archival work more on cultural heritage.28 The best example for this is the "minor
Archieven" [Minor in Archives] which is a cooperative programme between the
Archie/school and the Reinwardt Academie.29
Marburg and Amsterdam 2010
The Archie/school in Amsterdam lost its independence in December 2008. Since
then archival education takes place at the Hogeschool and the University as
before, but most of the staff now work at the Hogeschool and no longer as staff
of the Archief school. There is still the bachelor as well as the master program, the
curriculum is competency-oriented and it is indebted to the records continuum
idea as before.30
The Archivschule in Marburg is still independent, but financial problems also led
to a debate about new organisational structures, although in the end nothing
has been changed. However, it is an example of the big influence which ministers
of finance can have. For the same financial reason, the courses were not
restructured to conform to the Bologna system. The curriculum is still based on
the idea of educating generalists for the whole archival field. The new importance
of records management will not change the existing archival education but will
lead to a new program.31
Summary
The organisational changes of the Archiefschool in Amsterdam and the
Archivschule in Marburg in the late 80s and early 90s were the preconditions for
the following professionalization of archival education. Some problems were
solved in similar ways: making the schools independent, expanding the subjects
which were taught until the capacity barrier of students as well as staff was
reached; and, last but not least, focussing the content on archival science. Other
decisions were totally different: In Marburg, the reforms led to a rise in time
devoted to the practical component, while in Amsterdam this part was reduced by
transferring the education to the Hogeschool and the University.
Since the beginning of the new millennium mainly influences from outside
dominated the development of both schools:
The differing extent and results of the job-outline discussion which forced the
Archiefschool to take decisions that the staff of the Archivschule never had to
undertake: "What is the main task of an archivist?" Educating generalists made
the decision easier at the Archivschule.
The Bologna Process allowed the Archiefschool to change the didactical focus of
their courses and simultaneously solve the problem of adding more and more
PROFESSIONALITEIT
28 See: Fred van Kan: 'Archive und Archivare - wohin? Der Beruf des Archivars in den Niederlanden' in:
Archievpflege in Westfalen-Lippe, 70, 2009, S. 5-8
29 See: Theo Thomassen (2009), p. 20-21.
30 For the current organization, the current courses and their content, see: www.archiefschool.nl (as at
04.02.2010).
31 For the current situation of the Archivschule see: www.archivschule.de (as at 04.02.2010).
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