Bioschemas training profiles: A set of specifications for standardizing training information to facilitate the discovery of training programs and resources

PLoS Comput Biol. 2023 Jun 15;19(6):e1011120. doi: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1011120. eCollection 2023 Jun.

Abstract

Stand-alone life science training events and e-learning solutions are among the most sought-after modes of training because they address both point-of-need learning and the limited timeframes available for "upskilling." Yet, finding relevant life sciences training courses and materials is challenging because such resources are not marked up for internet searches in a consistent way. This absence of markup standards to facilitate discovery, re-use, and aggregation of training resources limits their usefulness and knowledge translation potential. Through a joint effort between the Global Organisation for Bioinformatics Learning, Education and Training (GOBLET), the Bioschemas Training community, and the ELIXIR FAIR Training Focus Group, a set of Bioschemas Training profiles has been developed, published, and implemented for life sciences training courses and materials. Here, we describe our development approach and methods, which were based on the Bioschemas model, and present the results for the 3 Bioschemas Training profiles: TrainingMaterial, Course, and CourseInstance. Several implementation challenges were encountered, which we discuss alongside potential solutions. Over time, continued implementation of these Bioschemas Training profiles by training providers will obviate the barriers to skill development, facilitating both the discovery of relevant training events to meet individuals' learning needs, and the discovery and re-use of training and instructional materials.

MeSH terms

  • Biological Science Disciplines* / education
  • Computational Biology / education
  • Curriculum*
  • Humans
  • Learning

Grants and funding

NB was supported by an EXCELERATE grant. This work was supported by GOBLET who provided workshop and travel support; by Nicola Mulder, H3Africa, who organized, facilitated and provided travel support to the Cape Town workshop; and by a CIHR - Institute for Infection and Immunity #132312 grant, and the Ontario Institute for Cancer Research who organized, facilitated and supported travel to the Toronto workshop. Additional contributions were made at the 2018 ELIXIR BioHackathon Europe. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.