Join Us for the RDA Lab Series

Please plan to be busy developing your RDA skills every Tuesday from 2:30 to 3:30 PM CDT, beginning June 30th and ending December 8, 2020! During that period, we will present the new RDA Lab Series – six webinar modules that each consist of four 60-minute sessions

The RDA Lab Series is designed to help participants understand how to apply the new RDA and RDA Toolkit created by the 3R Project. Now available for registration on the ALA Store website at both group and individual rates, all specified below, the online series provides hands-on experience using the new RDA and RDA Toolkit with an RDA Lab application profile.

Additionally, the series of webinars explores concepts introduced by the IFLA Library Reference Model (LRM), such as the Nomen entity and aggregate manifestations. The series will also address new approaches to familiar topics such as relationships and persons. The focus is practical, not conceptual, giving participants strategies for implementing the updated RDA in their agencies.

In each module, cataloging expert and former RDA Steering Committee member Kate James guides participants through the structure and content of the new RDA Toolkit by using exercises based on regular cataloging situations. Each module consists of four sessions. The first session in each module provides registrants with an overview of the topic and a brief explanation of the application profile(s) used. The other sessions consist of instructor demonstrations of exercises and a Q and A period. Registrants will be given exercises for the session in advance but are not expected to submit exercises to the instructor.

General knowledge and familiarity with current RDA cataloging practices and concepts is assumed.

Modules included in this series:

Relationship Basics (June 30th through July 21st)

This module provides exposure to a variety of aspects of relationship elements, which are used to describe entities. Topics covered in the module include element labels, domain and range, element hierarchies, coherent description of an information resource, and recording methods.

Nomens (July 28th through August 18th)

This module will demystify this entity, demonstrating how other entities are identified by their relationships to nomens, and how nomens simplify name changes and pseudonyms. Nomen elements such as reference source and context of use are also covered.

Manifestations (August 25th through September 15th)

This module will focus on describing manifestations with manifestation statements and VES elements as well as other common manifestation elements such as appellation of manifestation and date of manifestation. Participants will describe manifestations of different carrier types, such as volume and audio disc. Note that aggregate manifestations will be covered in a separate module.

Persons (September 22nd through October 13th)

This module will demonstrate how to find and apply new and existing elements to describe a person. Topics covered in the module include appellation of person (including access points), other common elements used for person (e.g., biographical information and date of birth), locating person elements from their broader agent elements, and using an IRI for the person as a real-world object.

Works (October 20th through November 10th)

This module gives participants experience using new and existing elements to describe a work and relate new and source works to each other using the transformation element. Participants will describe a static work and a diachronic work. Topics covered in the module include appellation of work, representative expression, transformation, and other common elements used for works.

Aggregate Manifestations (November 17th through December 8th)

Participants will describe an example of each of the three aggregate types. Topics covered in the module include relationship shortcuts, cardinality restrictions applicable to aggregates, and relationships between aggregate manifestations and agents.

You can sign up for each module separately or register for the entire series at a substantial discount.

Single Module Pricing

Individual module registration, non-ALA member: $125
Individual module registration, ALA member: $112.50
Group module registration, non-ALA member: $485
Group module registration, ALA member: $436.50

Full Series Pricing

Individual series registration, non-ALA member: $485
Individual series registration, ALA member: $436.50
Group series registration, non-ALA member: $1,600
Group series registration, ALA member: $1,440

You can visit the ALA Store to register for the series now. Questions about the series can be directed to rdatoolkit@ala.org.

ABOUT THE PRESENTER: Kate James is an independent contractor and the author of an upcoming workbook on RDA. She served as a member of the RDA Steering Committee from 2013-2019. In her role as RDA Examples Editor, she was a key contributor to the redesign of the RDA Toolkit. Kate previously worked as a senior cataloging policy specialist in the Library of Congress Policy and Standards Division where some of her responsibilities included staff training on RDA and editing the Library of Congress-Program for Cooperative Cataloging Policy Statements and the Descriptive Cataloging Manual. She has given presentations on RDA in the United States and internationally.