Digital Curation Education Skills Opportunities and Statistics
Annotations by Cara Castillo, Jessica Lucian Rathbun, and Nicole J. Williams
Last revised on December 15, 2017
Introduction
With the information explosion in the past thirty years, there is a great need for skilled digital curators. This wiki explores the formal education of digital curators, the skills needed by digital curators, and the employment market for digital curators. In the first section, Castillo gives sources that detail the employment market, opportunities for recent graduates, and anticipated job growth in digital curation. In the second part, Rathbun gives sources on skills digital curators need, what is/will be expected of digital curators in the field, and the places digital curators are employed. In the final part, Williams gives sources on the formal education of digital curators through degrees, certificate programs, and courses. Most of the sources listed were written in the past ten years, with none older than fifteen years. The authors hope this wiki will serve as a guide to those exploring career possibilities in digital curation.
Curating a Career: Employment Opportunities in Digital Curation and Preservation by Cara Castillo
Definition of Project
This annotated bibliography contains articles pertaining to career prospects in the emerging fields of digital curation and preservation, with a particular focus on the current employment market, opportunities for recent graduates, and anticipated job growth. Job titles, salaries, and necessary training for these positions are also covered in the bibliography. Digital curation and preservation coverage in the research literature is expansive, but the literature concerning employment and job prospects is limited. The literature discussing the research of Inna Kouper and her colleagues was of particular help, also providing a pathway for locating additional academic literature. As a technical field in which currency of information is valued, the literature consulted for this project was limited to publications ranging from 2005 to the present.
Annotations
Allard, L. S., Bishop, A., Lee, C. A., & McGovern, N. (2016). Open data meets digital curation: An investigation of practices and needs. International Journal of Digital Curation, (11)2, 115-125. doi: 10.1007/s10803-010-1083-y.
This paper provides a valuable discussion regarding the necessity of digital curation in the federal sector. With federal agencies having derived plans to promote public access to data and publications, the authors identify the growing need for digital curators and discuss the skills, knowledge, and abilities that are required of digital curators. The discussion is informed by a number of case studies of working digital curators, which is highly informative in regards to the current jobs of digital curators as well as to the future of the profession. The authors briefly discuss the variety of job titles for digital curators in this sector. As the federal government is one of the largest employers in need of professional curators, it is important to identify the needs of federal employers. Identifying these needs can better inform job-hunting digital curators of the skills and knowledge that will make them competitive contenders for available positions.
Brown, S., & Swan, A. (2008). The skills, role, and career structure of data scientists and curators: An assessment of current practice and future needs. Report to the JISC. Joint Information Systems Committee. doi: 10.1.1.147.8960.
This report provides a valuable assessment of the current practices and future needs of the data curator profession. It expands the list of job titles in the field, including data creator, data scientist, data manager, and data librarian, and describes the tasks and roles associated with these titles. The report also provides useful information regarding potential job growth in the field and visits various debates regarding the qualifications required by these positions. The report discusses the need for including more data-related curriculum in LIS programs, as these added skills will entice employers to hire trained information professionals instead of technical professionals, such as computer scientists. Additionally, the report recognizes the need for including data-related curriculum at the undergraduate level. The report identifies the importance of LIS-trained professionals in the expanding field of data-intensive research.
Corrall, S., & Cox, A. M. (2013). Evolving academic library specialties. Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, 64(8), 1526-1542. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/asi.22847.
Corrall and Cox's article is particularly valuable, as it discusses the role of digital curators and research data managers in the academic library field. The authors visit the topic of varying job titles digital curators may assume, and what those different job titles may mean for the work they perform in those roles. Interestingly, the article also discusses the evolution of each of these roles and how they came to encompass certain tasks.
The authors discuss the debate over whether information professionals have the skills to engage with data-driven subjects at such a high-level, referencing suggestions that it may be more efficient to train researchers in digital librarianship. This debate could have significant implications for future job opportunities for digital curators.
Although the article focuses on the academic library field, it also visits the topic of digital curator opportunities outside of LIS. It expands upon the roles of digital curators, suggesting that digital curators should seek involvement in the public sector, perform the role of liaison, and experiment with different research communities.
The authors detail the competencies needed for digital curator positions, including database design, content management, data mining, and programming, which are typically mentioned in digital curator job postings.
Eckhard, M., Rosener, A., & Scripps-Hoekstra, L. (2014). Factors that increase the probability of a successful academic library job search. The Journal of American Librarianship, 40(2), 107-115. Retrieved from http://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/oapsf_articles/16?utm_source=scholarworks.gvsu.edu%2Foapsf_articles%2F16&utm_medium=PDF&utm_campaign=PDFCoverPages.
This article provides useful information about the digital curator job market and job search. The authors conducted a study in which they surveyed a number of recent graduates of LIS programs. From the survey's results, the authors were able to analyze the success of graduates finding work after graduation. The findings of the study emphasized the qualities that employers seem to find most valuable: professional effectiveness, professional development, and service. Candidates with these qualities had significantly higher odds of getting hired. These qualities are fairly generic, and it could be argued that they would be valuable for any LIS graduate looking for work, regardless of their specialization. However, the study's findings do provide insight about the skills and knowledge employers look for when hiring digital curators.
Gandel, P., Kim, Y., Lankes, R., Oakleaf, M., & Stanton, J. (2011). Education for eScience professionals: Job analysis, curriculum guidance, and program considerations. Journal of Education for Library and Information Science, 52(2), 79-94.
This article provides valuable insight about the job market for digital curators in the eScience field. The authors used focus groups and interviews to identify the needs of scientific researchers, and then proposed lists of the necessary knowledge, skills, and abilities of eScience professionals. The authors also consulted graduate-level LIS students who participated in eScience internships to learn more about the areas they work in. These included data management, acting as liaison between technical and non-technical staff, and science-related duties.
As eScience is a rapidly-growing field that is intrinsic to the progress of science and engineering research, the findings and statistics presented by the authors are of great use to this topic.
Kennedy, M. R. (2005). Reformatting preservation departments: The effect of digitization on workload and staff. College & Research Libraries, 66(6), 543-551.
Kennedy's article addresses a problem in the academic digital preservation community: that digitization tasks have significantly increased in recent years, but that there has been no corresponding increase in staffing. Kennedy's argument is supported by digitization effort statistics as well as employment statistics, including those of full-time professionals and support staff. Her findings indicate that librarians are being shifted from their traditional roles in order to support digitization, regardless of their background or training. The article also brings into question whether librarians will prefer to hire professionals with digitization skills, or (if they are in desperate need of help) they will hire professionals without digitization skills and train them later. The article also provides a discussion of how employers are dealing with an increased workload due to digitization, and if this will impact job outlook.
Kouper, I. (2016). Professional participation in digital curation. Library and Information Science Research, 38(3), 212-223. doi: 10.1016/j.lisr.2016.08.009.
Kouper's article is highly valuable as it gives a well-rounded discussion of the role of digital curators and their experiences in the digital curation job market. The author recognizes the need to establish a set of competencies for digital curators seeking work, and proposes a number of suggestions including familiarity with digital technologies and digital curation tools, project management, and interpersonal skills. The author also provides information about the education, experience, and job duties expected of digital curation applicants.
Kouper also provides a helpful explanation of the array of different digital curation job opportunities, drawing attention to fields outside of LIS that digital curators find success in. The author also provides a discussion of the connections between various data-driven positions and traditional LIS positions.
Maata, S. L. (2012). A job by any other name. Library Journal, 137(17), 18.
Maata's study provides an in-depth look at the recent employment trends of LIS graduates. While much of her analysis applies to the generic LIS graduate, Maatta introduces a number of new roles that have emerged in the LIS field, including the roles of data assets manager, digital initiatives librarian, and digital curator. Maatta describes the new responsibilities of these roles, such as managing digital initiatives and workflow and performing data analytics.
Maatta provides valuable statistics regarding job placement at the full-time, temporary, part-time, and professional levels inside and outside of the LIS field. Statistics regarding salaries for different types of positions and information about typical benefits are provided. The author also includes information about the emerging roles in digital curation and digital content management in the LIS field as well as in outside sectors.
National Research Council. (2015). Preparing the workforce for digital curation. National Academies Press. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK293662/.
This paper addresses the digital curation workforce as a continuum, with digital curation specialists on one extreme of the continuum and professionals who consider digital curation as just one part of their work at the other extreme. This paper is highly valuable as it discusses the education and training that are needed for roles at each stage of the continuum. The authors identify the kinds of digital curation education and training that are currently available -- graduate-level degree programs, supplementary academic courses, certificate and guided study programs, online courses, and conferences -- and distinguishes which type of instruction is best for each role on the continuum.
The authors also provide a valuable discussion regarding the digital curation training that should be required for non-specialists, highlighting the importance that even non-specialists should have knowledge of the common problems, goals, methods, and practices of digital curation. The authors provide an outline of what they believe to be the ideal education program to train a digital curation specialist, and also provide suggestions for how certificate or guided study programs can be integrated into preparation programs for other professions that perform digital curation work.
This paper also provides a survey of the available educational opportunities for the variety of roles and specialties that involve digital curation.
Thompson, C. A., Senseney, M., Baker, K. S., Varvel, V. E., & Palmer, C. L. (2013). Specialization in data curation: Preliminary results from an alumni survey, 2008-2012. Proceedings of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, 50(1), 1-4. doi:10.1002/meet.14505001151.
The authors of this article present findings that resulted from a survey of graduate-level students specializing in digital curation. The authors suggest that students with this specialization may have an edge when trying to find jobs in the LIS field. The findings of this study suggest that students with this specialization will likely gain full-time employment with high levels of career satisfaction and opportunities for professional development and growth in the future. This has significant implications for the digital curation job market.
The authors discuss non-library positions that are available to digital curators, providing employment statistics that suggest a large number of digital curators work outside the LIS field. This supports the authors' position that the skills of digital curators are highly transferable.
The article also documents the growth in data curation positions, indicating that LIS students with this specialization will likely find employment opportunities in the future.
Digital Curation: Essential Professional Skills by Jessica Lucian Rathbun
Definition of Project
The purpose of this project was to locate, identify, and analyze scholarly articles, about the requisite skills of professional digital curators. This project was constructed, for the benefit of library and information science (LIS) students and professionals; it will enable LIS students and professionals to better understand what is/will be expected of them, in environments where digital curation (DC) occurs. Topics that the reader will encounter center on DC skills, in relation to: types of LIS environments, staff compositions, the scope of programs, roles & responsibilities, frequency of task occurrence, non-traditional tasks, dual roles (like archivist/librarian), domain-specific data, and insourcing & outsourcing tasks. The boundaries of my literature selection were relatively straightforward: I only analyzed literature that is scholarly; and, most of the articles were written, within the last five years.
Annotations
Atkins, W., Goethals, A., Kussmann, C., Phillips, M., & Vardigan, M. (2013). Staffing for effective digital preservation: a NDSA report. NDSA Standards and Practices Working Group. Retrieved
This report was written by Winston Atkins (Preservation Officer, Duke University), Andrea Goethals (Manager of Digital Preservation and Repository Services, Harvard University), Carol Kussmann (Digital Preservation Analyst, University of Minnesota Libraries), Meg Phillips (External Affairs Liaison, The National Archives, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill), and Mary Vardigan (Retired Archivist and Assistant Director at ICPSR, University of Michigan). This publication represents the results of a survey that was crafted and distributed to “85 institutions with a mandate to preserve digital content” (p. 2). The researchers were interested to learn about DC staff compositions, the scope of their DC programs, and the requisite skills needed to manage them (now, and in the future). DC students and professionals should note that a third of respondents did not have a “dedicated digital preservation department” (p. 13); that finding suggests that DC is currently perceived (by some) as auxiliary. Respondents who did not have a DC department designated DC tasks to their libraries, archives, or IT departments, instead. In the future, participating institutions anticipate a strong need to hire content analysts, software developers, data managers, and electronic records archivists, respectively (p. 15). The fact that content analysts hold (future) first place is in alignment with the findings of Nielsen & Hjørland (2014), Tammaro (2016), and (to a degree) Lee et al. (2016) (see below). Readers who are under the impression that most institutions prefer to digitize in-house may be shocked to learn that digitization is the most outsourced DC “function” (and, of those institutions who do not outsource it, digitization is the top function that they wish they could outsource) (p. 12).
Choi, Y., & Rasmussen, E. (2009). What qualifications and skills are important for digital librarian positions in academic libraries? A job advertisement analysis. Journal of Academic Librarianship,
- 35(5), 457-467. doi: 10.1016/j.acalib.2009.06.003
This article was written by Youngok Choi (LIS Associate Professor and Chair, Catholic University of America), and Edie Rasmussen (LIS Director and Professor, University of British Columbia). Choi and Rasmussen worked together to investigate the changing nature of essential knowledge, regarding academic librarianship, in light of the digital age. They gathered academic librarians’ “job requirements and qualifications” data, from the College and Research Libraries News, from the years 1999-2007 (p. 458). While LIS students and professionals will find their analysis quite useful, it is regrettable that only one data source was utilized; a larger data pool would have produced more generalizable results. Table 3. (p. 460) shows the value of digital preservation skills, based on job titles; and Table 6 (p. 461) shows the value of technical knowledge. But, reader, you will find Tables 7-10 (pp. 462-464) to be of enormous value, as they contain information about required skills and experience that include not only digital curation and preservation, but, also, the other skills required of LIS digital curators and preservationists (e.g., project management skills, scholarly activity, and grant writing).
Kouper, I., Akers, K., & Lavin, M. (2013). Data curators at work: focus on projects and experiences. Bulletin of the Association for Information Science and Technology, 40(1), 45-46. doi:
- 10.1002/bult.2013.1720400113
This article was written by Inna Kouper (Assistant Research Scientist, Data to Insight Center, Indiana University, Bloomington), Katherine Akers (Biomedical Research and Data Specialist, Shiffman Medical Library, Wayne State University), and Matthew Lavin (Associate Program Coordinator, Crossing Boundaries, St. Lawrence University). In 2013, Kouper, Akers, and Lavin were all postdoctoral fellows, at the CLIR/DLF (Council on Library and Information Resources/Digital Library Federation). They crafted this article, to juxtapose the ways in which they contributed to digital curation, during their fellowships. This article is important, because each author describes digital curation differently, based on their individual projects, and the skills that were required to complete them.
Kouper, I. (2016). Professional participation in digital curation. Library & Information Science Research, 38(3), 212-223. doi: 10.1016/j.lisr.2016.08.009
This article was written by Inna Kouper (Assistant Research Scientist, Data to Insight Center, Indiana University, Bloomington). Kouper was motivated to conduct this study, by a gap in digital curation literature; normally, scholarly articles (on DC) take a top-down approach, in that they are curriculum-building and expert-driven (p. 212). Conversely, Kouper’s approach is bottom-up; she surveyed people who are doing-the-thing (mainly, in university archives, university libraries, and university departments). She includes three tables and ten figures, to illustrate her data, some of which include: DC activities and their frequencies (Figure 7., p. 217), and rated importance of DC skills and experience levels (Table 2., p. 218). Beyond the exceptional quality of her data, however, is the way in which she delivers it. Kouper is a master author, as well as a master researcher. After finishing this article, you will want to download it and reference it, repeatedly.
Lee, C. A., Allard, S., McGovern, N., & Bishop, A. (2016). Open data meets digital curation: an investigation of practices and needs. International Journal of Digital Curation, 11(2), 115-125. doi:
- 10.2218/ijdc.v11i2.403
This article was written by Christopher A. Lee (LIS Professor, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill), Suzie Allard (Associate Dean for Research, Director of the Center for Information & Communication Studies, LIS Professor, University of Tennessee, Knoxville), Nancy McGovern (Digital Preservation Program leader, MIT Libraries), and Alice Bishop (Senior Program Officer, Council on Library and Information Resources). Lee et al. conducted this study to analyze mandates about open access to federally-funded scientific data/studies; the skills that digital curators have/need to assist the scientific community in their compliance; and, the gaps in DC education and readiness, in that regard. The information generated by this study would be valuable to anyone who intends to curate data, in the scientific community, and to those who intend to curate data, in the academic community. According to Lee et al., curatorial collaboration with academia is essential to the goals of the scientific community, in their quest to comply with federal mandates (p. 124). DC students and professionals will appreciate the “nine high-level findings” (pp. 121-123) of this study, as many essential DC skills are highlighted (some are intuitive—but, many are not).
Lee, C. A., & Tibbo, H. (2011). Where’s the archivist in digital curation? Exploring the possibilities through a matrix of knowledge and skills. Archivaria, 72, 123-168.
This article was written by Christopher A. Lee (LIS Professor, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill), and Helen Tibbo (LIS Professor, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill). Lee and Tibbo were motivated to answer two questions: “What knowledge and competencies do professionals need in order to perform digital curation work? What can and should be the roles of archivists in digital curation?” (p. 124). What makes this research great is that Lee and Tibbo gathered their data, using a wide variety of methods (e.g., interviews, participant observation, and surveys). Their product consists of a matrix, with six dimensions. Each dimension contains numerous requisite skills, for the practice of digital curation. The latter part of the article identifies where the archivist fits, within digital curation.
Manning, M., & Silva, J. (2012). Dual Archivist/Librarians: balancing the benefits and challenges of diverse responsibilities. College & Research Libraries, 73(2), 164-181.
This article was written by Mary Manning (Assistant Archivist and DiSC Digital Collections Coordinator, Texas A&M University), and Judy Silva (Librarian and Archivist, Slippery Rock University). Manning and Silva worked together to bridge a gap in LIS literature: identifying the responsibilities, benefits, and challenges of LIS professionals who have dual archivist/librarian roles. They collected their data, via survey, through the Society of American Archivists. The results are important to digital curators, because it was found that LIS professionals with dual archivist/librarian roles perform more digital curation activities than those who are strictly archivists. Table 1. (p. 169), and Figure 1. (p. 170) represent the most important information. Consulting the Appendix is highly advised.
Nielsen, H. J., & Hjørland, B. (2014). Curating research data: the potential roles of libraries and information professionals. Journal of Documentation, 70(2), 221-240. doi:
- 10.1108/JD-03-2013-0034
This article was written by Hans Nielsen (LIS Associate Professor, Royal School of Library and Information Science, Aalborg, Denmark), and Birger Hjørland (LIS Professor, Royal School of Library and Information Science, Copenhagen, Denmark). Nielsen and Hjørland (like Lee et al., 2016) designed their study to investigate the degree to which information professionals can effectively aid in curating digital output from the scientific community. However, (unlike Lee et al., 2016) their driving question centered on the appropriateness of LIS-curated scientific data. Nielsen and Hjørland asked, “to what degree is data curation a natural extension of the traditional roles of research libraries?” (p. 223). Their promise to weigh the similarities/differences and pros/cons was only partially met, as it was clear (to this reader) that they vehemently disapproved of the notion of LIS-curated scientific data; only content specialists/analysts are fit for that work. Instead, Nielsen and Hjørland advocate for LIS facilitation/moderation, between scientific data creators and domain-specific specialists/analysts. To be clear, this article was included to provide juxtaposition; Lee et al. (2016) is too bold to stand without challenge.
Pryor, G., & Donnelly, M. (2009). Skilling up to do data: whose role, whose responsibility, whose career? International Journal of Digital Curation, 4(2), 158-170. doi:10.2218/ijdc.v4i2.105
This article was written by Graham Pryor (former Associate Director, Digital Curation Centre), and Martin Donnelly (Senior Institutional Support Officer, Digital Curation Centre). Pryor and Donnelly sought to better clarify the roles and responsibilities of individuals in the digital curation world—all of which are currently blurred. While they did well to divide the DC world into appropriate quarters: data creator, data scientist (i.e., analyst), data manager (i.e., information scientist), and data librarian, they did not accomplish their mission to separate them, by responsibilities/duties. Figure 1. Core Skills for Data Management (p. 165) goes a long way toward illustrating why that is so: there is too much overlap. Pryor and Donnelly’s remedy: crisp delineation, beginning at university.
Tammaro, A. M. (2016). Heritage curation in the Digital Age: professional challenges and opportunities. International Information & Library Review, 48(2), 122-128. doi:
- 10.1080/10572317.2016.1176454
This article was written by Anna Maria Tammaro (Professor of Engineering, Computer Science, and Information Science, University of Parma, Italy). Tammaro takes the position that the digital curator is transforming “from passive curator to active appraiser to societal mediator to community facilitator” (as cited in Tammaro, p. 127). She opens and closes with those social/community themes, in an effort to prod those of us in the DC world to up our outreach and collaboration skills. However, the body of her article centers on the incremental evanescence of traditional LIS roles, amid the wobbly, tentative steps of LIS digital curators. Like Atkins et al. (2013) and Lee et al. (2016), Tammaro advises DC students to become proficient in a specific scholarly domain, so that they can use their DC skills within it (e.g., a scientific or social sciences domain).
Digital Curation: Educating Future Digital Curators in Library and Information Science Schools by Nicole J. Williams
Definition of Project
This project explores courses, degrees, and certificate programs in digital curation, as well as those that fit under the digital curation umbrella such as data curation and digital preservation. Some papers also use the alternative term of "digital stewardship." Since digital curation is still in its infancy, many articles find a lack of consensus on the topics covered in these courses. The importance of hands-on learning experiences is emphasized in most of the articles. A few articles discuss digital curation laboratories, both physical and virtual, that add a hands-on element to courses in digital curation. The articles and papers were selected with the goal of being written at least within the past ten years to create an up-to-date resource. The oldest article selected is from 2010. Many articles came from a search of EBSCO's Library and Information Science Full Text database. Some articles were found by using Google Scholar to look for more recent articles that cited some of the best-fitting articles found in EBSCO. The articles selected were the best found by the author that discussed digital curation degree and certificate programs and courses.
Annotations
Bastian, J. A., Cloonan, M. V., & Harvey, R. (2011). From teacher to learner to user: developing a digital stewardship pedagogy. Library Trends, 59(4), 607-622. doi: 10.1353/lib.2011.0012
Since digital stewardship education is still in its early stages, there is a lot of
room for experimentation and innovation in the methods and practices of teaching this topic, according to Bastian et al. The authors examine digital stewardship education practices by looking at courses in digital stewardship offered by library and information science (LIS) schools around the world, ending with a case study on Simmons College’s Digital Curation Laboratory (DCL). This was done by examining course catalogs. They found in 2009 that 11 schools with archival programs offered digital preservation courses, and several schools without an archival program also offered digital preservation courses. This is a significant increase from the 2004 study, which found only one school that offered a digital preservation course. Amongst these courses, the authors found a growing consensus of the topics covered in these courses. The topics included the Open Archival Information System (OAIS) Reference Model, multiple formats, processes, and best practices. The courses used a variety of different readings rather than a core set, which the authors took as a sign of the continuing development of digital stewardship education. The authors found that many of the courses lack a broader focus on digital stewardship, and do not cover topics such as long-term sustainability in terms of organizations and infrastructure, the history of digital archives, and user needs. As a case study, the authors discuss Simmons College's Digital Curriculum Laboratory (DCL), which was in development at the time the article was written, and examine how it will be integrated with digital stewardship courses at Simmons College. The DCL will address some of the things the authors found lacking in digital stewardship education, as well as enable Simmons College to add hands-on, real-world simulation exercises in their courses.
Cloonan, M. V. & Mahard, M. R. (2010). Collaborative approaches to teaching digital stewardship: classroom, laboratory, and internships. Proceedings from IFLA-ALISE-Euclid Satellite Conference August 8-9, 2010, Borås, Sweden: Cooperation and Collaboration in Teachings and Research: Trends in LIS Education. Retrieved from: http://euclid-lis.eu/conferences/index/IFLA2010/IFLA2010/paper/view/4/3
This paper describes a new approach to teaching digital stewardship and explores how collaborations could advance the field. The authors begin by looking at Simmons College’s courses which have an emphasis on digital stewardship’s convergence in cultural heritage: Concepts in Cultural Heritage Informatics, Digital Stewardship, and Practicum for Cultural Heritage Informatics. These courses were designed to be used with the Digital Curriculum Laboratory (DCL) and project-based experiences at their partner sites. The DCL is a collaboration between Simmons College, five other LIS schools, and seven New England area cultural institutions, such as Historic New England and the Connecticut Historical Society. The goal of the DCL is to provide hands-on experience for LIS students. Preliminary findings from students that have used the DCL as of the writing of this article indicate that students with hands-on experience in digital stewardship in the DCL are better prepared to enter the field.
Franks, P. (2016). Enterprise content management and digital preservation online education: a case study. In S. Moffett & B. Galbraith (Eds.), Proceedings of the 17th European Conference on Knowledge Management September 1-2, 2016, Belfast, Northern Ireland: European Conference on Knowledge Management (pp. 266-274). Reading, U.K.: Academic Conferences and Publishing International Ltd.
Patricia Franks outlines the Enterprise Content Management and Digital Preservation course at San Jose State University as a model for other digital curation courses. The course was designed to train Master of Archives and Records Administration students on the records and information lifecycle concept and provide them with practical experience with the software most commonly used by prospective employers. The title of the course uses the word “enterprise” to cover a wide variety of organizations such as libraries, government offices, or businesses. The course was created with J. Morgan’s seven principles that comprise the way future employees will work. In designing the course, the faculty of San Jose State University had to overcome two main challenges: 1.) which software to use for an online course, and 2.) how to build connections between students in an online environment to create a sense of community. The resulting course addressed both of these challenges. Canvas was chosen as the Learning Management System, with Blackboard Collaborate used for web conferences. The faculty selected some of the most commonly used proprietary software by employers such as Microsoft Office 365, SharePoint, and Preservica with the Universal Access feature to make collections public through WordPress. These applications were made available to the students through an online license, and students could opt to download the software onto their own computers. This added a strong hands-on element to the course. In order to overcome some of the drawbacks of online education, one of the goals was for students to interact with and support each other, creating a community of practice. Web conferences, social media, and a blog were used to create a community of practice. Franks states that “Learning takes place when academic content is not only presented but understood by the learner; this requires authentic assignments,” (p. 270). These assignments included creating short and long-term retention requirements for a series of digital objects, migrating digital objects into a preservation format, a mid-term paper on a topic related to international standards, and a final group projects of ingesting student-created digital objects into Preservica. With the midterm project, the faculty realized the students could engage with the material more if they were allowed to substitute the mid-term research paper for a project they created. These projects had to be approved by the instructor and the student and instructor had to agree on the grading rubric. The students created projects such as a wiki, a SharePoint site, a video, a tutorial, and an infographic. The author found that the success of the students demonstrates the suitability of this model for students who also hold full-time positions.
Fulton, B., Botticelli, P., & Bradley, J. (2011). DigIn: a hands-on approach to a digital curation curriculum for professional development. Journal of Education for Library & Information Science, 52(2), 95-109.
Fulton, Botticelli, and Bradley describe the development of a graduate certificate program in Digital Information Management (DigIn) at the University of Arizona School of Information Resources and Library Science (SIRLS) from 2005 to 2010. The DigIn graduate certificate program was designed specifically for information professionals currently in the field to “gain an essential level of fluency or literacy with the advanced technologies needed for curation” and to “instill the sense of confidence and self-efficacy necessary to become self-directed technological learners,” (p. 97). To reach working information professionals across the United States, the program was offered virtually. Six courses were created for the program: Introduction to Digital Collections, Introduction to Applied Technology, Managing the Digital Environment, Preservation of Digital Collections, Advanced Digital Collections, and DigIn Capstone. The courses require weekly reflections by all students and have a heavy hands-on component. In order to give students hands-on experience, a virtual lab was created. The virtual lab went through a couple of phases. Initially, students had to get a second physical computer that they installed and configured server components in a home network. This was difficult for students just learning about servers. Eventually, they settled on local virtualization, where a virtualization software was installed on the student’s computer using VMWare. This solution allows students to explore several different server technologies and networking fundamentals. There are two main drawbacks to this solution: students have to install complex virtual machines on their own and there is no easy way for students to share work or work collaboratively. So far, students have generally been happy with the second solution, the main complaint being the slow speed of remote desktop applications. The preliminary results of the DigIn program are positive. By fall 2010, 200 students had been admitted to the DigIn program, most of whom are working professionals. Some students are SIRLS master’s students working on both an MLIS and the DigIn certificate simultaneously. By the time the article was written, all graduates of the program so far were working in some capacity with digital curation or in positions with an emphasis in technology.
Harris-Pierce, R. L. & Liu, Y. Q. (2012). Is data curation education at library and information schools in North America adequate? New Library World, 113, 598-613. doi: 10.1108/03074801211282957
Harris-Pierce and Liu surveyed library and information schools' (LIS) websites to examine the number and types of data curation courses offered in North America to determine if the amount of courses offered in North America is adequate to meet the demand for data curation professionals. The authors examined course names, how often they are offered, what level (graduate, doctoral, etc.), degrees or certificates offered, syllabi, textbooks used, and course descriptions. They found that out of 52 LIS schools in North America, only 16 institutions offer courses on data curation. Several schools have pioneered some digital data curation programs and courses. The authors found that no two courses offered on data curation/digital curation were the same and no two courses covered exactly the same topics. Most courses had hands-on activities and a final project. The authors conclude that although there is an increase in the number of data curation courses, but is unclear if LIS schools are keeping pace with the increasing need for skilled professionals. It is clear, however, that more data curation courses are needed. The authors recommend that LIS schools should continue to work with each other to determine the optimal course objectives and learning outcomes so that the courses offered at different schools cover most of the same material.
Long, C. (2011). Developing and implementing a master of archival studies program: a collaborative effort of a state university, a state archives, and the national archives and records administration. Journal of Education for Library & Information Science, 52(2), 110-121.
Long discusses the planning and implementation of the Master of Archival Studies program at Clayton State University (CSU). One of the issues addressed in the creation of the program was the need to educate digital archivists. To create this program, CSU collaborated with the nearby Georgia Archives (GA) and the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) Southeast Region. The advisory committee, which consisted of members from all three organizations, insisted that a broad range of technological skills and approaches to digital preservation of information be included throughout the curriculum. In order to fit with the technology focus, the program was housed within the Department of Information Technology in the College of Mathematical and Information Science. The skills covered in the courses included spreadsheet and database concepts and applications, reference management software, metadata, operating systems, and security. All students in the program begin by taking courses in spreadsheets and databases, which lays the foundation for assignments in the rest of their coursework. Technology was incorporated into all courses in the program. Local archivists have also been drawn in to periodically teach courses. Another aspect incorporated in each course is a service-learning project, which can be of varying length and is done at nearby archival organizations, including GA and NARA. One of the goals of these projects is for students to gain an understanding of the technological skills needed in the field. After four years, the author concludes that the program has been successful in meeting its goals. The collaboration with local archival organization has been one of the keys to its success.
Ortiz-Repiso Jimenez, V., Greenberg, J., & Calzada-Prado, J. (2017). Dialoging about data with the iSchools: exploring curricula trends. Journal of Information Science. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1177/0165551510000000
This paper seeks to answer the question ". . . how are iSchools responding to the need for a data competent workforce?" (p. 1). iSchools are a consortium of information schools whose goal is to advance the information field. These schools come from a variety of backgrounds such as library and information science, archives, computer science, and social informatics. Ortiz-Repiso Jimenez et al. examined 65 iSchools worldwide to analyze the course and degree offerings in data science/big data/data analytics and digital curation/digital preservation. They found that data related degrees were offered more in iSchools in the United States and other English-speaking countries. The number of digital curation degrees offered were similar between Europe and the United States. They also found that data related degrees are more interdisciplinary than digital curation degrees. There are relatively few digital curation degrees offered in the United States – only 7 iSchools offered them. The variety of disciplines across the iSchools has resulted in different levels of data education. The authors made three suggestions for iSchools to excel in training information professionals: leverage interdisciplinary, publish curriculum, and track graduate success.
Plum, T., Bastian, J., Harvey, R., & Mahard, M. (2010). Cultural heritage informatics and the GSLIS digital curriculum laboratory: a cyberlearning platform for the evaluation of digital asset management systems in the context of student learning outcomes: a progress report. In S. Hiller, K. Justh, M. Kyrillidou, & J. Self (Eds.), Proceedings of the 2010 Library Assessment Conference: Building Effective, Sustainable, Practical Assessment (pp. 653-661). Retrieved from http://libraryassessment.org/bm~doc/proceedings-lac-2010.pdf#page=667
Plum et al. discuss the progress the Digital Curriculum Laboratory (DCL) as part of Simmons College’s Graduate School of Library and Information Science (GSLIS). The DCL is “an organized, open, non-proprietary digital space providing integrated access to digital content, content-management tools, standards, curriculum-based scenarios, and a workspace for learning modules tied to class outcomes,” (p. 653). The DCL was created to provide GSLIS students with hands-on learning with real-world systems and tools, supporting the courses. It allows students to build their problem-solving and evaluation skills. The DCL has two staff members, but it is not a physical lab – it is a virtual one hosted on two physical Mac servers and two virtual Linux servers. Since it is designed to be shared, it is limited to using open source applications. The DCL allows for scenarios to be built as part of coursework. The scenarios include preservation, records management, and evaluating metadata standards. The scenarios also allow for faculty to assess student learning outcomes. The DCL is flexible, allowing for new content, tools, and scenarios to be added as they evolve. The DCL is constantly being evaluated as to its usefulness with courses, but is not far along enough to be evaluated as its own entity at the time the article was written.
Si, L., Zhuang, X., Xing, W., & Guo, W. (2013). The cultivation of scientific data specialists: development of LIS education oriented to e-science service requirements. Library Hi Tech, 31(4), 700-724. doi: 10.1108/LHT-06-2013-0070
In light of the need for e-Science data managers and curators in China and around the world, Si et al. examine the skills and education needed for scientific data specialists. They begin by examining educational programs offered around the world, notably library and information (LIS) school programs and courses. Out of 38 iSchools examined, they found 25 offered scientific data courses. They also examined the courses offered by level (undergraduate, graduate, etc.), title, credits, and keywords. They then compared the programs and courses with job postings for scientific data management positions. They found that the focus of the courses was on things like basic data curation and using data curation tools, while the job postings focused more on communication and interpersonal skills needed for dealing with users. From their findings, they wrote up best practices for setting up LIS programs and courses in scientific data curation in China, although it could be used anywhere. For a master’s in scientific data curation, they recommended that students should earn at least 40 credit hours, including both required and elective classes. The master’s thesis should be 8 credit hours, and there should be an internship of 2 credit hours. The main curriculum should include topics such as policy, user requirements analysis, data intellectual property, e-Science requirements, technologies and methods, data curation, metadata, management theory and methods, and data statistics. They recommended a certificate program in scientific data curation for academic librarians and researchers, which would include topics such as database specialization, digital curation, management of scientific data, data visualization, and general systems management. They also advocate adding courses in scientific data management in LIS schools.
Yakel, E., Conway, P., Hedstrom, M., & Wallace, D. (2011). Digital curation for digital natives. Journal of Education for Library & Information Science, 52(1), 23-31.
Yakel et al. discuss developing a strong digital curation curriculum for the generation most commonly known as millennials - the first generation to be digital natives. They begin by mentioning that although millennials have grown up with technology "many do not possess the information literacy skills or strategies for learning with technology or learning how to learn new technologies," (p. 23). In developing the curriculum at the University of Michigan’s School of Information for the Preservation of Information MLIS specialization, they focused on courses, internships, and technological infrastructure. They developed nine courses for the specialization: Preserving Information, Advanced Preservation Administration, Digital Preservation, Web Archiving, Digitization for Preservation, Preserving Sound and Motion, Economics of Sustainable Digital Preservation, Physical Treatment Processes for Preservation Administrators, and Science/Social Science Data Curation. These courses to provide general introductions, more detailed knowledge, and introduce students to curation. The courses also covered the managerial, structural, technical, and financial issues of digital curation, with an emphasis on active learning. Active learning is incorporated through a combination of lecture and small group discussions or exercises. One of the goals of the courses was to teach students how to evaluate different technologies to use for different situations. The Preservation and Access Virtual Library (PAVEL) was created to give students hands-on experience. They also collaborated with other information organizations to provide learning opportunities and internships. The authors conclude by saying the results of this process are still developing, but there are plans for developing evaluation instruments to examine how well students are learning new tools, archival-curation conceptual frameworks, and meaningful use of the tools to meet classroom learning objectives.
