Class presentations

In our class this week, I had the opportunity to listen to my classmates present their insights on various Finding aids from different archives and repositories. This experience was extremely interesting. Firstly, I got to learn a bit about my classmates' research interests and why they need to consult archives. Seeing such a rich diversity of research projects made me think about how necessary it was for all of us to take this class. Gradually, as we progress in the course, or at least in my case, I feel more confident and aware of how archives function. This makes me a more effective user of the sources and resources offered by various archives.

On the other hand, my classmates' critical observations of the different finding aids have been very enriching; I could understand how each archive organizes (at least on their website) the contents of their repository. Some provide an introductory presentation that includes their collection development policy, while in others, like the case of Brown University, their collection development is not so evident.

I also find it curious how each archive organizes its metadata. The case presented by my classmate Claire, about the Historical Society of Philadelphia, was a particular case. The organization of metadata in such an old archive like HSP can be a bit confusing for a novice archive researcher, and as my classmate pointed out, the links in the finding aid could sometimes be misleading.

Other finding aids offer a panoramic view of their collections, which, in my opinion, is more user-friendly for the researcher. It was also useful to learn about how each archive presents access for researchers, especially information regarding opening hours and service charges.

Finally, a finding aid that I consider highly valuable for researchers are those that, succinctly, guide the researcher in the use of the finding aids before starting to navigate the catalogs. This brief guide is of great value because, as has been mentioned, the way each website is organized is not the same for every archive.