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1 – 10 of over 2000Melissa Noonan, Gina Richter, Larry Durham and Eric Pierce
The paper aims to describe the macro-level realities driving change for learning organizations and professionals including: volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity…
Abstract
Purpose
The paper aims to describe the macro-level realities driving change for learning organizations and professionals including: volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity (VUCA) environment; information explosion; flattening organization; mobile and virtual workforce; and generational mix. It also describes implications for these realities and the critical shift from learning development to enablement via practices like learning curation, learning personalization, social learning and new and diverse learning modalities.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper opted for a review of marketplace, business and industry trends, as well as reviews of specific primary research and current publications, to support its viewpoint.
Findings
The VUCA of global; social; governmental; and economical systems is catalyzing the need for systemic change in the learning and development (L&D) industry. This will change the learning content that organizations will need to offer and the processes by which L&D leaders will need to identify and curate it.
Originality/value
This paper fulfills the need to explain the necessity of changes required in skill sets and best practices for the modern learning organization.
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– An exploration of what’s changing – and what is not – in the world of corporate learning. The paper aims to discuss this issue.
Abstract
Purpose
An exploration of what’s changing – and what is not – in the world of corporate learning. The paper aims to discuss this issue.
Design/methodology/approach
Discussion paper with special reference to the report “A Review of the e-learning markets of the UK, EU and China 2014”, published by Learning Light in 2014.
Findings
Learning is not changing – but the need and the opportunities for that learning are expanding. What is changing in the learning world is not learning per se but delivery technologies – and also the relative importance in the overall learning delivery mix of this growing range of learning delivery technologies.
Research limitations/implications
We’re standing on the shoulders of giants but we appear to be looking at an extremely foggy landscape. And, since we do not have “20/20 foresight”, our danger is that we spend our time “training to fight the last war” rather than “training to win the next war”.
Practical implications
There are a number of technological factors as well as demographic factors that learning and development professionals need to take into account when designing and developing (online) learning materials.
Social implications
As technology makes the work of subject matter experts more accessible, other factors – such as money or time availability – are likely to come into play to maintain some form of established intellectual elite.
Originality/value
An attempt to discern some current trends and extrapolate them.
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Poppy Frances Gibson and Sarah Smith
In a fast-moving world where technology has become intertwined with our daily lives, meaning information is available at our fingertips, information overload (Khabsa and Giles…
Abstract
Purpose
In a fast-moving world where technology has become intertwined with our daily lives, meaning information is available at our fingertips, information overload (Khabsa and Giles, 2014) is just one of many challenges that this technological overhaul has presented for learners from the primary classroom up to studies within higher education (HE). This paper aims to present skills needed by both pupils and students to navigate their information journey, and discusses how educators can support the acquisition and development of these skills.
Design/methodology/approach
Drawing on key literature in the fields of education and academia through the process of systematic review and adopting the analogy of a journey to represent lifelong learning, this bipartite paper explores how both primary school pupils and university students are required to access information in their very own information journeys in this “Information Age”.
Findings
The similarities and differences between child and adult learners are considered. This paper shares practical strategies for promoting the smarter use of information – and a shorter journey – for these “travelers” along the way. This paper essentially aims to raise questions in the minds of educators as they help to prepare their learners to learn.
Originality/value
This paper offers an interesting insight for teachers and lecturers as the crossover between two sets of learners, primary-age pupils and students in HE, is considered in terms of how we, as educators, can help to provide more effective and efficient information journeys, and therefore promote successful learning. A five-stage model is presented for the information journey.
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Patricia C. Franks and Gillian C. Oliver
Experiential learning incorporated into library and information science education in the form of a practical placement has long been accepted as important. However, it is not…
Abstract
Purpose
Experiential learning incorporated into library and information science education in the form of a practical placement has long been accepted as important. However, it is not always possible for students to undertake a traditional internship because of constraints associated with the physical location of internship sites. The purpose of this paper is to explore virtual alternatives, in the context of digital curation.
Design/methodology/approach
Surveys exploring the internship experience were conducted of students and supervisors, leading to the development of a pilot study. In addition, discussions were held with possible supervisors in a country with a small population, faced with the challenge of building capability in digital curation.
Findings
The concept of a virtual internship is entirely appropriate given the focus on digital tools, information and systems in digital curation. A new dimension to the traditional internship experience is the potential for sharing expertise internationally, in diverse settings.
Research limitations/implications
Although the paper describes activities taking place through the School of Library & Information Science at San Jose State University, the findings can be used to justify virtual internship programs and develop strategies to be employed by other Schools at the University and other Universities within and outside the USA.
Practical implications
This paper includes implications for the development of successful virtual internship programs on the Master's degree level, including those for students preparing for careers in digital curation.
Originality/value
The paper provides insight into the practical issues associated with incorporating experiential learning into digital curation curricula and signals the potential for approaching internships from a global perspective.
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Margie Foster, Hossein Arvand, Hugh T. Graham and Denise Bedford
This chapter applies strategic thinking and four-futures approach to developing a knowledge preservation and curation strategy. The authors explain how using the four futures as a…
Abstract
Chapter Summary
This chapter applies strategic thinking and four-futures approach to developing a knowledge preservation and curation strategy. The authors explain how using the four futures as a baseline refocuses traditional strategy development from linear projections from the present to complex future situations, options, and choices. The refocus also shifts the end stage from evaluation and judgment to continuous assessments of activities, learning, and refresh. A baseline structure is presented as a model for readers. The authors also discuss operationalizing, assessing, and sustaining a knowledge preservation and curation strategy.
Rebecca L. Harris‐Pierce and Yan Quan Liu
This study aims to present the results of a survey of library and information science (LIS) schools' websites used to determine if the number of data curation courses offered is…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to present the results of a survey of library and information science (LIS) schools' websites used to determine if the number of data curation courses offered is adequate to address the needs of the so‐called “data deluge”. Many authors have identified a gap in the education of LIS students for data curation.
Design/methodology/approach
This study surveyed the websites of LIS schools in North America to identify data curation courses. It reviewed and analyzed course descriptions, objectives and syllabi (when available) as well as compared course objectives, requirements, topics, assignments, and projects of the identified courses.
Findings
Of the 52 LIS schools in North America's websites examined in this study, 16 institutions offered courses on data curation. The increase in the number of schools offering courses in data curation showed that LIS schools are responding to the demand for data curation professionals. More LIS schools need to add data curation to their curriculum. LIS schools currently offering data curation courses should continue to work together to determine the optimal course objectives and learning outcomes.
Originality/value
Although there are several papers focused on particular data curation programs at a few universities, there are no papers that provide an overall view of the status of data curation education in higher education institutions today. This research will be of value and interest to LIS educators and professionals to determine if there is adequate education in place and to identify and evaluate the current state of data curation education.
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Sihua Hu, Kaitlin T. Torphy, Amanda Opperman, Kimberly Jansen and Yun-Jia Lo
The purpose of this paper is to examine early career teachers’ Socialized Knowledge Communities (SKCs) as they relate to the pursuit of mathematics knowledge and teaching. The…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine early career teachers’ Socialized Knowledge Communities (SKCs) as they relate to the pursuit of mathematics knowledge and teaching. The authors investigate Pinterest, a living data archive, as an opportunity to view teachers’ sense-making and construction of instructional resources. Through this lens, the authors examine how teachers form and share mathematical meaning individually and collectively through professional collaboration.
Design/methodology/approach
This work characterizes teachers’ curation of mathematical resources both in the kinds of mathematics teachers are choosing and the quality therein. Finally, the authors examine through epistemic network analysis how teachers are sense-making through a statistical approach to identifying their organization of mathematics curation by typology and cognitive process demand.
Findings
Results show that sampled teachers predominantly curate instructional resources that require students to perform standard algorithm and represent mathematics relationships in visualization within Pinterest. Additionally, the authors find the resources curated by teachers have lower cognitive demand. Finally, epistemic networks show teachers make connections among instructional resources with particular types as well as with different levels of cognitive demand as they sense-make their curated curriculum. In particular, difference in teachers’ internal consideration of the quality of tasks is associated with their years of experience.
Originality/value
Twenty-first century classrooms and teachers engage frequently in curation of instructional resources online. The work contributes to an emergent understanding of teachers’ professional engagement in virtual spaces by characterizing the instructional resources being accessed, shared, and diffused. Understanding the nature of the content permeating teachers’ SKCs is essential to increase teachers’ professional capital in the digital age.
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Arjun Sabharwal and Gerald R. Natal
The purpose of this case study is to demonstrate a current model, as well as explore future models, for integrating institutional repositories (IRs) in higher education goals at…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this case study is to demonstrate a current model, as well as explore future models, for integrating institutional repositories (IRs) in higher education goals at the University of Toledo.
Design/methodology/approach
This is a case study that uses literature review as an exploratory framework for new approaches while reflecting on existing literature to present the current practical framework for using IRs.
Findings
The digital environment has pushed academic institutions toward new strategies for curating their record on scholarship and preserving their heritage collections, using their IRs. Innovative approaches are also vital to curating the IR content digitally to facilitate access to those contents in ways that was not possible a few decades ago. Surveys and existing literature point to increasing uses of IRs despite abstinence from considering open access for scholarly activity among faculty concerned about copyright, plagiarism and sustainability. Staffing and funding IR initiatives are important factors in sustaining the curation of scholarship in the digital environment.
Practical implications
IRs with open access publishing, expert gallery and digital library features place academic libraries in a central role as partners in digital scholarship.
Originality/value
This case study presents an original approach to incorporating the IR into the curation of digital content while also considering potential uses of knowledge management approaches for data and knowledge sharing in an academic environment.
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The purpose of this paper is to define and describe digital curation, an emerging field of theory and practice in the information professions that embraces digital preservation…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to define and describe digital curation, an emerging field of theory and practice in the information professions that embraces digital preservation, data curation, and management of information assets over their lifecycle. It dissects key issues and debates in the area while arguing that digital curation is a vital strategy for dealing with the so-called data deluge.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper explores digital curation’s potential to provide an improved return on investment in data work.
Findings
A vital counterweight to the problem of data loss, digital curation also adds value to trusted data assets for current and future use. This paper unpacks data, the research enterprise, the roles and responsibilities of digital curation professionals, the data lifecycle, metadata, sharing and reuse, scholarly communication (cyberscholarship, publication and citation, and rights), infrastructure (archives, centers, libraries, and institutional repositories), and overarching issues (standards, governance and policy, planning and data management plans, risk management, evaluation, and metrics, sustainability, and outreach).
Originality/value
A critical discussion that focusses on North America and the UK, this paper synthesizes previous findings and conclusions in the area of digital curation. It has value for digital curation professionals and researchers as well as students in library and information science who may deal with data in the future. This paper helps potential stakeholders understand the intellectual and practical framework and the importance of digital curation in adding value to scholarly (science, social science, and humanities) and other types of data. This paper suggests the need for further empirical research, not only in exploring the actual sharing and reuse practices of various sectors, disciplines, and domains, but also in considering the the data lifecycle, the potential role of archivists, funding and sustainability, outreach and awareness-raising, and metrics.
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