Teaching Metadata and Networked Information Organization & Retrieval

The UNT SLIS Experience

William E. Moen<wemoen@unt.edu>

School of Library and Information SciencesTexas Center for Digital Knowledge

University of North TexasDenton, TX 72603

2004 ALISE Annual Conference, January 7, 2004, San Diego, CA

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Overview Terminology UNT SLIS Approach for Information Org Education Metadata course Version 1 & Version 2 Challenges

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Terminology and context Metadata

The result of processes (manual or automatic) performed on an object, where the result is a representation or derivative of salient features of the object

Information organizationThe processes and practices of describing and representing information objects (containers and content), and identifying the connections and relationships between the objects and the people responsible for their creation and/or production.

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Terminology and context Cataloging

A set of processes and practices for information organization in libraries guided by specific standards, rules, guidelines, and community practices, the result of which is a metadata record representing what the object is, what it is about, and locating it in a larger collection

Purpose of information organizationThese processes and practices serve users by assisting them to identify, locate, access, retrieve, and make judgments about information in response to their information needs.

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UNT SLIS info org courses Core course for all students

SLIS 5200: Introduction to Information Organization Library cataloging courses

SLIS 5210: Organization and Control of Info Resources I SLIS 5220: Organization and Control of Info Resources II SLIS 5208: Learning Resources Organization and Media

Metadata course SLIS 5223: Metadata and Networked Information

Organization/Retrieval Indexing and Abstracting

SLIS 5205: Information Indexing, Abstracting and Retrieval Other specialized courses: serials, records management Information Organization Program of Study

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SLIS 5200: The core course One of three core courses

SLIS 5000: Introduction to the Information Professions SLIS 5600: Introduction to Information Access and Retrieval

Presents the foundation concepts, topics, and terminology for information organization

Conceptual approach to info organization based on: representing information objects… using metadata… for users to find, identify, select, and acquire/obtain objects

Focuses on representing information in the context of using those representations (i.e., information access & retrieval)

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SLIS 5200: Topics 1. A Conceptual Overview of Information Organization 2. Users and Information Behavior 3. Information and Representation: Metadata and

Bibliographic Control 4. Information Systems, Databases, and Access 5. Rules, Standards, and Authority Control 6. Verbal Subject Representation 7. Classification 8. Information Retrieval: Models and Evaluation 9. Information Behavior: Models and Implications for IR

Systems 10.Information Organization and Access for the Networked

Environment

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SLIS 5200: Major assignment The Information Organization Project

Identify a collection to organize for a specific set of users Build an organization system (metadata scheme) for the

collection Implement the organization system in an information

retrieval system (i.e., database system) Write a technical manual for your systems

Provides students with opportunity to put the concepts into practice

Result is both conceptual and application knowledge of key processes and activities to organize info

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SLIS 5223: Metadata course Version 1

First offered in Spring 2000 Traditional classroom setting Metadata implementation oriented

Version 2 First offered in Spring 2004 Blended course

• Primarily online• WebCT as virtual learning environment• Long weekend onsite meeting

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Course description

Investigates description and retrieval of networked information resources using various forms of metadata. Analyze and evaluate key metadata schemes and their use in actual projects for representing and organizing resources. Includes the identification, use, and evaluation of metadata creation tools. Build and manage metadata and metadata repositories. Explore the implications for retrieval of networked resources using one or more search engines that exploit metadata.

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Course goals and objectives Goals

Understand what metadata is and how it is used for organizing and providing access to networked information resources

Become competent in tools used for creating, storing, and accessing metadata

Be able to plan, design, implement, evaluate the use of one or more metadata schemes for a collection of networked information resources

Objectives Know and understand the key metadata schemes, their strengths

and weaknesses, and their uses Master the use of one or more metadata creation tools and

associated technologies Implement a metadata scheme for a collection of networked

information resources

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Course topics, 1 Metadata: Introduction, Overview, Definitions, and Functions Metadata Schemes: Elements and Semantics for Resource

Description General Purpose Bibliographic Domain Specific

Syntaxes for Metadata MARC XML

Managing Metadata and Metadata for Managing Collections Standards and Standardization Crosswalks & Metadata Registries Structural, Administrative, and Rights Management

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Course topics, 2 Enabling Technologies for Metadata

Metadata Creation Metadata Management

Metadata and Information Retrieval Distributed model: Z39.50 Centralized model: Web Search Engines Metadata harvesting model: OAI

Implementing Metadata in the Organization Planning and Design Creation and Maintenance -- Work Flow Evaluation

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Challenges Pre-requisite knowledge for class

Foundation concepts of information organization Varied levels of technical skills and knowledge

Not having the technology be a barrier Identifying what to address in course

Scope of course So many metadata schemes, so little time

Theory and practices Conceptual and application knowledge

Promoting new attitudes Libraries are not an island but a node in the networked information

landscape Continuous change, perpetual learning The spirit of continuous improvement

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References UNT SLIS & Courses

http://www.unt.edu/slis http://web2.unt.edu/cdl/CDL_ECAMPUS/

SLIS 5223 Course Description/Announcement http://www.unt.edu/wmoen/teaching/

SLIS5223AnnouncementOct2003.htm

SLIS Information Organization Program of Study http://www.unt.edu/slis/programs/pos/