Metadata in Open Educational Resources Websites: A Review from the Perspective of Disabled Users' Requirements

Abstract

The Open Educational Resources (OERs) are digital pieces usually conceptualized as Learning Objects (LOs). LOs are prepared for use in educational environments. LOs are collected in Learning Object Repositories (LORs), which are a kind of a digital library or database, accessible through a website. The LORs store both LOs and their metadata. The metadata is data that describe LOs and can be used to facilitate the discovery of LOs. Besides, metadata also helps support archiving and preservation of LOs. In the context of this research the discoverability of LOs based on the users' requirements is analysed from the perspective of users with disabilities, hence we analyse accessibility and usability issues in OER websites. Additionally, this study performs a review of the most important metadata standards to verify if they include accessibility descriptors. Finally, based on the results, we can evaluate the current situation in the use of metadata in LOR from the perspective of disabled users’ requirements.