Information Management Resource Kit (IMARK): Investing in Information Development
Full Review

Reviewed by: Albert Dean Atkinson, Ed.D., Head, Information Resources and Services, ADB
Review posted 29 August 2006
Review No. 86

CD-ROM Information

Content: This is a computer-based learning course for capacity building in agencies, institutions, and networks worldwide. It provides managers and decision-makers with the necessary skills and strategies related to the effective management of information.
Publication Date: 9 March 2006
Audience: The content is ideal for managers and decision-makers for building awareness and skills related to strategies, policies, structures, and procedures for the effective management of information.
Producer: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation (CTA), German Agency for Technical Cooperation (GTZ)
Size: 273MB
Price: Free
Manual needed: No. However, a print version manual is included under the Help and Support section. A complete explanation of the technical requirements (software, hardware, plug-ins, and operating system) is given with sufficient detail to get started. Once inside the course, an introduction provides a detailed site map showing the course content.
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

Content

It has been said that obtaining information these days is like taking a drink from a fire hose. In a world where the problem is no longer a lack of information but how to access it efficiently, along comes a learning module that provides users with the skills and resources that can assist them in quenching their thirst without getting soaked. "Investing in Information for Development" is the third in a series of e-learning modules being developed as part of the Information Management Resource Kit (IMARK).* Module 3 in this series addresses the need to build awareness and skills related to the development and implementation of strategies, policies, structures, and procedures for the effective management of information. Further, it reviews current trends in the access and dissemination of information, and how new information and communication technologies enhance information activities in an institutional environment.

The course is logically grouped and sequenced into six units:

Unit 1: Introduction provides an overview of the contents and objectives.

Unit 2: Information Strategy examines the main issues addressed by a manager during the process of developing, implementing, and communicating an information strategy.

Unit 3: Information Access overviews the activities involved in information access, including the various sources of information and methods used to reduce the costs of information acquisition.

Unit 4: Information Dissemination overviews the issues involved in information dissemination, specifically those brought about by the transition from print to digital media.

Unit 5: Organization and Management addresses key management issues including organizational capacity, creation of partnerships and alliances, and training and retention of staff.

Unit 6: Evaluating an Information Project addresses methods used to evaluate an information project.

The six units are segregated into 19 lessons, totaling about 8 hours of self-paced instruction. Each lesson is designed to achieve a specific learning objective using content that is up-to-date, accurate, meaningful, and sufficiently weaned of trivia. By delivering the content through interactive step-by-step instruction reinforced with appropriate images and the use of role play, scenarios, and exercises, the learner’s context is anchored within the subject matter.

As if this were not enough, the module goes further by offering a section on "Resources for Trainers" that contains a set of resource materials for trainers to use in face-to-face training environments. Included in this section are the trainer’s notes outlining the basic structure, learning objectives, and content of each unit. For each lesson there is a professionally created slide presentation, a set of complementary learner notes, and a set of exercises; all in a format that is easily edited for customization.

Without fail, this module continues the IMARK tradition for excellence established by its predecessors.* Simply put, it—and the entire series thus far—represents "best-in-class" examples of e-learning. The development community is fortunate to have this resource available for building information management capacity. It is apparent that this course was developed by learners for learners. The content chosen by the designers is packaged with skill and precision. It is delivered in a visually stimulating and interactive environment that may very well rival some of the best face-to-face training on the subject available today. Further, the creators of this course demonstrate their understanding of convergence, where print, CD-ROM, and internet versions are delivered identically.

*Read ADBI's review of IMARK 2: Digitization and Digital Libraries

*Read ADBI's review of IMARK 1: Management of Electronic Documents

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User-friendliness and Navigability

As is characteristic of other IMARK modules in this series, Module 3 carries with it a "branded" identity, meaning that the look and feel of the series is consistent in terms of layout, navigation, exercises, graphics, access, and lesson structure. The CD-ROM is easy to navigate and does not require an internet connection. Learners familiar with the series do not have to relearn the interface or adapt to new visual stimuli. The careful attention to reduce this type of learner distraction is a credit to the designers’ strategic decisions made prior to the actual creation of the IMARK suite of learning modules.

Of particular interest in this CD-ROM is the use of professionally prepared drawings to illustrate characters involved in the role play, simulations, case studies, and scenarios. What a brilliant decision by the designers to incorporate a bit of variety, within branding, for their audience. Neither over- nor under-used, these colorful and masterfully crafted illustrations bring the content to life and surprise and stimulate learners as they make their way through the lessons.

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Interactivity

As with the first and second IMARK modules, there are many interactive features. Learners can

• customize and personalize the content to meet their specific needs prior to the course,
• build their knowledge through an interactive, intuitive, and aesthetically pleasing user interface,
• benefit from well-designed and sequenced learning content, and
• join other learners engaging similar content through the IMARK Online Community that is accessible from the IMARK website, or through email, fax, or postal mail.

Each lesson follows a prescribed, time-tested learning formula:

1. begin with an anticipatory set that allows users to see the value of what they will learn in the lesson;
2. provide a suitable amount of baseline information;
3. allow the user to interact with the information visually or through an exercise, role play, or scenario;
4. check for understanding to see if the learner has mastered the content;
5. summarize the lesson’s information with links to past and future content in the course; and
6. provide additional resources where the learner can move from objective-based to constructivist learning or application if they wish.

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Distribution

The CD-ROM is available free through the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO). Please refer to the "How to Order" section above. For those with an internet connection, the course is identically delivered through the web, using bandwidth-friendly graphics and interactivity. It is available through the IMARK website.

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