collection development in cambodia

COLLECTION DEVELOPMENTIN CAMBODIA

Greg Bem, Phnom Penh, 2015@cambodianbem@bembrarian

Bookcase in Thinker’s Lodge by Chris Campbell via Flickr.com

WORKSHOP SCHEDULE Morning 1 (8-930): Introduction to Workshop

Break 1 (930-945)

Morning 2 (945-11): Exploring Collections 1

Lunch (11:15-2)

Afternoon 1 (2-330): Exploring Collections 2

Break 2 (330-345)

Afternoon 2 (345-515): Future Thinking and Conclusion

INTRODUCTIONS Kolap Mao, PUC and Cambodian Library Association Sereyrath Aing and Phalkun Chan, Interns at WCS

Hello! I’m Greg Bem

Sre Ambel, July 2015

Google Maps (http://maps.google.com)

Seattle, Washington, USA

Phnom Penh, Cambodia

12,000 Kilometers (15.5 Hours on a plane!)

GREG AND CAMBODIA . . .2013-2014 Highlights

First time in Cambodia

Graduate Student at University of WA

Internship at Open Development Cambodia (ODC)

Workshop with Cambodia Library Association on Information Literacy

Two Workshops with Nou Hach Literary Association on Writing in Your Environment

2015 Highlights Second time in Cambodia

8 Week Contract with Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS)

Poetry Performance at Meta House

Workshop for Cambodia Higher Education Association (CHEA) on Collection Development

Workshop with Nou Hach on Collaborative Writing

QUESTIONS WE WILL EXPLORE What is a collection?

What can be included inside a collection?

How does a collection support a community?

What collections do you already work with?

How can you better curate your own collection?

?

BUT FIRST . . . LET’S GET TO KNOW EACH OTHER!

ACTIVITY ONE: MEET YOUR TEAM Please divide into groups of 8.

Choose one person to be the group leader.

Go around the circle and introduce yourself. Share the following:• Your name• Where you are from• Where you live now• Where you work• Why you chose to come to this workshop• What you hope to learn• Your favorite fruit

When finished, please have the group leader inform one of the organizers.

ACTIVITY TWO: CONSTRUCT A TEAM FLAG• Use what you know about each other to create a team flag.

• When the flag is complete, please tape the flag so the audience can see.

• After all flags are complete, please be ready to share.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flag_of_Cambodia#/media/File:Flag_of_Cambodia.svg

BREAK ONE:15

MINUTES!

Rest, Angkor by Luca Setti via Flickr.com

EXPLORING COLLECTIONS 1:WHAT WE KNOW

Pro Tips:

Take Many NotesSave Questions for Group Discussions

Phat Wad, Break me off someby Refracted Moments via Flickr.com

DVD Collection - Movies and Family/Children by chapstikaddict via Flickr.com

Rubber Duck Collection by Alien Graffiti via Flickr.com

Yashica ML Lenses - All together now! By loeffel_1 via Flickr.com

ACTIVITY THREE: THE MYSTERIOUS COLLECTION Within your group, answer the following questions:

1. What is the definition of a collection?

2. What do you think can be found within a library collection?

3. What is the purpose of the library collection?

4. Who is responsible for creating a library collection?

5. What are other places collections can be found in Cambodia?

ACTIVITY THREE: THE MYSTERIOUS COLLECTION We will now share our answers to the entire room. Please take notes as you hear what everyone has to say. When the discussion is over, each group will share what they have learned from this activity with each other.

COMING UP THIS AFTERNOON! This afternoon we will learn more about collections and how they affect communities that use them.

Photo by Greg Bem, 2014

LUNCH BREAK:UNTIL 2PM

Fried Tarantula, Phnom Penh Cambodia by Adam Cohn via Flickr.com

EXPLORING COLLECTIONS 2:NEW UNDERSTANDING

Pro Tips:

Ask yourself:How does this relate to me?

What do I want to learn more about?

COLLECTIONS: THE DEFINITION

• the act or process of getting things from different places and bringing them together

• a group of interesting or beautiful objects brought together in order to show or study them or as a hobby

COLLECTIONS: FUNCTIONS

• Collections can have many different functions.

• Functions depend on who is creating/curating the collection and why.

• Functions also depend on the community, if any, a collection serves.

• Archival: some collections are designed to preserve materials.

• Subject-specific: some collections are topical in nature and serve to centralize.

• General: some collections aim to include every material available in a geography.

• The curator of the collection should have a description of their collection so they know how to keep the collection in existence.

COLLECTIONS AND COMMUNITIES• Collections are often found within a specific community.

• Communities, like collections, are all very different.

• A collection can aid a community by supporting the function and behavior of the community.

• A community that does not find value in the collection might not use the collection.

• A collection might still be valuable to a community that does not use it.

• A community might have multiple collections of the same types of resources available to them.

• The curator of the collection should understand how the collection relates to its community and how the community relates to the collection.

COLLECTIONS WITHIN THE LIBRARY• A library is not a collection, but a building (or digital space) that is used to contain collections and allow people to access them.

• A library may have more than one collection depending on the size and purpose of the library.

• A library may also serve multiple communities or different groups of people within a singular community.

• Collections within a library, like collections in general, grow in many ways: some gain new items, some lose old items.

• It is the goal of the librarians to understand how to best keep and/or change their collections to make the library the best place it can be for the enhancement of knowledge among the people who visit the library.

LIBRARY COLLECTION EXAMPLE: FICTION BOOKS

Image fromhttp://apilgriminnarnia.com

EXAMPLE: REFERENCE BOOKS

Image from http://asiacambodia.blogsp

ot.com

LIBRARY COLLECTION EXAMPLE: DVDS AND VIDEO

Image from http://phnompenhpost.

com

LIBRARY COLLECTION EXAMPLE: MAPS

Image of Seattle Public Library Map Room from

http://adrianrae.wordpress.com

NEW COLLECTIONS WITHIN THE LIBRARY Communities are constantly changing.

Collections usually need to change as well to meet the new needs of the community.

A collection within a library should be reliable but should be interesting and engaging.

The prevalence of digital culture throughout the world has challenged libraries.

Many libraries are now going beyond keeping only books in their collections.

EXAMPLE: VIDEO GAMES

Image from http://idigitaltimes.com

EXAMPLE: TOOL LIBRARY

Image from http://kctoolco.com

EXAMPLE: INTERNET HOT SPOTS

Image from http://blog.toggle.com

EXAMPLES: CAMERAS AND TECHNOLOGY

Image from http://thetravelingtripod.com

OTHER COLLECTIONS How can the librarians with their own collections learn from the following collections?

Pay attention to the possibilities that might exist as you think about developing your own collection.

Phnom Tamao, via http://fcccambodia.com

SEED BANKS

http://www.kew.org/science-conservation/collections/millennium-seed-bank

FACEBOOK AND SOCIAL MEDIA

http://facebook.com

FONTS

http://www.selapa.net/khmerfonts/

LAWS

http://opendevelopmentcambodia.net

ACTIVITY FOUR: INDEPENDENT REFLECTION (10 MIN) Silently write down a short response about what they have learned and what has surprised them.

Additionally, everyone is required to think of one type of material that they would like to see collected by a library or other organization (or a business or individual) and how it would benefit a specific community.

BREAK TWO:

15 MINUTES

!Napping in the Shade by Aaron Gilson via Flickr.com

FUTURE THINKING

Pro Tips:

Challenge your understandingApply new knowledge

Think critically

ADDITIONAL THOUGHTS ON COLLECTIONS Collections are composed of information objects.

Information is created, shared, received, and then interpreted.

Collections represent the people who have access to them.

Collections can represent very diverse information sets.

Collections can be composed of many different types of objects.

Collections require constant care and attention to be useful.

Collections can move in many directions: they can grow, and they can lessen.

FINAL ACTIVITY: THE BETTER COLLECTION, PT 1

Each group chooses one collection that exists in the real world. This should be a collection one of the team members works on. If no one in the group works in a collection, the team will have to create a fictional collection. National Library of Cambodia by Peta Hopkins

via Flickr.com

FINAL ACTIVITY: THE BETTER COLLECTION, PT 2 Once the collection is described and the team members understand it, the group will answer the following:

Who uses this collection/what is the community the collection is a part of? What are the benefits of the collection so far and how is it already being used?

What can be improved upon? Is there anything radically different that could be done to the collection to encourage its use?

What risks are at play (what problems might occur) with changing the collection?

National Poetry Month Display at LW Tech, April 2015 – Photo by Greg Bem

THANK YOU FOR YOUR PARTICIPATION!

ANY QUESTIONS?

Stay in Touch: @cambodianbem

@bembrarian