KMET1206

Educational Applications

of the Web
Session 3
Facilitator:
Kyanda Swaib Kaawaase, PhD
 Learning Objects: different forms,
design and development
• What Are Learning Objects?
Technology an agent of change, and major
technological innovations can result in entire
paradigm shifts. The computer network
known as the Internet is one such
innovation.
After affecting changes in the way people
communicate & do business, the Internet is
poise to bring about a paradigm shift in the
way we learn.
 Learning Objects: different forms,
design and development
• What Are Learning Objects?
major change may also be coming in the way
educational materials are designed,
developed, and delivered to those who wish
to learn.
“learning objects” is currently the leading
instructional technology of choice in the next
generation of instructional design,
development, and delivery, due to its
reusability potential, generativity, adaptability
& scalability
 Learning Objects: different forms,
design and development
• What Are Learning Objects?
-Any entity, digital or non-digital, that may be
used for learning, education or training -
LTSC (IEEE)
- any digital resource that can be reused to
support learning - David Wiley
- modular digital resources, uniquely identified
and metatagged, that can be used to
support learning - National Learning
Infrastructure Initiative (NLII)
 Learning Objects: different forms,
design and development
• What Are Learning Objects?
• Learning objects are a new way of thinking
about learning content. Traditionally, content
comes in a several hour chunk. Learning
objects are much smaller units of learning,
typically ranging from 2 minutes to 15
minutes.
• Are self-contained each learning object
can be taken independently
 Learning Objects: different forms,
design and development
• What Are Learning Objects?
• reusable a single learning object may be
used in multiple contexts for multiple
purposes
• Can be aggregated learning objects can be
grouped into larger collections of content,
including traditional course structures
• Are tagged with metadata every learning
object has descriptive information allowing it
to be easily found by a search
 Learning Objects: different forms,
design and development
• The main idea of 'learning objects' is to
break educational content down into small
chunks that can be reused in various
learning environments, in the spirit of object-
oriented programming.
• Object-orientation highly values the creation
of components (called “objects”) that can be
reused in multiple contexts.
 Learning Objects: different forms,
design and development
instructional designers can build small
(relative to the size of an entire course)
instructional components that can be reused
many times in different learning contexts.
learning objects are generally digital entities
deliverable over Internet
- any number of people can access and use
them simultaneously (as opposed to
traditional instructional media, such as an
overhead or video tape, which can only exist
in one place at a time)
 Learning Objects: different forms,
design and development
incorporating learning objects can lead to
collaboration on and immediate benefit from
new versions, hence significant difference
between learning objects and other earlier
instructional media.
 Learning Objects: different forms,
design and development
the Learning Technology Standards
Committee (LTSC) of the Institute of
Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE)
was formed in 1996 to develop & promote
instructional technology standards.
- standards assure that universities,
corporations, & other organizations around
the world have interoperability of their
instructional technologies, specifically their
learning objects.
 Learning Objects: different forms,
design and development
The Learning Technology Standards
Committee chose the term “learning objects”
to describe these small instructional
components and established a working
group.
 Learning Objects: different forms,
design and development
Examples of technology-supported learning
include computer-based training systems,
interactive learning environments, intelligent
computer-aided instruction systems,
distance learning systems, and collaborative
learning environments.
 Learning Objects: different forms,
design and development
Examples of Learning Objects include
multimedia content, instructional content,
learning objectives, instructional software
and software tools, and persons,
organizations, or events referenced during
technology supported learning
 Learning Objects: different forms,
design and development
Learning Object defines anything that can be
delivered across the network on demand,
large or small.
Examples of smaller reusable digital
resources include digital images or photos,
live data feeds (like stock tickers), live or
prerecorded video or audio snippets, small
bits of text, animations, and smaller web-
delivered applications,
 Learning Objects: different forms,
design and development
Examples of larger reusable digital resources
include entire web pages that combine text,
images and other media or applications to
deliver complete experiences, such as a
complete instructional event.
 Learning Objects: different forms,
design and development
Reasons to define LO as any digital resource
that can be reused to support learning
include:
-sufficiently narrow definition to define a
reasonably homogeneous set of things:
reusable digital resources while broad
enough to include the estimated 15
terabytes of information available on the
publicly accessible Internet.
 Learning Objects: different forms,
design and development
- definition is based on the LTSC definition
(and defines a proper subset of learning
objects as defined by the LTSC). It captures
the critical attributes of a learning object,
“reusable,” “digital,” “resource,” and
“learning,” as does the LTSC definition
 Learning Objects: design
two of the largest issues in the learning
objects are :
- combination and
- granularity .
 Learning Objects: design
Combination:
there is astonishingly little conversation
around the instructional design implications
of learning objects. The Learning Objects
Metadata Working Group’s (a working group
of the Learning Technology Standards
Committee) Project Authorization Request
(PAR) considered the role of instructional
design in composing and personalizing
lessons
 Learning Objects: design
Metadata, literally refers to “data about data,”
is descriptive information about a resource
such as Title, Author, Version, Format, etc. in
the case of learning objects .
 Learning Objects: design
Granularity
Is the most difficult problem facing the
designers of learning objects.
The question of “How big should a learning
object be?”
the decision regarding learning object
granularity can be viewed as a trade-off
between the possible benefits of reuse and
the expense of cataloging.
 Learning Objects: design
how much or how little to include in a learning
object can be viewed as a problem of
“scope.”
In reality financial and other factors must be
considered, if learning is to have its greatest
chance of occurring,
The decisions regarding the scope of learning
objects must also be made in an
instructionally grounded, principled manner.
 Learning Objects: design

Learning objects in the teaching and learning

context
• Learning objects can be used alongside a range
of non-digital and digital content and tools.

• Learning objects are reusable. A single object

can be used in multiple contexts (e.g. across a
number of learning areas, year levels, different
locales and culture) and for multiple purposes
(e.g. for diagnosis, teaching, assessment).
 Reusability

Abstraction –
learning objective that
plugs into the course.

Encapsulation –
independent of the
course context.

Implementation –
learning methods,
content, and style.
 Abstraction Pedagogy

Entry requirements
defined by objectives of
earlier units.

Otherwise planned
sequence of knowledge
construction is lost.

But helps reflective

consolidation after all
topics studied.
 Encapsulation Pedagogy

Objects can’t see

internal contents of
other components.

Can’t extend practical

examples to form
authentic progression.

Need to develop each

from start or use set of
chained objects.
 Implementation Pedagogy

How learning is
achieved – teaching
method, content, style.

Learners have to
construct superfluous
knowledge.

But may be authentic

preparation for lifelong
learning.
 Internet Learning

Free range learning from Internet repository objects

with support by email, forums, blogs and wikis.

Most objects are not pedagogically compatible with

the local study context.

But inexpensive option, useful for revision and

lifelong learning since it provides multiple views.
Internet Learning
 Guided Internet Learning

The tutor guides students to objects as part of a

learning programme and provides support.

The work needs to be based on a task and associated

with a motivating factor.

But a heavy load for the tutor to build the programme

and monitor its suitability and persistence.
Guided Internet Learning
 Intranet Learning

Uses custom designed software for a specific

institutional intranet.

Easily meets the requirements of abstraction and

implementation but encapsulation may be a problem.

But it is the expensive option requiring in-house

expertise in suitable technologies.
Intranet Learning
 eXtensible Learning Objects

Use XML (eXtensible Markup Language) to separate

content from the presentation container.

XLO allow the tutor to edit content and adapt it for a

local context, down to a single tutor group.

Or create new objects with an empty container and

text, images or audio/video clips.
eXtensible Learning Objects
eXtensible Learning Objects
 Mobile Learning Objects

Or, with XML, you can

use the same content in
different containers.

Deliver to different
systems such as PCs,
PDF documents …

and mobile devices

using large scrolling text
or voice overlay instead.
 Conclusion

Reusability and pedagogy have conflicting

requirements and some compromise is required.

Internet learning is inexpensive to create expensive to

use, fits pedagogy to technology. GIL is an option.

Intranet learning is expensive to create inexpensive to

use, fits technology to pedagogy. XLO is an option.