The Impact of David Bearman on Modern Archival Thinking: An Essay of Personal Reflection and Critique

This essay is a preliminary assessment of David Bearman as the leading archival thinker of the late twentieth century. Bearman has revolutionized thinking in archival circles around the world by offering a defence of traditional archival notions of provenance, evidence, recordness, and contextuality that equals the noblest statements of a Hilary Jenkinson, and by positing a relevant, dynamic, engaged future for archivists to transform the Information Age into a Record-Keeping Age. The essay is both a personal reflection and critical analysis. There are three main themes: an assessment of Bearman's ideas and their overall importance to general archival theory; a more specific exposition of the nature and importance of the University of Pittsburgh Project and of where Bearman sees that its results are leading archivists and their profession and institutions in future; and a critique of some of the implications, if not the conscious intentions, of his ideas and methods that seem to exclude the cultural, historical, and heritage dimensions and uses of archives, public or private. The overall aim of the essay is to push the archival discourse to the next stage by challenging and constructively critiquing as well as extolling the work of this archival pioneer.     

What do they know?: An assessment of undergraduate library skills

This article, which examines variables affecting scores on a test of library skills, finds that the frequency with which students receive assignments requiring library research is the best predictor of a score. The unevenness is students' research skills has implications for bibliographic instruction.     

Modification of attitudes of regular class children towards the handicapped for the purpose of achieving integration

Two experimental procedures for positively modifying the attitudes of regular classroom children towards the handicapped were conducted. In both studies, curriculum and/or experiences with the handicapped were introduced to randomly selected groups of regular class elementary children. The curriculum consisted of literature, filmstrips, and lectures about handicapped children, while the experiences consisted of controlled integrational activities. The results indicated that the procedures were partially successful in modifying the attitudes of regular class children towards the handicapped. It was concluded that techniques must be developed systematically for achieving more positive attitudes in regular class children if “mainstreaming” is to become an effective educational concept.     

Different for women? The challenges of doctoral studies

This exploratory study investigates gender-specific differences in the challenges of the doctoral experience through the observations of a counsellor working with doctoral students. The article first contextualises the study within the literature investigating doctoral attrition and gender equity, showing that identity transformation over the doctorate is problematic in particular aspects for women. We confirm that cultural expectations regarding women passivity, family nurturance and (at least symbolic) subordination to male authority can cause tensions between women's social relationships and academic performance which values assertiveness, clear communication and confident management of power relationships. We identify various conflicts between the female roles of the social sphere and the academic arena that problematise the identity transition of the doctorate from student to independent researcher.     

Expatriate parents and supplementary education in Japan: survival strategy or acculturation strategy

The increase in the use of supplementary education, or juku, in Japan by Japanese families in order to augment their children’s chances of success in entering prestigious pre-tertiary and tertiary institutions is documented (Blumenthal in Asian Surv 32(5):448–460, 1992; Bray and Lykins in Shadow education; private supplementary tutoring and its implications for policy makers in Asia, Asian Development Bank, Philippines, 2012; Dierkes in The Focus: Supplementary education in Asia, International Institute of Asian Studies, Leiden, The Netherlands, 2011; Roesgaard in Japanese education and the cram school business; Functions, challenges and perspectives of the juku, Nordic Institution of Asian Studies, Copenhagen, 2006; Rohlen in J Jpn Stud 6(2):207–242, 1980; Tsukada in Comp Educ, 24(3):285–303, 1988), but there is little known about the use of supplementary education by an ever-growing number of families in Japan in which one or both parents are an expatriate. This exploratory countrywide study of such families hopes to address this lack of research. Initial results show that while a number of factors related to their own culture and values about childhood, education, and family life influence some families’ decision not to send their children to juku, most families tend to use these services for many of the same reasons as their Japanese counterparts, although to a different degree. In addition, they seem to use these services because they are counseled to do so by insiders, or because supplementary education provides other services which help them to navigate the Japanese educational system. Expatriate families’ use of supplementary education could be one of many acculturation strategies they use as they adapt to Japan’s educational culture.     

Movies in the classroom: Popular images of criminal justice,criminology, and the law

Courses that pique students' interest, promote discussion and participation, and contribute to their college learning experience are becoming increasingly rare. “Justice Issues and the Media” accomplishes these goals and is a pleasure to prepare and teach. This course links movies, a familiar aspect of American culture, with their substantive contribution to citizens' attitudes and stereotypes about the criminal justice system, criminology, and the law. We make recommendations and issue several cautions, which we hope will lead to the development and offering of this course at other universities.