Object-Oriented Learning?

Kurtis Scaletta, Digital Media Center, http://dmc.umn.edu

Learning object

The term "learning object" is used increasingly in discussions of instructional technology systems. However, there is no single agreed-upon meaning. In the broadest definition, a learning object is just about any element, digital or analog, that is used in teaching and learning. In the most specific definition, a learning object conforms to a set of standards known as SCORM, or Sharable Content Object Reference Module, or some other set of standards that specify how learning objects should be structured and delivered.

How learning objects affect instructional technology

For the purposes of this article, I will describe three criteria of learning objects that are present in many definitions. These criteria are not meant as a means to evaluate resources there are many examples of interactive learning which are compelling and pedagogically sound, but which fail to be "true" learning objects by this definition but to identify important trends in the growth of learning objects and how they affect instructional technology. Furthermore, offering a definition and noting these trends are based on my interests as an instructional multimedia consultant, multimedia developer, and graduate student in education; other people and units within the Office of Information Technology could have different definitions and criteria for learning objects.

First criterion

The first criterion of learning objects is that they are discrete. In this sense, it would be inappropriate to call a Web course a learning object, or a database of images, or a series of interactions. Rather, a learning object would be a single text, image, or interaction.

Second criterion

The second criterion of learning objects is that they are reusable. Images and text can be pulled into various contexts, while interactions, Web page templates, assessments can be easily reproduced and even customized. Ideally, the learning object would work across platforms, browsers, and within course management systems or learning content management systems; the learning object could be scaled up or down to meet the needs of the learner; and the learning object would be accessible to learners with visual, auditory, or motor disabilities.

Dependent criteria

These first two criteria of learning objects are dependent on each other. The purpose of storing learning content (be it media elements, text, interactions, etc.) as discrete learning objects is to support reusability. In one application, the appropriate learning objects may be delivered dynamically to a user through a learning content management system (LCMS), where either the learner selects small learning sessions, the trainer specifies a learning path based on skills and needs, or the LCMS delivers learning based on the learner's performance. In another application, images and interactions are shared among faculty, chosen or customized by faculty to integrate into courses. In this application, learning objects are shared through "repositories," such as MERLOT <http://www.merlot.org> or can be shared among peer groups using enterprise course management systems like WebCT Vista.

Third criteria

Whether delivered through an LCMS or stored in a repository, the practical use of these learning objects depends a great deal on the ability to find and use the learning object, which leads to the third criteria of learning objects: the presence of "metadata," or information about the object that is stored in a database. Like the learning objects themselves, this metadata can be proprietary, specific to one LCMS or repository, or align with incipient national specifications.

An example

An example might serve to show both the rewards and potential issues of learning objects. The University of Iowa departments of Academic Technologies, Spanish and Portuguese, and Speech Pathology and Audiology have collaborated on a Website on Phonetics. The Website (Figure 1) includes beautifully done Flash animations illustrating articulated sounds of English and Spanish.

If the animation is inseparable from its context, not reusable, and not coded with metadata, it is useful only within this Website. It is a very nice learning interaction and serves the needs of the instructors and learners who use the site, but it is not a learning object.

Extensible uses of learning objects

Consider the extensible use of the animation if it were a true learning object.

• If it were a discrete animation that could be used in other contexts, some educators might upload animations into their own course Websites, while others might integrate the animations into learning content management systems where students could be directed to specific sounds they need to study.

• If the item is independent of the context, it could be reused in various educational settings: languages, linguistics, audiology, speech therapy, and so on. If the animations were available as open-source files, developers could more quickly alter copies of the animations to reproduce other sounds, a dd accessibility features, or integrate the animations into other multimedia projects without starting from scratch.

• If stored in a repository and appropriately coded with metadata, the animations could be located and used by other educators and developers in a variety of ways. These adaptations could be stored in the same repository, with full credit to the original authors and co-developer information. In this way, multimedia production would resemble other sorts of academic production, where educators build on one another's work.

A series of events
Instructors and developers can think of learning as a series of events.

• Which events of instruction can be made from existing learning objects?
• Which can be developed as learning objects, with attention to reusability?
• What are standards and specifications that should be met?
• How can the learning objects be shared with others?
• How can people locating resources in a repository determine the quality of the learning object and its impact on learning?

Learning objects in higher education

The concept of learning objects in higher education entails a commitment to understanding the standards and specifications for compatibility and a willingness to share work among a community of practitioners. The reward of participation is rapid growth in both the quality and quantity of learning objects that can be used and reused in a variety of ways.

Following are some of the best resources on the Web for learning more about learning objects.

• A nicely designed site that answers questions about learning objects: http://adlcolab.uwsa.edu/lo/index.htm

• A Website devoted to understanding learning objects and how they affect teaching and learning; it includes an online book by notable authors such as M. David Merrill: http://www.reusability.org

• Extensive information on SCORM, a set of proposed standards for learning objects: http://www.adlnet.org/

• The best known repository of learning objects: http://www.merlot.org/

• A few samples of Flash learning objects developed by the author for projects at the University of Minnesota: http://www.tc.umn.edu/~kurtis/flash