Mullen Workshop Series
By Katie Ward
The Catholic University of America Libraries hosted an “Organizing and Documenting Your Data” event on Monday afternoon in the Mullen Instruction Room, as part of a fall series on Digital Scholarship.
The event agenda included reviewing the research data life cycle, data management plans, data organization, and documenting tips.
“It’s about much more than being more organized,” said Kevin Gunn, Coordinator of Digital Scholarships, who presented at the workshop. “I enjoy teaching the Data Visualization Basics workshop because we can show students and faculty the complexity of how data can be displayed to building a narrative or tell a story in an ethical way (or not). Data is not passive.”
Gunn went through how to organize data for increased efficiency and collaborative ability, and outlined an effective data management plan, using examples of the National Archives’ data storage system.
The event is one in a series of ten workshops on Digital Scholarship Fundamentals. Running from early September to late November, the series’ schedule includes talks on developing one’s digital profile, data visualization basics, the GIPHY and ArcGIS programs, and data transformation.
“Because the University Libraries is a partner in the Washington Research Library Consortium (WRLC), we benefit from sharing expertise in data management, digital formats, preservation, and metadata with colleagues at eight other research universities,” Gunn said.
An average of 4-6 students and faculty have attended each workshop in total, which was motivated by the demonstrable need for research management and the need for a broader understanding of the research lifecycle, according to Gunn.
“Students need to understand the impact of technology on their lives, not to be passive consumers of their information but to be active players in managing their data and information,” Gunn said. “For example, Developing Your Digital Profile workshop is useful for graduate students who will need to present a professional image for publishing, teaching, and future job opportunities.”
University Libraries is hoping to have another series of workshops in the spring, although topics have not been decided. Gunn stated that the department is open to suggestions.
1. What was the motivation for the workshop series?
The motivation for the workshop series was the demonstrable need of research management skills for faculty, students, and librarians. The impact of technologies on how scholarship is conducted and disseminated necessitates a broader understanding of the research lifecycle.
2. Do you collaborate with anyone for the workshops? At the beginning of the semester, which workshop were you most looking forward to?
The librarians sometimes co-teach a workshop. We are interested in partnering with faculty and graduate students in developing new workshops. At other academic libraries, faculty will give a workshop on basic statistics or how to use a particular software package. I enjoy teaching the Data Visualization Basics workshop as we can show students and faculty the complexity of how data can be displayed to building a narrative or tell a story in an ethical way (or not). Data is not passive.
3. Can you summarize the importance of digital scholarship and data management for undergraduate and graduate students?
Students need to understand the impact of technology on their lives, not to be passive consumers of their information but to be active players in managing their data and information. For example, Developing Your Digital Profile workshop is useful for graduate students who will need to present a professional image for publishing, teaching, and future job opportunities. The workshop gets students to think critically about how they collect, manage, and disseminate their scholarly research.
4. How many people have attended the workshops so far?
We average about 4-6 students and faculty per workshop.
5. What expectations do you have for the rest of the workshops? Do University Libraries/Dept. of Library and Information Sciences plan on hosting a spring series; if so, what will the topic be?I hope to have more librarians, faculty, and students share their expertise by teaching workshops on various topics in digital scholarship. We do hope to have workshops in the spring semester but have not decided on specific topics. Suggestions are welcome!
