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Monash University

FIT5087 Archival systems - Semester 1, 2011

This unit relates to the fundamental role of recordkeeping professionals in society - to provide access to recorded information in the form of essential evidence of social and organisational activity for business, commercial, governmental, social, and cultural purposes. It covers the role of recordkeeping in society and organisations, functional requirements for evidence, the formulation of recordkeeping policy, strategies and tactics, the establishment of recordkeeping regimes, business functional analysis, appraisal and disposal, the development of metadata schemas and their implementation in recordkeeping systems.

Mode of Delivery

  • Caulfield (Day)
  • Caulfield (Off-campus)

Contact Hours

3 hrs seminar/wk

Workload

Workload commitments are:

  • three-hour seminar attended in person (on campus students) or accessed online via MULO (off campus students)
  • a minimum of 3 hours of personal study per one hour of contact time in order to satisfy the reading and assignment expectations, and contribute to online discussion groups.

Off-campus students generally do not attend the seminar (although you are welcome to attend when feasible) but access it via MULO, Monash University Lectures Online.

Unit Relationships

Prohibitions

IMS5010

Chief Examiner

Sue McKemmish

Campus Lecturer

Caulfield

Sue McKemmish

Contact hours: Appointments arranged by email

Joanne Evans

Contact hours: Appointments arranged by email

Leisa Gibbons

Contact hours: Appointments arranged by email

Learning Objectives

At the completion of this unit students will:

  • understand the role of records and archives in organisations and society;
  • understand and apply theories and models relating to recordkeeping and archiving;
  • be able to specify recordkeeping requirements relating to the creation, management, and accessibility of records as evidence of social and organisational activity in a range of business and social contexts;
  • have the skills to develop appraisal and metadata management programs in relation to contemporary and historical recordkeeping systems, including electronic recordkeeping systems; and
  • be able to formulate appraisal and metadata management policies, strategies, tactics and tools with reference to international and national standards and best practice.

Graduate Attributes

Monash prepares its graduates to be:
  1. responsible and effective global citizens who:
    1. engage in an internationalised world
    2. exhibit cross-cultural competence
    3. demonstrate ethical values
  2. critical and creative scholars who:
    1. produce innovative solutions to problems
    2. apply research skills to a range of challenges
    3. communicate perceptively and effectively

    Assessment Summary

    Class activities and discussion (or electronic equivalent): 25%; Practical exercises: 25%; Formal supervised assessment: 50%

    Assessment Task Value Due Date
    Assignment 1 Email Discussion Tasks 1-5 25%: note for on campus students 20% of this mark (5 marks) is for class participation Task 1: 17 March; Task 2: 24 March; Task 3: 31 March; Task 4: 7 April; Task 5: 14 April
    Assignment 2 Appraisal Exercise 30%: note for on campus students 20% of this mark (6 marks) is for class participation 12 May
    Assignment 3 Major Metadata Project 45% 6 June

    Teaching Approach

    Lecture and tutorials or problem classes
    This teaching and learning approach provides facilitated learning, practical exploration and peer learning.

    Feedback

    Our feedback to You

    Types of feedback you can expect to receive in this unit are:
    • Informal feedback on progress in labs/tutes
    • Graded assignments with comments

    Your feedback to Us

    Monash is committed to excellence in education and regularly seeks feedback from students, employers and staff. One of the key formal ways students have to provide feedback is through SETU, Student Evaluation of Teacher and Unit. The University's student evaluation policy requires that every unit is evaluated each year. Students are strongly encouraged to complete the surveys. The feedback is anonymous and provides the Faculty with evidence of aspects that students are satisfied and areas for improvement.

    For more information on Monash's educational strategy, and on student evaluations, see:
    http://www.monash.edu.au/about/monash-directions/directions.html
    http://www.policy.monash.edu/policy-bank/academic/education/quality/student-evaluation-policy.html

    Previous Student Evaluations of this unit

    If you wish to view how previous students rated this unit, please go to
    https://emuapps.monash.edu.au/unitevaluations/index.jsp

    Required Resources

    No specific software is required for this unit. You will need a browser to access the study masterials on MULO, use electronic resources in the library, and to read and send email

    Unit Schedule

    Week Date* Activities Assessment
    0 21/02/11   No formal assessment or activities are undertaken in week 0
    1 28/02/11 Introduction to FIT5087 Archival Systems  
    2 07/03/11 Archival Systems, Evidence and Metadata: Key Concepts Tutorial: Assignment 1 Task 1
    3 14/03/11 Recordkeeping Contexts: Cultural, Social, Legal, Organisational Part 1 Tutorial: Assignment 1 Task 2; Assignment 1 Task 1 due
    4 21/03/11 Recordkeeping Contexts: Cultural, Social, Legal, Organisational Part 2 Tutorial: Assignment 1 Task 3; Assignment 1 Task 2 due
    5 28/03/11 Professional Frameworks Part 1: The Records Continuum Model Tutorial: Assignment 1 Task 4; Assignment 1 Task 3 due
    6 04/04/11 Professional Frameworks Part 2: Archives in Australia Tutorial: Assignment 1 Task 5; Assignment 1 Task 4 due
    7 11/04/11 Archival Processes: Appraisal Tutorial: Assignment 2; Assignment 1 Task 5 due
    8 18/04/11 Archival Processes: Appraisal Tutorial: Assignment 2
    Mid semester break
    9 02/05/11 Archival Processes: Description Tutorial: Assignment 3
    10 09/05/11 Archival Processes: Description Tutorial: Assignment 3; Assignment 2 due
    11 16/05/11 Archival Processes: Access and Use Tutorial: Assignment 3
    12 23/05/11 Archival Processes: Access and Use Tutorial: Assignment 3
      30/05/11 SWOT VAC No formal assessment is undertaken in SWOT VAC

    *Please note that these dates may only apply to Australian campuses of Monash University. Off-shore students need to check the dates with their unit leader.

    Assessment Policy

    To pass a unit which includes an examination as part of the assessment a student must obtain:

    • 40% or more in the unit's examination, and
    • 40% or more in the unit's total non-examination assessment, and
    • an overall unit mark of 50% or more.

    If a student does not achieve 40% or more in the unit examination or the unit non-examination total assessment, and the total mark for the unit is greater than 50% then a mark of no greater than 49-N will be recorded for the unit

    Assessment Tasks

    Participation

    On campus students are expected to participate in all tutorial components of the seminar (5-6pm, Thursdays). The activities in these sessions are directly related to the Assignments. 10% of the marks for each assignment may be deducted if students do not meet this requirement.

    • Assessment task 1
      Title:
      Assignment 1 Email Discussion Tasks 1-5
      Description:
      There are five email discussion topics, worth 5% each. A detailed assignment specification will be provided.
      Weighting:
      25%: note for on campus students 20% of this mark (5 marks) is for class participation
      Criteria for assessment:
      Criteria for assessment will be provided in the assignment specification.
      Due date:
      Task 1: 17 March; Task 2: 24 March; Task 3: 31 March; Task 4: 7 April; Task 5: 14 April
    • Assessment task 2
      Title:
      Assignment 2 Appraisal Exercise
      Description:
      Details will be provided in the assignment specification.
      Weighting:
      30%: note for on campus students 20% of this mark (6 marks) is for class participation
      Criteria for assessment:
      Criteria will be provided in the assignment specification.
      Due date:
      12 May
    • Assessment task 3
      Title:
      Assignment 3 Major Metadata Project
      Description:
      Students will be required to complete Major Project Report (3000-4000 words).  Further details will be provided in the assignment specification.
      Weighting:
      45%
      Criteria for assessment:

      You will be assessed on the basis of:

      • 1. understanding, analysis and articulation of the project
      • 2. research and investigative effort
      • 3. identification, coverage and use of relevant sources
      • 4. presentation of findings, including citations and bibliography.
      Further details will be provided in the assignment specification.
      Due date:
      6 June

    Examinations

    Assignment submission

    Assignment coversheets are available via "Student Forms" on the Faculty website: http://www.infotech.monash.edu.au/resources/student/forms/
    You MUST submit a completed coversheet with all assignments, ensuring that the plagiarism declaration section is signed.

    Extensions and penalties

    Returning assignments

    Referencing requirements

    Students are required to cite their sources and provide reference lists using a published standard for referencing academic papers.

    Policies

    Monash has educational policies, procedures and guidelines, which are designed to ensure that staff and students are aware of the University's academic standards, and to provide advice on how they might uphold them. You can find Monash's Education Policies at:
    http://policy.monash.edu.au/policy-bank/academic/education/index.html

    Key educational policies include:

    Student services

    The University provides many different kinds of support services for you. Contact your tutor if you need advice and see the range of services available at www.monash.edu.au/students The Monash University Library provides a range of services and resources that enable you to save time and be more effective in your learning and research. Go to http://www.lib.monash.edu.au or the library tab in my.monash portal for more information. Students who have a disability or medical condition are welcome to contact the Disability Liaison Unit to discuss academic support services. Disability Liaison Officers (DLOs) visit all Victorian campuses on a regular basis

    Recommended texts:
    Sue McKemmish et al (eds). Archives: Recordkeeping in Society. Wagga Wagga: CSU CIS, 2005 

    Purchase of this book is strongly recommended. It is available from the CITSU Bookshop, Monash University. You can order via post (28 Sir John Monash Drive, Caulfield East, Vic 3145), telephone (9571 3277), fax (9563 5948) or email (orders@citsu.bookshop.com.au).

    Other references:
    Electronically delivered course notes, resource material and internet references will be provided during the course, available from the unit website.
    Books and electronic material available through the Caulfield campus library will be made available from a unit reading list
     
    Articles from the following journals are frequently cited:

    • Archival Science
    • Archivaria (journal of the Association of Canadian Archivists)
    • Archives and Manuscripts (journal of the Australian Society of Archivists)
    • iQ: the RMAA Quarterly [previously called Informaa] (journal of the Records and Information Management Association of Australasia)
    • The American Archivist (journal of the Society of American Archivists).

    Keeping up to date with the professional literature is an essential component of working in any field. It is recommended that you check on the availability of the key journals listed above via the Monash Library or at a library in your area. It is also recommended that you consider subscribing to Archives and Manuscripts It will be assumed throughout FIT5087 that you have access at least to Archives and Manuscripts.

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