JISC

Jorum has provided Carnegie College easy access to a range of peer-developed and peer-reviewed resources. Staff have quickly developed an enthusiasm for Jorum and this is shown in an increase in requests for searches, reviewing materials, transferring them to the VLE and using them in the classroom.

Sharing resources

Easy access to a range of peer-developed and peer-reviewed resources ILT has brought about significant changes in the way programmes are delivered at Carnegie College and Jorum is an essential component of the infrastructure required for this to happen.

Improvements in the quality of teaching and learning are evident in the variety of resources deployed by teaching staff and the experiences reported by learners.

About Jorum

Jorum is a free online repository service for UK Further and Higher Education. Funded by the JISC, it supports the collection and sharing of learning and teaching materials, and allows their reuse and repurposing.

Jorum aims to promote the sharing, reuse and repurposing of resources for the long-term. It stands as a national statement of the importance of creating interoperable, sustainable materials, supporting individuals, teaching teams, collaborative groups and communities in the development and sharing of resources.

Jorum is based on an institutionally registered User and Contributor licensing model and is run jointly by Mimas and EDINA, the two national data centres based at the Universities of Manchester and Edinburgh.

Challenge

Carnegie College is a General FE college catering for over 11,000 full-time and part-time students, offering over 250 courses at various levels from introductory to National Qualifications, Higher National and Degree level, delivered through a collegiate model of six schools of excellence.

The Carnegie College Learning, Teaching and Assessment Strategy, together with the Carnegie College Learning, Teaching and Assessment Framework, form part of the College’s Strategic Plan and provide the framework for delivering teaching and learning.

The strategy has been developed in partnership with the college’s learners and assumes that appropriate use of learning technologies will be integral to the delivery of learning and teaching. ILT is seen as a ubiquitous resource which will allow learners to access resources at times and in locations to suit their individual requirements.

The Learning, Teaching and Assessment Strategy includes:

• integrating the use of Web 2.0 technologies into the resources used by teachers and students
• developing effective use of the VLE (Moodle)
• promotion of collaborative learning
• guidance to staff on the production of learning materials
• identifying and obtaining learning materials at the request of staff

It has an established history of creating e-learning materials and recognised at an early stage the importance of an effective repository and mechanisms for discovering and sharing resources.

Jorum plays a fundamental role in supporting the college in meeting these needs.

Solution

Implementing an efficient and cost effective repository for learning resources has been part of the college’s strategy since 2001 when the decision was taken to host IMS compliant materials that were interoperable and could be reused in a variety of contexts. Jorum was immediately seen as contributing to these goals and consequently the college became involved with Jorum at its inception.

The decision to get involved with Jorum was a cross-college one involving consultation with the senior management team, teaching staff, technical staff and Integrated Learner Support Services staff. Once agreed, the principal responsibility for implementation was given to Integrated Learner Support Services.

Once Jorum resources have been identified, reviewed and accepted, Integrated Learner Support Services staff will typically forward links to colleagues, post links in relevant areas of the VLE and, where appropriate, download and forward resources.

Staff awareness of Jorum is developed through two processes: a reactive one which arises when staff make requests for information and a pro-active one where the college holds demonstrations at departmental events and organises drop-in sessions for staff to experience what is new in the services offered by ILSS.

Staff reactions are generally very positive where curriculum areas are well populated with resources but indifferent or disinterested where immediate relevance can’t be demonstrated.

Awareness of Jorum and its value is expected to increase as the VLE becomes more widely used and Jorum will then be seen as a natural adjunct to the VLE. In order to facilitate this growth in awareness Jorum will be included in the promotion of the VLE and other ILT resources.

Drop-in workshops are a permanent feature of Integrated Learner Support Services activities and these include introducing people to Jorum and showing them how to use it.

Demonstrations are also given at departmental meetings but these tend to be on an ad hoc basis. However, a more systematic approach to introducing Jorum is likely to be included as part of an emerging emphasis on keeping staff up-to-date with innovations in teaching and learning.

There is also a policy of giving teaching staff remission from teaching duties to develop resources or new teaching approaches. Providing them with training in the use of Jorum is seen as important in supporting them in this role.

Impact on the learning provider

ILT has brought about significant changes in the way programmes are delivered and Jorum is an essential component of the infrastructure required for this to happen. Improvements in the quality of teaching and learning are evident in the variety of resources deployed by teaching staff and the experiences reported by learners.

The principal benefits have been:

• an increase in resources available to teaching staff
• Integrated Learner Support Services are able to provide a higher quality service and more effective support
• access to peer-developed and peer-reviewed resources
• sharing of resources and a reduction in duplication of effort

Impact on the learner

Learners have access to a much wider range of quality assured resources and learning materials from authoritative sources.

Key messages

Jorum is a free online repository service for UK Further and Higher Education. It supports the collection and sharing of learning and teaching materials, and allows their reuse and repurposing.

Improvements in the quality of teaching and learning are evident in the variety of resources deployed by teaching staff and the experiences reported by learners.

Further information

Jorum 

Carnegie College