Keeping up to date in technical services: Catalogers Learning Workshop (CLW)

 Today's post features some free cataloguing training that is offered by the Library of Congress via what is called the Catalogers Learning Workshop.

This is the website:  https://www.loc.gov/catworkshop/

This is an important website for all cataloguers to bookmark.  I use it as a gateway for finding free training resources related to RDA, the 3R Project and BIBFRAME / linked data in particular.  However, it is also good for all sorts of cataloguing topics related to LC including more traditional topics such as subject headings and classification.

I have a few comments to make about LC cataloging training. LC is considered the go-to authority for cataloguing standards and training.   In my opinion, the best and most thorough training comes through programs like BIBCO and NACO.  A few years ago I was lucky to get NACO training from Paul Frank at LC when the library I worked for at the time joined a NACO funnel.  It was excellent training.   However, not every library or cataloguer is necessarily part of one of these cooperatives or may have institutional support or the opportunity to join a funnel.  CLW offers a great alternative or supplementary source of training and professional development for all cataloguers.  I personally have used the CLW content for my own professional development and reused and adapted their content when training others.  

On the downside, there is a lot of taped webinars and other content to sift through when it comes to all of the webinars and documentation LC has produced for cataloguers.  Some of what is available is getting older. As mentioned in a previous post, we don't always have the time to sift through all of this.  Sometimes it comes down to whether or not we have more time or more money to invest in training. Unfortunately, we often find ourselves a little short of both.  For those of you who do have a bit of a training budget, OCLC has some recommendations for places where cataloguers and other technical services library workers can get training:

  https://help.oclc.org/Librarian_Toolbox/Supplemental_training_resources

While there is some free training available via these resources, the vast majority of it has an associated fee.  In my own experience, the benefit I have found with the for-fee services is that the instructors have whittled down the content and made it a little more practical relative to much of the free LC training.  None-the-less, the free LC training is still a good first stop for anyone looking to keep their skills and knowledge up to date.