Archive Management: Principles and Techniques

Module Identifier
DS34520
Module Title
Archive Management: Principles and Techniques
Academic Year
2027/2028
Semester
Distance Learning
Co-ordinator
Jennie Hill
Reading List
View on Aspire
Other Staff
Jennie Hill
Ms Tanya Rogers
Dr Julie Mathias
Dr Sue Lithgow
Dr Anoush Simon

Assessment

Assessment Type

Assessment details

Proportion
Semester Assessment Report: 2000 Words 60%
Semester Assessment Essay: 2000 Words 40%
Supplementary Assessment Essay: 2000 Words 40%
Supplementary Assessment Report: 2000 Words 60%

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this module students should be able to:

  1. state the principles of archive administration
  2. define the nature of archives
  3. list the major considerations to be taken into account in planning and designing an archive building
  4. discuss archive preservation and conservation management
  5. outline the basic principles and standards for the arrangement and listing of archives
  6. identify the user services commonly available in archive repositories

Brief description

This module will enable students to understand the nature of archives, the principles of archive administration, preservation and conservation management, national standards for care, arrangement and listing, and the legislative framework.

Aims

This module aims to introduce the principles of archive administration and provide the necessary information to allow students to apply them to the management of archives, to appreciate current trends in archive management, and to understand the development of archive theory.

Content

Archives form part of a nation’s heritage. They tell us about the policy-making of the past and the reasons behind those decisions; they reveal the existence and activities of individuals; they provide us with an insight into the lives and circumstances of past generations.
For the administrator, records are the basic tools of business or administrative transactions. They are used to justify official actions, to record proceedings, to explain and record policy decisions, and to establish and maintain rights under the law for citizens, corporations and governments. When set aside for permanent preservation as archives, they act as the corporate memory of institutions, associations and businesses and represent an essential research tool for the historian.
This module will explore the nature of archives and explain the principles of archive administration, preservation and conservation management, national standards for care, arrangement and listing, and the legislative framework.

Module skills

Skills type

Skills details
Creative Problem Solving Review literature about archive management standards issues and debates and apply to assessment criteria
Professional communication Professional communication in practice and assessment through archive visit and written report.
Real world sense Subject is directly applicable to professional archive management and service delivery, through study and assessment of standards, context, and application in in practice.

Notes

This module is at CQFW Level 6