FLOD: SPECIFYING THE COMPOSITION OF LEARNING OBJECTS USING XML SCHEMAS FOR SUPPORTING E-LEARNING

Learning Objects (LOs) are interactive digital entities developed for supporting learning. Although a plethora of LO composition models have been proposed, these models have two main deficiencies, the lack of formalization of the levels of aggregation or functional granularity of LO and the scarce information about the actors involved in the development of LO and their tasks during this process. In this paper, we propose means to formally specify a composition model for characterizing LOs using XML schemas. The composition model describes four aspects on the creation of a LO: (1) the structure of a LO based on a layered architecture, (2) the necessary elements that a resource should comprise in order to be considered a LO, (3) metadata required for describing a LO and (4) the actors who should be involved in the generation of LOs their activities and interactions. The XML schema allows components required for constructing a LO to be formally defined, and describes in detail the life cycle of the LO from its conception to its implementation, clearly establishing the tasks and roles involved during the development process of the object, and finally presenting the interactions that occur among such actors.