THE ADVANCED DISTRIBUTED LEARNING (ADL) INITIATIVE Paul Jesukiewicz Director, ADL Co-Lab February 16, 2004

The “A” in ADL SCORM Air Force Industry Academia Army Publishers • Publishers Air Force CDC Dept of Labor Server K-12 Global Knowledge SCORM This slide returns to the vision of the future that guides and motivates the ADL initiative. We, along with many other stakeholders, envision a future focused on the integration of cooperatively created objects -- a future that replaces today’s private creation of objects intended for one-time-only use. As the slide suggests, accomplishment of this vision is keyed to the availability of courseware objects that are genuinely shareable. Such sharability does not now exist. We need capabilities that allow us to: - Move courses from one courseware system to any other, - Reuse content “chunks” across different courseware systems, and - Access searchable content or media repositories created by any courseware system. At present, we lack these enabling capabilities. We need to develop them. The technical capabilities emphasized by the ADL initiative are intended to do that -- to develop sharable courseware objects with the functional capabilities needed to fulfill our vision of the future of instruction -- a future that we are beginning to view as inevitable. The uncertainty lies in whether it will appear sooner or later. What, then, must be done to make courseware objects globally available to servers assembling material in real-time and on demand? Job Performance Shareable Content Objects from across the World Wide Web Assembled in real-time, on-demand To provide learning and assistance anytime, anywhere

Sharable Content Object Reference Model A software model that defines the interrelationship of course components, data models, and protocols such that content “objects” are sharable across systems that conform with the same model.

ADL Resulting in a World Wide Community for Learning Technology CEN/ISSS ISO/IEC JTC1 SC36 PROMETEUS LOM (metadata) is an approved IEEE standard. ARIADNE Dublin Core Singapore AICC API based on Appendix B in the AICC CMI document and widespread SCORM usage is now an approved IEEE standard. IMS Asia ALIC IMS Australia

ADL Model for Standards Evolution -SCORM is not a standard, rather it is a model that references standards. ADL Initiative works with a variety of organizations to coordinate the development and adoption of technical standards that enable Internet-based delivery of rich learning content. Among ADL’s greatest achievements has been the coordination with multiple global organizations to establish a unified standard process that is industry-based. With research and development efforts being feed into organizations including AICC, ARIADNE, Dublin Core, IMS, etc, these research and development efforts grow into e-learning specifications. When specification is mature enough and of interest, ADL provides testing and proof of concepts in the ADL Co-laboratories. ADL feeds lessons learned, deficiencies, and comments back into the specification groups. This will occur again and again before the document moves from specification to accredited standard.

ADL Certification and Adopters ADL Certified Products are certified through one of the ADL Certification Testing Centers. 28 LMS/LCMSs have been certified 10 Content products have been certified 94 products/vendors have become SCORM Adopters to include test logs and descriptions of SCORM products

Enterprise Exemplars Org Users Learning Content* Standards Usage Oracle 600k 450,000 objects SCORM, QTI, EP 6k/day UFI 900k 900 courses SCORM, LOM, CMI, QTI, LIP 50k/day Cisco 100k 1,400,000 objects SCORM, LOM MSFT 80k 1,000,000 objects SCORM, LOM, QTI, CP HP 160k 5,000 courses SCORM, QTI, AICC 5k/day Sun 30k SCORM, AICC * courses/objects – cataloged, tagged and searchable

SCORM 2004 SCORM Content Aggregation Model (CAM) 1.3 IEEE 1484.12.1-2002 Learning Object Meta-data IEEE P1484.12.3 – Draft Standard for XML Binding of LOM IMS Content Packaging Version 1.1.3 IMS Simple Sequencing Version 1.0 SCORM Run-Time Environment (RTE) 1.3 IEEE P1484.11.1 – Draft Standard for Data Model for Content Object Communication IEEE P1484.11.2-2003 –Standard for ECMAScript API for Content to Runtime Service Communication SCORM Sequencing and Navigation (SN) 1.3

SCORM 2004 Sequencing Benefits Predictable, consistent ordering and delivery of learning activities, in an instructionally meaningful manner, regardless of delivery environment Benefits Defines sequencing information and behaviors that enable SCORM 2004 content to reproduce standard CBT-Type sequencing in an interoperable manner. Code for sequencing learning resources no longer needs to be embedded within learning resources, reducing coupling and increasing reusability

SCORM 1.2 to SCORM 2004 Conversion ADL is developing tools to assist content conversion: Content Packaging Converter (for manifests) SCO Wrappers (two versions) Meta-Data Converter Sequencing Rule Examples

ADL – Future Directions Continuing commitment by ADL Sponsors Stabilize @SCORM 2004 and plan next generation Registration of objects and repositories Integration with other technologies

ADL – Integration and Research Areas Content Object Repositories Discovery and Resolution Architecture (CORDRA) Simulations and High Level Architecture (HLA) Job Performance Technology (S1000D) – Hand held, wireless Intelligent Tutoring Systems Massive Multiplayer Online Games Web-services or other messaging technologies as Integration Technology

Phases Of SCORM Evolution Expanded Scope: Integration With Other Architectures Simulation Performance Support Mobile Systems Intelligent Tutoring Knowledge Based Systems Others… SCORM “1.X” Stable and Complete at “2004” Maintain Extend New Architecture R&D Track evolution of the Web Web Services Semantic Web DAML+OIL New Knowledge Representation Approaches Determine “Next Generation” Platforms Today

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