Digital Curation: Pedagogy in the Archives

This article discusses the pedagogical opportunities for collaboration between university libraries and teaching faculty, something particularly relevant in the current university climate, when many units are being asked to “do more with less” and to justify the value of humanistic inquiry. The authors propose that digital curation projects are especially conducive to pedagogical experimentation in English departments, as they need not require huge investments of institutional resources. Moreover, the article provides a literature review and detailed case study for how to involve students in curating digital exhibits using library special collections, to explore the role of literary and popular texts in social change. Such projects offer student opportunities to understand cultural history in more complex ways, to develop the ability to collaborate effectively, to “do” interpretation rather than just learn about it, to think through information architecture, and to communicate to broader audiences.