Learning Repository is an online library for storing, managing, and sharing your learning resources (learning objects). A learning object can be a quiz, a presentation, an image, a video, or any other kind of document or file you use to create course content and learning materials for online learning.
When you publish your learning objects to Learning Repository, you tag those objects with metadata to classify and organize your learning objects and make them easily searchable for others. You can classify learning objects according to defined learning standards or goals. You can also review, rate, and provide feedback on learning objects to ensure high quality online resources.
Click LOR on the navbar, or click the Learning Repository (LOR) widget on My Home or Course Home if it is available.
Learning Repository connects to Learning Environment through the following:
A Learning Object Repository (LOR) is an online library for storing, managing, and sharing your learning resources (learning objects). A learning object can be a quiz, a presentation, an image, a video, or any other kind of document or file you use to create course content and learning materials for online learning.
When you publish your learning objects to Learning Repository, you tag those objects with metadata to classify and organize your learning objects and make them easily searchable for others. You can classify learning objects according to defined learning standards or goals. You can also review, rate, and provide feedback on learning objects to ensure high quality online resources.
Learning Repository contains repositories, or online collections of learning objects. A learning object is an object or collection of objects that assists in the learning process (e.g., a topic, a module, a course, a quiz etc).
Learning objects are groups of files with associations between each other, meant to be handled and consumed collectively. For example, a course (a collection of modules), a module (a collection of modules and topics), and a topic (a collection of files) are considered learning objects.
While you can store individual files with no associations in Learning Repository, they are not considered learning objects. A topic can contain files, but modules and courses cannot.
Once learning objects are in Learning Repository, there are multiple ways to retrieve them for use in course offerings.
Note Linking to quizzes is not available. You can only import quizzes and quiz questions from Learning Repository.
You can retrieve learning objects into Content and retain the relation of topics to each other and their place in modules. There are two primary ways to retrieve learning objects into your course offering:
You can import learning objects or files directly into the course files folder. Retrieving learning objects this way breaks their navigation structure and their organization into modules. Reasons for importing learning objects and files into course files rather than Content include:
Metadata is a collection of descriptors that describe a single quantity of information (data about data). Using metadata enables you to attach descriptive tags to your learning objects and files to provide a searchable context for the content you publish. Metadata can make the learning objects easier to find.
You can add metadata while publishing an object. After attaching metadata to a learning object or a file in Learning Repository, you can edit it in Learning Repository.
While the function of metadata is very powerful, the processes involved in creating and managing it are fairly simple to understand and implement once you familiarize yourself with them.
When you publish topics or modules from Content or Quizzes that have associated learning objectives, Learning Repository populates the metadata with the names of the learning objectives. These names appear in the taxon paths when you browse for learning objectives.
You and other users can then subscribe to RSS feeds by competency and learning objective to follow when new objects are added to the repository.
To make this work, your organization must have a taxon path that matches your learning objective's structure exactly.
You can make standalone learning objects available to users who do not have IDs and passwords for Learning Environment. This is beneficial if you want to open the learning object to metadata harvesting, share the learning object on a social network, or include it in a public repository.
Note All learning objects in a public repository are publicly accessible as well.
If a publicly available learning object is within a private repository, a user can only preview the learning object, but cannot retrieve, view metadata, or view the learning object's files on its landing page.
Users can share the URL for publicly available learning objects on social networks. Users outside Learning Environment can see the URL for a publicly available learning object and access it. Social sharing buttons are only visible for learning objects published to a repository with Public Availability enabled.
You can making an entire learning repository publicly accessible via a public search interface. Public users can search, browse, view learning object details including metadata and reviews, and download learning objects. Public search engines index content in public repositories.
Note All learning objects in a publicly accessible repository are publicly accessible as well.
Publicly available repositories can allow prospective attendees or members to preview the material put forth by your institution. They also show your institution's commitment to increasing everyone's access to teaching and learning resources, regardless of enrollment status.
A user can reach a publicly available repository through a link to the repository's main page, or by inserting its url in a web browser's address bar.
If you have permissions that allow you to search any repository, you can organize learning objects (including harvested resources) into collections. Collections have the following characteristics:
You can:
tip Gather reading list resources into a collection that an instructor can retrieve for course use.
You can subscribe to RSS feeds in Learning Repository. There are three types of RSS feeds available:
Repository RSS feeds provide notification support for workflow updates in local and harvested repositories. Repository feeds update when any of the following events occur:
RSS feeds save time for users that manage learning object repositories and support efficient workflows. For example, content control specialists receive immediate notification of new publications to review versus spending time checking a repository for new learning objects.
Browse path RSS feeds help you keep track of new learning objects published to classifications of your interest.
In addition, browse path RSS feeds uses include:
You can choose the degree to which your feeds are specialized, dependent on the granularity of the classifications specified by your institution. See Browsing Learning Repository's content [17] for information on browsing.
Collection RSS feeds help you keep track of learning objects that have been added to collections that interest or impact you.
Learning Repository scans all content you are publishing to find linked files, such as images, media files, and other HTML pages.
Limitations to file scanning are:
Note You can manually add any file that the scanner did not automatically include. The files that you add become part of the learning object.
Complex Learning Object A learning object that can have sub-objects (i.e., a module, or a course).
Course A collection of modules.
Federated Repository Repositories hosted by other institutions which you can access remotely (e.g. MERLOT, or those using the SRU (Search and Retrieve by URL) protocol).
Federated Search Search of federated repositories (hosted by other institutions which you can access remotely).
Harvesting Metadata Retrieving metadata from learning objects in another repository.
Learning Object Repository (LOR) A library of stand-alone learning objects (LOs) from which users access LOs (i.e. modules, topics, or courses).
Learning Object (LO) A resource or collection of objects that assists in the learning process (e.g. a file, a topic, a course, etc.).
Metadata A definition or description of data, or “data about data.” Learning Repository only accepts metadata tags created using the IEEE LOM MAP (Metadata Application Profile). All searches use the IEEE LOM metadata fields.
Module A collection of topics and/or other modules.
OAI-PMH (Open Access Initiative Protocol for Metadata Harvesting) This is an industry standard protocol to implement a harvesting solution.
OER (Open Educational Resources) Digital teaching and learning materials that are available for free online through open licenses.
Org unit A department, semester, course offering, or other item within Learning Environment’s organizational structure.
Permissions Settings that control the functionality users can access in Learning Repository, as assigned in Roles and Permissions. Not the same as trust permissions (described below).
QTI Package (Question and Test Interoperability specification) a standard specification format used for assessment materials. The specification packages such items as questions, assessments and results, enabling this content to be authored and used across multiple systems.
Roles An assigned role as defined by a user’s enrollments. A user’s role defines their permissions.
SRU (Search and Retrieve by URL) a standard protocol for internet search queries.
Taxon An individual element in a taxon path.
Taxon Path A hierarchical classification scheme, where each succeeding level refines the definition of the higher level.
Topics Simple file associations (e.g. a PowerPoint file, a HTML file, a multimedia file, a URL, etc.). Topics have no children of their own and cannot be children of a course. Topics can contain files, but modules or courses cannot.
Trust The relationship between an LOR and an org unit. A trust contains three elements: an LOR, an org unit, and the trust permissions.
Trust permissions The roles and permissions assigned to each LOR trust.
The Search page is the default search method when you access Learning Repository. The search gives you results based on occurrence of your search words in a learning object’s title, description, text or keywords. It also suggests alternative spellings for you to help your search.
Searches are case insensitive and results include all the words that you type in the Search For field. For example, if you search for mineral sciences the results include matches for both mineral and sciences. However, the matches do not necessarily have mineral sciences included as a phrase.
A search sent to MERLOT might not use the exact matching criteria as the local repository search because of differences in the MERLOT service.
The advanced search enables you to specify more criteria for retrieving LOR content than the basic search. This feature is especially useful if your LOR has a large amount of content on the same subject.
You can search the full text of learning objects. To search the full-text index of learning objects published in the LOR, ensure the following:
Note Since the full-text search only includes learning objects published after the config variable was enabled, you must engage the services of PSO to rebuild the index to include all learning objects (i.e. published earlier).
To check whether full-text indexing is enabled without accessing the config variable, click Dashboard in the LOR tool navigation.
You can search for a collection in two ways, depending on whether you're looking for any collection or for one of your own.
Browse presents a directory view of learning objects according to the IEEE LOM Classification Taxonomy fields. The classification organizes objects according to a hierarchical or tree structure. Individual learning objects in the tree are nodes, and the path from the root node to any other node is a classification taxonomy path (or taxon path).
Browse enables you to traverse this hierarchy of learning objects. At any level in the hierarchy, you can search for all learning objects classified at that level and below. This includes objects from external repositories whose metadata has been harvested.
The browse page includes a count of objects in each category. You can browse by author, publisher, or course.
For example, in the above diagram:
From the Search Results (Category Browse), depending on your permissions, you can perform the same actions as those for any LOR search results.
From the LOR Results page, you can (depending on permissions):
Learning Repository enables users to view, manage, and use older versions of learning objects in local repositories. You can access versions of any learning objects that can have a locked link.
Search results display the available learning object versions in the Course Builder tool and Insert Stuff. You can create a locked link to older versions of learning objects or the newest version by clicking change.
Note Versions are not available for objects in federated or harvested repositories.
When Learning Repository returns your results, you can filter them, except for results from federated repositories (i.e., MERLOT).
Click the links in the Search Filters panel. To remove a filter, click Clear beside the filter you want to remove.
This option might not be available. Contact site administration if you require access to this option.
On this page you can view the list of files—filename, size, and type—contained in the learning object or file. This list does not show the directory structure for the files.
You can click the name of a file to open and view it.
This list might include files that are required in SCORM/IMS content packages.
Note The list may be empty if the learning object or file does not contain any files (for example, a link).
Users of learning objects can review, rate, and comment on them. The review also includes the reviewer’s name and the review date.
On this page you can view the list of reviews for the learning object or file. The Overall Rating shows the average of all the ratings that were given to this learning object or file.
If course content exists from previous offerings, you can import it from an LOR. You can import the content in several ways:
Note You cannot import files for objects such as harvested metadata, only the links to those objects.
Note Linking to quizzes is not available. You can only import quizzes and quiz questions from Learning Repository.
When you want to import a learning object as a quiz, quiz section, or question from an LOR you must start in the course that you want the quiz, quiz section, or question to exist in.
You can search for a collection in two ways, depending on whether you're looking for any collection or for one of your own.
See Searching Learning Repository [16] for more information about how to conduct an Advanced Search.
You can retrieve an entire collection into course content. Since collections always contain the newest versions of the learning object, you cannot retrieve them through import, download, or a locked link.
See Retrieving learning objects with navigation [22] for information about how to retrieve a collection.
You can save learning objects to your PC if you want to edit files outside Learning Environment. Learning Repository packages the learning objects you choose as a ZIP file.
You can publish the following types of learning objects to an LOR from Content:
When you choose to publish a module or course, the LOR publishes all the children of that module or course as a single package.
Note You may want to overwrite an existing object's metadata completely if the new object's structure differs from the old object's structure. For example, if you reorder topics ABC within a module to resemble ACB, topic C inherits topic B's metadata.
Note Associating a creative commons license automatically populates the metadata rights fields with this information.
Note If you don't see the option to change the default thumbnail image of an image file, contact your administrator to configure this option for you.
Instead of publishing a learning object and all of its associated files, you might want to publish a single file (e.g., a graphic) from a course that would be useful to multiple users or departments. Publishing a file such as an HTML file will also publish all of the files to which it links (e.g., images, media files, etc).
Note You may want to overwrite an existing object's metadata completely if the new object's structure differs from the old object's structure. For example, if you reorder topics ABC within a module to resemble ACB, topic C inherits topic B's metadata.
Note Associating a creative commons license automatically populates the metadata rights fields with this information.
Note If you don't see the option to change the default thumbnail image of an image file, contact your administrator to configure this option for you.
Learning Repository allows you to publish learning objects formatted in SCORM 1.2 format and to publish quizzes and assessments formatted as QTI packages.
You can also publish individual files and links that are not part of a content package. SCORM compliance is not required for publishing files.
Note Learning Repository does not support publishing SCORM 2004 content directly from your PC.
Note You may want to overwrite an existing object's metadata completely if the new object's structure differs from the old object's structure. For example, if you reorder topics ABC within a module to resemble ACB, topic C inherits topic B's metadata.
Note Associating a creative commons license automatically populates the metadata rights fields with this information.
Publishing a quiz, a quiz section, or a single question to an LOR depends on where you start the publishing process.
Note You may want to overwrite an existing object's metadata completely if the new object's structure differs from the old object's structure. For example, if you reorder topics ABC within a module to resemble ACB, topic C inherits topic B's metadata.
Note Associating a creative commons license automatically populates the metadata rights fields with this information.
Note If you don't see the option to change the default thumbnail image of an image file, contact your administrator to configure this option for you.
You can check the status of any LOR publishing jobs that you've run in the background. The Background Publishing page lists jobs as Publish Successful and the date and time, or Publish Failed and an error message.
An object’s metadata can be located under any applicable element in the manifest file, depending on the type of object and whether the object is a sub-element in the file. Manifest- and organization-level metadata is applied to the highest level object in the package. Metadata for modules can also appear at the item level, and metadata for topics or files can appear at the item- or resource-level. A package is identified as a module if there is only one child < item > tag underneath the < organization > tag, and that < item > tag has at least one child < item > tag of its own.
Where object metadata can appear
Object |
Object is package type |
Object is package sub-element |
---|---|---|
Course |
manifest, organization |
n/a |
Module |
manifest, organization, item |
item |
Topic |
manifest, organization, item, resource |
item, resource |
File |
manifest, organization, item, resource, link |
item, resource |
If metadata for a single object is found under multiple elements, the LOR uses the following order of precedence: < manifest >, < organization >, < item >, < resource >.
For example, if you are uploading a content package consisting of a module with three topics, and there is metadata under the < manifest > element and under the highest < item > element, both are applicable to the module. The upload utility takes the metadata from the < manifest > element and discards the metadata from the < item > element. Say that one of the topics in the package has metadata under its < item > element and also under the associated < resource > element. In this case the LOR uses the metadata for the < item > element, while the metadata for the < resource > element is discarded.
If your learning object is an image file, you can set it to display next to learning objects in your search or browse results as a thumbnail. Select your thumbnails when publishing learning objects from the desktop or from the Content tool, on the Publish to LOR page.
Note The system only supports image files (JPG, GIF, PNG, BMP) as thumbnails.
You can select the image you want to correspond with the learning object using the Thumbnail Picker Control which displays all of the available images from the learning object. You can also choose to display the system default icon.
For SCORM packages, name your desired thumbnail .jpg, .png, or .gif image "d2l_thumbnail", and Learning Repository will generate a thumbnail using that image.
The process of overwriting replaces, but does not delete, an existing learning object or file in a repository. In effect, overwriting creates a new version of the learning object or file.
The new object must have the same structure as the object it replaces. You can overwrite one module with another module, but you cannot overwrite a topic with a module. Desire2Learn recommends that you only overwrite a file or a topic with a file of the same type (e.g., image, shockwave, etc.).
Note If you rearrange topics ABC within a module to resemble ACB, topic C will inherit topic B's metadata when you overwrite the original with the rearranged version of the learning object. You may want to select Overwrite the existing object's metadata and enter a new set of metadata if you have rearranged topics in your learning object.
The new object appears in all searches. The overwritten object no longer appears in searches. All existing dynamic links point to the new object. However, locked links continue to point to the old object.
Important Do not overwrite a learning object or file with a link to itself, as this may result in a circular reference.
Notes
Note Only the collections you create appear in the drop-down list.
Note Learning objects in a private collection will still be accessible to other users as standalone objects if their visibility settings are set accordingly.
Deleting a learning object or file not only deletes its current version, but also all its previous versions. There is no way to undo the deletion.
Deleting learning objects and files means that users who follow links to deleted learning objects and files cannot access them. This also applies to all links to previous versions of the learning objects and files that you delete.
You cannot delete non-local (i.e. federated) learning objects.
Do one of the following:
On any LOR Results page, select the check boxes next to the learning objects and files you want to delete and click Delete on the action bar.
LOR Event Logs enable you to view information on a specific activity for a single learning object or file. You can choose the information to include in the log. Event logs record the usage of the learning object or file. For example, event logs record the number of people who have searched it, viewed it, linked to it, etc. You can use this to decide if you want to incorporate the learning object or file into your content.
The log records:
Note You can change the sort order of the results by clicking on the column headers.
You can choose to hide or show comments for reviews on a learning object or file.
Select the check box next to the reviews you want to delete and click Delete.
Links:
[1] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/accessing-learning-repository
[2] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/about-learning-repository
[3] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/storing-learning-objects-in-learning-repository
[4] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/retrieving-objects-from-learning-repository
[5] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/about-retrieving-learning-objects-with-navigation
[6] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/about-retrieving-learning-objects-without-navigation
[7] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/metadata-and-learning-repository
[8] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/metadata-harvesting
[9] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/publicly-available-learning-objects
[10] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/publicly-available-repositories
[11] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/collections
[12] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/rss-learning-repository
[13] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/learning-repository-trusts
[14] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/file-scanner-limitations
[15] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/learning-repository-glossary
[16] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/searching-learning-repository
[17] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/browsing-learning-repository-content
[18] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/working-with-learning-repository-search-results
[19] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/viewing-files-in-learning-object
[20] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/adding-reviews-to-learning-object-file
[21] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/viewing-reviews-learning-object-file
[22] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/retrieving-learning-objects-with-navigation
[23] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/retrieving-learning-objects-without-navigation
[24] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/retrieving-learning-object-new-topic
[25] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/importing-learning-object-into-quiz-question-library
[26] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/searching-for-retrieving-collection
[27] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/saving-learning-object-to-pc
[28] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/using-rss-feeds-learning-repository
[29] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/publishing-from-content
[30] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/publishing-course-files
[31] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/publishing-from-pc
[32] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/publishing-quizzes-quiz-sections-questions
[33] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/checking-learning-object-background-publishing-status
[34] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/formatting-metadata-publishing-packages
[35] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/publishing-learning-objects-thumbnails
[36] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/overwriting-learning-objects-files
[37] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/managing-learning-objects-files
[38] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/editing-learning-object-file-properties
[39] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/managing-collection-learning-objects
[40] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/deleting-learning-objects-files-from-learning-repository
[41] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/viewing-learning-repository-event-logs
[42] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/hiding-showing-review-comments
[43] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/taxonomy/term/2
[44] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/taxonomy/term/3
[45] http://www.google.com
[46] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/searching-learning-repository#search_lor_using_advanced_options
[47] http://creativecommons.org/
[48] http://staging.docs.d2l/en/adding-metadata-to-resource