Transcript The Role of Research in Academia and the Profession Ann

RESEARCH, ACADEMIA AND
THE PROFESSION
A Status Report
Ann Pederson
Visiting Fellow
School of Information Systems, Technology & Management, The University of NSW, Sydney, Australia
PRESENTATION PLAN
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What is RESEARCH & why is it important?
Characteristics of archival research
Research output & infrastructure- N. America data
The modern university & archival science
Attitudes towards research- students, practitioners
& employers
• Towards a viable research culture & infrastructure
– Key obstacles
– Positive measures to overcome them
Ann Pederson SISTM UNSW
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WHAT IS RESEARCH?
• Definition: an systematic investigative approach
concerned with a problem or intending to prove or
disprove an hypothesis
• Standardised steps & sequences:
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Identify and articulate research problem
Devise hypotheses to be proven or disproved
Collect, analyse & interpret relevant data
Develop & report conclusions
• Quality Indicators: valid
problem/hypotheses/methodology, replicable, useful
Ann Pederson SISTM UNSW
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WHY IS RESEARCH IMPORTANT
FOR ARCHIVAL SCIENCE?
•Answers
•Solutions
•Challenge or validate
•Basis for wise decisions
•Professional knowledge base
•Larger Society
•Personal
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RESEARCH FORMS
CHARACTERISTIC OF ARCHIVAL
SCIENCE
• Approaches
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• Research Reporting
diplomatics
archival analysis
historical
behavioural
experimental
quantitative
qualitative
theoretical
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finding aids
historical
case studies
surveys
needs assessments
impact studies
performance
measurement
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ARCHIVAL RESEARCH
OUTPUT [N.America data 1970-1992]
• Research Article
Topics
– 54 of 88 or 61.4% on
management & professional
issues; 28 are histories of
institutions or biographies
• Quantitative
Methodology 36.3%
– 22 Survey
– 8 Citation/Bibliometric
– 2 Financial analysis
• Qualitative
Methodology 63.7%
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42 historical
6 system
5 experimental
2 literary
1 legal
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INFORMATION MANAGEMENT
RESEARCH INFRASTRUCTURE
[N. AMERICA data 1970-1992]
-Cox, RJ, “An Analysis of Archival Research, 1970-1992 . . “ American Archivist 57/2, 1994
• Educators/Researchers • Professional
Establishment
– Full-time educators
• LIS 700
• Archives 20
– Active researchers
– LIS - 153,000
– Archives - 10,000
• LIS 300
• Archives 10
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ARCHIVAL RESEARCH
“SCORECARD”
• Research Agendas
– 1978 Management,
Preservation
– 1981 Theory
– 1983 Archival history
– 1986 Reference, Advocacy
– 1987 Reference
– 1988 Appraisal,
Reference, Management
– 1991 Electronic records
– 1992 Reference
– 1993 - date Electronic
records, recordkeeping
• Mixed results
– heavy workloads
– limited funding
• Positive Achievements
– growth of academic
programs
– some stunning successes
– research consortia
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MODERN UNIVERSITY
ENVIRONMENT
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Knowledge explosion
Research = success
Hegemony of other fields
Infrastructure & social equity discipline
neglect
• Reduced public funding
• Damaging responses to fiscal crisis
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DAMAGING RESPONSES
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emphasis on fundraising
more & higher fees
more, but lower quality students
fewer academic positions
fewer hours & subjects in courses
large group or self-instruction
machine scoreable forms of assessment
NOT A HEALTHY ENVIRONMENT FOR
DEEP LEARNING
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ACADEMIC POSITION OF
ARCHIVAL SCIENCE
Minority, poorly understood, “essential but
invisible” meta-discipline & proto-profession
• “fuzzy” knowledge base
• expanding demands
• no cohesive identity or
professional mission
• research - applied, local
• no specific research
category
• intellect-, time- and
labour-intensive
“vocation”
• low market demand or
reward
• temperamentally
unsuited?
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TYPICAL ARCHIVAL
ACADEMIC WORKLOAD
(Full-time): *35 hrs.
40% Teaching preparation & delivery
25% Research & Writing, including supervision
5%
Consultancies/Enterprise Activities
15% Professional Leadership & Service including
continuing education
15% Program/School/University/Administration
100% Total
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RESEARCH & STUDENTS
• Tensions
• Opportunities
• Students have little grasp
of discipline
• Most are not “research
ready”
• Most only seek
preparation for
historically-oriented job
• Press of post-modern life
vs. requirements of deep
learning
Ann Pederson
• Discipline research is
interesting & challenging
• Study whilst working in
field is growing trend
• Employers increasingly
value skills learned
through research
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RESEARCH &
PRACTITIONERS
• Tensions
• Opportunities
• 25-35% qualified
• Formal education not a
priority
• Skepticism of theory
• Trend towards postappointment P/T study
• Employer supports jobrelated study
• Need for up-to-date
knowledge & skills
• Experienced practitioners
are better students
• Personal growth &
professionalism
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RESEARCH & EMPLOYERS
• Tensions
• Opportunities
• Growing workload vs.
shrinking resources
• Theory vs. reality
• Support for training vs.
education & research
• Educators need employer
involvement
• Many employers are
graduates
• More demand for
professional RK requires
specialist education
• Employers benefit from
involvement with academe
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OBSTACLES TO SUCCESSFUL
LEARNING & RESEARCH
• DEEP LEARNING = an essential pre-requisite
• Split between how to do archival work & how to
think archivally
• Few graduates possess the will or the funding to
undertake research degrees
• New archival career academics lack practical
experience
• Archival academics have unrealistic workloads
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DEVELOP RESEARCH COMPETENCIES IN PROGRAM OF ARCHIVAL STUDIES
Research
Competency
Research
Literacy
Research
Criticism
General Description of Competency
Samples of Learning Activities/ Outputs That
Develop It
Understand and be able to identify appropriate applications Find examples in literature and explain the various
of the major research methods and techniques and the
techniques used; determine which techniques would be
extent to which they are appropriate for archival problems; appropriate for a particular research need or archival
problem
Apply standards and tools of analysis to assess validity of
Prepare papers that analyse, compare and/or evaluate of
research products or components in management reports
others' research findings or methodology
Knowledgefocussed
Research
Analysis
Apply text-based research methods and techniques to plan, execute,
present/defend findings in study of existing knowledge on an archival
theory or management practice/problem/issue
Plan and prepare papers that identify key features, influences, themes,
conflicts, inconsistencies, etc. in the body of existing knowledge and
make conclusions or recommendations; may or may not use case
studies to illustrate or prove findings
Recordfocussed
Research
Analysis
Apply archival principles, analysis and research methods and
techniques to plan, execute, present/defend findings in bringing a
body of archives under full management or in using archival sources
to illuminate the development of an archival program or institution
Plan, execute and document full archival processing and produce a
finding aid or administrative or institutional history
Research
Teamwork/
Junior
Researcher
Develop research expertise and contribute as a junior member of an
academically rigorous research team and/or devise a complex and
authoritative research problem and complete a Masters thesis
Under the direction of senior team members, execute defined
research tasks such as bibliography, investigate focussed research
problem; produce a Masters thesis
Senior
Researcher
Initiate and execute a n academically competent individual
research project
Ph.D. and/or regular success in obtaining funding for own
research;
Lead or
Master
Researcher
Extend research expertise and take leadership via new
initiatives, collaborations and applications
Sought after collaborator in research teams; leader or coleader of research initiatives; development of new
directions, content and applications for research
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OTHER WAYS TO BOOST
RESEARCH OUTPUT
• MICRO LEVEL
• Integrate workload
• Communicate &
network
– “team” & “piggyback
efforts
– a few good projects
– creative funding
– maximise success
• MACRO LEVEL
• Make education &
research prominent
issues
• Form/join consortia
– contribute to priority
research agendas
– provide comment/advice
– report & publicise
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FINIS . . .Thanks
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