Information Management Resource Kit (IMARK): Management of Electronic Documents
Full Review

Reviewed by: Albert Dean Atkinson, Ed.D., Records Management Specialist, ADB; prior to June 2004:Training & Courseware Specialist, IRRI
Review posted 8 November 2004
Review No. 20

CD-ROM Information

Content: Policy related capacity building and awareness raising.
Publication Date: 1 January 2003
Audience: Policy makers, development professionals, and librarians involved in managing electronic documents for international agencies and institutions (Its content is scalable and customizable, meaning that users ranging from novices to experts can benefit).

Size: 540 MB
Price: Free
Manual needed: No
How to order:

Order online.*

View CD-ROM content online (registration required).*

*These links take you outside the ADBI website. Please use the back button to return to ADBI.org.

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Full Review

These days, policy-makers and development professionals all around the world, are grappling with electronic data. Information is increasingly flowing into offices, often in electronic form, in a rising flood that threatens to drown development agencies and their clients. Fortunately, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has now produced an excellent CD-ROM to help us all deal with the explosion of information.

Its goal is to strengthen information management and exchange in worldwide networks, and to allow them to work together more effectively. Each IMARK Module in the series will offer a detailed curriculum focused on specific areas of information management, including electronic documents and images, tabular and spatial data, electronic networking, and information management strategies.

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Content

The total curriculum consists of 27 lessons, each having an approximate duration of 30 to 45 minutes. The curriculum is grouped into six units, for a total of about 13 to 20 hours of self-paced instruction.

Each lesson achieves a specific set of learning objectives, using interactive step-by-step instructions and exercises that reinforce what is being taught. Further, each lesson includes a list of relevant resources with additional reading. Learners can consult a glossary specific to the module, and search within the course materials for specific terms. A series of non-proprietary software applications and methodological guides are also provided.

The module will be multilingual, with versions available in French, Spanish, Arabic, and Chinese in the future.

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User Friendliness and Interactivity

The developers of the CD-ROM are to be applauded on providing a world-class learning resource that exploits all of the power of modern day information and communications technology. Users will find they can

1. customize and personalize the content to meet their specific settings and needs,
2. engage their learning with an interactive, intuitive, and aesthetically pleasing user interface,
3. benefit from well-designed and sequenced learning content, and
4. become part of a larger community of learners.

Each of these criteria are described in the following:

Customize and personalize the content to meet specific settings and needs

As each lesson in the module is a self-contained unit, lessons can be combined to form a curriculum that covers only those areas and topics where users have specific interests or needs, often saving significant study time. This is accomplished through the creation of a Personal Learning Path (PLP) that user set-ups at the beginning of the course, or at some point within the course. The PLP is determined based on the user’s stated needs and interests that are calculated by the system using a series of multiple-choice queries to determine core lessons. If more advanced lessons are selected, the PLP also recommends additional lessons to help review and prepare users for the core lessons.

A learner profile can be set up at the beginning of the course that keeps track of the user's personal settings, progression through the course, and his/her exact location within the course. Upon re-entering the CD-ROM to continue previous lessons, the user’s profile is maintained from the previous session and can be launched by clicking an automatically generated user profile button. If a user decides to work on the module at a different computer other than the one they started on, they have the option of importing their previous PLP and profile and can set a password to maintain the confidentiality of their work if taking the course on a publicly accessed computer.

Engage learning with an interactive, intuitive, and aesthetically pleasing user interface

The module is scenario-based from the beginning, thus allowing users to immerse themselves in the people and roles (e.g., librarians, webmasters, publications officers) involved with providing and managing information.

Learning objectives are stated at the beginning of each lesson and are supported by a set of screens comprised of text, illustrations, and interactive exercises that use text input simulations, drag and drop, interesting visual elements and examples, multiple choice questions, and links to resources that will assist learners to practice and achieve the objectives.

The user interface is simple to read and navigate and provides an intuitive learning environment that supports tools for searching within the course and a glossary. These include

• a wide range of resources including tutorials, software, online and offline resources;
• tools for accessing online information and IMARK specific resources; and
• help and support that includes a list of frequently asked questions and technical requirements for the module.

At the end of each lesson, there is a

• summary of the key-concepts,
• series of self-evaluation exercises,
• set of resources on the CD, and
• list of online resources and additional reading.

Benefit from well-designed and sequenced learning content

In each lesson, the user is encouraged to move from simple to complex concepts by building on previous learning experienced in the module, and by drawing on the user’s experience into the process through role play and storytelling elements that use real-life characters and situations.

Becoming part of a larger community of learners

Registration at the beginning of the course allows users to join the IMARK Online Community, which will allow them to interact with other IMARK users and receive news, technical updates, and other items of interest.

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Distribution

An ISBN number (ISBN 92-5-105024-4) is provided and information regarding additional copies is included within the module and on the CD-ROM cover. The CD-ROM is delivered using Macromedia Flash in combination with XML with printable resources in Adobe Portable Document Format. A web-based version will be available in 2005 that will enable it to run on any computer using any operating system. For users who prefer a printed copy to engage the content, a print version is available for every portion of the module.

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Summary

The Information Management Resource Kit (IMARK): Management of Electronic Documents module is world-class in every way and can serve as a model for others tasked with developing e-learning. Its customizable content is focused, well designed and sequenced, and is delivered using an easily navigable and intuitive user interface.

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Comment(s)

There are [3] comment(s) for this entry. Post a comment.

1. Nageswaran
   (posted 20 February 2006 / 10:16:01 PM)
   
   Dear Sir,
   
   You did excellent work in order to create electronic document management system and solution. This cd-rom content gives clear understanding and work flow management of the electronic documents. It is valuable kit for library professionals especially in India.
   
   Thanks and regards
   Nageswaran
   PUNE
   INDIA
2. Vasanth
   (posted 17 June 2005 / 03:17:47 PM)
   
   Dear Sir/Madam
   Your are doing really tremendous work in order to create awareness about E-Learning and Electronic document management.Your work is helping us to know better about the electronic document management.
   heartly thanks for your efforts.
   
   Your sincerely
3. P. Diwakar
   (posted 10 May 2005 / 04:14:10 PM)
   
   ADBI, your work is very much solicited by the professionals. Management of electronic documents is probabaly a big deal for library professional. Your work is to be appreciated very much by the librarians.