SLIS Curriculum Committee Recommendation

This form is used by the SLIS Curriculum Committee to document and recommend course changes, additions and modifications to the SLIS Academic Council and SLIS School Council for approval. Approved by SLIS School Council October 22, 2013.

Date: Friday September 27, 2013

Type of Change: [X] NEW COURSE* [ ] EXISTING COURSE [ ] COURSE DELETION

CALENDAR COPY

CURRENT

Calendar Section Number §[ ]

(Use strike out for all changes)

PROPOSED

Calendar Section Number §[231.168]

(Underline all additions)

LIS 508: Information Technologies in LIS Environments

*3 (fi 6) (either term, 3-0-0). An introduction to and a critical examination of a range of information technologies relevant to diverse library and information settings.

Course title:

LIS 508 Information Technologies in LIS Environments

Recommendation:

That this new course be assigned a permanent number (LIS 508); be a required course for all MLIS students; and be placed in the University Calendar.

Rationale

1) The core MLIS courses (501, 502, 503, 504, 505) serve as the foundation for all MLIS classes offered and provide students with the core competencies required for library and information work; however, while these courses deal in part with information technologies, there exists no core course that provides students an overview of the range of information technologies in LIS. By adding a core course on information technologies students will have exposure to a broad range of information technologies that they will encounter in professional practice. The course has been designed to provide a survey of the wide varieties of information technologies that librarians and information professionals must have an understanding of to succeed and excel in a diversity of work environments.

Calendar Changes 2014-2015

2) The SLIS Program Level Learning Outcomes and School Goals (2011-15) serve as an

important reflection of the School’s values and mission and identify the range of skills and

competencies that the MLIS graduates will possess. LIS 508, as proposed, further enables SLIS

to ensure these outcomes and goals will be met. More importantly, this course directly supports

School Goal 4 and Program Level Learning Outcome 9. School Goal 4 states:

We will foster and nurture adventurous and critical adapters, adopters, and creators of

innovative technologies, while continuing to respect and honour historic and bibliographic

traditions of the evolving cultural record.

Program Level Learning Outcome 9 declares students will:

examine the impact, importance, and limitations of technologies in personal, professional, and

social contexts as well as in library and information studies settings.

Objective: students will understand current information technology as an integral part of the

operations and services of libraries and information agencies.

Although existing MLIS courses including the IT electives support these objectives, the addition

of this course as a required course will ensure that students are ideally prepared to meet the

goals and learning outcomes. Furthermore, the course’s focus on a critical understanding of the

role of information technologies will help ensure that MLIS graduates are well prepared to be

critical adapters and adopters rather than passive users.

3) The ALA’s list of Core Competencies of Librarianship identifies eight core competencies, one of which is “Technological Knowledge and Skills.” LIS 508 specifically targets this core competency. LIS 508 aims to specifically address the technological knowledge competency through the critical examination of the history and current applications of information technologies in various library and information contexts.

4) The existing requirement that all MLIS students take two, hands on (intensive) IT courses provides students with depth of knowledge in two areas of information technology. However, lacking from this approach is a way of ensuring that students have a broad understanding of the range of information technologies that are employed in LIS contexts. By adding LIS 508 as a required course, SLIS can ensure that its MLIS students have both technological depth and breadth.

5) The addition of LIS 508 as a required course will support student learning in the IT electives students must take. The course is designed to serve as a foundation on information technologies, and subsequent IT courses can develop specialized hands on skills and knowledge. Furthermore, by exposing all students to the range of information technologies, this course should allow students to better choose the IT electives that they feel are most important and are most interested in pursuing.

We think this is important – although we recognize that students MAY take an elective before they take 508.

SCHOOL OF LIBRARY AND INFORMATION STUDIES

University of Alberta

LIS 508: Information Technologies in LIS Environments

(Winter, 3 hours per week)

Instructor: Name (position title optional)

Office Hours/Location; Other Contact Information

Calendar

Description: An introduction to and a critical examination of a range of information technologies

relevant to diverse library and information settings.

Objectives: Through a group project, online discussions, readings and course lecture, students will

be able to critically analyze information technologies using critical approaches and

present their findings to the class. (Connects to Program Level Learning Outcome

(PLLO) 2, 3 and 9).

After reviewing the scholarly literature, relevant resources and course readings students

will be able to synthesize and reflect on the role and importance of information

technologies in LIS environments. (Connects to PLLO 2, 3, 7 and 9).

Upon completion of selected readings, students will be able to write a critical response

that evinces an informed understanding of concepts, theories and issues as they relate

to LIS technologies (Connects to PLLO 2, 3 and 9).

Throughout the course, students will be able to actively contribute to and participate in

informed and engaging discussions (Connects to PLLO 2, 3, 5, and 9).

Content: Computer networks and the internet, databases, information retrieval systems,

integrated library systems, institutional repositories, alternative discovery applications,

archiving and preservation technologies, digital objects, digitization, digital libraries,

technological protection measures, digital rights management, social computing and

social media.

Methods: List major instructional methods, e.g. lectures, group discussions, reports, guest

speakers

Course Prerequisites: LIS 501, LIS 502, LIS 503

Relationships:

Assignments

& Evaluation: Online contributions (25%)

Ongoing throughout the term

Response to a reading(s) (15%)

Due Week 3

Group Presentation project (30%)

Spread through the course

Final paper (30%)

Due Week 13

Grades are calculated in accordance with the SLIS Grading Procedure

(http://www.slis.ualberta.ca/Resources/SLISPoliciesandDocuments/GradingProcedure.a

spx):

Grades reflect professional judgements of student achievement made by instructors.

These judgements are based on a combination of absolute achievement and relative

performance in class. The instructor should mark in terms of raw scores, rank the

assignments in order of merit, and with due attention to the verbal descriptions of

the various grades, assign an appropriate final letter grade.

To conserve paper, please consider stipulating formats of 1.5 spacing, 11 font, title and

student information on first page of text, no blank sheets, and bibliography continued

on last page of text.

Academic The University of Alberta is committed to the highest standards of academic integrity

Integrity: and honesty. Students are expected to be familiar with these standards regarding

academic honesty and to uphold the policies of the University in this respect. Students

are particularly urged to familiarize themselves with the provisions of the Code of

Student Behaviour

(http://www.uofaweb.ualberta.ca/gfcpolicymanual/content.cfm?ID_page=37633 ) and

avoid any behaviour which could potentially result in suspicions of cheating,

plagiarism, misrepresentation of facts and/or participation in an offence. Academic

dishonesty is a serious offence and can result in suspension or expulsion from the

University.

Students should also be mindful of the SLIS Copyright Policy

(http://www.slis.ualberta.ca/Resources/~/media/slis/Documents/Resources/SLISPolicie

sandDocuments/SLIS_Copyright_Policy.pdf).

Inclusive The Faculty of Education is committed to providing an environment of equality and

Language & Equity respect for all people within the university community, and to educating faculty, staff

and students in developing teaching and learning contexts that are welcoming to all.

The Faculty recommends that students and staff use inclusive language to create a

classroom atmosphere in which students’ experiences and views are treated with equal

respect and value in relation to their gender, racial background, sexual orientation, and

ethnic backgrounds. Students who require accommodations in this course due to a

disability affecting mobility, vision, hearing, learning, or mental or physical health are

advised to discuss their needs with Specialized Support and Disability Services.

Recording

Lectures: Recording is permitted only with the prior written consent of the professor or if

recording is part of an approved accommodation plan.

Required Text / Readings Weekly readings will be assigned by the instructor.

Tentative Timetable

Policy about course outlines can be found in Section 23.4(2) of the University Calendar.

Tentative Timetable

Weeks

1. Intro and critical approaches to technology

2. Critical approaches (continued)

3. Historical developments

4. Computer networks and the internet

5. Web technologies and markup languages (HTML)

6. Databases & Information Retrieval Systems (IR)

7. Integrated Library Systems (ILS)

8. Institutional Repositories

9. Alternative discovery applications

10. Archiving and preservation technologies

11. Digital objects, digitization, digital libraries

12. Technological Protection Measures (TPM) and Digital Rights Management (DRM)

13. Social computing and social media

SLIS Curriculum Committee Recommendation

This form is used by the SLIS Curriculum Committee to document and recommend course changes, additions and modifications to the SLIS Academic Council and SLIS School Council for approval. Approved by SLIS School Council October 22, 2013.

Date: September 27, 2013

Type of Change: [ ] NEW COURSE* [X ] EXISTING COURSE [ ] COURSE DELETION

CALENDAR COPY

CURRENT

Calendar Section Number §[231.168]

(Use strike out for all changes)

PROPOSED

Calendar Section Number §[231.168]

(Underline all additions)

LIS 532 Cataloguing and Classification

*3 (fi 6) (either term, 3-0-0). To prepare students to construct a catalogue, to create catalogue records for various forms of materials in diverse Library situations and to evaluate Online Public Access Catalogues.

LIS 532: Metadata

Calendar Description:

*3 (fi 6) (either term, 3-0-0).This course introduces students to the concept, development, applications and evaluation of metadata in various information contexts. Through a combination of practical exercises, including classification, cataloguing, and RDA, students will critically examine metadata issues, standards, and best practices, and will evaluate the role of metadata in discovery and access systems.

Rationale

The rationale for the changes to the title and calendar description of this course lies in the developments and trends associated with information representation and retrieval in new digital information environments. In particular, the introduction of Resource Description and Access (RDA) as a new standard and the prevalence of various metadata standards used in different contexts necessitate a more current and inclusive approach to the description of and access to digital information resources. The title of the course is changed to metadata to reflect this broad and inclusive perspective. The content of the course will focus on metadata standards and applications and will continue to include and address long-established cataloguing and classification standards such as the subject headings lists and classification schemes. This approach will provide a current and comprehensive treatment of standards and best practices in resource description and discovery.

Recommendation: Recommend changing the LIS 532 course title and course description in the University calendar.

LIS 532: Metadata

Calendar Description:

This course introduces students to the concept, development, applications and evaluation of

metadata in various information contexts. Through a combination of practical exercises,

including classification, cataloguing, and RDA, students will critically examine metadata issues,

standards, and best practices, and will evaluate the role of metadata in discovery and access

systems.

Student Learning Outcomes:

Upon completion of the course, a student should be able to:

● Following a series of practical, hands-on exercises, students will apply standards and best

practices used for creating and encoding metadata in North American libraries (PLLO 6)

● Through a group project, readings and course lecture, students will critically analyze and

evaluate the underlying principles applied in describing and classifying information

objects through metadata and classification systems (PLLO 6, 7, 9)

● Drawing upon the best practices in metadata applications, students will assess and

critique metadata creation and implementation in the context of web-based search and

retrieval systems (PLLO 6, 7, 9)

● Expanding their understanding of metadata applications, students will provide criticism

of current standards for description and access, and will offer constructive suggestions for

their enhancement. (PLLO 6, 7)

Content:

● Descriptive cataloguing of resources using RDA (Resource Description and Access)

● Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records (FRBR)

● Subject access to resources using controlled vocabularies (e.g., Library of Congress

Subject Headings (LCSH), Canadian Subject Headings (CSH), and Thesaurus for

Graphic Materials (TGM))

● Classification of resources using Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC) and Library of

Congress Classification (LCC)

● Encoding of metadata records using MARC21 and XML

● Metadata standards for digital libraries (e.g., Dublin Core (DC) and Metadata Object

Description Schema (MODS))

Methods:

A combination of lectures, in-class labs/exercises, and discussion will be used throughout the

course.

Course relationships:

Prerequisites: LIS 501, 502

Texts:

Olson, Hope A., and John J. Boll. (2001). Subject analysis in online catalogs. 2nd ed. Englewood,

Colorado: Libraries Unlimited. (A few copies are available in Henderson hall)

RDA: Resource Description and Access (available through Cataloger’s Desktop)

Other weekly readings as listed in the schedule.

Assignments and Evaluation

Assignments are due in my mailbox before 9:00 am on the due date

Individual Projects 1-3

For individual projects 1-3, each student will be assigned a set of three examples: a book, a

website and a digital image. Metadata records for these examples will be created through the

three projects so that each student will eventually have four complete metadata records by the

end of the course.

The hypothetical context for individual work is an outsourcing service supplying metadata for

large public and academic libraries in Canada. The purpose of this setting is to perform a high

standard of complete, but relatively generic, metadata creation in a Canadian setting. All

individual work may be profitably discussed with colleagues, but is the ultimate responsibility of

the individual as are metadata records in the workplace.

Project 1: Subject headings and classification

LCSH/TGM subject headings, DDC and LCC numbers for each example. For classification

numbers, include the breakdown showing the hierarchy and and synthesis

Project 2: RDA

RDA description for your examples. Indicate rule numbers for each element

Project 3: Encoding

Complete metadata records for all three items encoded in MARC. In addition, the record for the

website should also be encoded in Dublin Core.

Group Project

For the group project, students should form groups of 4 and complete the following project:

Group Project: Subject Treatment in DDC, LCC and LCSH

Groups should be formed NO LATER than January 28th. Each group will choose a topic for the

project and will email me the topic NO LATER than February 4th.

Choose a subject area which you are interested in and examine the ways in which the area has

been treated in the Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC), Library of Congress Classification

(LCC) and Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH). Web-based versions of the LC

classification and LCSH are available from the School homepage under Classification Web and

the DDC classification is available through the OCLC WebDewey available at

(http://connexion.oclc.org/).

In the evaluation process you may consider the following questions:

For DDC, LCC and LCSH:

● How extensive or limited has the subject area been treated?

● Is the chosen subject area located in a single area of the schemes, or is it scattered?

● How rich are semantic relationships between and among subjects and terms?

● How are these relationships organized (e.g., BT, NT, RT)? Are these relationships clear?

● Have all aspects of the subject been treated equally or some aspects have received more

attention than others?

● How up to date is the vocabulary?

For DDC and LCC only:

● How is easy to use and useful are the indexes and/or search tools of the two classification

schemes?

● How well the subject area has been hierarchically located within classification schemes?

● How useful are the scope notes in DDC and LCC?

● In general, what are the implications of the ways in which the topic is conceptualized and

organized, and its strengths and limits? Specifically, how might these affect cataloguing

practice? User retrieval and browsing?

Format of your report: You will submit a report of 8 pages numbered, 12 pt font, 1.5 line

spacing, 1.2" margins.

In order to ensure a fair assessment of students work and participation in the group project, 3

points of the total mark (30) in this project are set aside for individual participation. Each

student will submit to me, by email, a brief paragraph describing the tasks they carried out in the

group project and the number of hours they spent on the project. In addition, they will comment

on the participation of their group members. This will allow the instructor to base the assessment

not only on the final project report, but also on the level of engagement and participation of each

group member.

For group assignments, I encourage you to use Google Docs. It is useful for conducting

collaborative projects and reports and provides you with the functionalities that all group

members can use to add, delete, edit or modify the content.

Individual Project 4

For individual project 4, each student will select two discovery/access systems from a list to be

provided. Based on examination of each site, students will evaluate to what extent each site

follows the six metadata principles set out in NISO’s A Framework of Guidance for Building

Good Digital Collections (2007). http://www.niso.org/publications/rp/framework3.pdf

Format of your report: You will submit a report of 5 pages numbered, 12 pt font, 1.5 line

spacing, 1.2" margins.

Class participation

Individual participation for the benefit of the class as a whole. The purpose is for all students to

join comfortably in the process. Factors to be considered include, but are not limited to,

attendance, preparation, small group interaction, general class contribution, cooperative work

outside of class, the reading assignment and a one-paragraph self-assessment of class

participation (to be submitted by e-mail by April 15th).

SLIS Curriculum Committee Recommendation

This form is used by the SLIS Curriculum Committee to document and recommend course changes, additions and modifications to the SLIS Academic Council and SLIS School Council for approval. Approved by SLIS School Council October 22, 2013.

Date: September 20, 2013

Type of Change: [ ] NEW COURSE* [ X] EXISTING COURSE [ ] COURSE DELETION

CALENDAR COPY

CURRENT

Calendar Section Number §[231.168]

(Use strike out for all changes)

PROPOSED

Calendar Section Number §[231.168]

(Underline all additions)

LIS 599 Directed Study

*3 (fi 6) (either term, 0-3s-0). Further study of special topics and issues, based on knowledge acquired in previous courses or on significant prior experience. Topic to be approved by the School.

LIS 599 Directed Study

*1-3 (either term, variable). Further study of special topics and issues, based on knowledge acquired in previous courses or on significant prior experience. Topic and course weight to be approved by the School. Prerequisite: consent of department.

Course title: LIS 599 Directed Study

Recommendation: To change the course weight from 3 credit to variable.

GFC Recommendation form

This form is used by the SLIS Curriculum Committee and School Council to document and recommend course changes, additions and modifications to the GFC for approval.

Date: November 29, 2012

Type of Change: [ X] NEW COURSE* [ ] EXISTING COURSE [ ] COURSE DELETION

CALENDAR COPY

CURRENT

Calendar Section Number §[231.171]

(Use strike out for all changes)

PROPOSED

Calendar Section Number §[231.171]

(Underline or highlight all additions)

LIS 541 - Library and Information Services in Culturally Diverse Society

*3 (fi 6) (either term, 3-0-0). Examines the central concepts of diversity and inclusion and a range of related issues and contributions with respect to specific populations and traditionally underrepresented groups, and their support systems, in library and information settings.

Course title: LIS 541: Library and Information Services in Culturally Diverse Society

Recommendation:

The Faculty and Curriculum Committee approved the above change. SLIS School Council approved the change to the above course on October 5, 2012. This change is recommended to GFC for approval.