1) How useful were the pre-course readings?

1: Somewhat, but this is a field relatively unfamiliar to me and much of the reading was overwhelming. I'm definitely going to go back to some of the books on the reading list now that I've finished the course. 2: Fine, though hard to find. 3: Excellent. 4: Pre-course readings were good preparation. Required volumes were sufficient preparation. Additional readings were useful but not necessary to getting full value of course. 5: Very useful, although they were numerous and I did not finish them all. 6: The pre-course readings were very useful and necessary to understand the context of the course. 7: Very. 8: Very useful. 9: Very helpful. Instructor was able to assume previous knowledge, both from prerequisite and readings, and get right to meat of class. 10: As useful as they can be, although Pickwoad's course should not be the only prerequisite. 11: Very useful. 12: Quite useful.

2) Were the course syllabus and other materials distributed in class useful (or will they be so in the future, after you return home)?

2: Yes. 3: Excellent. 4: Materials were appropriate. 5: Yes. I appreciated MF's Table of Dates for collectors; I wonder if she might add a similar table of binders and their approximate dates. 6-7: Yes. 8: I think so. 9: N/A. 10: A more detailed handout of bibliography for this subject would be useful for future private study. 11: A course syllabus was not distributed; would have been helpful; however, lectures were very well organized. 12: Yes.

3) Was the intellectual level of the course content appropriate?

1: Yes. 2: Yes, fine. Learned but not obtuse/dry. 3: Quite. Although having Pickwoad's course as a prerequisite should have been enough to have allowed the elimination of some very basic information on the book trade, &c. 4: Intellectual level was very good. 5: Absolutely. 6: Yes, very appropriate. 7: Yes. 8: Yes, what I anticipated. Seemed like we actually didn't have enough time for some things although I don't know what we could have done to remedy this!! 9: Yes. 10: Absolutely! 11-12: Yes.

4) If your course had field trips, were they effective?

1: Most assuredly! The bindings we saw at the Folger Library were fabulous. 2: Extremely well -- the best. 3: Folger Library was exceptionally useful. 4: Two visits to UVa's Special Collections very enjoyable and useful. Visit to Folger was excellent. Materials at Folger helped bring together concepts from throughout class/lecture. 6: Yes. Visits to Special Collections and the Folger Shakespeare Library were invaluable to see and apply what we had discussed in lecture. 7: Yes. 8: Yes -- our three trips were extremely useful to the tactile perception of the binding qualities not visible through slides. 9: ABSOLUTELY! Special Collections at UVa are wonderful. Field trip to Folger was amazing ... important to look at tangible examples of what is seen in slide format. 10: ABSOLUTELY! 11: Yes. Very well organized. 12: Yes, definitely.

5) Did the actual course content correspond to its RBS brochure description and Expanded Course Description (ECD)? Did the course in general meet your expectations?

1: Yes. 2: Very. 3: Well ... (see #7). 4: Some class content strayed a bit from subject of decorative bookbinding. However, this was usually interesting and productive. 5-7: Yes. 8: Yes, indeed. 9-12: Yes.

6) What did you like best about the course?

1: Seeing the real things at the Folger Library and in UVa's Special Collections (but all the slides were the next best thing). Also I think the thematic approach to decorative bindings (eg decorative techniques, decorative styles and the relationship of binders to other book trades or to book collectors) was more interesting than either a chronological or geographical approach would have been. 2: Great visuals and MF's stupendous knowledge, manner. 3: MF was a delightful, well-informed lecturer, and the time spent in class was an absolute pleasure. 4: Opportunities to view and handle bindings during Special Collections visits and Folger visits. Slides were excellent, but simply cannot capture the look and feel of bindings. 5: MF's meticulous lectures were great -- she is so well prepared, knowledgeable, and charming. 6: I enjoyed everything about the course. I really felt that the trip to the Folger was an incredible benefit to this course. 8: Instructor is the top person in the field and it was an exciting experience (and thoroughly rewarding) to hear and see her personal research as well as that of others. 9: The instructor. 10: The teacher, combined with visits to Special Collections and the Folger Library. 11: MF's lectures were well organized and coordinated with her slides. Her enthusiasm for her subject complemented her knowledge and experience. She encouraged questions and complimented the queries that were thoughtful. A very gifted teacher and very generous. 12: Field trip and visits to UVa Special Collections. Lectures on collectors. Questions and answers.

7) How could the course have been improved?

2: I can't imagine, given only one week and considering we've had the preliminary course for fairly commom knowledge terms (to get going and not to confuse as we went at a fast pace). 3: The information on collecting, patronage, the book trade, &c. was delightful yet unexpected (and could well be limited, I believe). The time spent on c19 cloth bindings and economics of that period was neither delightful nor expected and could well be eliminated or at least explained in the course advertisements as most students did not bargain for this kind of information. I believe that the course could be improved by some handouts/discussions of specific tools, rolls, &c., in order to help students develop a better sense of "quintessential" elements of book/cover design (although I do appreciate the instructor's justification for her approach). Yet I must reiterate that altogether too much time was spent on collecting, economics, politics (things which I thought it was understood that the student would be well aware of prior to the course) and not enough time on decoration. 4: Lecture portion relating to the transition from hand binding into mechanized Industrial Revolution binding could be dropped. It seemed only slightly related to class topic and given the prerequisite of Nicholas Pickwoad's class, probably not needed. 5: Perhaps slightly less time on the exact number of pennies and shillings the bindings cost, although others may disagree. 7: Two projectors. 8: A projector that could self-focus or focus more easily. 9: Not sure it could have been improved. 10: Not at all! I would like the course to be longer than one week. Two weeks would be best. 11: A list of binders and their patrons. 12: I would not be so ambitious with time frame and cover only ms and hand-press period. Also some more emphasis on decoration other than tooling would be welcome, such as: marbling, sprinkling leather. More time at beginning on trade binding styles might put the luxurious bindings in better contrast, as was done spectacularly for Pepys section!

8) We are always concerned about the physical well-being both of the BAP's teaching collections and of materials owned by UVa's Special Collections. If relevant, what suggestions do you have for the improved classroom handling of such materials used in your course this week?

1: I think sitting around a table at the Folger and passing books around the table on mats was more conducive to discussion than sitting in rows here in Special Collections and passing books in trays. 2: None -- we very gently got to handle rare books (when possible -- thanks). 3: N/A. 5: A Special Collections curator may want to be present at all times, as was the case at the Folger. Handling of the books should be reduced, esp. in the case of opening and closing certain bindings which are a bit weak or fragile. 6: I believe that precautions are being taken to ensure careful handling of classroom material. 8: In our Special Collections visit -- a table to pass around items would be better than trays in our laps. Also with better lighting (that last comment for our benefit). 9: Folger Special Collections uses silk mats on which to pass books around a large table. UVa's use of trays passed person to person feels a bit like a catastrophe waiting to happen. 10: When viewing rare books in Special Collections method should mirror that used at the Folger. Using baskets is an accident waiting to happen.

9) Please comment on the quality/enjoyability of the various RBS activities in which you took part outside of class (eg Sunday afternoon tour, Sunday night dinner, evening lectures, Bookseller Night, Video Night, Study Night, tour of the Alderman digital/electronic centers, printing demonstrations, &c.).

1: I enjoyed all of the outside activities I attended and thought the schedule was better than in other weeks I've attended. 2: Sunday supper is rather pricey (although good food and drink). We missed some demos since we went to Folger -- so a fair trade, but did miss Study Night. 3: TB's Sunday lecture was a pleasure. 5: I missed the van on Bookseller Night and hope it will return next year. 6: I believe that activities are well organized. The only suggestion that I would make is to move TB's talk to another night than Sunday. Although the talk was well attended, I believe more people would attend if it were offered during the week. It is a very important talk to hear. 7: Very nice. 8: Two places were closed when we got there (it wasn't late either!) and others didn't seem to care if we were there or not -- sorry, but I seem to remember a better reception from Bookseller's Night a few years back. Video Night was great. Bus trip made me miss Study Night (and I really did want to go). 9: I missed the shuttle for Bookseller Night. It provided an opportunity to tag along with others in a very casual way. 10: Sunday dinner and coffee breaks are a wonderful way to mix with faculty and students. An informal lunch "under the trees" by the class and teacher would be a great idea. 11: I enjoyed all of the extracurricular activities. Thank you for all of the planning. The information sent to us ahead of time and given to us upon arrival is very helpful. I wish that the hand-press printing information and other parts of the collection could be studied on more than one occasion. 12: Great talk by Brett Charbeneau, and Bookseller's Night was fun.

10) Any final thoughts? Did you get your money's worth?

1: Take it. Yes [got my money's worth]. 2: I've fully enjoyed my two courses ('95 and '00) and learned much when considering I really work in this field, so I do have considerable knowledge already. Very worthwhile, and worth $ too. 3: Oh, absolutely [got my money's worth]. Despite the lengthy commentary, the course was really excellent; it has given me a better appreciation of binding decoration and has provided me with a good foundation to go home and begin an enjoyable survey of my library's collection. It was really a pleasure! 4: Overall, an excellent course. Provides excellent framework for continued research and understanding of European decorative bookbinding, plus much specific information. 5: A real bargain -- I recommend it to anyone with even the slightest interest in binding history. 6: Yes! [Got my money's worth.] 7: Yes [got my money's worth]. 8: Well, it wasn't my money, but yes, of course -- it was a great course. Stay on the Lawn, it's an historic experience. 9: Definitely got my money's worth and more. Advice for future students ... read the preliminaries ... get lots of sleep. 10: This course is one of the crown jewels of RBS, as is the teacher. There is no question that I received more than my money's worth. 11: I feel that I received more than my money's worth -- the money of my institution, that is. I have more knowledge to contribute to my department. 12: Very enjoyable -- I would highly recommend it.

Number of respondents: 12

There were eight conservator/binder/preservation librarians (67%), two rare book librarians (17%), one antiquarian bookseller and one book collector (8% each).

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