The OLE Library Network
OLE is in the process of developing a multilevel digital library network designed to make high quality open learning resources available to all children, even in the most remote parts of the world. The OLE Library Network is designed to work from the global to the personal levels.
Before embarking on this project OLE searched far and wide to find an existing open software system that met the needs of a user-friendly information search and retrieval system that could deliver resources in a wide variety of formats, could be federated at several levels of aggregation and could function effectively in remote locations off the electrical grid as well as in locations with broadband Internet connections. Finding no such system, we embarked on this ambitious development effort.
1. The Billion Kids Library.
The Billion Kids Library (BKL) is designed as a global repository of high quality open learning resources. There are literally thousands of free and open resources available on the web – games, books, pictures, videos. However almost none of them are designed to work within the educational framework of a given country and very few can be used by teachers with limited training and material resources themselves.
Thus the BKL focuses on “courseware” that has five key elements: a related educational standard, teacher materials, student textbooks and other re-useable materials and student one-time worksheets. Such courseware can be printable from the library or used online if the students have the relevant equipment. Content developers are encouraged to organize their materials within these categories. BKL enables curriculum developers, teachers and students to comment on and rate the value of the materials they find in the BKL thus enabling others to focus their searching on resources with high ratings.
OLE is organizing the BKL learning resources according to several suggested “themes” that are seen to be important in any basic education. They are:
Learning how to Learn Curiosity and Finding Knowledge
Reading and Inquiry Entrepreneurship
Oral and Written Creation Science, Technology and Innovation
Numbers and Analysis Community and Living Democracy
Food and Farming Art, Music, Dance and Culture
Personal and Community Health Cooperation and Conflict
Environmental Alignment Human Rights and Responsibilities
2. The National Kids Library.
The National Kids Library (NKL) uses essentially the same software as the BKL but enables individual nations to establish open online resources specially aligned to their national educational standards and goals. The NKL can be linked to the worldwide web or can be used as an Intranet within the nation. Educators who manage their NKL can draw upon the BKL for free and open learning resources, translate and localize those materials without fear of copyright violations. Unless otherwise prohibited, all of the resources in a NKL will be uploaded automatically into the federated BKL. Beta versions of national libraries using the NKL software are currently being deployed in Rwanda and Ghana.
3. SchoolBELL.
The SchoolBELL (Basic E-Learning Library) again uses the same core BKL library software but in this case is designed as a low-cost school and community based digital resource that can be used in the most remote villages of a country and does not require being on the electrical grid or connection to the Internet. The SchoolBELL contains thousands of books, courses, video and interactive media drawn from
the NKL and the BKL. It also can be used by the school and community to create local content such as a school newsletter or community newspaper. Requiring only 12 volts DC, it can be powered by a car battery or by solar panels. It includes a wifi transmitter so that places with laptops can access the library remotely. The SchoolBELL can be made available in a variety of configurations including a printer and a projector.
OLE’s developmental priority at this time is to complete the development of the SchoolBELL software and deploy it in a number of remote schools and communities in order to get direct feedback from the users of this system.
4. Personal Digital Library.
The Personal Digital Library (PDL) is at this point a concept. The idea is to enable students with a laptop or some kind of a PDA to download to their device their textbooks, a dictionary, encyclopedia and other learning resources so that can take those materials with them wherever they do. The first step will be to make sure the SchoolBELL and the XO laptop speak with each other with information going in both directions. Our assumption is that over time such a system would be developed to work on the Android software that is rapidly gaining favor in the marketplace.
Please visit the library online at library.ole.org to review the early beta version of this Drupal-based system or dev.ole.org to indicate your interest in becoming involved in the further development of this unique system.
