Hi all,
I've been following this debate with interest, and I'm pleased to see
that this email list has immediately brought about discussions across
different repository interest groups or sectors or domains (by this I
mean the different groups of people with interests in, respectively:
research output repositories; learning object repositories; scientific
data repositories, etc. etc.). I think that the bringing together of
these groupings for discussion is very important at this point in the
development of repositories overall, and it is inevitable that this type
of cross-interest-group discussion can get heated at times- but it's
heat that produces growth and new understanding.
I just wanted to raise an issue of relevance to this that has already
been touched on earlier in these discussions; and was raised with me
last week by one of the e-learning repository projects being funded
under the JISC Digital Repositories Programme. Some people, new to this
list and to discussions of research output repositories, were surprised
and confused by the use of the term "institutional repository" to mean
only repositories of research publications. It has certainly been used
this way until now within that particular domain and there is
considerable history and stability to the meaning of this term, but
given that there are beginning to appear "institutional repositories" of
other materials (e.g. the LORE repository for teaching and learning
materials at Edinburgh University) the confusion will probably only
increase. (I also think this confusion leads institutional managers to
agree to set up an IR and then declare as an afterthought "Oh, and we
can stick teaching & learning materials in there too" - without much
understanding of what that might entail).
On this list, given the mixed nature of the interests of those
belonging, it might be an idea if folk remember to make clear exactly
what kind of repository they are talking about rather than assuming that
"institutional repository" means the same thing to everyone.
The subject header on this email was intended to be provocative so that
everyone would read this email! Sorry :-) ... if anyone wants to make
the case for a new name for "institutional repository" (meaning
repository of research outputs), feel free to build on my points.. (is
that cowardly?).
Best
Sarah
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Ms. Sarah Currier
Project Manager, Community Dimensions of LO Repositories (CD-LOR)
http://www.ic-learning.dundee.ac.uk/projects/CD-LOR/
Support Officer, JISC Digital Repositories Programme (CETIS)
http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/repositories/digirep/
http://www.cetis.ac.uk/
Centre for Academic Practice and Learning Enhancement
University of Strathclyde
Graham Hills Building, 50 George Street
Glasgow G1 1QE, Scotland, United Kingdom
Tel.: +44 (0)141 548 4573 Fax: +44 (0)141 553 2053
E-mail: [log in to unmask] Mob.: +44 (0)7980 855 801
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