Supporting Learner-Centric Transformation of Online Educational Content

Madeleine Rothberg, Director of R&D, Media Access Group at WGBH, USA

The WGBH National Center for Accessible Media (NCAM) is working with IMS Global Learning Consortium members and other experts on distance learning and accessibility to develop and promote open access technical specifications for accessibility of software applications for the e-learning industry. This presentation will included a description of initiatives undertaken in collaboration with the industry-led IMS working groups on accessibility, identifying the features needed to make on-line learning accessible, and to specify the resources and technologies needed to implement solutions.

The following initiatives support developers in meeting these goals:

IMS Guidelines for Developing Accessible Learning Applications
This document has been published to capture known solutions and give suggestions on how best to use them. In some areas solutions do not yet exist, so the guidelines explain the problems and the requirements of students with disabilities. Issues which have the potential to impact accessibility have been identified and addressed with solutions drawn from existing practice.

Accessibility Extension for IMS "Learner Information Profile" (LIP) Specification
Within a Learner Profile, the student can indicate whether they need all audio information provided visually, or all visual information provided in audio, and whether they use a keyboard only or a mouse only, and so on. By adding this extension, the learning systems will know what the student's accessibility needs are and will automatically adjust to meet those needs.

IMS Meta-Data Specification
This meta-data describes a learning resource so that systems can deliver alternative content that is matched to the primary content. This will allow caption files to be linked to a video, for example, or text descriptions to be linked to a photograph. When accessible material is available, the system will be able to locate that information and provide it to the student.

Information about the project is available online at: http://ncam.wgbh.org/salt/ and http://www.imsglobal.org/accessibility

The presentation will include a demonstration of a tool from the Adaptive Technology Resource Centre (ATRC), University of Toronto, ATRC has created a repository service called The Inclusive Learning Exchange (TILE) which includes the authoring tools, repository architecture, and preference schema needed to support transformations of curriculum across multiple contexts, according to the learners' needs and preferences. The project is taking a leadership role in implementation of protocols and schemas to ensure the inclusive design of e-learning environments, and provide models that will form the basis of extensions to international specifications, including IMS.

TILE responds to individual needs of the learner, with functionality extended to other media types used in e-learning (hypertext, various xml formats, animation, simulations, Java and others) and to additional learner-centric transformations and adaptations. Building upon the work of the Barrierfree project, The Inclusive Learning Exchange (TILE) has established a Learning Object Repository (LOR) service that supports customization during the instructional design phases, as well as creation of profiles to accommodate individual learner preferences. One of the opportunities afforded by broadband networks is a highly responsive dynamic web interface. Broadband networks open the communication channel in both directions, enabling educational servers that can respond to each individual learner and learning context in a timely manner. With the right tools this provides the opportunity to introduce a new level of learner-centric education that is inclusive of all learners. TILE demonstrates the potential benefits of personalized courseware for the learner and the impact this would have on the educator or content producer. Through this project we are exploring the practical boundaries of transformable content and the tools needed to support the mastery of learner customizable teaching.

The TILE project, funded by CANARIE Inc. - Learning Program, is being undertaken with the support of a national network of learning communities from many sectors, targeting learners who have been marginalized by conventional education systems. This includes learners with disabilities, with unique learning styles, using atypical client devices, learning in unusual environments and learners approaching the topic from different perspectives or knowledge backgrounds. Among the partner communities are learners with disabilities, learners enrolled in adult literacy programs, transitional programs and academic upgrading programs. TILE provides an opportunity to pool, share, re-purpose and collaboratively author accessible learning content, addressing needs of those in post-secondary institutions, in the workplace and adult learners seeking academic upgrading.

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