Sammie L. Morris

Archival Literacy Competencies for Undergraduate History Majors

Abstract Undergraduate history majors need to know how to conduct archival research. This article describes the second phase of a project to identify “archival literacy” competencies. Faculty, archivists, and librarians from baccalaureate, masters, and doctoral/research institutions commented on a draft list. This resulted in competencies in six major categories: accurately conceive of primary sources; locate primary sources; use a research question, evidence, and argumentation to advance a thesis; obtain guidance from archivists; demonstrate acculturation to archives; and follow publication protocols. Archivists, faculty, and librarians can collaborate to integrate the competencies throughout undergraduate history curricula in their institutions.