MERLOT

							MERLOT- A Digital Library
of Learning Objects and the
Librarians Role
Terry L. Weech
Graduate School of Library &
 Information Science.
University of Illinois at Urbana-
 Champaign, USA
                       Revised 25-5-04

                                         1
 Background: E-Learning Issues
• Economics of E-Learning
  – Cost Effectiveness (Part-time Teachers)
  – Cost Benefit (Students do not have to relocate)
  – Profit Center (Full tuition is paid)
• Politics of E-Learning
  – Increase Diversity of Student Body
  – Fashionable method of delivery



                                                      2
University of Illinois Experience
• For more than 50 years had Off-Campus
  and Correspondence Courses
• Proposed satellite program in Chicago
  not approved
• Friday’s Only program for commuting
  students implemented in early 1990s
• Need to meet needs of alternative
  students (racial and ethnic minorities,
  single mothers, etc.)
                                     3
University of Illinois Experience
• In 1995 a Internet Web Based program
  was proposed
• The program was originally call called
  Leep because it was a Library Education
  Experimental Program
• LEEP was the first web-based degree
  granting program in the University and
  one of the first web-based LIS degree
  program in the U.S.
                                     4
LEEP Distance Education Program
• Background
  – Masters of Science in Library &
    Information Science
  – Site independent
  – Primarily Internet-based
     • limited on-campus component
     • synchronous
     • asynchronous
  – Began 1996 - see http://leep.lis.uiuc.edu
                                          5
 Teaching & Learning in LEEP
• Students
  – 205 students. They have resided in
    46 states (from Alaska to Florida),
    Washington DC, Virgin Islands, and
    13 Countries around the world.
  – High retention, graduation, and
    placement rates (342 have graduated
   since established in 1996)
                                    6
7
  Teaching and Learning in
           LEEP
• Teachers
  – GSLIS full-time faculty (Perhaps 30%
   teach Leep)
  – Adjuncts (part-time) from 11 locations
    • Irvine, California to Bryn Mawr,
      Pennsylvania

                                         8
  Teaching and Learning in
           LEEP
• Courses
  – 48 different courses
  – Examples:
    • Core - reference, cataloging,
      administration, collection development
    • Serving special groups - media programs
      and services for children and young
      adults, adult public services, community
      information systems

                                               9
Support of E-Learning Faculty
– Need to Support Faculty Developing e-
  learning materials
– Need to Evaluate e-learning materials
– To Reward Faculty for Developing e-
  learning materials (Tenure & Promotion)

– MERLOT has been developed to
  take steps to meet these needs.
                                    10
     What is MERLOT?
–Merlot stands for:
  • Multimedia
  • Educational
  • Resource for
  • Learning and
  • Online
  • Teaching
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What is MERLOT?
• MERLOT is an online repository of links to
  thousands of learning materials
• MERLOT Provides a mechanism for
  evaluation of learning material by faculty
  peers in selected disciplines
• MERLOT publishes sample assignments to
  demonstrate classroom applications
• MERLOT links people with common
  interests in a discipline.


                                         12
 Vision & Mission
• MERLOT’S VISION is to be the place
  where faculty from around the world will
  share teaching-learning materials and
  pedagogy.

• MERLOT’S MISSION is to improve the
  effectiveness of teaching & learning by
  expanding the quantity and quality of peer-
  reviewed online learning materials that can
  be easily incorporated into faculty designed
  courses.
                                           13
         Aspects of MERLOT
• MERLOT is a COOPERATIVE
    • INSTITUTIONAL PARTNERS
     •    ORGANIZATIONAL AFFILIATIONS
     •    INDIVIDUAL MEMBERS

• MERLOT is a SET OF PROCESSES
  Peer review of online teaching-learning materials
    and building online, discipline-based
    communities.

• MERLOT is SOFTWARE
  A searchable database of online learning materials,
    pedagogical support, and people.
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THE SOFTWARE




               15
Browse Business Discipline Page




                                  16
Peer Review of “Computer Literacy”




                                 17
Member Comments on “Computer Literacy”




                                    18
Link to “Learning Style Questionnaire”




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Member Comments on Questionnaire




                              22
Add Assignment Page




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         THE PROCESSES
         MERLOT Principles
• Be Faculty Focused
  – Recognition for Teaching & Learning
  – Faculty-led Evaluation
• Be Focused on Teaching and Learning
  – A Teaching Community rather than
    Teaching Alone
• Working Together Works
• Make Tools EFFECTIVE, EASY, ENJOYABLE

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    MERLOT DISCIPLINE GROUPS

• Biology           •   Information Tech.
• Business          •   Mathematics
• Chemistry         •   Music
• Engineering       •   Physics
• Faculty           •   Psychology
  Development       •   Teacher Education
• Health Sciences   •   World Languages
• History

                                      26
 Peer Reviews
• Faculty Discipline Teams:
• Adopt evaluation standards
   – quality of content
   – potential effectiveness for teaching & learning
   – ease of use
• Develop peer review process
• Develop roles and responsibilities as
  MERLOT reviewers
• Use MERLOT Worksites to sustain
  productivity

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MERLOT’s Value
The solutions to some local, institutional
  problems requires global strategies.
• MERLOT is:
  – committed to free access for end users
  – built upon the principle of open exchange of
    ideas
  – almost 180 faculty working in concert
  – about 100 faculty development and academic
    technology personnel supporting its use
  – a leveraging of partner resources


                                               28
          LIBRARY COLLEGE
              CONCEPT
• The “Library College” is not just a College Library. It
  is a philosophy of delivering education through
  integration of library resources and services with
  classroom instruction.
• It began as the development of an undergraduate
  teaching library that integrates classroom instruction
  with library resources through the assignment of both
  teaching faculty and librarians to “team teaching”
  projects involving the course content from course
  development through content delivery and student
  assessment. Essentially librarians are part of the
  teaching faculty team.
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               MERLOT AND
               LIBRARIANS
• MERLOT, as a database of evaluated learning
  objects in a variety of disciplines, provides an
  opportunity for librarians and teaching faculty
  to work together in planning and developing
  online course materials

• The LIBRARY COLLEGE concept provides the
  tradition to facilitate this partnership between
  librarians and teaching faculty as in developing and
  assessing online learning materials


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           MERLOT AND
           LIBRARIANS
• Academic Librarians are impacted by
  course presentations and assignments
  given to students
• Faculty are knowledgeable about subject
  content, but may not be aware of options
  for presenting content to students
• Collaboration of faculty and librarians
  can improve outcomes
                                       31
 MERLOT Library Initiative
• Development of MERLOT taxonomy
  through collaboration of faculty,
  librarians, and publishers
• Librarian Participation in Editorial
  Board activities
  – Improving metadata; contributing materials;
• Reach out to librarians to
  participate in MERLOT

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Visit: http://taste.merlot.org
for more information


Thank You!

Email: weech@uiuc.edu


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Questions?

Contact: Terry L. Weech
Illinois Project Director for
MERLOT

    E-mail: weech@uiuc.edu
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