Research4Life is thrilled to announce the launch of a MOOC (Massive Open Online Course) that will equip existing and future users of the Research4Life programmes (Hinari, AGORA, OARE, ARDI and GOALI) with the knowledge and skills required to access and use the platform efficiently. A call for applications to attend the MOOC is now open. The Elsevier Foundation and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations funded the Research4Life MOOC.

Who should apply?

The target audience for this MOOC is aligned with Research4Life’s eligibility criteria. Eligible institutions include: national universities, professional schools (in medicine, agriculture, pharmacy, public health, socio-legal studies, engineering, etc.), research institutes, teaching hospitals and healthcare centers, government offices, national libraries, agricultural extension centers and local non-governmental organizations.

This course was developed for librarians, information professionals, IT specialists, researchers, academics, lecturers, educators, students including graduates and post graduates, and professionals, such as doctors, policy makers, extensionists, lawyers, social workers and statisticians in the eligible countries and institutions.

Participants are expected to spend on average six to eight hours per week on lessons and activities, such as contributing to discussion forums and webinars.

What do you get from this course?

The Research4Life MOOC follows a modular structure, which allows participants to study their area of interest throughout a five-week period. The course covers topics relevant across all Research4Life programmes, such as the scholarly communication landscape, information literacy skills, advocacy and capacity development strategies. Additionally, it provides discipline-specific information for Hinari, AGORA, OARE, ARDI and GOALI.

Participants of the course will be provided with a Certificate of Attendance after completing the exam at the end of the course. Those who pass the exam with grade of at least 7.0, will receive a Certificate of Achievement.

Photo by UNSPLASH licensed under CC0 License

How to apply?

The course is free of charge and is offered in English over five-week period. It will take place between 11 November to 15 December 2019.

To apply for the course, please complete the registration form by 5 November 2019.

For further information, please contact us at [email protected].

What is included in the course?

Module 1: Scholarly communication and Research4Life: This module provides an overview on scholarly communication, the publishing landscape, key concepts about Research4Life including the details about the partnership,, programmes’ coverage, eligibility criteria, and registration. Lessons included in this module are:

• Lesson 1.1: Scientific landscape
• Lesson 1.2: Research assessment and bibliometrics
• Lesson 1.3: Research4Life

Module 2: Discovery and re-use of scholarly literature: This module covers key concepts of information literacy skills and competencies, including academic ethics, licensing and academic collaboration tools. Lessons included in this module are:

• Lesson 2.1: Identifying information sources
• Lesson 2.2: Using information resources
• Lesson 2.3: Intellectual property and copyright - Ethics and plagiarism
• Lesson 2.4: Citing, reference management and collaboration tools

Module 3: Discipline-specific browsing and searching: This module describes the five Research4Life programmes (Hinari, AGORA, OARE, ARDI, GOALI) in detail, including how to conduct discipline specific search, an introduction to Summon to search across programmes and the bibliometric analysis tools: Scopus and Dimensions, which are provided within Research4Life. Lessons included in this module are:

• Lesson 3.1: Hinari: Research in Health
• Lesson 3.2: AGORA: Research in agriculture
• Lesson 3.3: OARE: Research in the Environment
• Lesson 3.4: ARDI: Research for Development and Innovation
• Lesson 3.5: GOALI: Research for Global Justice
• Lesson 3.6: Search across Research4Life programmes
• Lesson 3.7: Citation databases

Module 4: Additional discipline-specific resources: This module focuses on additional discipline-specific resources and services in the five main disciplines of the Research4Life programmes. Lessons included in this module are:

• Lesson 4.1: Health
• Lesson 4.2: Agriculture, forestry, fisheries, climate, food security, related biological and environmental sciences
• Lesson 4.3: Environment
• Lesson 4.4. Development and innovation
• Lesson 4.5. Global justice
• Lesson 4.6. Interdisciplinary resources

Module 5: Advocate on Research4Life and Facilitate Capacity Development: This module teaches you how to design advocacy strategies to address decision makers and upper management. It also guides you on how to train local groups on how to use Research4Life. Lessons included in this module are:

• Lesson 5.1: Research4Life Advocacy Toolkit
• Lesson 5.2: Training Your Audience on How to Use Research4Life