Weeding... YAY!

I figured out how to get Webjunction to work so that I could take a class. The class I took was titled Weeding: It's Not an Option. This class encompassed so much information that it's really hard to choose what to summarize. Some of the most interesting information was about the history of weeding which I had never learned about. I learned that weeding is actually a fairly modern concept for libraries. Libraries used to be considered more valuable if they owned more items rather than than the quality of the items they did own. A new philosophy developed because of the costs of storage and because the useful life of information had become much shorter. Some of the terms most often used as synonyms of weeding include: deselection, culling, inventory control, and surplus identification. Reasons for weeding include: the bad items obscure the good items, it enhances the experience of browsing, appreciating and using, inappropriate materials can drain resources, the bad items encroach on other areas, there simply isn't enough room, and the bad items limit access. Most libraries have a need for both a weeding project and ongoing weeding. The usual general criteria for weeding are 1.)use or lack of use 2.)physical condition 3.)duplication or redundancy 4.)superseded 5.)age 6.)historical perspective 7.)inappropriate and 8.)mistake. There is also the famous crew method (MUSTIE) M for misleading, U for ugly, S for superseded, T for trivial, I for irrelevant, and E for elsewhere. System reports can help us identify red flags that indicate that something needs to change. A system report can easily be done with an automated system. This is a general overview of the course. There was a TON of information. The end of the course consisted of making an actual weeding plan for your library. I wrote out what I would do but obviously didn't put it in place. I gained a wealth of information from the course. I would feel much more confident if I ever had to weed a collection. I think the course was great for beginners especially.