How To Choose a Learning Object Repository

Learning Object Repositories are the latest thing in collaboration among educators. Teachers who have developed a great way to teach the shape of a water molecule or the difference between active and passive voice can share that lesson with other teachers around the world by placing it in a database called a learning object repository. Conversely, teachers who need a good example, video, or lab exercise can find one in an online learning object repository. What's not to love?

Well, educators actually need to be careful in selecting a learning object repository. The quality of the content is the primary consideration, followed closely by ease of use. Schools that sign up to use the IQity Learning Management Suite have access to Reactor, a fully aligned learning object repository that addresses both these concerns.

Reactor offers Quality Content

Educators today are very much aware that curriculum needs to be aligned with state standards. They may not realize that the content they find in many learning object repositories fails that test. In fact, with the proliferation of online content providers, it's likely the content found online won't be standards-aligned.

Fortunately, teachers can rely on IQity's learning object repository for content that meets state standards. All material in Reactor is reviewed by a panel of educational experts for alignment before it is made available to teachers. This means that teachers can select any lesson in the Reactor learning object repository with confidence that it will help students do well on state achievement tests.

Reactor's selection of content is designed to grow continually, because teachers themselves can submit material for inclusion in the learning object repository. After review by the expert panel, this new material will be available to others for use in their classrooms. So Reactor is being populated by teachers for teachers, a truly collaborative effort.

Finding and Using Content

Educators should also take into account how easy it is to find what they need in a learning object repository. On the one hand, you want to be able to refine your search so you don't get an extensive list of results not responsive to your needs. It's like searching Google for "dog" when what you really want is a Chihuahua. The more you refine your search term, the better results you'll get on the first try.

On the other hand, you don't want to take a long time entering detailed search specifications. That's what one of the first learning object repositories, requires. In addition to specifying the content area, this legacy LOR asks for variables like what language the material is in, its format, whether it is copyrighted, its cost, and whether the source code is available. But wait, there's more! Merlot also lets you search by whether the material includes a picture of the developer, whether there are assignments included, and whether others have commented on the object. Many of these criteria are unlikely to matter to most educators and they clutter up the search results.

In comparison, Reactor is very easy to search. For a basic search, you can enter a search term just like you do on Google or Yahoo. If you choose, you can enter the subject, the grade level and the State to find content. If you want to be more selective, that's possible, too. You can indicate the type of object you want (a chart, a quiz, etc.), the degree of difficulty, and how interactive the object should be for students. Teachers who have an existing content item in their IQity classroom need only three clicks to find results aligned to the same exact standard. Searching Reactor is very intuitive for teachers familiar with using the Internet.

Seamless Integration

The best thing about Reactor is how easy it is to import the content you choose into your electronic classroom. It's a matter of clicking on the object you want, dragging it to your classroom page, and dropping it in. This is possible because Reactor is part of a comprehensive learning management suite. Along with the learning object repository, IQity users get classroom management software, a webcasting tool, an online whiteboard, a secure messaging system, and other tools that support the virtual classroom teacher. To start using Reactor and the many tools that come with it, ask for an online demonstration conducted by one of our elearning experts.