Pima County Public Library: 3 Reads On The Dewey Decimal System

Tucson AZ

06 December, 2021

10:22 AM

Description

Press release from the Pima County Public Library: PimaLib_Blog December 6, 2021 Melvil Dewey's birthday is in December. For many, his name is synonymous with libraries. We grew up learning the Dewey Decimal System to find books in our school and local libraries. The majority of library visitors probably put very little thought to this system. And why should we? If we find what we need, why does it matter how it's classified? The answer is that we in the library world should and do think about how things are classified on your behalf, and how that classification affects the communities we serve (that's you). What should libraries do when the classification system we use, or rather, rely on, doesn't fit anymore? Maybe we should change it. Maybe we should just tweak it. Maybe we should dump it altogether. But doing that isn't as easy as it seems. This system is embedded into everything we do. The DDC system is important for many reasons, and it has served us for a long time (almost 150 years), and right now there isn't a universal system that works for all people in all places. Until there is, we'll probably stick to it. But here's some stuff you might not have thought about. Author: Christina Joseph From: School Library Journal (Vol. 67, Issue 8) This article explains how some libraries are updating their classifications to fit their communities. There are a bunch of real-life examples of schools helping to get books to students by improving the classification system they use to organize those books. Found in Gale Academic OneFile How can bias in library classification systems affect people who use the library? How should that bias be addressed? This one has explanations about bias, mitigating it, and how the curriculum for a series of library workshops is helping library professionals think about the choices they make. Authors: Molly Higgins and Rachel Keiko Stark From: American Libraries (Vol. 52, Issue 1-2) Found in Gale Academic OneFile This article is very academic. It's about, and I quote, "a linked data controlled vocabulary." I'm a librarian, and I honestly couldn't put that into normal language for you. But there are some things in here that are worth reading about how librarians and archivists try to make the systems we use better for everyone, and especially for marginalized communities. Using language that people actually use about themselves, language which is inclusive and representative, helps people find things, and that's what libraries are all about. Updating systems that we've used for almost 150 years is vital work. So, if you're up to it, slog through the academ-ese and read through this one. Authors: Juliet L. Hardesty and Allison Nolan From: Information Technology and Libraries (Vol. 40, Issue 3) Found in Gale Academic OneFile Want to see more? Visit the E-Library and try out any of the myriad resources we offer. You might lose a few hours there, but it will be time well spent. Don't have a card yet? Get a library card online. Once you have one, the E-Library is here for you, 24x7x365. This press release was produced by the Pima County Public Library. The views expressed here are the author's own.