Challenges to Implementing DSpace as a LOR Scott Leslie for COPPUL Distance Education Group May 30, 2006

Outline What a ‘classic’ LOR is ‘supposed’ to do DSpace-specific challenges as a LOR General challenges and pitfalls for LORs

What a ‘classic’ LOR is ‘supposed’ to do

DSpace-specific challenges as a LOR

General challenges and pitfalls for LORs

In general, LORs appear to Store actual resources, not just metadata Be part of a CMS/LMS-centric paradigm Deal with (hopefully) volatile content Contain diverse stuff (as no one really knows what a Learning Object is anyways.)

Store actual resources, not just metadata

Be part of a CMS/LMS-centric paradigm

Deal with (hopefully) volatile content

Contain diverse stuff (as no one really knows what a Learning Object is anyways.)

Edutools Comparative Framework Discovery Tools Aggregation Tools Community & Evaluation Meta-tagging Content Management Digital Rights Management & Fulfillment Presentation and Consortia Issues Integration and Interoperability Technical Considerations cf. http:// www.edutools.info/lor /

Discovery Tools

Aggregation Tools

Community & Evaluation

Meta-tagging

Content Management

Digital Rights Management & Fulfillment

Presentation and Consortia Issues

Integration and Interoperability

Technical Considerations

Evaluative Framework: Details Discovery Tools Searching Browsing Syndication & Notification Aggregation Tools Personal Collections Content Aggregator and Packaging Tool Community & Evaluation Evaluation System Context Usage Illustrators Wish Lists

Discovery Tools

Searching

Browsing

Syndication & Notification

Aggregation Tools

Personal Collections

Content Aggregator and Packaging Tool

Community & Evaluation

Evaluation System

Context Usage Illustrators

Wish Lists

Meta-tagging Metadata Markup Tool Schema Support Indexing Workflow Support Import and Export Tools Unique Identifier Support Content Management Authoring and Publishing Workflow Support Version Control & Archiving Functions Authoring tools Digital Rights Management & Fulfillment Digital Rights Management Payment and Fulfillment Evaluative Framework: Details(2)

Meta-tagging

Metadata Markup Tool

Schema Support

Indexing Workflow Support

Import and Export Tools

Unique Identifier Support

Content Management

Authoring and Publishing Workflow Support

Version Control & Archiving Functions

Authoring tools

Digital Rights Management & Fulfillment

Digital Rights Management

Payment and Fulfillment

Presentation and Consortia Issues Customized Look and Feel Internationalization (I18n) Multiple Collections Media Transformation and Display Integration and Interoperability Federation and Harvesting Course Management Integration API and Web Service support Technical Considerations Authentication Authorization & Personalization Usage reporting Operating System Application/Database Server Requirements Scalability Support Evaluative Framework: Details (3)

Presentation and Consortia Issues

Customized Look and Feel

Internationalization (I18n)

Multiple Collections

Media Transformation and Display

Integration and Interoperability

Federation and Harvesting

Course Management Integration

API and Web Service support

Technical Considerations

Authentication

Authorization & Personalization

Usage reporting

Operating System

Application/Database Server Requirements

Scalability

Support

Challenges for DSpace as a LOR

Challenges for DSpace as a LOR

‘ Perceived’ Shortcomings of DSpace Limited metadata schema support Lack of support for federated searching Lack of useful browseable subject classification No IMS Content Package support Limited Multi-page Website support Multi-contributor workflows Versioning and content management issues Community evaluation, community building DSpace as a service Others?

Limited metadata schema support

Lack of support for federated searching

Lack of useful browseable subject classification

No IMS Content Package support

Limited Multi-page Website support

Multi-contributor workflows

Versioning and content management issues

Community evaluation, community building

DSpace as a service

Others?

Metadata Schema Support Issue: DSpace currently supports Dublin Core with limited qualifications, whilst most other LORs have used IEEE LOM Possible Mitigations: Implement LOM in DSpace http://cwspace.mit.edu/wiki/MetadataIssueThree Crosswalks http://wiki.dspace.org/CrosswalkPlugins http://www.imsproject.org/metadata/mdbestv1p1.html#Dublin2 Disregard, as most of LOM not used anyways http://www.ariadne.ac.uk/issue41/godby/

Issue: DSpace currently supports Dublin Core with limited qualifications, whilst most other LORs have used IEEE LOM

Possible Mitigations:

Implement LOM in DSpace

http://cwspace.mit.edu/wiki/MetadataIssueThree

Crosswalks

http://wiki.dspace.org/CrosswalkPlugins

http://www.imsproject.org/metadata/mdbestv1p1.html#Dublin2

Disregard, as most of LOM not used anyways

http://www.ariadne.ac.uk/issue41/godby/

Federated Searching Issue: Dpsace supports OAI-PMH, a harvesting model, but not a ‘federated search’ mechanism either between DSpace instances or with other repository software Possible Mitigations: Implement SQI or one of the other federated search interfaces http://sourceforge.net/mailarchive/message.php?msg_id=11812130 Use SRU/SRW as mechanism to federate search http://www.loc.gov/standards/sru/short-topics.html#federated OKI OSIDs http:// wiki.dspace.org/SakaiIntegration Disregard, harvestability is enough/better anyways

Issue: Dpsace supports OAI-PMH, a harvesting model, but not a ‘federated search’ mechanism either between DSpace instances or with other repository software

Possible Mitigations:

Implement SQI or one of the other federated search interfaces

http://sourceforge.net/mailarchive/message.php?msg_id=11812130

Use SRU/SRW as mechanism to federate search

http://www.loc.gov/standards/sru/short-topics.html#federated

OKI OSIDs

http:// wiki.dspace.org/SakaiIntegration

Disregard, harvestability is enough/better anyways

Browseable Subject Classification Issue: Currently DSpace only supports browsing by Title, Author and Date, and the only limited way to structure by subject is through ‘Collections’ Possible Mitigations: use ‘keywords’ field for either constrained or unconstrained (folksonomic) approach; build interface to ‘browse’ by keywords disregard problem in favour of ‘search’ as main method to retrieve items

Issue: Currently DSpace only supports browsing by Title, Author and Date, and the only limited way to structure by subject is through ‘Collections’

Possible Mitigations:

use ‘keywords’ field for either constrained or unconstrained (folksonomic) approach; build interface to ‘browse’ by keywords

disregard problem in favour of ‘search’ as main method to retrieve items

IMS Content Packages Issue: DSpace currently treats IMS Content Packages as binary ‘blobs.’ They need to be previewable on the server, and any existing metadata consumable Possible Mitigations: work being done in CWSpace to handle Content Packages, or promise of system extensibility in v 2.0 see http:// wiki.dspace.org/PackagerPlugins http://wiki.dspace.org/XmlNamespaces_2fCwspaceImscp?action= highlight&value =IMS

Issue: DSpace currently treats IMS Content Packages as binary ‘blobs.’ They need to be previewable on the server, and any existing metadata consumable

Possible Mitigations:

work being done in CWSpace to handle Content Packages, or promise of system extensibility in v 2.0

see http:// wiki.dspace.org/PackagerPlugins

http://wiki.dspace.org/XmlNamespaces_2fCwspaceImscp?action= highlight&value =IMS

Multi-Page Websites Issue: Many ‘learning objects’ are actually multi-file websites; these need to be EASILY uploaded ‘en masse’ AND EASILY assessable by potential users Possible Mitigations: Upload each file of the site individually using multiple upload controls (ICKK!) ??

Issue: Many ‘learning objects’ are actually multi-file websites; these need to be EASILY uploaded ‘en masse’ AND EASILY assessable by potential users

Possible Mitigations:

Upload each file of the site individually using multiple upload controls (ICKK!)

??

Multi-contributor workflows Issue: Not every object has just one contributor, and not every submitter has all the required info nor will for all time Possible Mitigations: Disregard, hold to single submitter-to-single-resource model and use moderation as mechanism to add more metadata ??

Issue: Not every object has just one contributor, and not every submitter has all the required info nor will for all time

Possible Mitigations:

Disregard, hold to single submitter-to-single-resource model and use moderation as mechanism to add more metadata

??

Versioning and content management Issue: DSpace has clunky support for multiple versions of content Possible Mitigations: currently proposed DSpace solution (manually link multiple records together, use relation field) http://wiki.dspace.org/VersioningSupport?action=highlight&value=version ??

Issue: DSpace has clunky support for multiple versions of content

Possible Mitigations:

currently proposed DSpace solution (manually link multiple records together, use relation field)

http://wiki.dspace.org/VersioningSupport?action=highlight&value=version

??

Community Feedback Issue: DSpace has limited support for the community to express the judgments of value of any piece of content Possible Mitigations: Add these on through third party tools or possibly extensions to DSpace

Issue: DSpace has limited support for the community to express the judgments of value of any piece of content

Possible Mitigations:

Add these on through third party tools or possibly extensions to DSpace

DSpace as a service Issue: LOR content needs to be consumed in CMS, accessed by authoring tools Possible Mitigations: “ Lightweight Network Interface (for CWSpace)” / WebDav stuff http://wiki.dspace.org/LightweightNetworkInterface?action=highlight&value=WebDAV OKI OSIDs / Sakai Integration http://wiki.dspace.org/SakaiIntegration

Issue: LOR content needs to be consumed in CMS, accessed by authoring tools

Possible Mitigations:

“ Lightweight Network Interface (for CWSpace)” / WebDav stuff

http://wiki.dspace.org/LightweightNetworkInterface?action=highlight&value=WebDAV

OKI OSIDs / Sakai Integration

http://wiki.dspace.org/SakaiIntegration

Summary - Specific Challenges If you deploy DSpace “out of the box” as a LOR, then you may find users have a difficult time assessing the usefulness of certain types of content you may have some interoperability issues with other LORs you may have some challenges offering access to the repository contents as a service to specific LMS or authoring tools the system may prove cumbersome to working with volatile content or typical learning content authoring workflows

If you deploy DSpace “out of the box” as a LOR, then

you may find users have a difficult time assessing the usefulness of certain types of content

you may have some interoperability issues with other LORs

you may have some challenges offering access to the repository contents as a service to specific LMS or authoring tools

the system may prove cumbersome to working with volatile content or typical learning content authoring workflows

Some Important Projects for Dspace as a LOR DSpace 2.0 Proposal http://www.dspace.org/conference/presentations/architecture.ppt CWSpace (Using DSpace for OpenCourseWare) http://cwspace.mit.edu/ d+ (Distributed e-Learning Resources Discovery) http://www.jisc.ac.uk/index.cfm?name=dplus Using DSpace as a LOR mailing list http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/dspace-lor (seems to have disappeared, contact Alan Wolf, University of Wisconsin; Louse Ratliff, UCLA for more info)

DSpace 2.0 Proposal

http://www.dspace.org/conference/presentations/architecture.ppt

CWSpace (Using DSpace for OpenCourseWare)

http://cwspace.mit.edu/

d+ (Distributed e-Learning Resources Discovery)

http://www.jisc.ac.uk/index.cfm?name=dplus

Using DSpace as a LOR mailing list

http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/dspace-lor

(seems to have disappeared, contact Alan Wolf, University of Wisconsin; Louse Ratliff, UCLA for more info)

Some existing LORs using DSpace http://lor.ccconline.cccs.edu/dspace/index.jsp https://www.dlearn.arizona.edu/index.jsp http://cwspace.mit.edu/wiki/LorDlearnUnivArizona https://mspace.lib.umanitoba.ca/handle/1993/122

http://lor.ccconline.cccs.edu/dspace/index.jsp

https://www.dlearn.arizona.edu/index.jsp

http://cwspace.mit.edu/wiki/LorDlearnUnivArizona

https://mspace.lib.umanitoba.ca/handle/1993/122

General Issues for LOR Implementers The high cost of metadata / Self-service questionable Intellectual Property/DRM challenges LOs and increasingly questioned LCMS/LMS paradigm LO/LORs ignoring innovations from social software ‘ Reusability’ Paradox of LOs themselves If LORs are the answer, what was the problem again?

The high cost of metadata / Self-service questionable

Intellectual Property/DRM challenges

LOs and increasingly questioned LCMS/LMS paradigm

LO/LORs ignoring innovations from social software

‘ Reusability’ Paradox of LOs themselves

If LORs are the answer, what was the problem again?

At the end of the day… What were the original goals behind Learning Object Repositories / Learning Objects? Share learning resources and have them reused to increase quality of learning experience decrease cost of producing learning content Help make resources findable and identifiable that were formerly not being found or well identified Make clear what people can do with the resources and give them access to resources they are allowed to use Are there LORs which are achieving this? Which ones? What’s missing from the ones which aren’t doing this? Time? Training? A different paradigm?

What were the original goals behind Learning Object Repositories / Learning Objects?

Share learning resources and have them reused to

increase quality of learning experience

decrease cost of producing learning content

Help make resources findable and identifiable that were formerly not being found or well identified

Make clear what people can do with the resources and give them access to resources they are allowed to use

Are there LORs which are achieving this? Which ones? What’s missing from the ones which aren’t doing this? Time? Training? A different paradigm?