Category: Name authority control

Are you new to cataloguing, or returning to it after a break? Join the LAICMG online on 27th February to dive into cataloguing with Anne Welsh

Save the date 27th February, 2025.

Tickets can be booked on our eventbrite page here and student LAI members can avail of a special discount price subsidised by the LAICMG.

Due to demand, the LAICMG will be hosting a re-run of the Fundamentals of Cataloguing online workshop (held in October 2024).

Guided by trainer Anne Welsh (Beginning Cataloguing), we’ll consider first principles (what we are really doing when we catalogue); the language of cataloguing (basic jargon-busting); and subject analysis (the aboutness of the thing in our hands). In practical terms, we’ll create basic records (in a Word document or in our notebooks) for three related works, including FAST subject headings. We’ll also consider the tricky bits of some other books that have quirky but not uncommon elements affecting how we describe their title, extent, illustrations and inserts. We’ll look at how we make sure that the names of their creators are entered consistently (Name Authority control) and that they receive the correct subject headings (FAST).No knowledge of MARC or RDA is required (cheat sheets will be provided) and no pre-existing knowledge of how to catalogue is needed – if you can search your own catalogue, this training will provide you with the fundamentals to understand how the cataloguer decided what to put on the catalogue in the first place

Learning outcomes

This course is in response to a stated demand for practical training in Cataloguing. By the end of the day, participants will be able to:

1. Describe what cataloguing is, why it matters and the basic principles that underpin it
2. Create several records that include the fields and subfields commonly expected by libraries / cataloguing agencies
3. Look up authorities.loc.gov (a free resource provided by the Library of Congress) to establish the name headings for several creators (MARC 1XX) and co-creators (MARC 7XX) and have an awareness of the different ways that Library Management Systems handle Name Authority, so they can check which is in use at their workplace / place of study
4. Establish FAST subject headings using subject analysis skills
5. Demonstrate beginner-level experience in cataloguing using the main cataloguing standards
6. Look for further information to extend their skills and keep them up-to-date using resources shared on the coure.

These Teaching and Learning Objectives contribute to an overarching Aim, which is that as many people as possible who are responsible for creating library metadata should have the confidence to employ what is commonly referred to in the literature as “cataloguer judgement” – i.e. the confidence to know which standards and rules to employ, where and when to look them up, and the ability to interpret and apply them.

Tickets on eventbrite

Tickets can be booked on our eventbrite page here and student LAI members can avail of a special discount price subsidised by the LAICMG.

Please note that places on this course are confined to staff and students based in Ireland

Tickets are limited. We look forward to seeing some of you on the day.