Merlot

Website

Learning platform

Database/repository

Data storage and sharing

Virtual libraries

A well respected and mature (started in 1997) repository for lessons and activities. There are lots of options for collaboration and communication, so that it’s not just a repository but a community around sharing resources.

The MERLOT project began in 1997, when the California State University Center for Distributed Learning (CSU-CDL at www.cdl.edu) developed and provided free access to MERLOT (www.merlot.org). Under the leadership of Chuck Schneebeck, CSU-CDL’s Director, MERLOT was modeled after the NSF funded project, “Authoring Tools and An Educational Object Economy (EOE)”. Led by Dr. James Spohrer and hosted by Apple Computer, and other industry, university, and government collaborators, the EOE developed and distributed tools to enable the formation of communities engaged in building shared knowledge bases of learning materials.

• Lots of language content
• Peer reviews are available for many of the entries and Merlot’s editorial board selects their favorites
• Teachers can discuss the materials with each other in a comments section.
• Easy to create a learning exercise around the materials.
• Licensing information is clearly marked (not all content is Creative Commons licensed)
• The longevity of the platform has allowed the best materials to emerge over time – here’s a list of some award winning ones

Windows

MAC

Linux

IOS/Android

Asynchronous learning

Synchronous learning