Systematising Learning and Research Information

Abstract

Special Issue on Theory for Learning Technologies. The Journal of Interactive Media in Education (JIME)is an open access journal. All articles are freely available from the publisher's website.

This paper considers the ways in which information of relevance to the learning and research
 communities is organised and used. It contends that there is considerable overlap between the
 different types of online resources and information currently available within education. It
 describes some of the structured environments and data stores that have emerged in recent years,
 along with standards which are attempting to define the properties of discrete learning objects,
 through the specification of Learning Object Metadata (LOM). The paper contends that
 current developments of structured learning environments such as Managed and Virtual
 Learning Environments (MLEs and VLEs) are occurring on the whole in parallel to resource
 data stores, such as information gateways and portals. This discrepancy has arisen in part
 because these developments have occurred independently of one another and in part because
 there has to date been no rigorous definition of the underlying theoretical models. Furthermore,
 it argues that these predefined structured environments are unlikely to be sufficient to meet the
 information needs of users in different contexts. The paper goes on to describe an information
 toolkit, which provides a way of systematising information handling in learning and research,
 which helps users articulate information plans within specific contexts. The paper concludes
 with a description of two case studies which illustrate how this toolkit can be used.

Peer-reviewed

Publisher Version