While my I haven’t had many substantial posts as of late I recalled an old conversation during my recent flight to Seattle. Brian, an old high school teammate, teaches Middle School History and Civics in Carthage, Missouri and tries to integrate new media into his curriculum whenever possible. I mentioned that there are quite a few online primary source materials. Moreover, there are several other organizations such as the Center for New Media and History at George Mason University which do some really cool work.

Most students are introduced to primary and secondary sources in Middle or High School, but I’m not convinced that they really get the full breadth of the two. I know that for myself  the idea was this:

Primary - original source

Secondary - interpretive source

The truth is that not all students take away anything here. Notably, it is very important to know that being able to distinguish between primary and secondary sources can be very helpful from a research perspective. And… the Internet can help. Here’s how.

For several years now librarians have been making the argument that we don’t need to get patrons to come to us but that we need to go to our patrons. Libraries need to adopt Twitter, use Blogs, and offer content online. Assuming that libraries and archives take this approach, it’s not much of a stretch to teach High School students (who rely on the internet anyway) that you can find digital copies of primary sources online. And, once they realize this, the point also can be made that they can find originals in their physical host institutions too.

Student familiarities with primary source materials are often limited by access. There just aren’t many obvious and marketed archival repositories in existence. For example, how many of you had a chance to utilize NARA’s resources when working on your High School papers? College papers? I’m sure the answer is none and I think it gets to very important point. If archivists can remove this obstacle then it’s more feasible for a teacher utilize a broad spectrum primary sources; online of course. Sure, doing so doesn’t ensure that that students will “get it” (that primary sources are historical artifacts which can commonly be used as evidence), but it certainly can provide more opportunities for them to learn.

I was browsing the OCLC website today and happened to notice a report funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (see: From Awareness to Funding: A study of library support in America). I haven’t read it yet but some of the points are exceptionally ironic. Take the find that:

Don’t get me wrong.  I wholeheartedly agree, but I can’t help but wonder what public libraries are doing to set themselves apart? How are they “transformational?” In what way are they social, economic, or political catalysts? I may be feeling overly skeptical today but I just don’t think they are. I’m even a little pessimistic about their chances of becoming something more. For better or worse I see public libraries as auxiliaries that are largely limited to transforming the world around them by participating in your generic community outreach? Public libraries are the guarantors of information, a local community center, and help facilitate education. That’s why we have em’.

In an era where instant gratification, entertainment, and quick fixes are the norm helping educate the general populace can only do so much. That is, with this as they are…