Rediscovering the Theoretical Base of Records Management and Its Implications for Graduate Education Searching for the New School of Information Studies Tyler O
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Rediscovering the Theoretical Base of Records Management and Its Implications for Graduate Education Searching for the New School of Information Studies Tyler O. Walters In the Fall 1992 issue oiJELIS, Eugenia K. Brumm published a brief description of the graduate records management education program at the University of Texas at Austin Graduate School of Library and Information Science. Brumm attempts to demonstrate to library educators that they should support graduate records management education because it has a theoretical base that is shared with library science. While Brumm's goal is desirable, this article sets out to show that linking records management theory with the broader discipline of information science and its information resource management perspectives is a more fruitful and accurate approach. It will further show that the critical link between archives and records theory is central to records management education, while library science theory is only tangential to it. The author calls for two changes: (1) that information professionals and educators broaden their awareness beyond the library profession to include other information profes sions and their disciplinary knowledge and theoretical bases and (2) the evolution of "new schools of information studies" will respect the need for independent degrees based on the distinct disciplinary knowledge that defines and supports each informa tion profession. He strongly endorses the development of graduate degree programs for the nonbibliographic information professions in the United States. In the Fall 1992 issue of the Journal of of library and information science at the Education for Library and Information University of Texas at Austin, reached Science appeared a short description of out to her colleagues to show them that the pioneering graduate education pro records management deserves a gradu gram in records management being de ate education program because it has a veloped at the University of Texas at base of theoretical knowledge that in Austin Graduate School of Library and forms the work of records managers. In Information Science. The author, support of her plea, Brumm addresses Eugenia K. Brumm, assistant professor five areas of misconception about records Spring 1995 139 140 Journal of Education for Library and Information Science About the Author Tyler O. Walters is University Archivist, Iowa State University, and Cochair, Society of American Archivists' Committee on Education and Professional Development. He is SAA's representative to the ALA Office of Accreditation's Evaluator Training Program Advisory Board. The author has published articles and presented numerous papers on gradu ate archival education in North America as well as on information technology applications in libraries and archives. He holds an M.A. in Archival Management from North Carolina State University. management. They are filing equals re that informs the methods and actual cords management; records manage practices of its members. These bodies ment should be an undergraduate of knowledge for the respective profes course or program; one course in re sions can grow through performing re cords management is sufficient prepa search on issues relevant to them. They ration for functioning as a records man can also be taught through an education ager; records management should be program to students who aspire to enter taught in schools of business; and re a particular information profession. cords management has no theoretical or Through research and teaching, the conceptual construct. Each of the areas bodies of knowledge that support cer touches upon key issues that define the tain information professions can be management of records as a discipline, come fields of study in today's aca and the existence of its own theory. demic institutions. This is already the Brumm's willingness to move beyond case with some of the aforementioned the familiar ground of library science information professions, but not all. Ul education and recognize the educa timately, this is the purpose of Brumm's tional needs of another major informa short article: to convince library educa tion profession is exemplary. Who tors that there are other information thought that such a short article could professions with a body of knowledge hold so much significance? that can and should be taught to stu Brumm's description calls into dents in institutions of higher learning. question the very nature of several in However, the community of infor formation professions. Among these mation professions' collective lack of fields are librarianship, records man understanding about the diverse bodies agement, archival management, of theoretical knowledge has caused museology, information resource man their approaches to graduate education agement, and information systems de to be flawed, the existing programs to sign and analysis. Her description also suffer, and the graduates to be ill pre indicates clearly how little information pared. For instance, Brumm works very professionals in the United States seem hard to find linkages between library to understand about the disciplinary science theory and records manage nature of their professions. The disci- ment. In so doing, she misses com plinarity of a profession means that it pletely how significant the historical has a body of theoretical knowledge linkage between archives and records is Volume 36, Number 2 Rediscovering the Theoretical Base of Records Management 141 in records management education. In relates to records management will be stead of attempting to conjure up shared touched upon. Today many faculty theoretical knowledge where there is members in library and information sci none, Brumm's justifications would ence schools are grappling with the prove much stronger if she explained meaning of "information science." the relationship between modern re Some definitions have been offered that cords management and information sci bear significance for understanding and ence and how they relate within an edu furthering the theoretical base of re cational paradigm of information cords management. Information science studies pedagogically.1 A more accurate is described as "the study of the theory and powerful argument is that ar and practice relating to the creation, chives/records and library science are acquisition, processing, management, subsets within information studies edu retrieval, and dissemination of informa cation whose theoretical bases are dis tion." Another closely related term, "in tinct, but both are linked in theory and formatics," is defined as "the study of method to the broader and newer aca structure and properties of information, demic discipline of information sci as well as the application of technology ence. This approach would prove much to the organization, storage, retrieval, 2 more fruitful than trying to link records and dissemination of information." management directly with library sci Applying the study of information ence. science to traditional records manage While addressing some of the cardi ment practices has given rise to what is nal assertions articulated by Brumm, known as information resource manage this article sets out to show that the ment (IRM). It is defined as "a manage linkage between archives and records rial discipline that views information as theory is salient in records management a resource analogous to financial, education and that library science is physical, human, and natural re tangential to it. I ask information stud sources, and stresses the efficient and ies educators to consider these points effective handling of information." IRM when developing graduate education involves the management of such infor for nonbibliographic information pro mation resources as computer-proc fessions in the United States. The in essed data files, computer-processed separable lives of records and archives text files, networked communications, will be illustrated and, thus, archival and the routine "paperwork" and re management and records management, cords of an organization. These types of and ultimately graduate archival educa information—information from auto tion and graduate records management mated systems—and the procedures education. But first, a working defini performed on them have become the tion of "information science" is needed. media and tools with which the records Then a few of the perspectives put forth manager works inside the modern cor by Brumm need redressing. porate organization. With the advent of The phrase "information science" computer-generated information, the has been inferred in this article's intro phrase "records management" has es sentially evolved into "information re duction to designate a new field of 3 study. Since this phrase is currently on source management." It's a new phrase going close examination and refine that includes the former, but reflects the ment, it is difficult to completely ex changes in information production and plain its meaning. Instead, indications communication brought on by new in of how it is perceived today and how it formation technology. Hence, the devel- Spring 1995 142 Journal of Education for Library and Information Science opment of theories and methods relat vist manages records bearing continu ing to managing recorded information ing value and the records manager man internal to organizations is an impor ages all records, those with continuing tant aspect of the study of