answered within 24 hours.

D2L Information: This course will be available beginning January 25. You will be enrolled into the site automatically. I will send more information about course access as we approach this date through MySJSU.

Course Description

This course will introduce you to the unique issues facing a music library and music research, whether it is a performers’ reference library, a public library audio-visual branch, an academic music research collection, or a digital music collection. We will cover the diverse formats in a music librarian’s acquisitions, the various sources of information about music germane to users’ needs, the specialized use of libraries in the study of music, and the unique issues in cataloging, classification, and management of a music collection, including digital music materials. The course will be taught online, with asynchronous lecture materials and weekly assignments.

Course Prerequisites: LIBR 202 

Course Objectives

Student Learning Outcomes
Students will achieve a basic understanding of the issues in managing music collections both digital and traditional, and the practical challenges music collections pose to users and researchers. Assignments will include practical reviews of different music collections and major reference sources, as well as a bibliographic review of a topic chosen for your particular interest in the field of music.

LIBR 220 supports the following MLIS Core Competencies:

• apply the fundamental principles of planning, management and marketing/advocacy;
• 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 nature of research, research methods and research findings; retrieve, evaluate and synthesize scholarly and professional literature for informed decision-making by specific client groups;

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Course Requirements

WEEKLY READINGS: There will be a variety of weekly readings introducing you to important resources for your written work in this course, as well as your future work in music library collections; most week's topics will be followed by an asynchronous Powerpoint presentation.

MUSIC LIBRARY SITE VISIT REVIEWS (two, 10% each): Each student shall prepare two reviews of a physical music library collection, based upon individual in-person visits to libraries of their choice. Any kind of music library collection – academic, public, special archival, or completely digital – will be acceptable, but the more diverse the collection, and the users of the collection, the better. Due Feb. 19 and April 29.

MUSIC REFERENCE SOURCE REVIEW (20%): Each student shall prepare a review of a major music reference source, to be shared with the class. A list of potential sources will be provided on the first day of class. Due March 4.

COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT ASSIGNMENT (20%): Each student shall select one of two options for this assignment. Option I. (S)he may compose a model library collection development policy for music collections, either for a known institution (such as the student’s employer) or for a hypothetical one. Option II. Alternatively, the student may choose to compose a critical and comparative review of two or more recording labels or two or more publishers of musical scores. Due April 15.

FINAL TOPIC LITERATURE REVIEW (30%): Each student shall prepare a literature review of a major topic in music librarianship or music information retrieval, of particular and practical interest to the student (such as reference, special collections, public library music collections, copyright, preservation, digital collections, etc.). Topics may be chosen in consultation with the instructor, and should be approved by Feb. 19. Complete bibliographies should be submitted by March 25; individual consultations may be possible after the in-person class site visit. Final papers are due by May 13.

PARTICIPATION (10%): Each student is expected to contribute at least one substantial post to the online discussion board each week, with substantive comment on one or more course readings and/or topics, as well as responses to specific questions that the instructor will raise.

Textbooks and Readings

Required Textbooks:

• Bayne, P. S. (2008). A guide to library research in music. Scarecrow. Available through Amazon: 0810862115

• Gordon, S. (2008). The future of the music business (2nd ed.). Hal Leonard Publishing. Available through Amazon: 1423454456.

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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