Tuesday, June 10, 2008

Short Course on Structured Course Development, LOs, and Standards This excellent online course is available for free from CAREO (a Wiki version of the course is also provided for readers who might like to contribute to the presentation). The course was developed by the Resource Pool Project. The topics covered should be of especial value to developers of educational resources and resource repositories. ____JH _____ Course Overview This short course is intended to provide a basic overview of structured course development, learning objects, and e-learning standards and specifications. This course is meant to be non-technical in nature, although it is hard to make it so. Course Goal A Short Course on Structured Course Development, Learning Objects, and E-Learning standards will provide an introduction to using a structured language such as Standard Generalized Markup Language (SGML) or eXtensible Markup Language (XML) as a basis for producing a learning design and describing course content, activities, and assignments. The course will tell you what SGML and XML are and distinguish them from HyperText Markup Language. You will understand the concept of learning objects and the issues related to their use in e-learning, and you will learn about the standards and specifications initiatives that are shaping the e-learning world. Key Concepts Semantic markup languages Instructional design using a structured approach Characteristics of learning objects Learning objects and metadata The difference between a standard and a specification Why standards and specifications are important E-learning standards and specifications initiatives 8:11:47 AM    COMMENT []