SPECIAL COLLECTIONS FOR EDUCATION RESEARCH: CONTRIBUTIONS TO AN INFORMATION NETWORK

Authors

  • Gladys I. Dratch

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.26443/el.v22i1-2.124

Abstract

This article focuses on special collections in the United States which provide historical curriculum resources and other specialized materials for education research. An overview of the Special Collections at Monroe C. Gutman Library, Harvard University, Graduate School of Education provides background on their growth and development, descriptions of major collections, information about the preservation microfilming projects, and a discussion of the research use of the collections. Other sources of information about special collections are presented, including the author's annotated bibliographies of directories for locating special collections and selected World Wide Web sites. Various collections are featured in the descriptive entries for the print and online sources. The author concludes that promoting our institutions' special collections through various print and online sources, as well as formal and informal communication with colleagues and scholars, advances the work of researchers in the field, although there are challenges in addressing the associated issues of access, staffing, services, and preservation. It is suggested that Web sites have the greatest potential for enhancing the research process by disseminating in-depth information about special collections.

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Published

2017-09-05