Sustainability & Engineering Online Libraries for Course Material Support

August 31, 2010 - 3:15pm | by rtbrown
Presenter(s)
Fred Stielow (American Public University System, US)
Diny Golder (GEM Exchange, Global Learning Resource Connection, JES & Co., US)
Marc Kelberman (Oracle, US)
Frank Menchaca (Cengage Publishing, US)
Phil McNair (American Public University System, US) - Session Chair
Session Information
November 4, 2010 - 11:10am
Track: 
Student Services and Learner Support
Areas of Special Interest: 
Open Educational Resources
Major Emphasis of Presentation: 
Practical Application
Institutional Level: 
Multiple Levels
Session Type: 
Group Presentation
Location: 
Curacao 6
Session Duration: 
80
Concurrent Session: 
4
Abstract

Libraries offer untapped capacities & economies for online classrooms. Beyond pinpointing applicable library collections, the institution brings Information Literacy & unparalleled expertise for "trusted" Open-Access resources. Illustration ranges from online university experience to interests from Oracle, Gale/Cengage, K-12 establishments in IMSGlobal's proposed Library Collections Committee for Common Cartridge standards.

Extended Abstract

The future of online course materials may lie in the most traditional element of Academia. Libraries have long served as cornerstones for University research activities, but ironically played a minor role in supplying the classroom. This tradition, artificial bureaucratic boundaries between textbooks and books, and the very nature of libraries are being challenged in the Web Revolution. Search-engine competition, economic exigencies, HEOA requirements, student demands, and the rise of online education are pushing to reconcile the curricular contradiction. Librarians already lend their search skills and head Web Information Literacy ventures at many institutions. Their unparalleled expertise is equally applicable for uncovering "trusted" resources on the Open Web, as well as ongoing quality assurance and maintaining currency in an ever changing environment. Equally important, the libraries' online collections offer largely overlooked treasure troves of course materials. In addition to their highly cost-effective nature, such adoptions provide opportunities to dynamically expand toward new Web pedagogies and go beyond the dominant World War II/GI-bill era textbook model. Syracuse and the University of California System are helping to lead the switch from the blended and nonprofit side. With added incentives from the underwriting undergraduate course materials, the American Public University System (APUS) is in the forefront from the for-profits and featured example in these discussions. APUS has taken the strategic decision to recruit subject-specialist librarians as part of an Electronic Course Materials Project with significant Return-on-Investment. The sustainability efforts of Higher Education are also gaining traction elsewhere. As will be discussed, IMSGlobal's has recently proposed a Library Collections Committee for Common Cartridge standardization within Learning Management Systems. Gale/Cengage with its special mix of library and textbook offerings is playing a pioneering role in these directions from the publisher side and being joined by a range of interested parties from K-12 educators to Oracle.

Lead Presenter

Panel Chair, AMU’s Dean of Libraries & Educational Materials, was also former Chair of its Military Studies & History Department. The offspring of a totally disabled WWII veteran, he volunteered for service in the U.S. Army during the Vietnam Era. Using the GI Bill, Stielow returned to earn his bachelors, master in History, M.L.S. in information science, and a dual doctorate in History and American Studies from Indiana University. The author of 10 books and over 100 scholarly articles, Dr. Stielow is a winner of a Fulbright fellowship to Italy, Jameson Post-Doctoral Fellow at the Library of Congress, and numerous other awards.