For the November edition of the Teaching SIG Blog, the team has collected some links for readers interested in learning more about what teaching with primary sources has been like in an online/remote environment. This includes blog posts and articles, conference sessions and recordings, and some more traditionally scholarly sources for in-depth reading.
Did you write something or share out a presentation that would be helpful to add to this list? Please don’t hesitate to contact us!
Blog Posts and Online Articles:
- “Teaching with primary sources during a pandemic: A digital cabinet of curiosities” by: Jason Nargis, Special Collections Librarian for Instruction & Curriculum, Northwestern University Library (May 2020):
https://sites.northwestern.edu/northwesternlibrary/2020/05/13/teaching-with-primary-sources-during-a-pandemic-a-digital-cabinet-of-curiosities/ - “Out of the archives, onto Zoom: Some early notes on teaching online with special collections in a time of quarantine” by: Michael Morrand, Communications Director, Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Yale University (April 2020):
https://beinecke.library.yale.edu/outofthearchivesontozoom
This post discusses how there is still a need for instruction with special collections even in the time of Covid, reinforcing the necessity of library instruction for teaching and learning. - “Getting Started Teaching with Document Cameras and Original Primary Sources” by: Heather Smedberg, Reference & Instruction Coordinator, Special Collections & Archives, UC San Diego (July 2019):
https://tpscollective.org/notes-from-the-field/getting-started-teaching-with-document-cameras-and-original-primary-sources/
Notes from the Field – Practice How-To Series highlights practical lessons from the front lines of teaching with primary sources in thematic series of open peer-reviewed articles. It is maintained by the TPS Collective (Teaching with Primary Sources).
Colloquiums + and Recorded Presentations:
- (Colloquium) “The Virtual Materiality of Texts: Book History during a Pandemic” (November 2020): https://history.princeton.edu/news-events/events/colloquium-virtual-materiality-texts-book-history-during-pandemic
Panel l: “Learning and Teaching through the Screen”
Panel 2: “Closed Archives, Open Access”
The purpose of this one-day colloquium is to provide the basis for discussion among scholars of book, manuscript and media history about the status of the field during this moment of difficulty in accessing archival resources, and to share experiences and ideas for teaching and research with material texts in the time of Covid-19. - (Unconference) “Teaching with Primary Sources” (July & August 2020):
https://tpscollective.org/events-and-opportunities/tps-unconference-2020/
Sessions of interest may include:
1C: Co-instruction (librarian/archivist/faculty collaborating)
1F: Brainstorming on ideas for conveying materiality/physicality in a virtual environment
2A: Tech Tools Demos
2B: Teaching with digital collections and online resources
2C: Asynchronous learning objects – how do we make ’em good? - (Recorded Presentation) “Collecting Pandemic Histories: Experiences of Underrepresented Communities” by: Elvia Arroyo-Ramirez (Assistant University Archivist) and Thuy Vo Dang (Curator for the South East Asian Archive, University of California Irvine (June 2020): https://tinyurl.com/oralhistorypandemic
Check out this recorded presentation to learn more about documenting or archiving your own experiences or the experiences of your communities during this COVID-19 pandemic.
Academic Articles and Case Studies:
- “Teaching with Primary Sources Remotely” by Kaitlin Springmier (August 2020):
https://www2.archivists.org/sites/all/files/TWPSCase_15_Teaching_With_Primary_Sources_Remotely.pdf
A case study via the Society of American Archivists Case Studies on Teaching with Primary Sources. - “Teaching with Digital Primary Sources: Literacies, Finding and Evaluating, Citing, Ethics, and Existing Models” by Brianna Gormly, Maura Seale, Hannah Alpert-Abrams, Andi Gustavson, Angie Kemp, Thea Lindquist, and Alexis Logsdon (October 2019): https://doi.org/10.21428/65a6243c.6b419f2b
This white paper explores the opportunities and challenges of teaching with digital primary sources, including relevant literacies and issues in finding, evaluating, and citing digital primary sources, emphasizing ethical use and concluding with existing models for teaching. - McPeek, Melinda, Jennifer Piegols, and Ian Post. 2020. “Reconceptualizing the Classroom: An Immersive Digital Primary Source Exercise During COVID-19.” Museum and Society 18 (3): 337–40. https://doi.org/10.29311/mas.v18i3.3534.
The Nabb Research Center for Delmarva History and Culture is part of the Libraries at Salisbury University and serves as a campus humanities research laboratory. With the closure of the University campus in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, staff and faculty quickly transitioned to online instruction. In response, Nabb Center staff initiated several activities including virtual classroom projects, online exhibits, and the creation of a COVID-19 collection. These activities unexpectedly presented our organization with new opportunities to expand our engagement within the University and broader community and will have a lasting impact on our instruction and outreach beyond the pandemic.
Post by: Jenna Dufour, Research Librarian for Visual Arts, UC Irvine
Image Sources (as of 11/24/2020):
1: Ula Kuźma via Unsplash (free high quality photos): https://unsplash.com/photos/9i4DHlC80AQ.
2: Phyllis Klotman with Frances Stubbs and Gloria Gibson at the Black Film Center/Archive in 1986 via New York Times.
3: Student librarian arranging a doll in a display case in Denison Library, Scripps College, 1960, via Calisphere: https://calisphere.org/item/f0567e4c70ed46934e53b19791388066.