A Critical Analysis and Evaluation of the O.P Siena Archives Practices

Bumangabang, Wilma Tapaya-on (2004). A Critical Analysis and Evaluation of the O.P Siena Archives Practices. Unpublished Master’s Thesis. University of the Philippines, Diliman, Q.C.

Abstract

A well-documented and unprejudiced study of its own past makes the Church more “expert in humanity” because it reveals the historical richness that lies behind her and allows her to identify herself with her essential, continuing and varied mission of enculturation and acculturation.

This study proceeds from a careful collection of all that can be documented helps out in planning a future founded on the contribution whereby memory is also prophecy. Thus, the documents preserved in the archives represent, and become an immense and precious heritage Canon Law 486 mandated each Curia to establish in a safe place a Diocesan Archives where documents and writings concerning both the spiritual and the temporal affairs of the diocese are to be properly filed and carefully kept under lock and key. In like manner, in the Acts of the 7^th General Chapter, December 16-31, 1985 and the provision of the Constitutions and Directory 1988, Art. 526 of the Congregation of Dominican Sisters of St. Catherine of Siena commissioned the Progress General with the deliberative vote of her Council to appoint on Archivist to attend to the Archives of the Congregation. Hence, the Congregation of Dominican Sisters of Siena Archives (O.P. Siena Archives) serves as the repository of records for the Congregation. It will be the “official memory” of the institution, bearing witness to its activities for generations of Siena Sisters to come.

It aims to appraise, collect and organize all available records of permanent value; preserve and make available these records for use; and promote the study and appreciation of the O.P. Siena heritage and history in the Philippines to the larger community it serves and the general public. To ensure its proper administration, current archives practices being used at the O.P. Siena Archives were identified, assessed and analyzed if these conform to the standard and accepted archives practices presented.

Appropriate recommendations for the improvement of the O.P. Siena Archives practices were suggested vis-à-vis the accepted practices and the standards formulated by the International Council of Archives. Findings show that insufficient knowledge on standard archives principles and practices used turned out to be the primary problem in the O.P. Siena Archives.

Recommendations for the proper facilitation of the O.P. Siena Archives administration, based on accepted and standard archives practices were provided for implementation.

An Assessment of the Application of the Principle of Provenance on Archival Arrangement and Description in Selected Academic Archives in Metro Manila.

Bongalos, Florbella S (2004). An Assessment of the Application of the Principle of Provenance on Archival Arrangement and Description in Selected Academic Archives in Metro Manila. Unpublished Master’s Thesis. University of the Philippines, Diliman, Q.C.

Introduction

Provenance or respect des fons is respect for the source or creator. This means maintaining the Integrity of a whole body if records are organically related, thereby preserving inter-relatedness and context of records at the time they were created. Going by the definition of archives as “records organically related to an entity” and the archival principle, “Archivists think groups,” it is imperative that the principle of provenance be adhered to in the arrangement and description of archives.

The Problem

The objectives of the study were: 1) to identify the different arrangement and description practices in selected academic archives in Metro Manila; 2) to determine the extent of compliance in these selected archives to the principle of provenance in the arrangement and description of archives; 3) identify the problems and issues in the application of the said principle of provenance in these academic archives.

Methodology

To attain these objectives, the study used the descriptive method of research. Eight academic archives, which have established archives in Metro Manila were assessed. Ocular visits, observations, and organization and analysis of documentary sources were utilized.

Bibliographic Instruction and Critical Thinking

Ballesteros, Kathleen Lourdes M (2004). Bibliographic Instruction and Critical Thinking. Unpublished Master’s Thesis. University of the Philippines, Diliman, Q.C.

Rationale

With the increasing bulk of information produced as well as with the increasing reliance on global network, there is a need to educate more information literate students. The current situation is providing an opportunity for librarians to play a major role in providing the student the needed skills in dealing with the fast changing environment of information and information technology. It is one of the responsibilities of librarians to educate independent information seekers. The goal in libraries in this situation is for librarians to help the users reach a level of critical thinking or reflective judgment so that the users will be able to make good decisions on which resources to search. As such, they would be able to identify and locate appropriate information within the sources, integrate the information into their understanding of the topics then produce a written output.

The Problem and Methodology

This research has been conceptualized to determine whether Bibliographic Instruction can address such need for the development of the level of critical thinking or reflective judgment called for today. The study compared the critical thinking of freshmen students of the Divine Word College of Laoag enrolled in English I classes during the first semester of AY 2001-2002. One class was assigned as the treatment group, to which the Bibliographic Instruction was administered throughout the semester for one hour each week for 18 weeks, aside from attending the English I class. The other class was assigned as the control group where they took the same English I course. A pretest and posttest was administered to both classes to determine the level of critical thinking of the students before and after the treatment. This also determined the gains in the critical thinking of the students.

Findings and Conclusions

The study found out that there is no significant difference in the gains in the critical thinking of the students exposed to Bibliographic Instruction from those who were not. In conclusion, Bibliographic Instruction did not help develop critical thinking among the students who were exposed to such.

School Libraries and Elementary Education: A Comparative Study of Selected Local and Foreign Private School Libraries

Balbin, Louise Z (2004). School Libraries and Elementary Education: A Comparative Study of Selected Local and Foreign Private School Libraries. Unpublished Master’s Thesis. University of the Philippines, Diliman, Q.C.

The Problem and Its Rationale

School libraries are and will always be essential in the education of the young and children must be made to realize this. With the aim of competently supporting the goals of the educational institutions they belong to, school libraries must continuously improve and evolve. How can they better serve students in this technologically-advanced age? What programs and services need to be done or improved for students to realize what wealth these school libraries offer. School libraries all over the world have geared towards computerization. Yet this is only one step towards attaining more efficiency in library operations.

Methodology

This study compares local and foreign private school libraries in the Philippines based on their organization, programs, and services to find out their similarities and differences and how they can learn from each other to improve services. There were three local and three foreign private school libraries in the study. Eleven librarians and a library clerk from the six school libraries were interviewed. In each school, forty percent of the total elementary faculty population who responded to the questionnaire give suggestions on how to improve their own school libraries.

Findings

School policies, practices, and economic factors play vital roles in differences found between these school libraries, although there are some common activities done by local and foreign private school libraries to promote their services and increase use in children.

Training Needs Assessment of Academic Archivists in Iloilo City

Alenzuela, Reysa (2004). Training Needs Assessment of Academic Archivists in Iloilo City. Unpublished Master’s Thesis. University of the Philippines, Diliman, Q.C.

The Problem and Its Methodology

This study surveyed administrators and archives personnel of academic institutions in Iloilo City in order to assess their training needs and to recommend modules for training in archives administration. Administrators and archives personnel from 22 colleges and 5 universities were the respondents in the study. Eight of these institutions have established their archives while the rest numbering 19, have plans to establish one in their institutions. Although there may be other reasons why majority of these institutions do not have established archives, this study focused on the lack of training and education of administrators and archives personnel as one factor affecting the development of a sound archives program in the city.

Findings

The data in this study showed that there was inadequate training of by people involved in the establishment and administration of archives. This inadequacy cause by the unavailability of archives education programs. In the opinion of administrators, archives education was not available or was inadequate. Forty-six and forty-three (46.43) percent of them believed that there was no existing organization which promoted archives education and training; thirty-two and fourteen (32.14) percent were not aware of any training conducted in the city; and twenty-one and forty-three (21.43) percent said that no archives training was being held. The opinions of administrators were confirmed by the archives personnel. Thirty-three and thirty-three (33.33) percent of the archives propounded that continuing education programs were inadequate while sixty-six and sixty-six (66.66) percent said that it was mostly available.

Conclusions

There was a need to promote awareness of archives education in Iloilo City. The study probed into how the archival training would be effected in academic institutions in Iloilo City. In order to determine their needs, the personal data or profile of administrators and archives personnel, previous training they have attended, including the time for asking the training, and the mode of archives education they will take were analyzed.

The archives education most preferred by respondents was seminar-workshops. Other modes which were found desirable were conferences/conventions, symposia and distance education. The most preferred topics of the respondents vis-à-vis their educational background were: Records management, Arrangement and description, Preservation and restoration, Reference, Access and Security, Archives concepts, Principles and practices.

Information Skills Assessment as a Basis for Developing ILIAC

Information Skills Assessment as a Basis for Developing ILIAC

Researcher: SOCORRO PLACIDA LIMPIN

Course: Master of Arts in Education Major in Library Science

School: Philippine Normal University

Subject Area: Information Skills

Year of Graduation: 2004

User's Assessment of the Electronic Resources of the Dela Salle University (DLSU) Library: Basis of a Proposed Upgrading Program

Researcher: ANNABELLE F. ALIWALAS

Course: Master of Arts in Library Science

School: Centro Escolar University, Philippines

Subject Area: Library Automation

Year of Graduation: 2004

A Proposed Automation Plan for Saint Mary's University Library

Researcher: DAVID A. CABONERO

Course: Master of Arts major in Library Science

School: Centro Escolar University, Philippines

Subject Area: Library Automation

Year of Graduation: March 2004

Introduction
The rapid developments in computers in libraries around the world led to the increased used of information and communications technologies in creating and delivering better library and information services.

Statement of the Problem
The main thrusts of this study is to determine the present status of Saint Mary's University (SMU) Library. Specifically, it answers the following questions:

1. What are the characteristics of the respondents with regard to: age, gender, and tear level (students), highest educational attainment, and length of service in SMU (faculty and librarians)?

2. What is the status of SMU library as perceived by the students, faculty, and librarians with regard to the library collection, organization of the collection, library staff, library services, physical facilities, information technology facilities, and financial support?

3. How did the perceptions of the respondents compare on the aforementioned areas?

4. What are the functions and services of SMU library that need to be automated as perceived by the respondents?

5. What automation plan can be prepared for SMU library?

Methodology
The survey questionnaire was the main instrument used in gathering data. It was administered to five hundred six (506) respondents. The accomplished assessment tools were gathered for analysis, tabulation and interpretation using the statistical measures which include the frequency distribution, mean, standard deviation and analysis of variance (ANOVA).

Findings
1. Profile of the Respondents.
The following are the profile of the respondents: 1) Majority of the students (50.9 percent) were aged 18-19; 64.6 percent were female; and 31.1 percent were sophomores; 2) Twenty-eight percent of the faculty were aged 26-32 years old; 68 percent were female; majority of them were pursuing their Master's degrees; and 48 percent had served the school for 1-5 years; 3) Fifty percent of the librarians were 26-30 years old; 75 percent were female; 60.5 percent were pursuing their Master's degrees; and 62.5 percent have stayed for 1-10 years.

2. Status of Saint Mary's University Library, College Department
The following were the analyses of the data on the status of the SMU library: 1) The students and the faculty respondents perceived the library collection as “good” while the librarian respondents perceived it as “very good;” 2) The respondents agreed that the card catalog, periodical index, research aids, vertical files, and CD-ROMs were effective and adequate; 3) The students and librarian respondents perceived as “good” the readiness of the librarians for automation of the library services while the faculty perceived it as “very good;” 4) The students and librarians perceived as “good” while the faculty perceived it as “very good; the services of the library; 5) Both students and librarians perceived the physical facilities of the library as “good” while the faculty perceived it as “very good;” 6) All the respondents perceived it as “moderately sufficient” the computers and the printers in the library; and 7) The respondents agreed that the library fees were spent solely for the library and that the Director of the Libraries had full responsibility of preparing the library budget.

3. Comparison of the Perceptions of the Respondents
There was a significant different between the perceptions of the students and faculty on library collection. The students perceived as “good” while the faculty perceived it as “very good;” The perception of the students differed very significantly from those of the faculty on the aspects library staff, library services, physical facilities and financial support. The students perceived them as “good” while the faculty perceived it as “very good.”

4. Priority Needs for Library Automation
The respondents prioritized the library functions and services in the following order: 1) card catalog; 2) security control; 3) circulation control; 4) reference service; 5) indexing module; 6) cataloging module; 7) serial module; and 8) acquisition module. They also suggested the development of the electronic resources in the following order: 1) Internet access; 2) CD-ROMs; 3) Online databases; 4) CD-ROM databases; and 5) electronic journals.

5. A Proposed Automation Plan for Saint Mary's University Library.
The following activities were identified: 1) First priorities to be implemented in 2004-2005 are the acquisition, cataloging, indexing, OPAC, the reference/information services, and Internet access; 2) Second priorities to be implemented in 2005-2006 are the circular module and the digitization of important documents; 3) Third priorities to be implemented in 2006-2007 are the electronic journals, online databases, and security control system; and 4) The last priority to be implemented in 2007-2008 is the serial management.

Conclusions
1. There is a need to improve and modernize the collections, facilities and services of the library;
2. Saint Mary's University is financially capable of supporting the needs of its library, especially the automation of library function; and
3. The consensus of the library users is that there is a need to improve the library through information and communications technology.

Recommendations
1. Implementation of the library automation plan to improve the services of Saint Mary's University library; and
2. Continuous evaluation of the automation development to ensure implementation of the program.

Assessment of the Reference Services of the Libraries of the Canossa Group of Schools: Basis for a Proposed Reference Services Program

Researcher: SEONY S. SAN BUENAVENTURA

Course: Master of Arts in Library Science

School: Centro Escolar University, Philippines

Subject Area: Reference Services

Year of Graduation: 2004