Education Resource Data Model
An Educational Resource refers to any material designed to support learning and instruction. These resources can take many forms, such as videos, textbooks, simulations, or interactive activities, and are intended to be used by various audiences, including students, teachers, researchers, and lifelong learners. In MC2 Center-supported projects, these entries document key information about educational resources to ensure they are accessible, properly categorized, and easy to reference.
This model defines attributes to describe each resource, including its title, topic, educational level, and usage, to facilitate discovery, sharing, and reuse within educational systems.
Why You Should Contribute Educational Resource Entries¶
Contributing educational resource entries helps expand access to valuable learning materials and supports knowledge sharing across the research and educational community. By documenting your resources thoroughly, you increase their discoverability, usability, and impact. Well-structured educational entries also provide opportunities for collaboration, curriculum development, and outreach, ensuring your work benefits a broader audience.
Who Should Be Contributing Educational Resource Entries?¶
- Educators and Trainers – Increase the reach of your courses, workshops, and materials by making them easily accessible and categorized for learners.
- Curriculum Developers – Contribute structured content that aligns with learning objectives and supports interdisciplinary research education.
- Researchers – Share resources like tutorials, research guides, and recorded presentations to help others understand your methods and findings.
- Knowledge Dissemination Teams – Ensure your organization’s educational resources are well-documented, improving outreach and engagement with students, collaborators, and stakeholders.
- Institutional Administrators – Facilitate better knowledge sharing within and across institutions by maintaining a well-organized repository of training materials.
Download Template¶
Use the educational resource template to streamline your data entry process. The template contains pre-defined required fields.
Example Data Entry¶
The table below includes sample values to demonstrate proper attribute usage.
| Attribute | Example Value |
|---|---|
| Educational Resource | Online Tutoring Platform |
| Resource Title | Introduction to Biology |
| Resource Link | https://www.example.com/resource_page.html |
| Resource Topic | Metabolism |
| Resource Activity Type | Simulation |
| Resource Primary Format | Video |
| Resource Intended Use | Curriculum/Instruction |
| Resource Primary Audience | Teacher |
| Resource Educational Level | High School |
| Resource Description | This comprehensive e-book offers insights into the world of Biology |
| Resource Origin Institution | Smithsonian Institution |
| Resource Language | en |
| Resource Contributors | John Smith, Jane Doe, XYZ Corporation |
| Resource Grant Number | CA217655 |
| EducationalResource_id | ER_4567 |
Full Field Reference¶
Below is the full field reference table with attributes and their descriptions.
| Attribute | Description | Required | Validation Rules | Examples |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Educational Resource | Manifest for describing educational resources. | False | None | "Online Tutoring Platform" |
| Resource Title | Title of the item. | True | str | "Introduction to Biology" |
| Resource Link | The URL that links to the item. | True | url | https://www.example.com/resource_page.html |
| Resource Doi | The Digital Object Identifier (DOI) associated with the educational resource. | True | url | nan |
| Resource Topic | General topic or research context of the item. If 'other' is selected, please provide additional topics in the 'Resource Secondary Topic' field. Multiple values should be provided as a comma separated list. | True | list like | Metabolism |
| Resource Activity Type | The type(s) of activities for which the item is intended to be used. Multiple values should be provided as a comma separated list. | True | list like | Simulation |
| Resource Primary Format | The media type(s) of the item (video, audio, text, etc.) Multiple values should be provided as a comma separated list. | True | list like | Video |
| Resource Intended Use | The purpose of the material for education. Multiple values should be provided as a comma separated list. | True | list like | "Curriculum/Instruction" |
| Resource Primary Audience | The intended end user audience for the resource. Multiple values should be provided as a comma separated list. | True | list like | Teacher |
| Resource Educational Level | Educational context (pre-school, lower-primary, upper-primary…) in which the item was intended to be used. Multiple values should be provided as a comma separated list. | True | list like | High School |
| Resource Description | Abstract or summary of the item. | True | str | "This comprehensive e-book introduces readers to the world of biology" |
| Resource Origin Institution | Institution(s) of origin for this item. Multiple values should be provided as a comma separated list. | True | list like | Smithsonian Institution |
| Resource Language | Language of the item (not of the metadata). Multiple values should be provided as a comma separated list. | True | list like::regex search [a-z]{2} | en |
| Resource Contributors | The name(s) of the contributor(s) to the item. Multiple contributor names should be provided as a comma-separated list. | True | list like | John Smith, Jane Doe, XYZ Corporation |
| Resource Grant Number | The grant number(s) associated with the contributor(s) of the item. If no grant number listed is applicable, please select 'Affiliated/Non-Grant Associated'. Multiple values should be provided as a comma separated list. | True | list like | CA217655 |
| Resource Secondary Topic | Additional topics or keywords to describe the content of the item, in addition to the primary topic. Multiple values should be provided as a comma-separated list. | False | list like | Cancer Research |
| Resource License | The name of the license applied to the item by the contributor(s), if applicable. Multiple values should be provided as a comma separated list. | False | list like | Apache-2.0 |
| Resource Use Requirements | A list of materials, hardware, software, computing power, and network requirements that the end user would need to satisfy before using the resource, if applicable. Multiple values should be provided as a comma separated list. | False | str | The software application requires 2GB of RAM and 20GB of hard drive space. It also needs a graphic card supporting OpenGL 2.0. The system must run on Windows 10 or higher. |
| Resource Alias | A unique identifier (DOI, Synapse ID) for the item, if it exists. | False | unique | Nan |
| Resource Internal Identifier | The institution-specific ID for the item, if applicable. May be non-unique. Multiple values should be provided as a comma separated list. | False | list like | ResourceID_56789 |
| Resource Media Accessibility | Accessibility features (Alternative Text, Audio Description, etc.) incorporated into the item. Multiple values should be provided as a comma separated list. | False | list like | The educational video on the website provides 'Captions' for viewers with hearing impairments, making it an excellent example of 'Resource Media Accessibility'. |
| Resource Access Hazard | Sensory hazards (Flashing, Motion, etc.) applicable to the item. Multiple values should be provided as a comma separated list. | False | list like | An example for the attribute 'Resource Access Hazard' could be a website for a video game which includes flashing images and intense sequences of motion. The site also uses loud sounds and high intensity simulations which some users can find distressing or harmful, particularly if they have conditions such as epilepsy or severe motion sickness. Therefore, the website has a potential "Resource Access Hazard." |
| Resource Dataset Alias | URL or persistent identifier (DOI, Synapse ID) for any dataset(s) that is intended to be used with the item. Multiple values should be provided as a comma separated list. | False | list like | Nan |
| Resource Tool Link | URL or persistent identifier (DOI, Synapse ID) for any software or tool that is intended to be used with the item. Multiple values should be provided as a comma separated list. | False | list like | https://www.khanacademy.org/ |
| EducationalResource_id | A unique primary key that enables record updates using schematic. | True | unique | ER_4567 |