Rapid E-Learning Content Management System (RE-COMS)

Transcription

1 International Journal of Computing & Information Sciences Vol. 4, No. 1, April 2006, On-Line 1 Rapid E-Learning Content Management System (RE-COMS) Badariah Solemon and Rosnafisah Sulaiman Pages 1-8 Rapid E-Learning Content Management System (RE-COMS) Badariah Solemon and Rosnafisah Sulaiman University Tenaga Nasional, Malaysia [badariah, rosnafisah]@uniten.edu.my Abstract: The rapid development in information-communication technology including the web technology has brought a big impact in education world. Today, people are talking about e-learning, cyber-learning, long-life learning, virtual learning and a few more terms have been used to describe a new way of learning. These terms are used to serve a same goal that is to provide the possibility of open and lifelong education without temporal or spatial constraint. In this paper the author will use the e-learning term. The e-learning will not become a success without a proper learning management system. Hence the universities and institutions have to invest into an expensive learning management packages that mostly enforce the institutions to adapt to their standard and formatting of content. The delivery of course material is one of core area in e-learning. Furthermore, the interactivity, recursive and iterative nature of teaching and learning have made the courseware authoring, publishing and management particularly more complicated. Due to that a study has been done on Content Management System. A few existing e-learning content management systems have been reviewed and compared. Throughout the result, we proposed a new system components, and system architecture of content management system. The system scope, benefits, and additional consideration, are also briefly discussed. The inspiration of the proposed system is to act as a better option to the available tools in the market. Keywords: E-learning, content management system, learning content management system (LCMS). Received: September 1, 2005 Revised: February 30, 2006 Accepted: April 15, Introduction The borderless world of information technology and the need to acquire knowledge have affected learning styles and trends adopted by academic institutions of higher learning. More institutions have embraced the digital world to be part of their learning and teaching tools. One aspect of these technological requirements is a system for composing, editing, managing, and distributing e-learning content. Different terms have been used to describe this system such as interactive management, content management system, virtual learning environment, learning management system (LMS), and learning content management system (LCMS). LCMS has become a demand as e-learning have been implemented widely. This paper focuses on an LCMS rather than on an LMS. An LMS and an LCMS are complementary but very different systems that serve different masters and address unique business challenges [6]. LCMS provides authors, instructional designers (IDs), and subject matter experts the means to create e-learning content just in time to meet the needs of individual learners or group of learners. Rather than developing entire courses and adapting them to multiple audiences, IDs create reusable content chunks and make them available to course developers throughout the organization. Thus eliminates duplicate efforts and allows the rapid assembly of customized content. Reviews did by Robbins [8] reveal the emergence of LCMSs as a platform choice for many companies seeking fast deployment of e-learning. The 4-stage revolution is depicted in figure 1 below whilst table 1 summarizes the brief descriptions of each stage. Generic Content Libraries Learning Management Systems (LMS) Outsourced e-learning Platforms Learning Content Management Systems (LCMS) Stage 1 Stage 2 Stage 3 Stage 4 Figure 1: E-learning revolution Copyright 2006, IJCIS Editors.

2 2 International Journal of Computing & Information Sciences Vol. 4, No. 1, April 2006, On-Line Table 1: Descriptions of 4-stage e-learning revolutions Stage Descriptions Tool used to create e-learning delivered via CD- ROM or mainframe computers. Companies pioneer the development of web-based e-learning content libraries. LMS used to enroll learners in classroom-based events, manage face-to-face training and report on progress. The LMS typically launch a library of custom or generic e-learning courses. Companies provide outsourcing services to Webify course content on their software platforms. Organizations using these platforms lack the capability to quickly change content and deploy proprietary content using internal resources. The corporate version of content management systems designed to enable subject matter experts, with little technology expertise, to design, cerate, deliver, and measure the results of e-learning courses rapidly. LCMS also can provide certification and tracking for individual learners, who need specific knowledge to certify for regulatory needs, professional licensure, or quality control. 2. Existing Systems Three content management systems and/or LCMS in the market have been reviewed which are Blackboard Learning System, TopClass Learner Support and WebCT Campus Edition. The selection was based on the popularity of the software and commonly used in the higher learning institutions. The study is important to help understand the common features offered by such systems. The features then later could be integrated in the proposed rapid LCMS which is aims at providing a better, practical solution to higher learning institution particularly in Malaysia. Blackboard Learning System was developed by Blackboard Inc. based in Washington DC. The primary target for this company is a solution for e- Education. It is an industry leading course management system based on a third-generation enterprise technology platform. It consists of curriculum-driven content management and content sharing, re-architected assessment management system, client based designed on feedback and usability, discussion boards and Virtual Classroom tool and data management system [1]. TopClass LCMS is a robust and scalable platform that offers e-learning content management and assembly, personalized content delivery, learner collaboration, learner tracking and assessment, web-based training administration, and database administration. [9] TopClass is distinguished from other e-learning products through its usability with ease of installation, ease of administration, and ease of use. What further distinguishes TopClass from other e-learning products is its support for rapid conversion of existing learning content to the web, and its unique Learning Object architecture. TopClass facilities for student include coursework, read/send messages, discussion list, and class announcements [10]. WebCT Campus Edition is a global market-leading course management system that enables the efficient delivery of high quality online education [12]. WebCT have a large number of instruction and communication tools. The system provided instructor control over the look and the feel of the course, assessment tools and control of the student access to the course for example student must passing grade for quiz before advance to next chapter. It also provide student with web authoring environments, useful for individual or group work and it allows students access their own progress report information. WebCT gives better student tracking and group management, more flexibility for students to follow their own progress and better administrative tracking of course use. The features in WebCT are conferencing system, on-line chat, student progress tracking, student self-evaluation, grade maintenance and distribution, auto marked quizzes, electronic mail, course calendar and student homepages [11,12] The Comparisons The elements included for comparing capabilities of existing content management system and/or LCMS were based on the characteristics proposed by Marshall University's Center for Instructional Technology [2] and EduTools [3]. These characteristics are divided into six categories; Developmental Features, Instructor Tools, Instructional Features, Student Tools, Administrator Tools, and Administrative Features. The comparisons were shown in the tables 2 to 7 below. Table 2 shows that the three systems support most of the development features except that TopClass does not support online chatting.

3 Rapid E-Learning Content Management System (RE-COMS) 3 Table 2: Comparisons on Development Features Development Features Content format will allow for simple transfer to/from another vendor s platform Platform uses open data standard so that it can communicate with existing university database applications Platform utilizes standard HTML for content creation Platform is structured so students can view all of their current courses when they log on Questions can be created with platform s authoring software Platform has built-in threaded discussion list capabilities Platform has built-in chat capabilities / X / Platform allows author to view course as student without logging out Platform supports question database for management of test questions Platforms supports reporting features for test questions Vendor provides development services Management component will create reports for tracking student progress Table 3 shows that the three systems provide support course management features such as monitoring, planning, revising, instructional design and presenting the content in a proper format. TopClass and WebCT do not allow the developer to preview the courses as a student. All functions for the instructor tools supported in TopClass and WebCT are quite similar however, Blackboard lacks in curriculum customization and does not provide customize feedback to tutorial question. For redirect path of tutorial towards the question answer both Blackboard and WEBCT do not support this feature. Furthermore, these systems do support student tracking through self-test tutorial question. The systems support multiple choices and fill in the blank with automatic marking. This is to encourage the student to test their understanding on certain topic. Table 3: Comparisons on Instructor Tools Instructor Tools Course planning, managing, fast course revising and monitoring Instructional designing Presenting information in format Online testing and grading Instructor can assign specific course material to individual or group of students Generate random set of questions Allows developer to preview course as a student / X X Managing records Customization of student curriculum X / / Student tracking Multiple choice self test tutorial questions provide automatic marking Fill in the blank" self test tutorial questions provide automatic marking Customized feedback to tutorial questions X / / Redirect path of tutorial depending on question answers X / X The comparison on instructional features in table 4 shows that the three systems support asynchronous and synchronous communication between faculty and students. Faculty is allowed to make update or changes to the content but the courses will still have consistent interface. In addition, the online help services that help the students in using library resources is inclusive to Blackboard solely. Meanwhile for management capabilities only Blackboard and WebCT provide the services. Lastly for supporting multiple instructors for single courses only Blackboard and TopClass provide the service. Table 4: Comparisons on Instructional Features Instructional Features Faculty to student asynchronous communication is possible Faculty to student synchronous communication is possible Faculty can make their own changes to content Courses can have consistent interface Online help is available to help student use library resources / X X Platform has management capabilities for students and faculty / X / Platform supports multiple instructors for a course / / X Table 5 shows that these three systems support standard authentication, multimedia support, threaded discussion among the faculty and students, progress tracking through student performance in quizzes, search tool and file submission for any extra notes or assignment. Blackboard and TopClass do not have function that can support automated index tool and image database. TopClass also lack of whiteboard feature. Finally for the student tools comparison, it shows that these three systems do not allow students to

4 4 International Journal of Computing & Information Sciences Vol. 4, No. 1, April 2006, On-Line view all current courses that they have enrolled after logging in into the system. Table 6 shows the comparisons on administration tools and stated the three systems support all of the features listed except that WebCT does not provide the administrator support tools. Table 5: Comparisons on Student Tools Student Tools Authentication Bookmark management X / / Multimedia support Private X / / Threaded discussions Course Chat rooms / X / Progress tracking Automated glossary tool X / / Automated index tool X X / Search tool for course content Allows students to view all current courses in which they are registered after logging in X X X File submissions Whiteboard / X / Image database X X / Table 6: Comparisons on Administrative Tools Administrator Tools Server Client/web interface Authorization tools Logout feature / / Resource and remote access tools Crash recovery tools Student support tools Instructor support tools Administrator support tools / / X Guest account creation Table 7 shows that the systems vary in terms of administrative features offered to the University. All the three systems give sole ownership of course content to University, however only WebCT allows the University to solely own the custom code used to create the courses. Blackboard leads the other systems by providing the majority of the administrative features. However, it does not use the pricing structure that is based upon number of students within the course. Table 7: Comparisons of Administrative Features Administrative Features University will have sole ownership of custom code used to create courses X X / University will have sole ownership of course content Platform provider will provide technical support to University / X / Platform provider will host courses on their / X X server Platform provider will advertise courses / X X Platform provider can provide documentation and contacts to demonstrate a positive track record with higher education Pricing structure is based upon number of students within the course X / / Platform is focused on locally developed courses Generally, all the three systems require start-up costs and ongoing costs, however only TopClass does not charge the University any site pricing cost. As for hardware and operating system requirements, the three systems may run on UNIX server, NT server, Sun Solaris machine and Linux operating system. However, only TopClass is made suitable for the Macintosh operating system. Blackboard and WebCT could be viewed using Java-enabled Web browser whilst only TopClass could be viewed using the CGIenabled Web browser. 3. Rapid E-Learning Content Management System (RE-CoMS) The Rapid E-Learning Content Management System(RE-CoMS) is a propose system to cater the e- learning needs of any Malaysia s higher learning institutions in general and UNITEN in particular. RE- CoMS stands for Rapid E-Learning Content Management System. The term Rapid is used to stress that one of the system goals is to produce a courseware that is versatile and yet very simple to use with minimum effort and time required. Currently, a team of researchers at College of IT at UNITEN is designing and strategizing some parts of the systems. The proposed system aims at combining the specificities of the distance/online learning scenario, the most promising web technologies and the emerging standards. The target is to attain a highly competitive e-learning environment including

5 Rapid E-Learning Content Management System (RE-COMS) 5 innovative and/or state-ofthe-art features to implement reusability, portability, scalability, heterogeneous database, security, and integration [5]. The main goal of RE-CoMS is to produce an LCMS that provide customizable templates for various types of subjects. This will give the author flexibility in authoring and preparing the content in a simplest way possible. For example, mathematic or engineering may need a template that suit with the theorems and steps of problem solving. As for the theory-based subject such as Basic of Management a different template will be used. Minimally, it should provide support for creation, editing, consuming, discovery and persistence of learning objects in a web-based learning environment RE-CoMS Framework The framework of the proposed system can be divided into three main tiers presentation, CMS services, and business processes, each with a series of modular components. These three tiers are depicted in Figure 2. The presentation tier is a frontline that allows users to interact with the service or application. Ideally the subject s context should be delivered through different choice of media and technology. Media could be chosen for their specific characteristics and include combinations of print material, computer-mediated communication such as , bulletin boards and chat, CD-ROMs or web sites. The CMS services tier contains two major services - common and e-learning. Common services provide common facilities from the typical LMS only model including: User Management manage users, groups and roles account registration and information. Also, provides the backbone for the user authentication, authorization and entitlement of services. Collaboration Management - supports multiple forms of interaction such as , threaded discussion, whiteboard, and chat, and Event Management capture all interaction between users and services. The e-learning services include the learning content management service that provides: automated authoring services create the reusable learning objects that are accessible in the learning object/ content repository. The services automate development by providing authors with templates and storyboarding capabilities that incorporate instructional design principles. learning management and administration services manage learners records, launch e- learning courses from course catalog, track and report the progress of learners, and provide other administrative features. assessment services measure learners performance against specific learning goals. Assessment includes multiple choice questions, multiple right answer, short answer and true/false, and dynamic delivery interface services serve up a learning object based on learner profiles, pretest, and/or user queries. Also allow authors to localized the look and feel of courses. The resource tier contains learning content repository that uses meta-data to store and manage individual learning objects, learning assessment repository that contains quality-assured assessment questions, learning administration repository that contains the administration data and modules, and user repository that includes the user s profile, assessment and transcript information Additional Considerations Several additional considerations are worth to be aware of when strategizing, designing, and implementing e-learning platforms. These include: Learners and Learning style different learners will have different learning styles and needs, therefore the e-learning instructional goal should be to maintain a healthy balance between the teacher-centric and learner-centric. Bandwidth-friendly design e-learning platform flexible enough to deliver multiple types and file size content, at the user s discretion is obviously the most preferred. Integration with existing LMS or enterprise system and linkage with business needs

6 6 International Journal of Computing & Information Sciences Vol. 4, No. 1, April 2006, On-Line beforehand researchers must ensure that the e- learning fits into an organization s overall business plan otherwise the e-learning will be an expensive curiosity and potentially an expensive failure. Enterprise security the system must contain robust security and encryption mechanism to protect content and user data. Legal issues copyrights to the content of the subject must be crystal-cleared to avoid unexpected situation. 3.3 Proposed Features Upon reviewing the existing commercially available systems, the authors feel that the average features provided by the systems are discrete and not sufficient to cater certain niche area in managing the course content. Therefore the development of RE-CoMS would include a few key features that are more relevant and simplify the content management process. The system includes: 1. Dynamic and contains the right content. The learning objects and related expertise about any subject must be current and relevant. 2. It should operate in real time, making the best use of the technology and the resources should come from both inside and outside the organization. 3. Provide increased personalized services and an individual approach to the learner. Learners activities should pertain to their background, job, and career at that very moment. 4. Learning events should come from many sources (media) enabling the learner to select a favorite format of learning method. 5. Present simulated, real-life situations, and make the learning engaging and interactive. 6. Adapt meaningful assessment and testing (pre and post) available to the learner. 7. Maintain links to current articles and readings for the community. 8. Provide a variety of content delivery or learning modes to the learner. Expected benefits of the system are inclusive of the following: Fast production and deployment of courses Reduce production and deployment cost Supporting innovation of web technology Security and privacy of contents Increased return on investment Increased security and privacy More time and focus to learning Below is the comparison table of proposed features of RE-CoMS against the other systems. The features are chosen based on various survey carried out among academicians on practicality and ease of use. Table 8: The Proposed Features 4. Proposed RE-CoMS Development Features Content format will allow for simple transfer to/from another vendor s platform / Platform uses open data standard so that it can communicate with existing university / database applications Platform utilizes standard HTML for content creation / Platform is structured so students can view all of their current courses when they log / on Questions can be created with platform s authoring software / Platform has built-in threaded discussion list capabilities / Platform has built-in chat capabilities / X / / Platform allows author to view course as student without logging out / Platform supports question database for management of test questions / Platforms supports reporting features for test questions / Vendor provides development services NA Management component will create reports for tracking student progress / Instructor Tools Course planning, managing, fast course revising and monitoring / Instructional designing / Presenting information in format / Online testing and grading / Instructor can assign specific course /

7 Rapid E-Learning Content Management System (RE-COMS) 7 material to individual or group of students Generate random set of questions / Allows developer to preview course as a / / X X student Managing records / Customization of student curriculum X Student tracking / Multiple choice self test tutorial questions provide automatic marking / Fill in the blank" self test tutorial questions provide automatic marking / Customized feedback to tutorial questions X Redirect path of tutorial depending on question answers X / X / Provide a various types of content templates X X X / Instructional Features Faculty to student asynchronous communication is possible / Faculty to student synchronous communication is possible / Faculty can make their own changes to / content Courses can have consistent interface / Online help is available to help student use library resources / X X / Platform has management capabilities for students and faculty / X / / Platform supports multiple instructors for a / / / X course Student Tools Authentication / Bookmark management X Multimedia support / Private X Threaded discussions / Course Chat rooms / X / / Progress tracking / Automated glossary tool X Automated index tool X X / / Search tool for course content / Allows students to view all current courses in which they are registered after logging X X X / in Learners personalized activities or profiles X X X / File submissions / Whiteboard / X / / Image database X X / / Administrator Tools Server / Client/web interface / Authorization tools / Logout feature Resource and remote access tools / Crash recovery tools / Student support tools / Instructor support tools / Administrator support tools / / X / Guest account creation X Administrative Features University will have sole ownership of custom code used to create courses X X / / University will have sole ownership of course content / Platform provider will provide technical support to University / X / NA Platform provider will host courses on / / X X their server Platform provider will advertise courses / X X / Platform provider can provide documentation and contacts to demonstrate a positive track record with / higher education Pricing structure is based upon number of students within the course X / / NA Platform is focused on locally developed courses / With the intention of creating an LCMS that caters the author and learner s need, a few additional features have been identified: 1. Content authoring A few types of customizable templates will be provided. Authors will be given an authority and flexibility to design their content that suit with their needs for example, linking to the resource library for images, embedding audio or video. 2. Content publishing Content can be published in a number of formats with a variety of content such as text, graphics, video and etc. The process will require only a few steps. 3. Content management Authors shall manage their content by adding additional notes, exercises and updating the contents. 4. Conclusion and Future Work The proposed architecture aims at building an updated and competitive solution by incorporating various administration and management facilities, appealing user interfaces and innovative and/or state-or-the-art methodologies to implement reusability, portability, and scalability. The prototype of the system is yet to be developed tentatively by benchmarking and leveraging the Macromedia MX Studio, ColdFusion MX and Flash Communication Server products. Current studies also have been done on a few languages such as ASP, PHP- Hypertext Preprocessor for the scripting language and MySQL for the database. In the future, we hope that RE-CoMS will be

8 8 International Journal of Computing & Information Sciences Vol. 4, No. 1, April 2006, On-Line able to cater and support the teaching and learning activities in UNITEN and other institutions. References [1] Blackboard Learning System ex.htm, [4/15/04 ] [2] Comparison of Online Course Delivery Software products, comparison.html [3] EduTools, [05/22/04] [4] International Data Corporation, Incorporate Worldwide Corporate elearning Market Forecast and Analysis , IDC #W23904, April [5] J. Redol, D. Simoes, A. Carvalho, H. Pascoa, P. Coelho, P. Grave, R. Luis, N. Horta, VIANET A New Web Framework for Distance Learning, Proceedings of the 3 rd IEEE International Conference on Advanced Learning Technologies (ICALT 03), [6] L. Greenberg, LMS and LCMS: What s the Difference?, /greenberg.htm [6/17/04] [7] Miami University Blackboard System [04/05/04] [8] S.R. Robbins, The Evolution of the Learning Content Management System, 3F426A-BEA4-4E FC7AA26DED.htm [6/17/04] [9] University of Limerick, WBT TopClass Learner Support, [05/04/04] [10] WebCT Courseware System Tools [04/15/04] [11] WebCT Product, [04/15/04] [12] WBT TopClass, [04/15/04] [13] Norbeto Fernández-Garcia, Luis Sánchez- Fernandez, Jesús Villamor-Lugo. Next Generation Web Technologies in Content Management, Proceedings of the 13th international World Wide Web conference on Alternate track papers & posters, May Badariah Solemon is a lecturer at the College of Information Technology (COIT), University Tenaga Nasional (UNITEN). She is currently doing her PhD study in Requirements Engineering area. Her research interests include software engineering, e-learning and software quality management. She is an active member of the COIT e-learning Research Group and had/currently involved in a number of e-learning projects. She teaches several courses on programming languages, software engineering, as well as systems analysis and design. Rosnafisah Sulaiman received her Master in Computer Science from University Malaya, Malaysia in She is a lecturer at College of Information Technology, University Tenaga Nasional (UNITEN) and currently is doing her PhD study in e- business. She is also a member of the COIT e-learning Research Group and involved in a few e-learning projects. Her research interests are e- business, e-learning and courseware developments.