Education and Training of Archivists – Some Observations in the 1990s

1. Education and Training of Archivists – Some Observations in the 1990s Börje Justrell National Archives

2. Content • Background • Some post-world war II trends • The Mid-1990s • From on-the-job-training to an academic disciplin

3. Background • A survey in 1996 about archival science conducted in cooperation with ICA • A questionnaire distributed to 156 countries and territories listed as national members of ICA • A report based on replies from 54 countries (national states or federations of states), mainly in Europe, Africa (Southern, Middle and Central), Asia (except South East), Australia and North, Central and South America

4. Background • Other surveys • ICA 1990 -1992

5. Some Post-World War II Trends New needs and demands on education and training • Continuos increase of records created by an expanding public sector • Accelerated development of technologies for recording, storing, and retrieval of records • Enourmos influx of new archival fonds into state archival institutions in socialist countries, caused by the abolishment of local self-governing communities and private properties • The establishment of more then 100 new nations around the world, many of them creating national archives as a way to emphasize national identity • Archives as a corner stone in a democratic society • Etc….

6. Some Post-World War II Trends Responds from the archival community • Traditionalarchival schools in Europe have broadened their programmes • Countries with postappointment education and training have initiated programmes, sometimes both for staff members and for university graduates • Professional organisations have pushed for the establishment of guidelines and standards for curricula in archival education and training

7. Some Post-World War II Trends • Activities of international organisations, both governmental (UNESCO) and nongovernmental (ICA) • Professional education and training centres, mainly in developing countries • RAMP (Records and Archives Management Programme) • ICA committee/section on archival education and training

8. Some Post-World War II Trends Observations • Despite all efforts to disseminate possibilities for professional education and training over the world, Europe and the industrialized world is dominating the arena • Until the 1950s most schools and universities with education and training programmes for archivists were located in Europe

9. Some Post-World War II Trends • In the 1960s, when programmes started at schools and universities also in other parts of the world, US and Canada took a leading position • In the 1970s the number of new programmes increased all over the world, but mostly in Europe and North America • In the 1980s this pattern did not change, and in the beginning of the 1990s Europe and North America were even more dominating then earlier

10. The Mid-1990s • General or specialized education and training • Not a big issue. An interdiciplinary approach had higher priority • Signs of contrasting relationship between a strong archival profession and a strong discipline on archival science

11. The Mid-1990s • Distribution of education and training programmes • Most of the special schools and universities (about 70 %) are located in Europe and North America • China the only exception • Developing countries have made distinct improvements in the number of founded programmes, but it seems to be the result more of a general trend then of special efforts made by international bodies

12. The Mid-1990s • In the Western world the necessity for education and training of archivists runs parallel with the development of the post-modern society, especially its use of information technology • The divergences between the industrialized countries and the developing countries are as evident as in the field of social and economic welfare

13. The Mid-1990s • Education and training abroad • Normal to go abroad instead of using on-the-job-training • Countries in parts of the former British Empire prefer UK. India and Malaysia are cheaper alternative • In Africa English-speaking student go to the University of Ghana and French speaking students to University of Dakar

14. From on-the-job-training to an academic disciplin • The development in Sweden • A special course in 1973 (academic level) • A scientific profile in the 1990s (archival science) • An open mind to other disciplines like computer science and informatics • A new way of looking at other cultural institutions (libraries, museums) • A discussion about identity (should archives be a waterhole for culture or a tool of bureaucracy?)