COLIS IMS Demonstrator

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The Future of Resources for E-learning LearnScope
Workshop, UTS Monday, 23rd June, 2003 James
Dalziel Executive Director, WebMCQ Pty
Ltd james_at_webmcq.com www.webmcq.com Adjunct
Professor and Director, Macquarie E-learning
Centre of Excellence (MELCOE) wwww.melcoe.mq.edu.a
u
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Overview

• Part 1
• Online Learning Today
• Reflections on the Future of Online Learning
• Case Study 1 The COLIS Project
• Part 2
• Case Study 2 Dynamic course generation
• Case Study 3 Learning Design
• Conclusion

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My Background

• E-learning in Psychology at USYD (1996-2000)
• Creation of WebMCQ Pty Ltd spin-off (1998)
• Based on web-based assessment system
• Experience in corporate and HE e-learning (1999)
• Part-time position at ITL, USYD (2001-2002)
• Involvement in IMS international standards
  (2002)
• New role as Adjunct Professor and Director,
  Macquarie E-learning Centre of Excellence (2003)
• Focus on standards and interoperability/integratio
  n
• Todays presentation given in WebMCQ capacity

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Online Learning Today

• The failure of dot com e-learning business models
• The realities of Blended learning
• The rise of the Learning Management System
• The integration challenge ahead - CRM, LMS, LOMS
• What about Learning Objects?

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What is a Learning Object?

• Lack of a widely agreed definition
• IMS does not even define the term!
• Not an esoteric debate - has a direct impact on
  resource creation and its re-useability
• Interoperability is key, but requires agreed
  standards

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So what is a Learning Object anyway?
Run-time tool description XML
Learning Object Meta-data XML
Data interchange XML
Rendering XML
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What is a Learning Object?

• Three Case Studies from todays e-learning world
  to help unpack this questions
• Case Study 1 COLIS
• Case Study 2 Dynamic Content Generation
• Case Study 3 Learning Design
• But first, what is over the horizon?

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The Future of Online Learning

• Predicting the future is a dangerous activity
• You will almost always be wrong, at least about
  the timescale!
• But. here are four technology trends to watch
• (1) Standards
• (2) Sequencing of content
• (3) Personalised learning
• (4) Learning Design

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The Future of Online Learning Standards

• Open standards and interoperability will become a
  driving force in e-learning over the coming
  decade
• Within five years we will wonder how we ever
  thought we could work without standards
• Standards impact at several levels
• Content Development (eg IMS Content Packaging)
• Meta-data and Searching (eg, IMS LRM, DRI)
• Run-time learning experience (eg, SCORM, IMS
  Learning Design)
• System architectures (eg, IMS Abstract Framework)
• Open standards are essential to re-useability and
  interoperability of learning resources

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The Future of Online Learning Sequencing of
Content

• Current Learning Objects tend to hard-wire the
  navigation/sequencing into the object
• Learning Objects become too large, and hard to
  adapt
• Need more granular Learning Objects, and
  templates for sequencing them together
• This is the promise of SCORM 1.3 Simple
  sequencing

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The Future of Online Learning

• Personalised Learning has many meanings
• Personalised start and tracking
• Personalised look and feel, etc
• Key concept is personalised learning based on
  finding the ideal Learning Object at the ideal
  moment in a students learning pathway
• Will need very rich meta-data
• Will require a huge federation of Learning Object
  Repositories
• Chance of success? Im not so sure..

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The Future of Online Learning

• Learning Design is about the context or process
  that is wrapped around Learning Objects
• Allow for re-useable learning activity
  sequences into which Learning Objects are
  inserted
• These templates can do for activities what SCORM
  1.3 does for content
• Particularly important to multi-learner
  environments

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Summary

• We have already achieved much, especially with
  the LMS
• Many challenges ahead, particularly around
  integration and sharing
• Questions/Discussion?

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Case Study 1 The COLIS project
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COLIS Goal

• The aim of the project is to provide an
  Australian higher education IMS test bed to
  develop and prove a collaborative interactive
  service model and technical infrastructure for
  online learning, scholarly information resource
  discovery and networked access management.

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COLIS Integration Service Chunks
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COLIS Demonstrator
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Demonstrator Principles

• Implementation of COLIS model
• Standards-based interoperability
• Achievable goals
• Modest budget
• Short development time - three months
• Multi-vendor Demonstrator environment - no
  single dominant player
• Parties retain intellectual property rights to
  respective original inputs.
• Any specifications developed within the project
  to be open source.

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COLIS Participants

• Sponsors
• DEST and IMS Australia
• Universities
• Macquarie (lead), Newcastle, UNE, USQ Tasmania
• Vendors
• IPR Systems, Fretwell Downing Informatics, WebCT,
  WebMCQ, Computer Associates
• Associates
• OTEN-DE TAFE NSW, OCLC, EdNA Online, Cancore,
  CSIRO

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Demonstration
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Conceptual Issues in COLIS
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Rights-enabled Learning Objects
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Publish /Store to LOMS
LOMS
Rights Enabled Learning Object
CP
LO Repository
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Extract CP
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DRM Enabled Access
LOMS
Rights Enabled Learning Object
CP
LO Repository
LO url Access Management
LMS
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Conceptual Issues
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DRM, Access Identity Management
From the browser to the desktop?


Access Identity Management (Web)
Digital Asset Management
Learning Management System
Learning Content Management System
Meta Data
Rights Management
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COLIS Global Use Case COLIS Launch Version (Oct
02) - New elements
Authority
Creator
Arranger
Learner
Infoseeker
COLIS participant
Facilitator
Universities Academics (Out of scope) IPR
S WebCT / WebMCQ IPR S / FDi IPR S /
FDi IPR S / FDi WebCT/WebMCQ Academics (Out
of scope) WebCT/WebMCQ CA/WebMCQ WebCT /
WebMCQ / FDi Academics (Out of
scope) Universities
Prescribe
Author
Submit to LOX
Design Learning Activity
Outcomes/ Competencies
Search LOX
Search via Gateway
Review Licence
Review Meta-data
Download LOs
Obtain Links
Structure LOs Activities
Package New/ Modified LOs
Quality Assurance
Structure Assessment
Organise Student Roles/Groups
Student Login
Do Learning
Student Searches
Facilitate Learning
Do Assessment
Facilitate Assessment
Record
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COLIS Global Use Case Latest Version (May 03) -
include Certify role
Authority
Creator
Arranger
Learner
Infoseeker
Facilitator
Monitor
Certifier
Prescribe
Author
Certify new LOs
Submit to LOX
Certify new MD
Design Learning Activity
Outcomes/ Competencies
Search LOX
Search via Gateway
Review Licence
Review Meta-data
Download LOs
Obtain Links
Structure LOs Activities
Package New/ Modified LOs
Quality Assurance
Certify Selected Los Activities
Structure Assessment
Certify Selected Assessment
Organise Student Roles/Groups
Student Login
Certify Enrolment
Do Learning
Student Searches
Facilitate Learning
Monitor Learning
Certify live Learning
Do Assessment
Facilitate Assessment
Monitor Assessment
Certify live assessment
Record
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Issues for Further Development

• Identified COLIS issues
• Beyond Phase 1 functionality
• Areas identified by Global Use Case
• Value of COLIS-style projects in VET K-12 (
  corporate training?)
• Identifying gaps in current e-learning standards
• Need for education market DRM standard (eg,
  ODRL?)
• Importance of Learning Design (eg, Laurillard IMS
  keynote)
• Need for Access/Identity/SSO standards
• Need for education market competencies/outcomes
  standard
• Need for a broader assessment standard (inc.
  subjective assessment)
• Need for education market abstract content
  standard (cf DocBook)
• Dynamic content/activity creation based on
  learner profile
• Clarify confusions about e-learning products and
  relevant standards

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(Break)
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Case Study 2 Dynamic Content Generation
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Case Study 3 Learning Design
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Conclusion

• Where we are today, where we will be tomorrow
• Standards
• Sequencing - both content and activities
• Simple re-use Word Docs, PPT, etc
• Demonstrations of what is possible
• COLIS and Learning Objects
• Dynamic Content Creation
• Learning Design
• We need more infrastructure so developers dont
  have to worry about all the technical stuff!

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Websites

• www.merlot.org
• www.cancore.ca
• www.educationau.com.au
• www.colis.mq.edu.au