Teaching with Primary Sources

Teaching with primary sources has emerged in recent years as a “hot topic” in the profession, part of a larger turn toward a more user-centered (as opposed to collections-centered) approach. Since 2012, I have been involved in the maintenance of the SAA Reference, Access, and Outreach Section's “Teaching with Primary Sources Bibliography,” and Teaching with Primary Sources is the first volume I have seen that not only offers case studies and classroom activities, but also contextualizes teaching with primary sources within a broader tradition of archival literacy and instruction.¹ Excellent and still highly recommended examples of book-length case study literature include the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) publication Past or Portal? Enhancing Undergraduate Learning through Special Collections and Archives, as well as Using Primary Sources: Hands-on Instructional Exercises.² What sets this newer SAA volume apart is the inclusion of extensive background information on archival literacy and the specific learning theories that inform well-conceived use of primary sources in the classroom.

Teaching with Primary Sources represents modules 9, 10, and 11 in SAA's Trends in Archives Practice series. Elizabeth Yakel and Doris Malkmus, the authors of module 9, “Contextualizing Archival Literacy,” have separately published foundational journal articles on archival intelligence, student learning, and outreach to history faculty. Yakel is a longtime archival educator, and Malkmus was most recently an instruction archivist at Penn State. Sammie L. Morris, Tamar Chute, and Ellen Swain, the authors of both module 10, “Teaching with Archives: A Guide for Archivists, Librarians, and Educators,” as well as module 11, “Connecting Students and Primary Sources: Cases and Examples,” all work in university archives and special collections.

Coeditor Lisa Janicke Hinchliffe, a librarian with expertise in information literacy and instruction, provides an introduction to the volume. Hinchliffe's involvement is particularly fitting given that primary source literacy is best understood within the context of an individual's overall information literacy. Archivists have much to learn from librarians' robust literature on best educational practices and administrative support for faculty/librarian collaborations. The authors of module 9 also point to the instructional work of museum educators as a possible model for both in-house teaching with primary sources as well as the development of online modules for the K–12 education community.

In module 9, “Contextualizing Archival Literacy,” Yakel and Malkmus offer an excellent overview of the major themes and issues of archival literacy. The authors not only give the reader context for the rest of the volume, but also touch on topics such as active learning, assessment, and educational standards, which should help archivists ultimately improve their teaching and keep students engaged. Early in the module, they explain that teaching with primary sources encompasses many related forms of knowledge and competencies: domain knowledge (subject or content knowledge of the time period, community, or cultural norms at play in the materials), primary source literacy (the ability to critically read materials and judge their context and meaning), and, finally, archival literacy (the ability to understand archival theory and practices, develop research strategies, and use tools such as finding aids to select appropriate materials). Yakel and Malkmus explain how this “constellation of literacies” must all be taken into account and help readers understand that students have a range of abilities and prior experiences with primary sources and archives (p. 9). The authors likewise explain the roles of the various stakeholders that can influence how we teach with primary sources. These stakeholders not only include librarians, teachers, and faculty, but also public-policy makers and funders. This high-level influence is particularly relevant in the K–12 environment where Common Core State Standards directly affect what students learn and how that learning is measured.³

The authors of all three modules make excellent use of section divisions, which highlight key concepts and make the text easy to browse. One of the most important sections of module 9 covers assessment. Even those of us who have years of experience teaching with primary sources generally need to be doing more to assess student learning and the quality of our own teaching. Yakel and Malkmus discuss a variety of assessment techniques including peer or expert teaching evaluations, pre- and posttests, surveys, and reviews of student projects. However, two of their recommendations in this section stand out. The first is that planning for assessment should come before any specific classroom activities are chosen. In their words, “planning [for instruction] begins with clear learning objectives and a specific idea about which learning outcomes will satisfy those objectives, how students can demonstrate those outcomes, and then how those outcomes will be measured” (p. 48). Their other key recommendation in this section is that “assessment tools should enhance learning, rather than take time away from it” (p. 51). They give an example of ending a class or exercise with having students write a short journal entry or a five-minute paper. This kind of reflective activity has been shown to be a critical component of any kind of information literacy instruction, a component that helps students make sense of what they learned and hopefully be able to apply this knowledge in the future.

In module 10, “Teaching with Archives: A Guide for Archivists, Librarians, and Educators,” Morris, Chute, and Swain offer the most clear and practical information in the volume, particularly for archivists who may be brand new to teaching with primary sources. The authors rightly emphasize the significant time and resources needed and cover many key considerations, including

• What training and professional development is available?

• What physical spaces and technology for teaching are available at my institution?

• Who are my potential partners, and what strategies can I use to connect with instructors and students?

• What will be my level of involvement? Involvement can range from the one-shot instruction session to multisession embedded archival instruction or archivists serving as instructors of record.

One of the later sections of module 10 is titled “In the Trenches: Teaching and Instructional Design.” This section includes both broad and specific suggestions for creating learning objectives and outcomes, designing exercises, and planning for assessment. For example, given the lack of set standards for primary source literacy, the authors appropriately suggest that archivists look to library information literacy standards, most notably ACRL's 2015 Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education.⁴ A specific suggestion from this section that I look forward to trying in my own practice is to select archival materials for instruction that include people of roughly the same age or background as the students. This helps students relate to the materials and be more engaged.

The list of fifteen recommendations at the end of module 10 are a perfect close to the chapter and probably the most helpful two pages in the entire volume—so essential I think I may need to post a copy on my office wall. Best of all is the last recommendation in the list, “be flexible, and have fun” (p. 119). At the height of the semester, with numerous demands on one's time, it can unfortunately be too easy to lose your joy and enthusiasm for teaching.

Module 11, “Connecting Students and Primary Sources: Cases and Examples,” is based on the authors' interviews with archivists, faculty members, and a high school teacher. While the real-world examples reinforce many of the ideas of the first two modules, this module is occasionally repetitive and would not stand well on its own. The appendixes are also difficult to read (an issue somewhat alleviated in the PDF and EPUB versions). I did, however, appreciate how this module introduces the perspectives of archivists and educators outside a university setting and provides more insight into how teaching with primary sources can be a process of trial and error. A good example of this process is the story of how Doris Malkmus improved a class session by reducing the amount of material covered and setting clear objectives. Module 11 also gives helpful insights into technology integration such as the creation of online primary source tools like Drexel University's award-winning “Doctor or Doctress?”⁵ These kinds of tools are essential outreach and introduce archives to K–12 students and teachers unlikely to visit a repository in person.

Working in a small college setting, I find teaching with primary sources to be one of the most satisfying and meaningful aspects of my job, and I continue to be inspired by the enthusiastic contingent of archivists working to connect archives to students, teachers, and faculty—a contingent in full and vibrant force at the 2015 and 2016 pre-SAA annual meeting Teaching with Primary Sources Unconferences.⁶ The availability of this volume and its effective combination of theory and practical advice offer an exciting opportunity for more archivists to incorporate teaching with primary sources into their work. As the authors note, a survey of graduate programs reveals not one that requires future archivists to take a course on teaching. Teaching with Primary Sources should be required reading in our archival graduate programs and is a fitting first selection for SAA's “One Book, One Profession” initiative.