Adaptive hypermedia based on metaphors as an instructional strategy

Analogy and metaphor can be a powerful instructional strategy when used as cognitive tools. In a previous work, we have described a learning environment based on analogy and metaphor and on concept mapping as instructional strategies. In this paper, we concentrate on the hypermedia part of this environment, and we describe the analogy links, the adaptation to the user and a prototype realized for the domain of computer networks. The source domain and target domain documents are linked with semantic analogy links. This implies a high complexity of links, so a mechanism has to be provided in order to manage the links. The hypermedia is adapted to the learner according to his preferences on the metaphors.