Content
Introduction .................................................................................................2
Background of Chinese Museum................................................................2
Interacts and Informal links of the Chinese Museum .................................2
Formal responsibilities of the Chinese Museum ........................................3
Types of information for library, Chinese Museum....................................4
Internal communication channels ...............................................................4
Clients/users of the Chinese Museum.........................................................4
Technology used by the Chinese Museum .................................................5
Evaluation ...................................................................................................5
Conclusion: .................................................................................................6
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Introduction
The following report is to regard for my industry placement “The Chinese Museum”.
A brief history of the placement is initially outlined. The discussions then focus on
Library of China Museum. For instance, analysis formal responsibilities of the China
Museum, identifying internal communication channel. The use and Policies of the
Chinese Museum is also outlined. Then the discussion continues with evaluation of
the staff and perceptive of my duties in the following part.
Background of Chinese Museum
The Chinese Museum is located in Melbourne's Chinatown, it built in 1985s, which is
the oldest area of continuous Chinese settlement in the western world (Chinese
Museum, 2011 ) the building refurbished and completed in August 2010. Chinese
museum’s mission emphasize on education, heritage, community, international
cultural exchange and culture tourism , there has 4 floors , each floor including
international and local exhibitions, cultural events and contemporary art shows in the
temporary exhibition gallery. (Chinese Museum profile 2011) it promotes the
understanding of Chinese history .providing visitors with an orientation to
Chinatown’s historic precinct and the history of Chinese in Australia.
Interacts and Informal links of the Chinese
Museum
Chinese museum concentrate on education, It regularly interacts with education
organisation, such as Primary school and secondary school , The Museum has a
comprehensive school tour and cultural workshop program for school students. The
new activities continuing added to school excursion program. Such as: Chinese arts
and crafts workshops, Chinese festivals and customs, Early Australian history and
Gold Rush of the 1850s etc. Australia has a multicultural community. Those activities
helps students deeply knows about Chinese traditional arts and culture, also promote
the understanding of Chinese history , different culture, social development and
Australia’s place in the Asia Pacific region for the all Australia and international
students.
Chinese Museum offer special travel group for visitors and travellers. Orient Express
Travel Group is a long term sponsor of the Chinese Museum. Orient Express Travel
Group has operating more than 25 year. Providing professional travel service, assist
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with travel insurance, arranging visas for travellers. They provide extremely tempting
pricing for flight to BeiJing, Shanghai and Hongkong.
According to Chinese Museum profile 2011, there is over 50 Chinese Australian
Community organisations have ongoing commitment to donate funds for Chinese
Museum:
Recent Exhibition and Program sponsors are:
ACT Government
Australia China Council
Australian Consulate - Guangzhou China
Australian Government - Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
Australian National University
Bank of Queensland
Calibre Business Integration
Central Equity Ltd
Confucius Institute, Melbourne University
East China Normal University, Shanghai….
Major sponsors of the Museum are:
Arts Victoria
The Victorian Government through the Community Support Fund
Victorian Multicultural Commission….
Formal responsibilities of the Chinese
Museum
The Chief Executive Officer at Museum of Chinese Australian History Inc: Bev
Knowles
Curator: Sophie Couchman, She gets involved in ranges of aspects of the museum,
including the work arrangement, research and development on Asia studies, human
resources, staff training, writing articles and museum information for the
website, she also assisted with the development of the Chinese-Australian Historical
Images in Australia website (http://www.chia.chinesemuseum.com.au/)
Exhibitions and Projects Coordinator: Lisa Collins, construct tempting exhibitions and
galleries. Preparation for the touring exhibition centre, event and annual party. Also
she conducts planning and organizing ‘The Museum School Education Program’.
Accounts: Pody Tung, arranges and manages funds for general operation, construct
exhibitions centre and rebuilt.
Ministration: Emily Cheah, Boon Tan, Joan Chuang: receptions of Chinese Museum,
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tourist guide.
Types of information for library, Chinese
Museum
The Chinese Museum research library is a non-lending library maintained by the
museum of Chinese Australian History. It has been developed in a largely ad hoc
manner since the Museum’s establishment in 1985. It includes books, journals and
other material on a wide variety of subjects. Most of books have either been
purchased or donated by other organizations and individual. Chinese Museum
publications, exhibition catalogues and books from exhibitions held at the museum
are also held in the library’s collection. These materials related to the experiences of
Australians in China, biographical material, pouty, children’s books related to China
and people of Chinese ancestry. Some valuable and incomplete cultural relics stored
in the heritage room in Chinese museum .they are worth good protection.
Internal communication channels
There has a big white board in the administrative office, it writes about day-to-day
work schedules of employees in Chinese Museum, Staff new. Bev Knowles as CEO
of Chinese museum would renew the blackboard once a week. Basically, Staffs works
in an office, they have a good communication to catch up work’s progress. Sophie as
a curator of Chinese museum, she would arranges the works of each volunteer, and
teach them how to collection documentation and do library management, Sophie has
gave a ‘Chinese Museum research library policy and procedures’ for each volunteer. It
contains Introduction to research library, processing items for the library, field
descriptions, covering and labelling and acknowledgement. It helps Volunteers more
knows about the library and any things need attention. For the accessibility to the
library, the research library is available for use by members of Chinese Museum by
appointment with the curator. Researcher’s bags are not to be brought into the library.
As I mention before, some valuable cultural relics stored in the heritage room in
Chinese museum, and need good protection, There has a swipe card sensor,
Only curator and other staffs who get permission from curator can allow to entry
heritage room.
Clients/users of the Chinese Museum
Base on my observation, there are variety of clients access those information in
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Chinese Museum. However, as Chinese Museum is a public museum, there is no
internal client can be identified in this case. For external users, it basically can be
divided two types of visitors, individual group. For individual visitors, it included all
the person who interest in Chinese history that visit to museum individually. For
group visiting is basically students, it is because sometimes there is school visiting
session or program.
Technology used by the Chinese Museum
Library has the internal database stored each heritage information in the Chinese Museum,
Each exhibit and items have unique number, item description, background history and photos.
Only staffs can access in. furthermore, computers and scanner often using in the research
library.
Evaluation
Regarding for the satisfaction level of clients for Chinese museum, based on my
observation during the placement time. Most of the victories expressed a relatively
positive comment for the service that offered by the Chinese museum. In my opinion,
I think there are several reasons that Chinese museum can reached that high quality
service. First it offer a touch sensitive electronic guide line which contained
comprehensive information. Also it features with a very easy to use interface; visitors
can get almost all the information from the guide. Also except the user guide of the
museum, this machine also offer variety information that visitors may interest, it
included the Chinese culture, history. This information contains tons of data, fact with
the image description. More and more, according to the Chinese Museum report 2011,
it reported more than hundreds of visitors about the satisfaction level of the museum.
Most of the visitors provide positive feedback. It is same with my observation.
However there is some problem that refers by the visitors are the location and the
book rental service. It is because Chinese Museum is located in the small corner of
China Town, it is quite hard to find when you are not familiar with Melbourne China
town. Also the museum
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Conclusion:
To be concluded, this industry placement offered a good opportunity to get more
understanding about information service in real application. It is because most of the
knowledge I have learnt from the class or book may be totally different when apply in
real life. Thus, this is the best way to apply and test my knowledge and skill. In fact, I
really enjoy working in Chinese Museum, except the skin and knowledge from
managing information. It also allows me to get more understanding more the Chinese
history in Melbourne. Nevertheless, I believe this working experience would be belief
for my study as it can be my practical examples whether than those rhetorical example
on the book.
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Reference:
Chinese Museum,2010, viewed <http://www.chinesemuseum.com.au/about.html>
Chines Museum, 2011, Viewed
<http://www.chinesemuseum.com.au/PDF/Chinese%20Museum%20Profile%202011
.pdf>
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