John Erdmann asks for clarification of my perspective on a variety of issues, such as training versus education, the nature of knowledge, and a number of other matters that have stimulated debate in our field for a century.  I have written a number of essays presenting some of my viewpoints about graduate education, and I list these below for John Erdmann's use (there are some additional essays in my books as well, but I think these essays suffice to present my ideas).  However, I would repeat this one idea -- there is a knowledge supporting archival work; graduate education is the best way to gain a foundation (the only way to acquire a full appreciation) in this knowledge; and not everything can be learned on the job (a graduate foundation, plus experience, plus continuing education, plus a lifetime of keeping up with professional and scholarly literature are what are needed).  Anyway, here are some of my essays, provided because they represent my fuller thoughts about edu!
 cation.


"The Masters of Archival Studies and American Education Standards: An Argument for the  Continued Development of Graduate Archival Education in the United States," Archivaria  36  (Autumn 1993): 221-31.

"The Roles of Graduate and Continuing Education in Preparing Archivists for the Information  Age," American Archivist 56 (Summer 1993): 444-57.

"Continuing Education and Special Collections Professionals: The Need for Rethinking,"  Rare  Books & Manuscripts Librarianship 10, no. 2 (1995): 78-96.

"Advocacy in the Graduate Archives Curriculum: A North American Perspective," Janus no. 1 (1997): 30-41.

"Millennial Thoughts on the Education of Records Professionals,"  Records and Information Management Report 15 (April 1999): 1-16.

"The Society of American Archivists and Graduate Education: Meeting at  the Crossroads," American Archivist 63 (Fall/Winter 2000): 368-379.

With Elizabeth Yakel, David Wallace, Jeannette Bastian, and Jennifer  Marshall, "Archival Education in North American Library and Information  Science Schools: A Status Report," Library Quarterly 71 (April  2001): 141-194. A shorter version was published in the Journal of Education for Library and Information Science  42  (Summer 2001): 228-240.

“Are There Really New Directions and Innovations in Archival Education?”  Archival Science, forthcoming.


--
Richard J. Cox
Professor
Department of Library and Information Sciences
School of Information Sciences
University of Pittsburgh
Editor, Records & Information Management Report
Pittsburgh, PA 15260
Voice:  412-624-3245
FAX:    412-648-7001
e-mail: [log in to unmask]
homepage: http://www2.sis.pitt.edu/%7Ercox/

"What we would like to do is change the world - to make it a little simpler for people to feed, clothe, and shelter themselves as God intended for them to do. And we can change the world: we can work for the oasis, the little cell of joy and peace in a harried world.  We can throw our pebble in the pond and be confident that its ever widening circle will reach around the world." - Dorothy Day 


 -------------- Original message ----------------------
From: John Erdmann <[log in to unmask]>
> Hello again,
> 
> I continue to read with interest the emails on 
> this topic.  Still more emails are coming in to 
> me personally by folks on the list who have 
> concerns but fear speaking their mind in a public 
> forum where current or future supervisors, 
> employers, and/or instructors will read and 
> possibly form a negative assessment of the 
> individual.  This reminds me of a story my mother 
> once told to me, called "The Emperor's New 
> Clothes"...
> 
> Please allow me reply to one paragraph in 
> particular of Richard Cox's recent comments, from 
> his email on this subject dated 6/16.  Let's read 
> it closely and think about its claims.  It may 
> make an interesting intellectual project for our 
> group of well-educated readers.
> 
> Richard Cox writes:
> 
> >There is a right way to become an archivist and 
> >not everything can be learned on the job.
> 
> 
> I reply:
> 
> Is that true?  Even if it is, I gave other 
> avenues that would compliment on-the-job training 
> with qualified mentors, such as attending 
> conferences, self-education, and ultimately, 
> being tested for competency.  So my question to 
> Cox is, "are you saying there is only ONE right 
> way?"  To be a professional lawyer, the 
> California State bar offers several right ways to 
> obtain legal education; only one of which is by 
> way of formal university education.  Would you 
> admit that there are other, equally valid ways of 
> obtaining education, other than through a 
> university graduate program?
> 
> 
> Richard Cox writes:
> 
> >  There is a knowledge to our field (if there is 
> >not, then we are not a discipline) and there is 
> >a need for education (different from training).
> 
> 
> I reply:
> 
> There is knowledge in every field, to include 
> plumbing, baseball, and stamp collecting!  Should 
> all fields of knowledge require demonstrated 
> competency, as evidenced with an advanced degree? 
> If not, then which ones should?  Also, how do you 
> differentiate education from training?  This is 
> crucial for understanding the following passages.
> 
> 
> Richard Cox writes:
> 
> >   As two recent observers about higher education 
> >have noted, ìTo succeed in education is not to 
> >succeed in what one sets out to do, or even to 
> >succeed in doing whatever is within the realm of 
> >possibility; success means to succeed in doing 
> >something worth doing.î (James Engell and 
> >Anthony Dangerfield, Saving Higher Education in 
> >the Age of Money [Charlottesville: University of 
> >Virginia Press, 2005], p. 128]
> 
> 
> I reply:
> 
> So, you are saying here that to succeed in 
> education is to succeed in doing something worth 
> doing.  That would translate into this: 
> Education = Something Worth Doing.  Hmmmm....I'm 
> not quite sure what the point of this statement 
> is.
> 
> 
> Richard Cox finishes this paragraph with the following:
> 
> >   We need education, not merely apprenticeship, 
> >credentialing, practical information, etc., 
> >because the archival mission is important to 
> >society (and, actually, there is quite a range 
> >to salaries for such positions).
> 
> 
> I reply:
> 
> So you are saying that education is different 
> from apprenticeships, credentialing, and 
> practical information.  Could you explain that 
> difference?  It is my experience that a 
> university education is just ONE particular 
> option for becoming educated.  Are you asserting 
> that we need that particular form of education 
> (the type that universities offer) because the 
> archival mission is so important?  Could you 
> demonstrate the validity of that claim?
> 
> I'm sorry for appearing dense, but I failed to 
> find much substance in the paragraph.  Please 
> know that I'm quite willing to be persuaded to 
> your position if the argument presented is 
> compelling.
> 
> Here was my original question: Must that 
> education and training come in the form of 
> advanced degrees at expensive universities, or 
> could it come from the within the work 
> environment, study on one's own, and at 
> conferences?
> 
> We have become a society that demands more and 
> more formalized credentials for obtaining entry 
> level employment.  If we really want to demand a 
> level of demonstrated competency, then why not 
> simply require passing a test, similar to the bar 
> exam?  This would allow bright and dedicated 
> college graduates to study on their own, work 
> within the field, and develop competency through 
> hands on experience.
> 
> 
> Thanks for your time,
> John
> 
> 
> 
> PS....Here is Richard Cox's complete paragraph:
> 
> There is a right way to become an archivist and 
> not everything can be learned on the job.  There 
> is a knowledge to our field (if there is not, 
> then we are not a discipline) and there is a need 
> for education (different from training).  As two 
> recent observers about higher education have 
> noted, ìTo succeed in education is not to succeed 
> in what one sets out to do, or even to succeed in 
> doing whatever is within the realm of 
> possibility; success means to succeed in doing 
> something worth doing.î (James Engell and Anthony 
> Dangerfield, Saving Higher Education in the Age 
> of Money [Charlottesville: University of Virginia 
> Press, 2005], p. 128]  We need education, not 
> merely apprenticeship, credentialing, practical 
> information, etc., because the archival mission 
> is important to society (and, actually, there is 
> quite a range to salaries for such positions).
> -- 
> John Erdmann
> Graduate Student
> Library & Information Science
> Email:  [log in to unmask]
> Phone:  206-685-5240
> 
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A posting from the Archives & Archivists LISTSERV List sponsored by the Society of American Archivists, www.archivists.org.
For the terms of participation, please refer to http://www.archivists.org/listservs/arch_listserv_terms.asp.

To subscribe or unsubscribe, send e-mail to [log in to unmask]
      In body of message:  SUB ARCHIVES firstname lastname
                    *or*:  UNSUB ARCHIVES
To post a message, send e-mail to [log in to unmask]

Or to do *anything* (and enjoy doing it!), use the web interface at
     http://listserv.muohio.edu/archives/archives.html

Problems?  Send e-mail to Robert F Schmidt <[log in to unmask]>