Learning objects management: theory and practice

Lea ning Objec s Managemen : Theo y and P ac ice ERLA MORALES, FRANCISCO GARCÍA & ÁNGELA BARRÓN Depa men o Compu e Science, Uni e si y o Salamanca Plaza de los Caídos s/n, 37008, Salamanca, SPAIN ga ci[email p o ec ed] Depa men o Theo y and His o y o Educa ion, Uni e si y o Salamanca Pº de Canalejas, 169, 37008, Salamanca, SPAIN e lamo al[email p o ec ed], [email p o ec ed] Abs ac : - Al hough LO managemen is an in e es ing subjec o s udy due o he cu en in e ope abili y po en ial, i is no p omo ed e y much because a numbe o issues emain o be esol ed. LOs need o be designed o achie e educa ional goals, and he me ada a schema mus ha e he kind o in o ma ion o make hem eusable in o he con ex s. This pape p esen s a pilo p ojec in he design, implemen a ion and e alua ion o lea ning objec s in he ield o uni e si y educa ion, wi h a speci ic ocus on he de elopmen o a me ada a Typology and quali y e alua e ool, concluding wi h a summa y and analysis o he end esul s. Key-Wo ds: - Lea ning Objec s, Managemen , Quali y, E-lea ning, Me ada a, E alua ion 1 In oduc ion Many s udies ha e been done on he concep o lea ning objec s (LOs) bu no consensus has been eached on a s anda d de ini ion o on he echnical and pedagogical equi emen s. Speci ica ions a e being de eloped bu ha e ye o be no malized, and he use o me ada a schemas is s ill unde discussion. This has p e en ed LO c ea ion and managemen om becoming common p ac ice This pape p esen s ou esea ch on he design, implemen a ion and e alua ion o a p o o ype LO managemen ool o e-lea ning sys ems, con aining quali y c i e ia designed o enable LOs o be s anda dized and a uned o educa ional needs. The p o o ype was buil on he basis o ou own knowledge model, and comp ises speci ic me ada a alue spaces o classi ying LOs in o he LOM “5. Educa ional” me ada a ca ego y [7]. The pape begins by ou lining some issues o lea ning objec s quali y and Managemen (sec ion 2). On his basis, sec ion 3 p esen s ins uc ional sugges ion o leaning objec design. In o de o suppo ou p oposal we p esen s he de elopmen o ini ial p o o ype lea ning objec (LO1) and de e mines wha ype o me ada a should be applied (sec ion 4). I goes on o desc ibe how we implemen ed and e alua ed LO1 using ou LO e alua ion ool (sec ion 5); hen desc ibes how he esul s o hose ials we e used o p oduce a second p o o ype (LO2), which was also implemen ed and e alua ed (sec ion 6). Finally i p esen s ou conclusions and plans o he nex s ages o ou wo k (sec ion 7). 2 LOs quali y and managemen The e olu ion o he Web in ega ds o seman ics suppo s he idea o gi ing mo e signi icance o con en han o syn ax. In his way, he machines can ealize complex asks o deli e use s he necessa y in o ma ion o mee hei needs. Knowledge managemen and e-lea ning a e closely ela ed because e-lea ning use s need a sui able knowledge managemen ha can help hem o ob ain he kind o con en hey need oge he wi h as co ec and comple e in o ma ion as possible. Howe e he knowledge managemen concep is no easy o de ine because i is ai ly wide. In a en e p ise con ex [8] his concep is de ined as “some ac ions in ended o en e p ises o o ganize and s uc u e p ocess, mechanisms and in as uc u es wi h he p oposes o c ea e, sa e and euse o ganiza ion‟s knowledge”. In ano he way, [21] emphasize people pa icipa ion in a knowledge managemen p ocess. Acco ding o his he de ines his concep as “a p ocess o suppo c ea ion, s o ing and sha ing o alue in o ma ion as well as expe ience and pe cep i eness inside o h ough people and o ganiza ions communi ies wi h simila in e es and necessi ies”. Taking in o accoun bo h de ini ions, we hink knowledge managemen o e-lea ning sys ems mus suppo all he issues ha in ol e he eaching and lea ning p ocess, specially con en managemen because i is one o he mos impo an issue in dis ance lea ning [12]. The possibili y o managing con en h ough e- lea ning sys ems has an addi ional alue. Knowledge is a sou ce o powe ha needs o be sha ed and acqui ed, e-lea ning sys ems mean he possibili y o managing in o ma ion aking in o conside a ion people ha can con ibu e wi h hei expe ience and en ich he in o ma ion independen o ime and place limi s [19]. The challenge o de ining he ype o in o ma ion o manage o e-lea ning sys ems is a opic ha has led o he eme gence o new concep s o esou ce de elopmen . One o hese concep s is he lea ning objec , which conside s esou ces as independen uni s ha can be e-used o new educa ional si ua ions. We de ine a LO as a uni wi h a lea ning objec i e, oge he wi h digi al and independen capabili ies con aining one o a ew ela ed ideas and accessible h ough me ada a o be eused in di e en con ex s and pla o ms. On ag eemen wi h his, knowledge managemen o e-lea ning based on eusable uni s o lea ning means he possibili y o accessing speci ic con en acco ding o he lea ne s‟ needs. Many o ganiza ions ha e c ea ed hei own e- lea ning pla o m solu ions o knowledge managemen . As a consequence hey ha e had in e ope abili y p oblems a he momen hei con en is sha ed wi h o he e-lea ning pla o ms o a he momen i is upda ed. In o de o his o be possible, speci ica ions and s anda ds a e in de elopmen which allow o in e ope abili y o hese objec s on di e se pla o ms. Howe e , he abili y o in e change lea ning objec s does no mean ha he esul s a e o good quali y. Some au ho s [23] de ine quali y in eLea ning as he e ec i e acquisi ion o a sui o skills, knowledge and compe ences by s uden s, by means o de eloping app op ia e lea ning con en s gi en wi h a sum o e icien web ools suppo ed ia a ne o alue-added se ices, whose p ocess – om con en de eloping o he acquisi ion o compe ences and he analysis o he whole in e en ion- is ensu ed by an exhaus i e and pe sonalized e alua ion and ce i ica ion p ocess, and i is moni o ed by a human eam p ac ising a s ong and in eg al u o ial p esence h ough he whole eaching- o-lea ning p ocess. Acco ding o his, in o de o p omo e quali y Lea ning Objec s Managemen i is impo an o p omo e quali y di ec ed o all he elea ning componen s in ol ed, o example: c i e ia and ins umen o hei e alua ion [13], sui able me ada a ypology, me hodology and aining o online u o ing [23] pedagogical design o he p ac ice communi y, e c. LOs ha e some inhe en p ope ies acco ding o hei cha ac e is ics ha may be e alua ed independen o he con ex [18]. P incipal LOs cha ac e is ics a e: du abili y, in e ope abili y, accessibili y and eusabili y. Howe e acco ding o [17] [19] LOs ha e inhe en cha ac e is ics ha can be use as be o ehand quali y measu e. Fo his eason, in his sec ion we explain issues ela ed wi h he LOs cha ac e is ics which help o imp o e hei quali y o a sui able managemen .  Reusabili y. This is he p incipal cha ac e is ic o alue o LOs. Howe e , i is no easy o e alua e LOs eusabili y because i is ela ed wi h he con ex o use. In he case o LOs (as well as so wa e enginee ing) exac measu es do no exis , howe e i is possible o de ine quali y indica o s o usabili y ha may be con i med acco ding o he eusabili y le el. I is an heu is ic e alua ion acco ding o a con ex o use. When a LO is eused in o a one o di e en o ganiza ions, use s may be able o e alua e hem in a empi ical way, hen, i is possible o wa ch and sa e esul s abou LOs managemen and add his in o ma ion o hei me ada a. In his way me ada a could p o ide mo e comple e in o ma ion o LOs eusabili y.  Sui able o ma : LOs eusabili y depends o hei con en as well as hei me ada a in o ma ion. Howe e me ada a compa ible wi h some s anda ds like LOM [7] o SCORM [22] is no enough o make hem eusable. Acco ding o [1] Seman ic Web is an ex ension o he cu en web in which in o ma ion is gi en well-de ined meaning, be e enabling compu e s and people o wo k in coope a ion. The idea is ha machines can ead in o ma ion o de elop complex asks o use s. To make i possible LOs me ada a mus ha e a o ma di ec ed o au oma ed p ocess.  Me ada a in o ma ion: Me ada a is he mos impo an hing o know LOs cha ac e is ics o his eason acco ding o [25] me ada a in o ma ion mus be as co ec and comple e as possible because i is necessa y o know all he in o ma ion as possible abou he LO o euse i in a sui able way. Me ada a a e g ouped in o nine ca ego ies, howe e we ha e o ake special a en ion o educa ional ca ego y because i con ains en sub-ca ego ies wi h di e en kind o pedagogical in o ma ion as: in e ac i i y ype, lea ning esou ce ype, in e ac i i y le el, seman ic densi y, in ended end use ol, lea ning con ex , ypical age ange, di icul y, ypical lea ning ime, and desc ip ion.  Size o deg ee o g anula i y: O he impo an issue o euse LOs is hei deg ee o g anula i y because i is ela ed o hei capabili y o be eused in ano he con ex s and pla o ms o e-lea ning sys ems. Howe e he deg ee o g anula i y could o a ec LOs eusabili y depending o hei size and me ada a in o ma ion. I is known ha oo li lle LOs as well as oo big LOs ha e less p obabili ies o be eused because hei possibili ies o in e change dec ease. In he case o oo li le LOs like a ideo wi hou sound o a igu e i is no easy o manage o e- lea ning sys ems because hey ha e a lack o in en ion and hei me ada a may esul oo poo . Howe e i we manage LOs acco ding o ou de ini ion, i is means LOs ha has a ew ela ed ideas is mo e easy o euse hem han a big con en like a so wa e because i is c ea ed o a e y speci ic si ua ion. Taking in o accoun ou de ini ion eache s a e ee o decide in which lea ning con ex hey mus o be used. This is because hey do no be necessa ily ela ed o any ime, me hodologies, ins uc ional design, e c. 3 Ins uc ional sugges ion o LOs Design LOs a e indi idual uni s o lea ning o modules which need o be enabled wi h o he ones o build la ge uni s (didac ic uni s, cou ses, e c.). This means ha hey a e pa o he whole, bu each LO mus be capable o being eused by i sel in o he didac ic uni s. In o de o comple e an LO as a quali y uni o lea ning and o compose didac ic uni s (DU) wi h hem, we belie e he ollowing issues should be conside ed. [16], [19]  O e iew: Acco ding o [2] [3] and [20] a didac ic uni needs a gene al o e iew o explain gene al objec i es and in oduce he LO con en . An in oduc ion is an impo an elemen o any kind o con en s because as well as p o iding in o ma ion abou he con en s, i se s ou he pu pose o he opics and gi es lea ne s an idea o wha hey a e expec ed o lea n. Fu he mo e, i is a mo i a ional elemen ha aims o engage he s uden s by le ing hem know why he subjec is impo an o hem. An o e iew mus also p o ide an LO objec i e. As we explained in he de ini ion o LOs, because o hei eusabili y cha ac e is ics, ideally he objec i e mus be simple, wi h one o se e al ela ed ideas. We sugges ha an objec i e should be di ec ed o lea ning one kind o con en s because in his way he whole ins uc ional design would be a ge ed o achie e his speci ic objec i e. O he impo an aspec s ha mus be included in an LO o e iew a e: i s i le and he i le o he lea ning uni , so ha s uden s can know wha pa o a whole hey a e wo king wi h; he sequenced lis o opics; and, inally, keywo ds o in o m s uden s abou wha ela ed a eas a e in ol ed wi h he LO con en .  Con en s: In gene al, any kind o con en mus ha e some quali y cha ac e is ics ha ake in o accoun di e en issues. F om a pedagogical poin o iew, con en s mus be logical and psychologically meaning ul. Tha means, on he one hand, a logical iew o he discipline (con en s sequence, me hodology, kind o ac i i ies, e c.) and, on he o he , use sui abili y (le el o di icul y, use in e es s, e c.). O he issues ela ed o any kind o con en s a e in o ma ion e aci y, co ec da a, good w i ing and spelling, sui able size, colo and on ype, e c. Howe e , as ega ds LO cha ac e is ics, i is impo an ha con en s should no men ion any hing abou ime, o example, “ his week” o “ his semes e ,” e c., because his could delay i s eusabili y o o he educa ional si ua ions. The same mus be aken in o accoun ega ding he audience, hen ph ases like “dea enginee ing s uden s…” mus also be a oided. Ideally, con en s should be p esen ed in mul iple o ma s in o de o a end o di e en cogni i e skills and lea ning s yles, e.g. ideos, anima ions, g aphics, e c.  Ac i i ies: Ac i i ies may be add essed o p omo ing new knowledge acquisi ion and o p epa ing use s o a inal assessmen . Ac i i ies may be included in any kind o con en s du ing he en i e eaching and lea ning p ocess. They help use s o know i hey mus go on o he nex lesson o whe he hey should seek eedback. An o e iew mus also p o ide an LO objec i e. As we explained in he de ini ion o LOs, because o hei eusabili y cha ac e is ics, ideally he objec i e mus be simple, wi h one o se e al ela ed ideas. We sugges ha an objec i e should be di ec ed o lea ning one kind o con en s because in his way he whole ins uc ional design would be a ge ed o achie e his speci ic objec i e. O he impo an aspec s ha mus be included in an LO o e iew a e: i s i le and he i le o he lea ning uni , so ha s uden s can know wha pa o a whole hey a e wo king wi h; he sequenced lis o opics; and, inally, keywo ds o in o m s uden s abou wha ela ed a eas a e in ol ed wi h he LO con en . Some au ho s [4] [5] p omo e cons uc i is lea ning en i onmen s o Lea ning Objec s. They emphasize ha ac i i ies mus be as di e se as possible o accommoda e di e en kinds o use s: case s udies, p oblem sol ing, eamwo k, e lec ing on si ua ions, e c. We ag ee on he need o hese kinds o ac i i ies, bu we eel ha deep e lec ion abou hem is necessa y be o e hey can be applied o LOs. Fi s , ac i i ies a e highly ela ed o he con en s. This issue may a ec he kind o ac i i y o use; o example, i LO con en s a e me ely alking abou basic concep s, ac s o da a, he kind o ac i i ies may be di ec ed o ein o cing hem, by ela ing he co ec concep s, checking ue o alse, e c. Mos likely, an ac i i y such as a case s udy does no need o be employed a his le el o complexi y. In acco dance wi h his, in o de o suppo di e en complexi y le els o con en s and cogni i e domains, we sugges aking in o Is based on Impo o C ea e -Da a and Concep Con en s -Compu e Science Inginee ing - CONTEXT -Objec i e -In oduc ion -Typical Lea ning Time -Keywo ds O e iew -Schema -Compa a i e Table Summa y -Sel -E alua ion P ac ice Ac i i ies LEARNING OBJECT 1 Objec -O ien ed P og amming: Gene al Issues (Agg ega ion Le el 2) Da a and Concep LEARNING OBJECT 2 Objec -O ien ed P og amming: Li e Cycle (Agg ega ion Le el 2) Da a and Concep -Names, ac s, cha ac e is ics Da a -Abs ac p inciples Concep -Cogni i e Le el Objec i e -Re lec ion Assessmen Ac i i ies -Ini ia ion Type -Indi idual -Collabo a i e, e c. Wo k Modal -Lec u e -Fo um pa icipa ion S a egies -Knowledge -Comp ehensión -Analysis -Syn hesis Cogni i e Le el and + + LEARNING OBJECT 3 (Agg ega ion Le el 2) + LEARNING OBJECT X (Agg ega ion Le el 2) + + TEACHER Compose Compose -O e iew -Lea ning Objec s -Summa y -P ac ice Ac i i ies -Assessmen Ac i i ies MODULE 1: Objec O ien ed P og amming Agg ega ion Le el 3 -O e iew -Lea ning Objec s -Summa y -P ac ice Ac i i ies -Assessmen Ac i i ies MODULE 2 Agg ega ion Le el 3 -O e iew -Lea ning Objec s -Summa y -P ac ice Ac i i ies -Assessmen Ac i i ies MODULE X Agg ega ion Le el 3 -O e iew -Modules -Summa y -P ac ice Ac i i ies -Assessmen Ac i i ies COURSE: Objec -O ien ed P og amming Agg ega ion Le el 4 -Ini ia ion Type -Indi idual Wo k Wo k Modal -Lec u e -Sel -e alua ion ac i i ies S a egies + Fig. 1, Knowledge Model o LO1 accoun h ee kinds o ac i i ies: Ini ia ion, Re-s uc u ing and Applica ion. Ini ia ion ac i i ies a e designed o each he basic con en s o a speci ic subjec . An example o his is a quiz. Re-s uc u ing ac i i ies may be di ec ed o p omo ing new knowledge acquisi ion, such as ac i i ies ha p omo e ques ions, esea ch, e c. Finally, applica ion ac i i ies may be add essed o os e ing s uden s‟ expe ience in o de o s eng hen hei acquisi ion o new concep s. An example o his ac i i y is a case s udy. A Didac ic Uni is composed o a g oup o indi idual LOs. Because o he eusabili y cha ac e is ic, ecommend ca ying ou some ac i i ies a he end o he didac ic uni o a oid consis ency p oblems wi h he adap a ion o new LOs [2] [20].  Summa y o Conclusions: As wi h any kind o eaching and lea ning p ocess, a summa y is ad isable a e a con en s e iew. A good summa y should poin ou he main ideas and he ela ions be ween hem, making i possible o ein o ce he con en s. I is also impo an o ela e he con en s o o he a eas o knowledge by means o diag ams, ou lines, concep ual maps, e c.  Assessmen : An e alua ion mus ake in o accoun each o he lea ning objec i es. I mus hus be add essed o any kind o con en s and i s le el o di icul y. E alua ion may be ca ied ou as ac i i ies; howe e , i is e y impo an ha s uden s know wha ac i i ies will be e alua ed p io o he assessmen . Some au ho s [2] [16] a e in a ou o p ac ice ac i i ies and e alua ion ac i i ies. The i s has o help s uden s o acqui e new knowledge by p o iding eedback, poin ing ou he mos impo an in o ma ion, and o p epa e hem o a inal e alua ion. The second ype mus be a inal expe ience ha le s he s uden s know whe he hey ha e mas e ed he objec i es o no , i.e., whe he hey ha e passed o ailed. 4 LO Design and P oposed Me ada a Typology The i s ask o c ea e ou ini ial p o o ype lea ning objec (LO1) was o chose a con ex in which o conduc ou ials: he Objec -O ien ed P og amming (OOP) op ion o he Compu e Science cou se a Salamanca Uni e si y [12] [15]. We hen de ined a se o speci ic lea ning objec i es wi h which we buil a knowledge model ha se ed o p oduce a basic uni o lea ning which, in u n, se ed as he basis o designing LO1, en i led “Objec -O ien ed P og amming: Gene al Issues” (see igu e 1). One o he key goals he e was o enable a knowledge model o be used o s anda dize LOs, which is c ucial o hem o be ailo ed o educa ional needs, aking in o accoun key elemen s o lea ning [17]. Sound LO managemen equi es he inco po a ion o eliable me ada a, bu he iabili y o he only me ada a schema cu en ly ega ded as a s anda d [7] has been called in o ques ion because i uses as quan i ies o ill-de ined ypes o da a, and some o i s me ada a ca ego ies do no make i clea wha kind o in o ma ion has o be added, hus u he complica ing he ask o LO managemen [6]. Acco ding o [24] selec ion and composi ion o lea ning objec s a e wo essen ial ac i i ies in au oma ed app oaches o Web-based lea ning. Such ac i i ies equi e high-quali y me ada a eco ds ha a e no only con o ming o cu en speci ica ions and s anda ds, bu ha p o ide clea sys em-o ien ed un ime seman ics ha suppo au oma ed decision p ocesses. Al hough he lack o cla i y in he IEEE LOM s anda d makes i s alue spaces ha d o in e p e , mos me ada a edi o s oday con inue o use ha s anda d wi hou seeking o explain he meaning o each space. We se ou o add ess his issue – and, hence, o enable sui able LO managemen da a o be in oduced in o lea ning en i onmen s – by de ising a se o de ini ions o cla i y he con en o each alue space in he LOM “5. Educa ional” me ada a ca ego y:  5.1. In e ac i i y ype: exposi i e LOs ea u ing a e y low in e ac i i y le el, wi h s uden s ecei ing in o ma ion ye emaining unable o in e ac wi h he con en .  5.2. Lea ning Resou ce Type: web pages  5.3 In e ac i i y Le el: low LOs wi h an exposi i e in e ac i i y le el – minimal s uden pa icipa ion (web pages wi h ew links)  5.3 Seman ic Densi y: medium LO con en designed o p omo e smoo h lea ning and applica ion o knowledge  5.5 In ended End Use Role: lea ne s  5.6 Con ex : uni e si y le el  5.7 Typical Age Range: Unspeci ied  5.8 Di icul y: easy In o ma ion is easily associa ed wi h p e ious knowledge We hen inco po a ed hese de ini ions in o ou p o o ype LO1. 5 LO1 Implemen a ion and E alua ion Ha ing designed LO1 based on ou knowledge model and inco po a ing ou p oposed me ada a ypology – using D eamwea e MX – we hen se abou implemen ing i wi h Moodle, in oducing he ollowing supplemen a y elemen s:  a pd ile: so ha ou sample s uden s could p in ou he LO con en  a sel -assessmen sec ion: so ha hey could see how much hey knew abou he con en , and o epea he es whene e necessa y  a o um: so ha lea ne s and eache s could discuss he con en  an e alua ion ool: o he s uden s o a e he quali y o LO1. Cu en p oposals o lea ning esou ce e alua ion ools include web si es [10] [26] and mul imedia ools, [9], and o he p oposals ha e been made o assessing he quali y o LOs aking in o accoun hei ins uc ional use-o ien ed design [27] and sequencing [28]. We d ew on hese o design an ins umen ha would enable lea ne s o assess he alue/quali y o hei LOs (see igu e 2). Ou sample s uden s we e able o access he LO and he e alua ion ool ia Moodle and o a e hem on a scale o 1 o 5: 1= e y poo ; 2=poo ; 3=sa is ac o y; 4=good; 5= e y good. As seen in igu e 2 (abo e), he e alua ion ool was designed o ga he quali a i e and quan i a i e da a abou LO1. The quali a i e esul s show a gene al ag eemen on i s quali y. The highes sco ing alue was he di icul y le el (3.87), ollowed by he objec i es and con en (3.82). These esul s e lec ou sample s uden s‟ app o al o he con en in e ms o i s quan i y, consis ency, eliabili y and so on. Na iga ion was conside ed well-designed and use - iendly (3.79). The s uden s we e sligh ly less happy wi h he o e all design o LO1 (3.74), and sugges ed a numbe o possible imp o emen s. They also made a numbe o posi i e commen s on he eedback (3.66). „Ac i i ies‟ and „in e ac i i y‟ we e a ed sa is ac o y (3.51), as was he lowes sco ing c i e ion: „mo i a ion‟ (3.41). The eedback gained om he space p o ided in LO e alua ion ool o s uden s o make commen s p o ided e y use ul poin e s o us o see wha needed o be imp o ed when de eloping ou second p o o ype (LO2). He e is a selec ion o hei commen s:  Add a glossa y o key concep s and lis o ac onyms.  Add examples o illus a e/cla i y abs ac concep s.  A oid able cells in web page design (as i impeded accessibili y o sigh less use s).  Highligh main poin s (e.g. in bold).  A oid oo many e e ences in sho ex s.  Adjus window esolu ion o a oid oo many sc oll ba s.  P o ide mo e de ailed in o ma ion on wha aspec s o he c i e ia he ool is e alua ing. To inpu he quan i a i e and quali a i e da a on he quali y o LO1 in o ou me ada a ypology, we used he LOM “9. Classi ica ion” me a ada ca ego y in combina ion wi h ou own LO quali y a ing classi ica ion scheme. Fi s we de eloped he LO quali y a ing scale shown in Table 1 (below). Table 1, LO Quali y Ra ing Scale Ra ings Quali y 1.0 – 1.5 e y poo : oo low. LO o be elimina ed 1.6 – 2.5 poo : low, wi h much oom o imp o emen 2.6 – 3.5 sa is ac o y: could be be e 3.6 – 4.5 high: good bu could be be e s ill 4.6 – 5.0 e y high: good, wi h no need o u he imp o emen Table 1 se s ou he a ious LO a ings on he e alua ion scale and explains hei co esponding quali y le els. We belie e ha quali y measu emen EVALUATION CRITERIA SCORE DIFFICULTY The le el o di iclu y was sui able o my p e oius knowledge 3,87 OBJECTIVES I ha e achie ed he lea ning objec i es 3,82 CONTENTS Con en s we e solid (sui able o objec i es, enough in o ma ion, eliable, suppo ed by e e ences, e c.) 3,82 NAVIGATION Sui able and o ien a i e na iga ion 3,79 DESIGN Con en design was clea and o ien a i e 3,74 FEEDBACK I had eedback possibili ies all he ime 3,66 ACTIVITIES Ac i i ies and sel -assessmemen we e clea and meaning ul o lea ning 3,51 INTERACTIVITY Sui able o achie e he lea ning objec i es 3,51 MOTIVATION I el mo i a ed du ing he lesson 3,41 DESCRIPTION My pa icipa ion was clea ly explained 3,28 LO QUALITY FINAL VALUE 3,64 COMMENTS (Desc ibe some examples whe e his LO can be eused) Fig. 2, LO1 E alua ion Resul s using a scale like his should be in oduced in o he “9. Classi ica ion” me ada a ca ego y. Table 2 (below) shows ou p o o ype adap a ion using he inal quali y sco e aken om he LO1 e alua ion esul s ( igu e 2). Table 2, LO1 quali y a ing inco po a ed in o LOM 9. Classi ica ion 9.1 Pu pose Quali y 9.2 Taxon Pa h 9.2.1 Sou ce Table 1. LO E al. Ra ing Scale 9.2.2 Taxon CA*: 3.64 (high) 9.2.2.1 Id CA: 3.64 (high) 9.2.2.2 En y High 9.3 Desc ip ion LO conside ed high quali y by sample s uden s. Lowes sco ing quan i a i e i ems we e „mo i a ion‟, „ac i i ies‟ and „in e ac i i y‟. Quali a i e eedback sugges ed adding a glossa y and examples; a oiding use o able cells in LO design; using ewe e e ences in ex ; and imp o ing sc een esolu ion 9.4 Keywo d quali y, alue, high, CA_3.64. *CA: CALIDAD (quali y) Ou hinking was as ollows:  Adding a quali y alue o he LO me ada  ca ego y would help loca e and e ie e an LO h ough a sea ch based on keywo ds (e.g. quali y, alue, high, e c.) and alphanume ic alues (e.g. CA_3.64). An alphanume ic alue makes i possible o de ine a speci ic ocabula y o unning an LO sea ch.  Using speci ic kinds o alues would p o ide a means o de eloping mo e sophis ica ed sea ch me hods, e.g. using an in elligen agen o ind and compa e LOs acco ding o quali y c i e ia. This would equi e a mul i- agen a chi ec u e enabling pe sonal e ie als om mul iple sou ces.  LO managemen would be acili a ed by inco po a ing LO quali y a ings in o seman ic p o iles [11],[12].  IEEE LOM me ada a ca ego ies a p esen do no conside classi ying LOs acco ding o quali y a ings and, hence, mos me ada a edi o s do no o e he possibili y o adding o he ypes o classi ica ion c i e ia.  The sample s uden s‟ commen s p o ided use ul poin e s o p oducing an enhanced and mo e use - iendly design o ou second p o o ype (LO2), wi h a di e en on , la ge cha ac e s and links o u he eading (see igu e 3). The ac ual con en o LO2 ollowed on om LO1, aking he lea ning objec i es o a mo e Fig. 3, Knowledge Model o LO2 E alua ion Resul s Is based on Impo o C ea e -Da a and Concep Con en s -Compu e Science Inginee ing - CONTEXT -Objec i e -In oduc ion -Typical Lea ning Time -Keywo ds O e iew -Schema -Compa a i e Table Summa y -Sel -E alua ion P ac ice Ac i i ies LEARNING OBJECT 1 Objec -O ien ed P og amming: Gene al Issues (Agg ega ion Le el 2) Da a and Concep LEARNING OBJECT 2 Objec -O ien ed P og amming: Li e Cycle (Agg ega ion Le el 2) Da a and Concep -Names, cha ac e is ics Da a -Abs ac p inciples Concep -Cogni i e Le el Objec i e -Re lec ion Assessmen Ac i i ies -Ini ia ion Type -Indi idual -Collabo a i e Wo k Modal -Lec u e -Fo um pa icipa ion S a egies -Knowledge -Comp ehensión -Analysis -Syn hesis Cogni i e Le el and + + LEARNING OBJECT 3 (Agg ega ion Le el 2) + LEARNING OBJECT X (Agg ega ion Le el 2) + + TEACHER Compose Compose -O e iew -Lea ning Objec s -Summa y -P ac ice Ac i i ies -Assessmen Ac i i ies MODULE 1: Objec O ien ed P og amming Agg ega ion Le el 3 -O e iew -Lea ning Objec s -Summa y -P ac ice Ac i i ies -Assessmen Ac i i ies MODULE 2 Agg ega ion Le el 3 -O e iew -Lea ning Objec s -Summa y -P ac ice Ac i i ies -Assessmen Ac i i ies MODULE X Agg ega ion Le el 3 -O e iew -Modules -Summa y -P ac ice Ac i i ies -Assessmen Ac i i ies COURSE: Objec -O ien ed P og amming Agg ega ion Le el 4 -Ini ia ion Type -Indi idual Wo k Wo k Modal -Lec u e -Sel -e alua ion ac i i ies S a egies + ad anced le el. 6 LO2 Impleme a ion and E alua ion LO2 was implemen ed in he same lea ning en i onmen as LO1, and was e alua ed wi h an enhanced e sion o ou quali y e alua ion ool (see igu e 4). The inal sco e e lec s a simila ly high a e age quali y a ing on he pa o ou sample s uden s (3.66). The highes sco ing i em was „na iga ion‟ (4.00), ollowed by „desc ip ion‟ and „ac i i ies‟ (sel -assessmen ) (3.91), bo h o which igu e in he Didac ic Cu icula Issues ca ego y. Con en design was conside ed high quali y (3.74), as we e h ee o he didac ic-cu icula issues: – achie emen o objec i es (3.69), lea ning ime, and LO con en (3.63) – and one psycho-pedagogical issue: „di icul y‟ (3.63) . S uden commen s we e e en mo e posi i e o LO2 han LO1, exp essing hei app o al o he new sec ion wi h e e ences, links o u he eading, a glossa y and a lis o ac onyms. Some, howe e , conside ed ha he sc een esolu ion was be e bu needed u he imp o emen : he e we e s ill oo many sc oll ba s and accessing able cells emained an impedimen o sigh less use s. Ha ing comple ed ou e alua ion, we inco po a ed he o e all LO2 quali y a ing in o he co esponding LOM “9. Classi ica ion” me ada a ca ego y (see able 3), using he LO classi ica ion scheme based on ou p oposed me ada a ypology [14]. Ou p oposed adap a ion o he LOM “9. Classi ica ion” me ada a ca ego y comp ises he key quan i a i e and quali a i e da a collec ed wi h ou LO quali y e alua ion ool. In p esen ing a summa y o lea ne s‟ commen s on LO quali y, i em “9.3. Desc ip ion” p o ides a use ul means o u he imp o ing ha quali y. Table 3, LO2 quali y a ing inco po a ed in o LOM 9.Classi ica ion 9.1 Pu pose Quali y 9.2 Taxon Pa h 9.2.1 Sou ce Table 1: LO Quali y Ra ing Scale 9.2.2 Taxon CA_3.66* (high) 9.2.2.1 Id CA_3.66 (high) 9.2.2.2 En y High quali y 9.3 Desc ip ion LO2 was conside ed high quali y by s uden s. Lowes sco ing quan i a i e i ems we e „mo i a ion‟, „in e ac i i y‟ and „ eedback‟. Quali a i e eedback sugges ed a need o imp o e sc een esolu ion and a oid able cells in LO design 9.4 Keywo d quali y, alue, high, CA_3.66. Finally, he “9.4. Keywo d” i em gi es use s he sea ch wo ds o inding and e ie ing he bes possible LOs o sui hei needs [5]. 7 Conclusion The esea ch ou lined in his pape se ou o es a model o enhancing LO managemen h ough e alua ion o LO quali y. Ou p o o ype knowledge model sough o demons a e how LOs can be es ablished as a basic uni o lea ning, aking in o accoun key educa ional needs. I can be used o adap an LO o a speci ic ype o cou se a uni e si y le el. EVALUATION CRITERIA CATEGORY SCORE PSYCHOPEDAGOGICAL ISSUES MOTIVATION I el mo i a ed du ing he lesson 3,43 DIFFICULTY The le el o di iclu y was sui able o my p e oius knowledge 3,63 PARTICIPACIÓN Se ha explicado cla amen e mi pa icipación en la lección 3,63 DIDACTIC CURRICULAR ISSUES DESCRIPTION My pa icipa ion was clea ly explained 3,91 OBJECTIVES I ha e achie ed he lea ning objec i es 3,69 CONTENTS Con en s we e solid (sui able o objec i es, enough in o ma ion, eliable, suppo ed by e e ences, e c.) 3,63 ACTIVITIES Ac i i ies and sel -assessmemen we e clea and meaning ul o lea ning 3,91 TIME Sui able o achie e LO objec i es 3,63 FEEDBACK I had eedback possibi i ies all he ime 3,34 TECHNICAL AND FUNCTIONAL ISSUES INTERACTIVITY Sui able o achie e he lea ning objec i es 3,34 NAVIGATION Sui able and o ien a i e na iga ion 4,00 DESIGN Con en design was clea and o ien a i e 3,74 LO QUALITY FINAL VALUE 3,66 COMMENTS (Desc ibe some examples whe e his LO can be eused) Fig. 4, LO2 E alua ion Resul s Ou sample s uden s a Salamanca Uni e si y app ecia ed he pd ile, he sel -assessmen componen and he o um because hese ea u es enabled hem o p in copies o he con en , o assess hei knowledge and o exchange iews, all o which helped hem gain a clea e unde s anding o he LO con en . The LO quali y e alua ion ool enabled us o collec a wide ange o in o ma ion use ul o imp o ing bo h LO1 and LO2. In a ibu ing a nume ical alue o LO quali y, he a ing scale helped speci y exac ly which da a o inco po a e in o he me ada a schema. I is impo an o emembe ha me ada a edi o s oday only classi y LOs acco ding o speci ic es ablished pu poses. We used he LOM “9. Classi ica ion” me ada a ca ego y because we belie e i use ul o de ining and adap ing new LO classi ica ion schemes ha would allow use s o acqui e and manage LOs sui ed o hei own indi idual needs. Finally, he esul s ob ained wi h he LO quali y e alua ion ool helped highligh exac ly wha imp o emen s needed o be made. So ing e alua ion c i e ia in o di e en ca ego ies made i possible o e alua e he LOs om bo h pedagogical and echnical poin s o iew. Ou u u e wo k will ocus on de eloping an LO c ea ion ool based on ou knowledge model. We will also seek o imp o e he quali y o LOs by aking in o accoun he accessibili y issues ha a e c ucial o LO managemen . Finally, we a e aiming o p omo e in elligen agen -based au oma ed wo king me hods by de eloping a p o o ype mul i-agen a chi ec u e o quali y-based LO managemen . Acknowledgemen s This wo k was co- inanced by he Spanish Minis y o Educa ion and Science, he FEDER-KEOPS p ojec (TSI2005-00960) and he Jun a de Cas illa y León local go e nmen p ojec (SA056A07). Re e ences: [1] Be ne s Lee, T., Hendle , J., O a, L. “The Seman ic Web”, Scien i ic Ame ican, 2001, may, 284 (5): 34-43. [2] Cla k, R.C., Maye , R.E. E-lea ning and he science o ins uc ion: p o en guidelines o consume s and designe s o mul imedia lea ning. San F ancisco Cali o nia: Josey Bass/P ei e 2002. [3] Cysco Sys ems. Reusable lea ning objec au ho ed guidelines: How o build modules, lessons and opics, Whi e pape s. www.cisco.com 2004. [4] Del Mo al, M. E., Ce nea, D. A. 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