Complete metadata records in learning object repositories: some evidence and requirements

Completeness of e-learning objects metadata records becomes a key requirement for learning object repositories, since these repositories are called to play a central role in automated approaches to e-learning. Nonetheless, metadata creation is a time-consuming and laborious process. These two factors may eventually result in incomplete and poorly structured metadata. In this paper, the completeness of learning object metadata of samples obtained from the MERLOT and CAREO repositories is analysed from that viewpoint, using the IEEE LOM standard as a reference framework. The paper concludes with a proposal for the specification of completeness levels as compliancy requirements for learning-related services or processes.