Drowsy dromedaries need source references : A study of current archive-based teaching and learning strategies for archival availability on the Swedish municipal level

This study was written with the aim to shed light on which strategies were employed by all 26 Swedish municipal archives in the Stockholm region to attract users to the archives at the time of writing. This was done by asking questions about archive-based teaching and learning via survey to municipal archivists, analyzing the webpages of the municipal archives for information about making the cultural heritage available in non-traditional active ways, and studying the ”archival regulations” or ”archival guidelines” which specify archival management and responsibilities on the municipal level. The results show that archives in most cases are understaffed and that archive-based teaching and learning has a low priority in the municipal archives, even though in most of the cases the archival regulations specify an obligation to actively promote usage of the material in cultural and scientific contexts. The study doesn’t find a link between obligations specified in the documents and municipal commitment to making the archival material available in abovementioned non-traditional ways. The study sums up the current archive-based teaching and learning strategies for the examined archives based on the above sources. The author of the study hopes that the results will provide fuel for the discussion regarding municipal archives and the role they should play in making the cultural heritage available to the public