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Research and Publications

Research and Publications

Around the mid-1990s a new approach for authoring online educational content was suggested. The proposal was to construct Learning Objects (LOs), which can then be aggregated and sequenced to build course modules [1]. A LO is a "chunk of content" that focuses on a single learning objective. A Learning Object typically contains a metadata component that provides data about the LO (such as subject area, key words, educational level of intended user, copyrights). International standards such as Sharable Content Object Reference Model (SCORM) [2] and IMS [3] provide Learning Object metadata specifications. These Learning Objects are intended to be reused (Reusable Learning Object,  RLO) where different course modules or courses may use portions of content that are the same.

The IMS/SCORM Content Packaging Information Model defines an internationally standardized set of structures for creating Content Packages of Learning Objects that facilitate interoperability among software tools that have been developed independently by various software developers. Burrokeet is an Open Source software tool for creating standards-based Learning Content Packages. Burrokeet was developed at the University of the West Indies and is a research platform for the e-Learning Research Group. Burrokeet currently has the capability to generate a Content Package from multiple format input source documents. The Content Package can be published as a website or imported into any SCORM-compliant Learning Management System.

One area of our research relates to Sharable Learning Objects (SLO) which are differentiated in [4] to be RLOs that are interoperable among different Learning Management applications. In practice, the granularity of Sharable Learning Objects has remained a subjective feature. The granularity specifies how fine or coarse the SLO is and holds a direct relationship to the number of learning objectives, ideally one. The coarseness of the SLO is therefore generally left to the guided discretion and experience of the instructional designer. As a result a successful initial use of a SLO in one course can sometimes later be discovered to be coarse (too wide in scope) when it is being considered for reuse in another instance. If such an instance of reuse requires only a subset of the original learning objectives then the course-designer is challenged to re-author the SLO or find another SLO. In [4] the authors present a model for dynamic internal access to coarse XML Sharable Learning Objects that reduces re-authoring efforts. A coarse XML SLO (XSLO) can be dynamically accessed outside its original authoring application and changes made to the internal elements and attributes using its DOM architecture. This type of editing would normally expose the XSLO to (unintentional) damage to its interoperability. However, the authors introduce a Sharable Learning Object Interoperability Model, SIM, which provides a mechanism for editing a SCORM conformant XSLO while protecting the interoperability of the XSLO.

Another paper [5] provides a methodology for creating Sharable Learning Objects from existing digital content. Some Instructors are discovering that transporting existing raw content (course material as a collection of various digital documents) into eLearning systems using Content Packaging standards does not necessarily produce reusable and sharable content, because there is no pedagogical framework involved. For example, the SCORM Content Aggregation Model (CAM) [2] facilitates the storing, aggregating,sequencing and packaging of raw content into course modules and courses, but the content itself can exist in forms (raw content) that are difficult to maintain, reuse and share.In [5], the authors provide a methodology for restructuring this raw content into a standards-based format in order to support a higher degree of content reuse, sharing and easier maintenance. One aspect of particular importance in this work is the inclusion of formative and summative assessment activities as an integral part of the SLO (in other definition of Learning Objects this integration is not addressed). The authors of this work are continuing research to consider techniques for aggregating and sequencing SLOs to construct (online) courses. This will considerably reduce the work of the course-designer by building software in which the user specifies items for a syllabus in order to create a course. Internal algorithms will, by considering meta-data provided by the repository, produce new SLOs that satisfy as many of the requirements specified by the syllabus as is possible. The method for selection and presentation of assessment activities is the subject of ongoing research.

Content authors generally have existing content in several different file formats. One of the research aims was to provide a development tool that would take the burden of dealing with multiple input and output formats away from the content author. In this way the content author can focus on the development of quality content without having to deal with the format that it is stored. Burrokeet does this by allowing authors to create content packages with content in multiple formats. A content package might contain content in different formats such as XML,HTML, Plain Text, Microsoft Office Document format, Open Office document format or LaTeX. Burrokeet would then publish this content package in a single unified format containing a standard navigation system. This output format could be HTML, PDF, Plain Text, or even Voice XML. The content author can select a single format or multiple formats in which to output the content. In this way, content authors can create their content in the format that they are familiar with. Also, they do not need to be concerned about converting their content to multiple output formats. An author can create a course using HTML and Microsoft Office documents as input and be able to publish the content as HTML to be place online, PDF to be printed as handouts and books and Voice for the visually impaired.

Most Learning Content Management Systems publish their content packages using the same document formats as their source documents. For example, if the source documents for a content package included a mixture of XML, HTML and OpenOffice.org documents, other LCMS would publish those documents in those formats. No processing is done to ensure that the output is unified. Burrokeet takes this extra step and not only packages the content but can publish the content in a unified structure and export the content packages as a unified structure.Several courses have already been built in Burrokeet using multiple format input documents. In [6] the authors present this research along with an overview of the technical design of Burrokeet. A single course with multiple format source documents was publish in Burrokeet [7] and ATutor Learning Management System [8]. Demonstrations of other courses are available at [9].

These projects are a part of the E-Learning Research Group, in the Department of Mathematics and Computer Science at UWI. The group is consists of academic staff and postgraduate students from several discplines (primarily Computer Science and Educational Technology) who are interested in technology-supported education. Several M.Sc., M.Phil. and Ph.D. projects are supported.

  1. Barron, T. 2000. ‘Learning Object Pioneers’,ASTD Learning Circuits.
  2. ADL. 2003. ‘Sharable Content Object Reference Model (SCORM) Version 1.3 [online]’
  3. IMS. 2000. ‘Learning Resource Metadata Specification Version 1.1 [online]’,
  4. Singh, R., Bernard, M., ‘A Model for Maintaining Interoperability of Coarse XML Sharable Learning Objects after Re-authoring in a Standards-based Editor’, Proceedings of the Winter International Symposium on Information and Communication Technologies WISICT04, Mexico, ACM International Conference Proceedings Series, 2004.
  5. Singh,R., Bernard, M., Gardler, R., ‘Creating Sharable Learning Objects from Existing Digital Course Content’, 31st Annual International Symposium on Computer Architecture Conference Proceedings, IEEE Computer Society, June 2004
  6. Ramnanan, A., Bernard, M., 'The Delivery and Development of an online course using Open Source Learning Content Management Tools'The Delivery and Development of an online course using Open Source Learning Content Management Tools, 4th Pan-Commonwealth Forum on Open Learning, Jamaica, 2006
  7. Bernard, M., A Database Course in Burrokeet [online]. http://www.mbernard.org/comp420
  8. Bernard, M., A Database course in ATutor [online]. http://www.mbernard.org/atutor
  9. Gardler, R, Teaching Materials Delivery System [online]. http://www.gardler.org/teaching