cogdogblog: Repository of (Learning Object) Dreams Comments and Trackbacks

CDB Entry: Repository of (Learning Object) Dreams

Thu, 02 Oct 2003 13:10:57 -0700

There is almost nothing more cliche than a Field of Dreams metaphor "If you build it, they will come", but it is all so fitting for those that get glaze-eyed at the potential of building a Learning Object Repository (ugh,...

comment by: Brian

Thu, 02 Oct 2003 16:18:57 -0700

Alan, thanks for the useful and (dare I say it) inspiring tale. You've explained much of this to me before, but it's still so groovy to see this in a single package. There's so many good ideas here. You should consider repackaging this as a paper.

comment by: Alan

Thu, 02 Oct 2003 17:01:44 -0700

Yes, but papers are way too much work for me.

Back when I was a geologist, I spent a year working on a four page publication for the leading journal in the field. By design, "Geology" (the journal) had this limit and at least then, their motto was a nice abstraction of the quote from Blaise Pascal:

"I would have writtien a shorter [article] if I had more time"

That was likely the most powerful and valuable lesson of my aborted PhD experience (beyond the time traveling, camping, and drinking around camp fires)

comment by: Alan

Thu, 02 Oct 2003 17:03:07 -0700

Oops I forgot-

This is actually largely the topic of an uncoming (and as of now un-prepared) presentation at the League for Innovation confernece, coming to a URL soon.

comment by: Scott Leslie

Fri, 03 Oct 2003 08:50:50 -0700

Alan, are you guys also collecting any stats on object re-use? Or even just 'views,' of the entries? Both sides seem tough - getting the 'objects' from people but then also getting people to change their ways and actually think of the repository as a primary place to go for instructional material.

Thanks for the great write up. Cheers, Scott.

comment by: Alan

Fri, 03 Oct 2003 09:12:13 -0700

Scott, we have only the basic stats. The bottom of each MLX packing slip, e.g.

http://www.mcli.dist.maricopa.edu/mlx/slip.php?item=127

displays the "visitor" count, essentially the page views of the "meta-data". We do some things on different pages in the top right corner that sometimes display the 3 newest items in the MLX, but you can also flip the menu to see the "most popular" (by visit count) or random ones.

We also display on the slip the number of comments posted and the number of Trackback pings sent (that one will likely not register for a LONG time) and a summary of all TB's on our system:
http://www.mcli.dist.maricopa.edu/mlx/tb.php

I have heard faculty say they are surprised at not getting feedback, and that is just something we need to promote as a part of web activity, We have added redundant reminders in each packing slip such as:

"Note! As a professional courtesy to the owner of this package, if you use some aspect of this package or have some thoughts about it, please share your feedback via the Comments Tool."

A few packages recently provide web URLs to other packages as references-- I am toying with an idea of creating some sort of "packaged package" where if you modiy a package you can create something new but provide a credit link/reference to the first one.

There is re-use going on, but it is taking time to ask and find those people. In fact, while typing this, I am digitizing some video interviews with 4 faculty members who are describing both how they have adopted MLX items and what goes into creating one-- this are to be shown next week at the EDUCAUSE/NLII focus session on LOs as well as a League for Innovation conference later this month.

It only hints at the activity, but my seismometers say there are some small tremors.

Also

Trackback from "eContent"

Wed, 14 Jan 2004 08:57:03 -0700

Excerpt: Repository Folly .
��Weblog: Bruce Landon's Weblog for Students
��Tracked: January 14, 2004 08:57 AM

Trackback from "Repository Folly"

Fri, 09 Jan 2004 13:32:55 -0700

Excerpt: Educational technologists need to reflect on what it means that, for many instructors, the prevailing attitude toward referatories and repositories is "start the revolution without me." My own experiences match those reported below from cogdogblog by Alan
��Weblog: EduResources Weblog--Higher Education Resources Online
��Tracked: January 09, 2004 01:32 PM