European Schoolnet David Massart Tel Aviv University - Jan. 16, 2005.

European Schoolnet Outline Context, motivations, and requirements The SQI Application Programming Interface Usage scenarios Current status Bindings and Application Profiles Who is using it ? The Celebrate Gateway The iClass Adapter

European Schoolnet Query Service Interoperability In order to be able to query each others, repositories must agree on: A Query Language A Result Format A Query Interface

European Schoolnet SQI is an Application Program Interface (API) An API for querying learning objects repositories Since one major design objective is to keep the specification simple and easy to implement, the interface is labelled Simple Query Interface (SQI)

European Schoolnet Who Is Behind It ? API Specification: –CEN/ISSS Learning Technology Workshop –E. Duval, D. Massart, B. Simon, S. Ternier, F. Van Assche, M. Arnaud Implementations: –WP3 ProLearn network of Excellence (FP6) –Ariadne, Celebrate, Edutella, Elena,...

European Schoolnet Motivations Small-step approach: Connecting as many European LO repositories (metadata search) as possible Proving that it works Creating the need for better interoperability

European Schoolnet Requirements Combining highly heterogeneous repositories requires to: Be neutral in terms of results format and query languages Support Synchronous and Asynchronous Queries in order to allow heterogeneous networks to connect to each other

European Schoolnet Result Schema Neutrality ? Any schema that two or more repositories have agreed on is valid An SQI schema serves two purposes: – It identifies the set of attributes and vocabularies that can be used in the query –It provides a format in which learning object descriptions are returned – For example, both XML schemas and RDF schemas are valid

European Schoolnet Query Language Neutrality Query languages – are not neutral –Any query language chosen (e.g. XQUERY) would have a negative impact on the adoption of the interface by those repository types the language has not been designed for (e.g. RDF repositories in the case of XQUERY).

European Schoolnet Why Neutrality ? SQI Does not contribute to overcome the differences of the various paradigms in metadata management (Z39.50, XML-based approaches, RDF community) Aims at becoming an independent specification for all open educational repositories

European Schoolnet Why Asynchronous ? Federation Host 1 Federation Host 2 Federation Host 3 SQI Gateway SQI

European Schoolnet Why Asynchronous ? Federation Host 1 Federation Host 2 Federation Host 3 SQI Gateway SQI

European Schoolnet Asynchronicity Simple Robust Scales up well Enables Selective Dissemination of Information (SDI)

European Schoolnet What is SQI good for ? Metadata search of LO repositories Any search (metadata, full text,...) Any “function” (e.g., in the iClass project, SQI is also used to obtain LOs)

European Schoolnet The SQI Application Program Interface

European Schoolnet SQI Methods Query Configuration –setQueryLanguage –setResultsFormat –setMaxQueryResults –setMaxDuration Synchronous Query Interface –setResultsSetSize –synchronousQuery –getTotalResultsCount –getAdditionalQueryResults Asynchronous Query Interface –asynchronousQuery –setSourceLocation –queryResultsListener Session Management –createSession –createAnonymousSession –destroySession

European Schoolnet Fault Mechanism Intentionally unsophisticated Simplicity rather than richness Only one fault: SQIFault –Thrown by all methods –Allows: Free-text messages Predefined error codes

European Schoolnet A Simple Scenario

European Schoolnet Getting Additional Results

European Schoolnet Asynchronous Query Mode

European Schoolnet Federated Search Front End

European Schoolnet Current Status IT IS HAPPENING NOW ! Version 1.0 alpha was realeased in Dec Call for comments ended last week Comments will be reviewed this week in Vienna CEN/ISSS LTWS meeting in Oslo next week

European Schoolnet SQI Users Who is using it ? The ProLearn network of excellence (FP6) The iClass project (FP6) Who will use it ? IMS Global SIG “Query Service” You: –EUN LIFE (workshop + plugfest) –iClass

European Schoolnet Bindings and Application Profiles Bindings: Common SQI WSDL Java Exception Hierarchy Application Profiles: Celebrate / Ariadne (LOM/VSQL) Elena / Edutella (RDF)

European Schoolnet The Celebrate Gateway

European Schoolnet CeLeBraTe (Context eLearning with Broadband Technologies) 30 months / € 7 M. project (=>Nov. 2004) Was supported by the European Commission's IST Program (FP5) Involved 500 schools across Europe 22 partners (European ministries of education, universities, leading educational publishers and technology suppliers)

European Schoolnet Celebrate's Goals Consist in creating: New contents (LOs) An innovative pedagogy (based on LOs) A European learning network (to exchange LOs) A new business model (Merlin)

European Schoolnet Brokerage of Networks ARIADNE ELENA CELEBRATE Federation.

European Schoolnet Federated Search MessagingServer EUNLMS/LCMS ELN Client Brok. System Central serv. ELN Client DigitalbrainLMS/LCMS GiuntiLMS/LCMS Sanoma WSOY LMS/LCMS ELN Client

European Schoolnet Federated Search MessagingServer EUNLMS/LCMS ELN Client Brok. System Central serv. ELN Client DigitalbrainLMS/LCMS GiuntiLMS/LCMS Sanoma WSOY LMS/LCMS ELN Client

European Schoolnet Federated Search MessagingServer EUNLMS/LCMS ELN Client Brok. System Central serv. ELN Client DigitalbrainLMS/LCMS GiuntiLMS/LCMS Sanoma WSOY LMS/LCMS ELN Client MessagingServer EUNLMS/LCMS Brok. System Central serv. ELN Client DigitalbrainLMS/LCMS GiuntiLMS/LCMS Sanoma WSOY LMS/LCMS ELN Client

European Schoolnet Federated Search MessagingServer EUNLMS/LCMS ELN Client Brok. System Central serv. ELN Client DigitalbrainLMS/LCMS GiuntiLMS/LCMS Sanoma WSOY LMS/LCMS ELN Client MessagingServer EUNLMS/LCMS Brok. System Central serv. ELN Client DigitalbrainLMS/LCMS GiuntiLMS/LCMS Sanoma WSOY LMS/LCMS ELN Client

European Schoolnet Federated Search MessagingServer EUNLMS/LCMS ELN Client Brok. System Central serv. ELN Client DigitalbrainLMS/LCMS GiuntiLMS/LCMS Sanoma WSOY LMS/LCMS ELN Client MessagingServer EUNLMS/LCMS Brok. System Central serv. ELN Client DigitalbrainLMS/LCMS GiuntiLMS/LCMS Sanoma WSOY LMS/LCMS ELN Client

European Schoolnet MessagingServer Brok. System Central serv. ELN Client SQI SQI SQI SQI SQI SQI Gateway

European Schoolnet Brokerage of Networks ARIADNE ELENA.

European Schoolnet Architecture Gateway Translation Core Admin SQISQI ConnectionConnection Configuratio n file ELN ClientELN Client Brokerage SystemSQI SQI SQI SQI administrator

European Schoolnet Implementation Translation package Query translatio n CELEBRATE Filter (xml instance) VSQL (xml instance) Results translatio n CELEBRATE Resultset (xml instance) IEEE LOM Resultset (xml instance) Using: - XSLT ( the Extensible Stylesheet Language Transformations) - JAXB (Java Architecture for XML Binding) - JAXP (Java API for XML Processing)

European Schoolnet The Celebrate Gateway Supports: –Very Simple Query Language (VSQL) –Simple School Query Language (S2QL) –Strict LOM Accepts queries in asynchronous mode Propagates both synchronous and asynchronous queries

European Schoolnet The iClass Adapter

European Schoolnet iClass Develops an Intelligent distributed Cognitive-based Learning System for Schools Funded under the FP6 Initiated in January 1, partners from 11 countries

European Schoolnet iClass Adapter Enables the end-users of “legacy systems” to search and access iClass Learning Objects Is based on SQI

European Schoolnet Components

European Schoolnet Sequence Diagram

European Schoolnet SQI

European Schoolnet