14TH UN/UNIVERSITY LIBRARIANS MEETING/WORKSHOP - 19TH MAY 2011

KCA UNIVERSITYLwande Omondi Charles

e-Learning, University of nairobi

Role of academic libraries in Open, Distance and e-Learning

Introduction There are educational needs that the

conventional educational practices cannot meet easily considering time and place of offer in relations to the learners' location and commitment.

The cost of education has reached an alarming proportion in the National Budgets against the other essential social demands requiring state provision which makes it difficult for governments to allocate more resources to education.

Distance LearningDistance learning - the Student/Learners and Teachers/Lecturers are separated from one another most of the time

Separation of teacher and students; Uses technical communication media;

More of individual learning with less group learning;

Involves privatization of learning;

OPEN LEARNING‘Open learning’ suggests that anyone can

enroll and start and finish when they like.Open learning,

an organized educational activity, based on the use of teaching materials,

constraints on study are minimized in terms either of access, or of time and place, pace, method of study, or any combination of these

OPEN AND DISTANCE LEARNING

‘Open and distance learning’ - educational approaches that:

reach learners in their locationsprovide learning resources for learnersenable learners qualify without attending

college in personopen up new opportunities for keeping

up to date no matter where or when they want to study.

makes use of several different media. Students may learn through print,

broadcasts, the internet and through occasional meetings with tutors and with other students.

Open Learning Technologies Information Communication

Technology has been used to support Open and Distance learning

This concept is referred to as (electronic Learning)eLearning

Content delivery modes include:1. Audiovisual tools2. Email and WWW3. CDs and DVDs4. Video Conference5. eLearning Platforms

Video and Audio

document topics that cannot otherwise be shown

Sound recordings of historic speechesAppropriate use of music sound effects

and speech (commentary) can increase attention and improve intelligibility

Video, graphics and still images can show events that cannot otherwise be made visible e.g. growth process in plants, development of building under construction

Video allow for display of events that are hard to observe

CDs and DVDsCompact Discs and Digital Versatile Discs can be used to make Distance Learning Content available on a local computer

CD author ware tools like eLearning XHTML editor (eXe) can be used to make materials available in a portable media

These can be used where internet access is a problem where a distance learning student reads the content on a local computer

Video ConferencingElectronic meeting where people in

geographically different locations can see and hear one another, present documents and take part in meetings as if they were all in the same location

Conducting conference between two or more participants at different sites by using telecommunication networks to transmit video and data both ways

Telepresence - connected although located in different place and synchronous (same time)

Can reduce travel costs, reduce geographical isolation to a distance learner

Electronic mail

Exchange of computer stored messages over the communications network

Mailing list servers allow administrator to create a list of email addresses and attach to a single email address

All messages that are emailed to the list are redistributed to all learners who are subscribers

Important for internal amongst learners registered for a given course

Online tutors can also use this to communicate with learners

e-Learning platforms

Integrated electronic digital environments where learning activity takes place

Applications used to deliver learning content and facilitation of learning process

Also called virtual learning environmentsThey can be used to electronically connect learners and training departments whether at the same location or dispersed over wider area

e-Learning platformsA web application, meaning it runs on a server

and is accessed by using a web browser.LMSs:

Give educators tools to create a course web site and provide access control so only enrolled students can view it.

Offer a wide variety of tools that can make a course more effective.

They provide an easy way to upload and share materials, hold online discussions and chats, give quizzes and surveys, gather and review assignments, and record grades.

LMSs can be used to enhance teaching by taking advantage of the Internet without replacing the need for a teacher.

e-Learning platforms features News (forum) and Events (calendar)

Students know the upcoming events, such as deadlines and submission dates. Also students can be informed on any course news through a forum, in which they can respond.

 Add Resources:Compose a Text Page or Web PageAllows you to created sophisticated

documents which can be displayed in any web browser. The editor works like a word-processing which used the formatting tools to customize text.

e-Learning platforms features Create Link to File or Web Site

Allows you to upload a Word document, a powerpoint presentation, a spreadsheet or any other file type. In addition you can also easily add links to other web sites to give your students access to important web resources.

 File Formats that can be uploaded:RTF HTML PDFPowerPoint (ppt)Pictures (pict, tiff, jpeg , gif, png)Audio files (wav, mp3, ram, mov)Video files (mov, wmv, rv)

e-Learning platforms features Chats

 The Chat module allows participants to have a real-time synchronous discussion via the web. This is a useful way to get a different understanding of each other and the topic being discussed - the mode of using a chat room is quite different from the synchronous forums. The Chat module contains a number of features for managing and reviewing chat discussions.

Forum Forums are the primary tool for having a

discussion online and are the central organizing feature in the Social course type.

Forums allow a teacher and students to communicate with each other at any time, from the Internet.

Students can also log in and communicate with one another independent of teacher.

e-Learning platforms features Glossary

 The glossary tool has a number of features that make it easy for you and your class to develop shared vocabulary lists add comments to definitions, and even link every appearance of a word in a course to its' glossary entry. 

Survey  The survey module provides a number of

predefined survey instruments that are useful in evaluating and understanding your class. They can be given to students early in the course as a diagnostic tool and at the end of the course as an evaluation tool.

e-Learning platforms features Wikis A wiki is a collection of collaboratively authored web

documents. Basically, a wiki page is a web page everyone in your class can create together, right in the browser, without needing to know HTML . A wiki starts with one front page. Each author can add other pages to the wiki by simply creating a link to a page that doesn't exist yet.

Workshop A Workshop is a peer assessment activity with a huge

array of options. It allows participants to assess each other's projects, as well

as exemplar projects, in a number of ways. It also coordinates the collection and distribution of these assessments in a variety of ways.

Electronic learning platforms…Examples include

Chisimba (avoir.org)Moodle (moodle.org)webCTDekeosClaroline(claroline.net)

Communication technologies

Asynchronous - participants engage in the exchange of information without the involvement of each person at the same time. Electronic mail (Email), bulletin board, blogs are examples of asynchronous communication

Synchronous – all participants joining in at once, as with an online chat session. A face to face discussion, chat forum, virtual meeting are an examples of synchronous communications.

Libraries and open learning

Growth in distance learning means libraries must support the increasing number of remote users

Distant learners must be given the same services and opportunities on campus students

Distance learners do not have ready access to campus facilities

Virtual Library for open and distance learning

Using a web based e-Learning platform

bring together the e-resources of various libraries and information services, both internal and external , all in one place, so users can find what they need quickly and easily

This will create a virtual library where all academic institutions can share e-resources

Virtual Library for open and distance learning

An environment with digital/electronic contents must be createdPowered by e-Learning portalInternet technology used to connect users with the library

Students can login, access materialsNecessary course materials format –

text, data, graphics, images, animations, sound can be accessed by students

Virtual Library for open and distance learningUser support become interactive by

providing links to discursion forums, email and file transfer thus allowing communication between users and librarians

Virtual/digital library provide environment in which librarians and users are not physically present

They access library resources from remote site an individual’s convenient time

With provision of interactive tools like chat and for a, librarians and users can virtually meet online

Benefits • Saves physical space taken by physical

library materials• Adds enhanced searching facilities in digital

format• Users can access materials regardless of

location• It provides the user with the capability to

download materials – if permission allows• Allows for multiple or concurrent users

accessing same materials• It eliminates the problem of book missing or

off-the shelf• It is less labor intensive

Factors to consider • Scope and quality of the content must fit within

the existing library collection development policy• Content must be regularly updated• Ease of use - help or documentation must be

provided through Printed manuals, Online tutorials–What kind of searching facilities does the product have–Can searches be modified, saved and rerun–Can information be browsed as well as searched–Can users download and print documents easily–Can copies be made and disseminated

Factors to consider

CostImplementation and supportWhat is the cost of having usersCan you add a single user or do you have to add users in predetermined sequence?

Will it require additional computer hardware and software upgrades

Does the library staff need training to acquire new skills

The future

If academic libraries go paperless:

1.Will academic libraries exist?2.What will the academic library of the future look like?

3.Will librarians have roles to play?

The future Will it even exist?

Will existExcept electronic instead resources

The futureAccording to (Liz Burke, 2001).

Librarians will continue to be able to do and provide more users than ever before with advantages provided by virtual libraries

Will continue to provide users with seamless, organized access to virtual library resources

Librarians will be in a position to share with one another, both informally and through internet discussion lists and discussion forum provided by e-Learning platforms

role of the librarian in virtual environment

To provide intellectual access to informationContent in whatever form it is packaged

Content in the form of print, audio, video, microforms, numeric, computer programs, or multimedia

Within the virtual library - librarians will be able to offer 'a range of services and collections, linked together or made accessible through electronic networks'

role of the librarian in virtual environment

To provide intellectual access to informationdevelopment of electronic reserve (e-reserve) collections - digitize a printed document, video, audio, or data, so that many students can access it simultaneously without the limits of attending a library building within opening hourscopyright and intellectual property ownership laws for the digital environment must be put into consideration

role of the librarian in virtual environment

To evaluate sources of informationthere shall be an increasing diversity of information resources from which to choose the most appropriate vehicle,

librarians must widen their selection processes in order to decide on the right medium for each situation

role of the librarian in virtual environment• To organize information–Traditionally, librarians have organized and

managed information resources through classification schemes

–Virtual information space as large and rapidly growing, highly distributed, of varying quality, and dynamic requires an understanding of traditional library management issues,

– also the ability to adapt these to the new environment, and even to go beyond these skills and develop news ways to organize and structure information

– For librarians to effectively organize and structure information available on the internet, they require more than basic IT skills

role of the librarian in virtual environment

To organize informationThe organization and structure of information within the virtual library is critical to ensure the easiest path for the library user to access and use resources

It is essential that users can access all of these through a single interface, usually the library's catalogue - ease of navigation and access

Cost implications the ability to network resources and provide digital versions of previously printed material provides the opportunity to reduce the costs of some resources and services

Cost implications

• expect increases rather than decreases in the human capital needed to help people navigate the digital information network

• the need for the skills of the librarian in seeking, accessing, and evaluating information is likely to increase rather than decline.

• The challenge for the library administrator is likely to be in redeploying skilled staff into these new service areas, reassessing the need for traditional library services, and providing a fine balance of the 'old' and the 'new' in terms of services and resources.

Conclusion Librarians are specialists the acquisition,

organization, retrieval, and dissemination of information.

The librarian's role will still include selection, providing access to resources, offering instruction and assistance to patrons in using resources, and preserving information

Librarians will still berepresenting issues of access to information to governments and other decision-making bodies.

Conclusion In providing access to information, the

librarian in the virtual library environment must consider the requirements of any digital resources - any hardware or software necessary, the most effective way to refer patrons to the resource, and whether availability is limited to a defined user group

Conclusion

• In navigating access to knowledge, librarians in the virtual library are confronted with the repercussions of the shift from 'ownership to access', and the resulting rights to access considerations which must be specified and negotiated in contracts and licenses

• New technical competencies shall be needed. Skills such as creating web pages, building and maintaining computer networks, designing search interfaces are sought after in today's library employment market

• greater demand for professional staff with either computing or librarian qualifications

Conclusion Virtual library environment changes

rapidly, and a key role for the librarian in the future will be the ability to adapt and to work effectively in such an environment

References 1. Liz Burke (2001). The future role of librarians in the

virtual library environment. The Australian Library Journal

2. George Lorenzo and Charles Dziuban(2006). Ensuring the Net Generation Is Net Savvy. EDUCOURSE Learning innitiative. Advancing learning through IT innovation

3. Liz Burke (2001). The future role of librarians in the virtual library environment. The Australian Library Journal

4. Libraries and the Enhancement of E-learning. OCLC E-LEARNING TASK FORCE. October 2003

5. The role of libraries in e-Learning – ELAG 2004 Workshop