Learning objects (LO) reuse is one topical area in instructional design that is gaining popularity in the education economy. It hinges on high hopes and promises to transform how learning occurs in the information age. This study attempted to identify and interrogate the core characteristics of reusable learning objects and conceptualize them as innovations in the curriculum development process. The goal was to synthesize existing knowledge on learning objects, weave streams of literature and research to focus on core arising issues, and then develop an instructional design tool that can help learners easily and effectively find reusable learning objects. The learning objects could be categorized and deconstructed to the levels of their instructional design transformations with regard to macro and micro-level reusability. The researcher used combinatorial developmental research with integrative literature review methodologies to design and develop a metadata management tool. This study involved an in depth review of literature on learning objects, reusable learning objects and their associated metadata management schemes through the integrative literature review approach. Results and data from the integrative literature review were then utilized to design and develop a tool addressing meta-tagging schemes, metadata management, search, and access of learning objects. The researcher identified characteristics of learning objects within the reuse process and discussed best practices, reuse procedures and modeling, based on the analysis of existing cases such as the Open-Knowledge-Initiative (OKI) projects to aid in the tool development. Integrative analysis running concurrently with the development process allowed for rigorous identification and alignment of key factors in the learning objects reuse universe. If fully developed, the metadata management tool could contribute to effective metadata management for learning objects often reused by learning designers, deliverers, and consumers. / Doctor of Philosophy / Learning Objects (LO) reuse is gaining popularity in the field of instructional design. This is because it could transform how learning occurs in today's information age. In this study, I outlined the important characteristics of reusable learning objects and set them up as creative and re-creative products in the curriculum development process. My goal was to combine and reproduce existing literature on LOs that would allow me to develop an instructional design tool to help learning content designers, deliverers, and consumers to easily tag, search, then find reusable learning objects. I reviewed literature on learning objects, reusable learning objects and their associated metadata management schemes then used this data to design and develop the tool addressing meta tagging schemes, metadata management, search, and accessibility of learning objects. The tool allows LO categorization and deconstruction to the largest and smallest granular levels of their instructional reusability. I combined a developmental research method with an integrative literature review method to design and develop the prototype of a tool known as metadata management tool (mmt) for reusable learning objects. If successful, the metadata management tool developed could contribute to an effective metadata management for learning objects often reused by learning designers, deliverers, and consumers.

The present study used a case study approach to gather information about learning object usage from multiple instructional design contexts.  The study examined three case contexts: A non-profit organization, a corporate organization, and a military organization.  The research obtained information from two sources within each context -- interviews conducted with current instructional design practitioners and documentation used within the process of developing learning objects  -- to find out if, when, and how, instructional design processes are modified to accommodate learning objects as defined in publications reviewed in this study.   The interview of the practitioners identified issues of instructional design process structure, context, and methods that were used in the context of their professional practice, as well as solicited their opinions on learning object uses for their particular context. A document analysis approach was then used to identify issues and themes within learning object development.   Document analysis was also used to further explain and clarify the findings of the interview of the research participants. / Ph. D.

As more artifacts are created in a digital format, there is a need to have metadata associated with the artifacts to increase the chance for resource discovery by others. This is especially the case with non-textual artifacts. Once these artifacts have descriptive metadata associated with them, they have the potential to become learning objects which can be used by others in their own teaching and research. This study explored the design and development of a performance support tool to create descriptive metadata by users that are most familiar with the non-textual learning objects, yet may not have an understanding of the various metadata schemas and standards required by other institutional/knowledge repositories and search engines. In order to create such a tool, certain features need to be included in order for users to create appropriate metadata. The tool needs to have Unicode character support in order metadata entry, display and searching. Research found that characteristics such as controlled vocabularies, tooltips, validation rules, and having a relevant image on the same screen as the metadata form help users to create appropriate and accurate metadata; yet, no existing tool was found that contained all of these features to assist faculty in describing their non-textual learning objects. These characteristics were operationalized in the design and development of the performance support tool. Findings from the evaluation of the tool indicate that the owner of the learning objects was able to create a customized, non-standard metadata form that users were then able to use to create appropriate and accurate descriptive metadata. / Ph. D.

The last decade has seen the scope of digital library usage extend from data warehousing and other common library services to building quality collections of electronic resources and providing web-based information retrieval mechanisms for distributed learning. This is clear from the number of ongoing research initiatives aiming to provide dynamic learning environments. A major task in providing learning environments is to define a resource model (learning object). The flexibility of the learning object model determines the quality of the learning environment. Further, dynamic environments can be realized by changing the contents and structure of the learning object, i.e. make it mutable. Most existing models are immutable after creation and require the library to support operations that help in creating these environments. This leaves the learning object at the mercy of the parent library's functionality. This thesis work is an extension of an existing model and allows a learning object to function independent of the operational constraints of a digital library by equipping learning objects with software components called methods that influence their operation and structure even after being deployed. It provides a reference implementation of an aggregate, intelligent, self-sufficient, object-oriented, platform-independent learning object model, which is conformant to popular digital library standards. It also presents a Java-based development tool for creating and modifying smart objects. It is capable of performing content aggregation, metadata harvesting and user repository maintenance operations, in addition to supporting the addition/removal of methods to a smart object. The current smart object implementation and the development tool have been deployed successfully on two platforms (Windows and Linux) where their operation was found to be satisfactory. / Master of Science

Establishing relationships between a learner's prior knowledge and any new concepts he or she will be expected to learn is an important instructional activity. Learning objects are often devoid of such activities in an attempt to maintain their conciseness and reusability in a variety of instructional contexts. The purpose of this study was to examine the efficacy of using questioning as a prior knowledge activation strategy in learning objects. Previous research on the use prior knowledge activation strategies supports their effectiveness in helping to improve learner retention. Approaches such as questioning, advance organizers, and group discussions are examples of techniques used in previous studies. Participants enrolled in a Navy engineering curriculum were randomly assigned to two groups (experimental and comparison). The experimental group was exposed to a prior knowledge activation component at the start of session I, while the comparison group received no treatment. Participants in both groups were tested at three different times during the course of the study- the pretest, at the start of session 1, posttest I, at the conclusion of session1, and posttest II, during session 2. The findings indicate that the prior knowledge activation strategy did not result in statistically significant differences between the levels of retention gained by the experimental and comparison groups. Due to administrative constraints experienced during the course of the study, statistical power was not achieved due to an insufficiently sized sample. Potential limitations and implications for future research directions are described.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-08-10T10:40:29Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 RAQUEL LOPES CARCUTE.pdf: 2853490 bytes, checksum: 3b484717c174c878d7375f37ac715939 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015-08-12 / Learning Objects (LO) are educational resources, in different formats and languages, which aims to mediate and enhance the teaching-learning process. This work aimed to identify OA suitable for use by Production Engineering teachers, researchers and students, aiming to collaborate with educational resources that can be used for sharing purposes or reuse. To achieve this goal, the research mapped national and international repositories with higher education-related content, and continuing vocational training correlated with the graduate courses professional disciplines in the area. For the OA mapping was used relevant information on areas and specialties of production engineering. In the repositories that offers search by keyword, this feature was used. Us who do not have, we used to navigate the acquis to identify OA that met these criteria. The mapped objects were organized according to name repository, OA name, type, license to use, insertion date and update, country of production, brief description, access URL, rating area and specialties. The results are available at http: moodle.pucgoias.edu.brcourseview.php?id=817. An analysis of mapped objects showed that 94.6% are in English and 79% have Creative Commons license, in its various forms, which means that access is free. Between repositories, Merlot is the one who informs the inclusion date and the last update. It found a higher OA amount prepared in the knowledge areas of "quality management" and "modeling and simulation" with 8.4% each, followed by areas of "operational research" with 7.8% and "job security" with 6.7%. In conclusion, it was understood that the mapped OA, the vast majority is still in English and are free, so it is explicit the need for the creation enhancement of OA in the production engineering area in the country. / Objetos de Aprendizagem (OA) são recursos educacionais, em diversos formatos e linguagens, que tem por objetivo mediar e qualificar o processo de ensino-aprendizagem. Este trabalho teve como objetivo geral identificar OA adequados para utilização por professores, pesquisadores e alunos de Engenharia de Produção, visando colaborar com recursos educacionais que podem ser usados para fins de compartilhamento ou reuso. Para atingir esse objetivo, a pesquisa mapeou repositórios nacionais e internacionais com conteúdos relacionados à educação superior, formação continuada e profissional correlacionados com as disciplinas profissionalizantes do curso de graduação na área. Para o mapeamento dos OA utilizou-se informações relevantes sobre áreas e especialidades da Engenharia de Produção. Nos repositórios que dispõe de busca por palavra-chave, esse recurso foi utilizado. Nos que não possuem, utilizou-se a navegação pelo acervo para identificar os OA que atendessem esses critérios. Os objetos mapeados foram organizados segundo nome do repositório, nome do OA, tipo, licença de uso, data de inserção e de atualização, país de produção, breve descrição, URL de acesso, classificação por área e especialidades. Os resultados estão disponibilizados em http:moodle.pucgoias.edu.brcourseview.php?id=817. Uma análise dos objetos mapeados mostrou que 94,6% estão em língua inglesa e 79% possuem licença Creative Commons, em suas diversas modalidades, o que significa que o acesso é livre. Entre os repositórios, o Merlot é o único que informa a data de inclusão e a de última atualização. Encontrou-se maior quantidade de OA disposto nas áreas de conhecimento de gestão da qualidade e modelagem e simulação com 8,4% cada, seguidos pelas áreas de pesquisa operacional com 7,8% e segurança do trabalho com 6,7%. Em conclusão, compreendeu-se que dos OA mapeados, a grande maioria ainda está na língua inglesa e são gratuitos, portanto, fica explícita a necessidade da valorização da criação dos OA na área de Engenharia de Produção em território nacional.

Submitted by Renata Lopes (renatasil82@gmail.com) on 2017-02-24T12:45:48Z No. of bitstreams: 1 pauloalceudalmeidarezende.pdf: 6555080 bytes, checksum: 3840d1074c600a0d4cb352c39dd9e2c4 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Adriana Oliveira (adriana.oliveira@ufjf.edu.br) on 2017-02-24T15:34:12Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 pauloalceudalmeidarezende.pdf: 6555080 bytes, checksum: 3840d1074c600a0d4cb352c39dd9e2c4 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-02-24T15:34:12Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 pauloalceudalmeidarezende.pdf: 6555080 bytes, checksum: 3840d1074c600a0d4cb352c39dd9e2c4 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2014-06-25 / Objetos de aprendizagem são quaisquer recursos que possam ajudar no processo de ensino e aprendizagem sendo reutilizados em diversos contextos. Essa reutilização de objetos de aprendizagem mostra seu potencial para acelerar a preparação e a composição de cursos on line. Um sistema de recomendação na área educacional tem por objetivo identificar o perfil do aluno para que seja possível sugerir objetos de aprendizagem adequados às suas preferências. Entretanto, ao considerar o reuso de conteúdos, também se observa a necessidade de adaptação dos mesmos. Aplicações cientes de contexto são aplicações que são capazes de modificar seu comportamento baseado nas informações dos usuários. Uma motivação de usar um sistema sensível ao contexto é garantir a mobilidade transparente e fazer com que aplicações estejam de acordo com os elementos do ambiente. Este trabalho apresenta a arquitetura BROAD-RS (BROAD Recommendation System) capaz de realizar a recomendação de objetos de aprendizagem sensível ao contexto, baseado em uma ontologia para modelagem do perfil e contexto do aluno em um ambiente e-learning e implementado em um sistema multi-agentes. / Learning objects are any resources that might help in the teaching and learning process and to be reused in different contexts. The reuse of learning objects shows its potential to accelerate the preparation and composition of on line courses. A recommendation system in education aims to identify student profile so that it can suggest learning objects suitable to his/her preference. However, when considering content reuse, it is also necessary to adapt them. Context-aware applications are able to modify their behavior based on the users´ informations. One motivation of using a context-sensitive system is to assure seamless mobility and make applications comply with environment elements. This paper presents BROAD-RS (BROAD Recommendation System) architecture capable of performing context sensitive recommendation of learning objects based on an ontology for modeling the profile and context of the student in an e-learning environment implemented in a multi-agent system.

Mémoire numérisé par la Division de la gestion de documents et des archives de l'Université de Montréal.

Mémoire numérisé par la Division de la gestion de documents et des archives de l'Université de Montréal

The purpose of this study is to contribute with knowledge about what perceptions the preschool teachers have about the pedagogical activities in music, and what perceptions exist about the changes in the new curriculum within the subject of music and what they can contribute to. The survey has been conducted with semi-structured interviews in order to be able to conduct extensive discussions about how preschool teachers perceive or understand something. The material has been analyzed using a phenomenographic analysis model in seven steps. The result of this study shows that music is often used as a method in preschool activities, and rarely as a learning object. It also shows that the uncertainty of preschool teachers contributes to less teaching in the subject of music. Changes in the curriculum show very different ideas about how changes will be made in the subject of music in preschool. One side is that it is a rewording that does not contribute to any change in the activities at preschool. While the other side believes that a major change needs to be made to reach the curriculum goals within the subject. My conclusion is that there is less knowledge about the basics of music and the concepts used in music education. This can help to ensure that the goals in the new curriculum (Skolverket, 2018) cannot be met. / Syftet med undersökningen är att bidra med kunskap om vilka uppfattningar förskollärarna har om den pedagogiska verksamheten i musik, samt vilka uppfattningar som finns kring förändringarna i nya läroplanen inom ämnet musik och vad de kan bidra till. Undersökningen har genomförts med semistrukturerade intervjuer för att kunna föra utförliga samtal om hur förskollärarna uppfattar eller förstår något. Materialet har analyserat med hjälp av en fenomenografisk analysmodell i sju steg. Resultatet i denna undersökning visar att musik ofta används som hjälpmedel till annat lärande i förskolans verksamhet, och sällan som lärandeobjekt alltså musik som eget ämne. Det visar också att osäkerheten hos förskollärarna bidrar till mindre undervisning i ämnet musik. Förändringar i läroplanen visar tudelade uppfattningar om hur förändringarna i verksamheten inom ämnet musik kommer se ut. Ena sidan menar att det rör sig om en omformulering som inte bidrar till någon förändring i verksamheten. Medan andra sidan anser att en stor förändring behöver ske för att nå upp till läroplansmålen inom ämnet. Mina slutsatser är att det saknas kunskap kring musikens grunder och de begrepp som används i musikundervisning. Det kan bidra till att målen i den nya läroplanen (Skolverket, 2018) inte kan tillgodoses.