LBSC 708W 0101: Exhibitions, Public Programs, and Outreach in Libraries, Archives and Museums
2012 Summer Session I: Tuesdays/Thursdays
2:00pm – 5:15pm
Hornbake Library, South Wing, Room 2119
COURSE SYLLABUS
Instructor
Mary Edsall Choquette, MLS, PhD
Adjunct Lecturer
College of Information Studies, Maryland’s iSchool
E-mail:
Office: Hornbake Library Building, South Wing
Office Hours: By Appointment
Credit Hours: 3 graduate credits
Pre- or Co-requisites: None
Course Website: http://elms.umd.edu (Note: The course website weekly schedule should supersede those found in this printed syllabus and will be updated throughout the semester.)
Course Description:
This course explores the presentational activities of libraries and archives in a variety of settings, including public, academic, and special libraries; national, regional, and local archives and other cultural heritage collections; as well as libraries and archives located in museums, which are created in a variety of media, utilizing various access platforms.
Statement of Goals:
--To understand the intersection of humans and cultural heritage objects
--To understand the value of community conversation and participatory activity in an information access environment
--To capitalize on the benefits of programmatic activity to the livelihood of the institution
--To develop skills necessary to create and implement programmatic phenomena
Questions to be Explored:
--What are programmatic phenomena in an information access environment?
--Who is (are) the public(s)?
--What is community?
--Why exhibit, program, or perform? For the patron, the donor, the institution?
Teaching Methods: Lecture/discussion, site visits, guest presentations, and hands-on project creation work experience in a library/archives/museum setting.
Student Requirements / Methods of Evaluation: group presentations of readings and class discussion (4); critical comparative review of presentation phenomena in libraries/archives/museums (1); on campus exhibition/public program project including student journal of activities; final qualitative essay; class participation.
Evaluation Criteria
- Assignment 1: Group Presentation of Readings (15%)
- Assignment 2: Critical Comparative Review of Presentation Phenomena (20%)
- Assignment 3: Exhibition/Program Project including Student Journal (40%)
- Assignment 4: Final Experiential Synthesis Essay (15%)
- Class participation (10%)
The actual grade you receive will be based on the following percentage criteria:
Grading Scale
>95 A
91-94 A-
89-90 B+
82-88 B
80-81 B-
70-79 C
<70F
Preliminary Reading List: (To be added to collectively by the class participants.)
Required Textbook (on 2-hour reserve in McKeldin Library):
Carr, David. Open Conversations: Public Learning in Libraries and Museums. Santa
Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, Libraries Unlimited. (2012.)
Required Reading (to be posted on ELMS Course Readings page):
Bratton, Lyndsay. “Library Exhibitions: A Case Study at the University of Maryland’s
Art Library.” Unpublished manuscript. 2012.
Selections from (all are on 2-hour reserve in McKeldin Library):
Cohen- Stratynor, Barbara Naomi, (Ed.). Exhibitions and Collections. New York:
Theatre Library Association. 1995.
Gluibizzi, Amanda, and Paul Glassman, eds. The Handbook of Art and Design
Librarianship. London: Facet Publishing, 2010.
Gordeev, Sergei. “The Book in the Museum.” Art Libraries Journal 25, no. 1 (2000),
31-32.
Hackman, Larry (Ed.) Many Happy Returns: Advocacy and the Development of
Archives. Chicago: Society of American Archivists. 2011.
Kalfatovic, Martin R. Creating a Winning Online Exhibition: A Guide for Libraries,
Archives, and Museums. Chicago: American Library Association. 2002.
Nicholson, Scott. Everyone Plays at the Library: Creating Great Gaming Experiences
for all Ages. Medford, NJ: Information Today. 2010.
Smallwood, Carol (Ed.) Thinking Outside the Book: Essays for Innovative Librarians.
Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Co. 2008.
_____. Librarians as Community Partners: An Outreach Handbook. Chicago: American
Library Association. 2010.
Wythe, Debra (Ed.) Museum Archives (2nd. Ed.) Chicago: Society of American
Archivists. 2004.
Students should reference and adhere to the following style manual in preparing written assignments:
The Chicago Manual of Style. (16th Ed.) 2010. Chicago: University of Chicago.
ISBN: 978-0226104201
Technology Requirements
Teaching, learning, and working in an online format is important to the ways in which we interact in the information age; the ways in which we interact with our colleagues in the workplace and in professional societies as well as in numerous other interactions. This course provides an opportunity to become comfortable in this environment, as it begins with the first class being conducted online, utilizing the Blackboard instructional tool, available through the University. You are all enrolled on this site already.
Becoming familiar with this web based instructional tool will be useful to you as managers responsible for staying current with issues in the field and for providing lifelong learning experiences for staff. The course is not a static entity. The syllabus and readings provide a structure upon which inputs including those from your discussions, your experiences, readings you have identified, plus the instructor’s comments, will inform and enrich that structure. These inputs can be shared beyond the first online classes, at any time throughout the semester via the course site.
Before you begin, if you are not familiar with Blackboard, the following orientation opportunities are available:
ELMS Login screen: http://elms.umd.edu (See Student Resources tab)
Blackboard site:
If you have a problem with Blackboard, call 301-405-1400 Monday through Friday 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. or email If you have other problems, please let me know.
Academic Integrity
The University of Maryland, College Park has a nationally recognized Code of Academic Integrity, administered by the Student Honor Council. This Code sets standards for academic integrity at Maryland for all undergraduate and graduate students. As a student you are responsible for upholding these standards for this course. It is very important for you to be aware of the consequences of cheating, fabrication, facilitation, and plagiarism. For more information on the Code of Academic Integrity or the Student Honor Council, please visit
The Student Honor Council: http://www.shc.umd.edu/SHC/Default.aspx or,
The Office of Student Conduct: http://www.studentconduct.umd.edu/ .
Students with Disabilities
Please let me know at the beginning of the semester if you have any kind of physical or learning disability that will affect your coursework. I am happy to work out appropriate accommodations for you along with the University’s Disability Support Services (301-314-7682; http://www.counseling.umd.edu/DSS/ ) .
Attendance policy
This is an intensive course. Attendance is extremely important in this course, as much of the learning that will occur is based on in-class activities and discussion. As such, attendance will be taken and will influence each student’s class participation grade. Allowances can be made for special circumstances such as illness (self or dependent), religious observances, and other compelling circumstances beyond the student’s control (see the University’s attendance policy at http://www.testudo.umd.edu/soc/atedasse.html . Please contact me as soon as you know (or suspect) that you will not be able to attend. When the university closes due to inclement weather we will not meet (see the campus website or snow line 301-405-SNOW if there is a question). I will email the class to clarify any changes in assignment due dates and re-scheduling.
Late Assignments & Grading Procedures
It is important that assignments are turned in on time since we will typically be discussing them as a class once they are submitted. A hard copy of written assignment will be turned in at the beginning of class, unless otherwise indicated. If there are extenuating circumstances that make it impossible to turn in an assignment please let me know ahead of time (i.e., before the assignment is due) so that we can make appropriate arrangements if possible. If you believe an assignment has been graded unfairly, you may send me an email outlining the reasons why you believe the assignment grade was inappropriate. I will re-grade the assignment taking into consideration your additional comments. However, this does not assure that the grade will increase. In fact, I will grade it as consistently as possible to those that I have graded from other students, making it possible for the grade to go up or down.
Student Expectations
As graduate students, you are expected to fully participate in all class activities. Although grades are an important indication of the effort that you put into a class, a good grade should not be the end goal of a course. Instead, the goal should be to internalize the skills and concepts covered in the course and learn to apply them to real-world settings – both current and future. Unlike some undergraduate courses, you should not expect that I will re-hash all of the same material contained in the readings. Instead, it will be used as a starting point for a discussion that will only be meaningful if everyone is well prepared for class and has read AND thought about the material ahead of time. You should be prepared to answer questions about the assigned readings and participate in activities related to them. In addition, I highly encourage all of you to introduce the class to your own experiences and relevant readings, and continue conversations and debates concerning the course content outside of the classroom, in our course website and in the halls. I believe that as you take a shared ownership in your learning you will be richly rewarded.
Class Schedule (Subject to revision):
Week/Day / Topic / Due DateWeek 1: Tuesday, May 29: Online Class / Course Introduction; Concepts definitions; The exhibit as physical and digital display: interaction and intersection. / View the exhibit: Feminized Modernity: Dressing Vienna circa 1900, “ UM Art Library & post comments on ELMS site Discussion Board Forum.
Week 1: Thursday, May 31 / Project Work on Location. / Report to Project Work Sites as selected
Week 2: Tuesday,
June 5 / Guest Lecture: UM Archives and Special Collections Staff: Anne Turkos, Jason Speck. / Complete reading of David Carr’s: Open Conversations: Public Learning in Libraries and Museums
Review University Archives at the University of Maryland web site; come prepared to ask questions
Group 1 Readings Discussion
Week 2: Thursday,
June 7 / Project Work on Location
Week 3: Tuesday,
June 12 / Site Visit: NARA—LeeAnn Potter, Acting Director of Education and Public Programs: exhibition, programs, and education in public history. / Review the NARA web site; come to the site visit prepared to ask questions
Week 3: Thursday,
June 14 / Project Work on Location.
Week 4: Tuesday,
June 19 / Who is the public(s)? Public programs: content, production, and promotion. What is Community?
Outreach and Educational Programming; Meeting at MITH; Guest Lecturers: Trevor Munoz, MITH & Eric Bartheld, UMCP Libraries’ Communications Director. / Review UM Libraries web site—especially Digital Collections page; come prepared to ask questions
Group 2 Readings Discussion
Week 4: Thursday,
June 21 / Project Work on Location. / 1st Student Project Journal Review
Week 5: Tuesday,
June 26 / For the Patron, Donor, or Institution? Performative Events and Sponsored Programs in Libraries and Archives; Donor Relations: Guest Lecture at MSPAL; Staff: Vin Navara. / Review the MSPAL web site; come prepared to ask questions
Group 3 Readings Discussion
Week 5: Thursday,
June 28 / Project Work on Location
In My Library? Why?
Gaming in Libraries: independent viewing of the YouTube course—by Scott Nicholson. / Critical Comparative Review of Presentation Phenomena in Libraries/Archives/Museums
Post Comments on Discussion Board Forum for Gaming in the Library
Week 6: Tuesday,
July 3 / Why exhibit, program, or perform? Responsibility and participatory activity; Funding for public programs in libraries and archives: Guest Lecture: Tom Phelps, former Director, NEH Public Programs Office. / Review the NEH Public Programs web site page; come prepared to ask questions
Final Student Project Journal Review
Group 4 Readings Discussion
Week 6: Thursday,
July 5 / Exhibition/Public Program Project Site Visits by Instructor / Final Experiential Synthesis Essay Due
Assignment 1: Group Presentation of Readings (15%)
Purpose: This assignment addresses the course goals related to critical thinking and professional communication skills. Critical thinking is a key skill within the realm information literacy of all types. ALA/ACRL information literacy guidelines list “critical thinking” as one of their key objectives. This phrase abounds in our literature and the literature of related fields, especially education. While there is little detailed consensus on what “critical thinking” actually means, the concept does incorporate the following abilities:
- to understand a topic/issue/concept from a variety of viewpoints
- to evaluate a resource/situation/problem/challenge using a variety of criteria
- to formulate a solution (even partial) to a problem/challenge and back-up your choice of solution with evidence/data/research/experience and indicate how your solution is preferable to other potential solutions
- to be aware of the elements that influence your evaluations and formulations--cultural, educational, class, religion, etc.
Instructions: During 4 class periods as scheduled by the instructor a panel of 4-5 students will collectively lead a discussion on an assigned topic/course question (see list of “questions to be explored.”) Utilized the titles on the Preliminary Reading List, each group will select articles/chapters from those titles and then locate 2 additional sources to add to the selected list of class readings related to the topic/course question. The entire list of selected readings should be posted to the Assignment #1 Discussion Board Forum at least one week before the group’s presentation. Each student will briefly present their interpretation of the material, and, as a group, will subsequently provide an interactive panel discussion to the rest of the class, with questions/comments from the class to follow for a period of 30-45 minutes. The panel presentations should model professional conference behavior. The initial schedule of group assignments will be made alphabetically. Should students wish to swap panel places, they must do so within the first week of classes and reflect any change to the schedule.
Evaluation: This assignment represents 15 points of your final grade. Each member of the group will receive the same grade unless a case can be made that a particular student(s) did not equally participate. Evaluation of this assignment will be based on the following criteria:
- analytical synthesis of literature as demonstrated in the discussion
- introductory/background material (setting the stage for the discussion)
- using appropriate, concise and well-structured open-ended questions, which encourage the group participants to engage in the discussion and provide the critical points of discussion
- providing case studies, quotations, and/or examples that illustrate and/or evaluate the various viewpoints and/or approaches toward the discussion topic/course question, interspersed throughout the discussion
- appropriate feedback to the discussion participants, including eye contact, awareness of body language, periodic summaries, answering questions, taking and expanding upon discussion points
Assignment 2: Critical Comparative Review of Presentation Phenomena in Libraries, Archives, and Museums (20%)
Each student will select two (2) examples of presentation phenomena in a library, archive, or museum, such as two exhibitions, two lecture series; two symposia; or two performance series, to critically review as though preparing a critical review for a professional publication. The review should analyze the contents of each presentational phenomenon: describing the content; purpose, audience, and quality of each; then comparing and contrasting the two; critically examining the thrust, focus, structure, and purpose of the presentations through recursive review and analysis. A critical comparative review goes beyond basic description and reporting, and goes much deeper into analysis of the phenomena, allowing the student to draw conclusions based in their own thinking about the subject. See Bratton, Lyndsay. “Library Exhibitions: A Case Study at the University of Maryland’s Art Library,” section: Exhibition Critical Reviews: The New York Public Library’s “Shelley’s Ghost: The Afterlife of a Poet” and the Morgan Library & Museum,” as an example. Essays should be 5-6 pages in length, double-spaced, and submitted to the instructor via email no later than Thursday, June 28, 11:59pm.
Assignment 3: Exhibition/Program Project Work (40%)
The University of Maryland Libraries graciously agreed to host students’ Exhibition/Project Work for this course. All projects have been long planned by the staff at the following three locations: Rare Books and Special Book Collections; UM Michelle Smith Performing Arts Library; and the UM Archives and Special Collections. Students will sign up for a location of their choice on a first come, first serve basis. The sign-up page will be posted on the wiki on the ELMS web site. All of these projects are great opportunities to augment the other coursework with hands-on professional practical experience in providing presentational phenomena in an information environment. It is important that through this course you gain an understanding the value of collaborative project work and the value of “giving back.”
Students will independently report to their location every Thursday during the allotted class time, 2:00-5:15pm, beginning with the first week of classes (May 31,) through the final week of classes. (July 5.) Each week, students will make a personal journal entry of observations and reflections on the project experience in their individual Student Journal on the ELMS site. These entries will be incorporated into the Final Experiential Synthesis Paper (see Assignment 4.)
Project Placement 1: UM Rare and Special Books Collections
Six (6) students to work on the exhibition” “How We Might Live: The Vision of William Morris.” As assigned and directed, students will work on any aspect of preparing this exhibition for physical and virtual display and any surrounding programs, presentations, and publications.
The list of projects includes both behind-the-scenes work and more visible outreach activity relating to the exhibit. A preliminary website for the exhibit is at http://www.lib.umd.edu/mdrm/gallery/upcoming.html
1. Develop an exhibit checklist and bibliography for distribution via an online LibGuide and on paper.
2. Work on an image tracking system that helps us monitor scanned images created to support graphics for the exhibit and for inclusion in the online exhibit.
3. Hands-on work with dry mounting and fabrication of exhibit panels and captions.
4. Assist in developing plans and publicity for a Spring 2013 event associated with the exhibit. The working idea is to recreate the "Wayzgoose" dinners Morris hosted for workers at the Kelmscott Press.
5. Develop a tour script of the exhibit for staff that will be providing tours to different types of audiences.
The exhibit group consists of Doug McElrath, Ann Hudak, Amber Kohl, Laura French, and Melissa Lindberg. They are also are being assisted by the Instruction & Outreach Functional Group in Special Collections and the Digital Stewardship unit from ITD.