Learning Objects
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What is a learning object?
When building houses, it's common to use timbers, sheets of plywood, bricks, frames, nails, shingles, and so on. These small pieces can be assembled in endless variations to create all kinds of houses, and even other structures with very different functions: banks, schools, churches, shopping centers, etc.
Just as we can build many kinds of buildings with small parts, we can also build many different kinds of courses with small instructional parts. These parts are called learning objects, and we can create and assemble them in many ways to create lessons, illustrations, and exercises for our students. Loosely defined, then, a learning object is a “chunk” of course content that it used in combination with other chunks to create lessons. These lessons accumulate to meet the goals of a course or curriculum.
In this reductionist view of a guided learning experience, every lesson can be reduced to small pieces. For instance, a lesson on global climate change might include graphs of average temperatures over time, images of deserts and power plants emitting clouds of water vapor, video clips of tidal erosion, animations of spread of tropic disease, and the narrative that ties these “chunks” together. These same learning objects could be assembled into a completely different lesson for a completely different course (say, culturally geography or economics) if the narrative were changed. It is the task of the instructor to select from available resources the right learning objects in the right order, and to integrate skills-testing and concept-testing to help students assess their progress toward meeting the course goals.
There is some debate as to how small the learning object needs to be to meet the definition of a “chunk” of information. Some practitioners use tests of reusability to define the level at which a chunk of information becomes a true learning object. At the smallest extreme, individual images or executable files or even paragraphs could be taken as reusable elements. At the larger end of the spectrum, learning objects approach lesson-sized pieces of information. In the online teaching and learning world, most of our students' work with content will occur at the learning object + narrative level; and these learning objects will be, of necessity, digital in nature.
A digital learning object is a small chunk of information delivered in digital format. You're already familiar with these, but might instead call them images, clip art, video clips, diagrams, graphs, maps, icons, audio clips, animations, or simulations. So for our purposes, a tidy working definition of a learning object might be any element of an online course that engages a learner with course content and meets the goals of the lesson and/or course.
But instructors tend not to think of their ideas in this compartmentalized way. We usually think and plan at the lesson level, and then seek the tools we need to bring in to help clarify that lesson for students. For instance, in thinking about how to explain a learning object to you, I decided to use an analogy (constructing houses), a definition, some images to break up the text and create some mental images, an example, and an argument between professionals about the definition of a learning object. I put these chunks together with a narrative that (I hope) helps you to understand a learning object in a way that none of these elements could have done on their own. I could then assess how well you understood my efforts to communicate with another learning object.
Perhaps I could use a short quiz question:
Which of the following items would not be examples of a learning object? (You may choose more than one response.)
- A complete lesson.
- A college-level course.
- A map of tornado touch-downs in Wisconsin , for May, 2006.
- An interactive molecular model.
Check your answer.
Before we move on, please permit me to use two acronyms: LO = learning object; and DLO = digital learning object.
So how will you work within your usual lesson-planning mode to include the use of LOs? Why would you even want to? (And when might you want to limit or avoid using learning objects?)
Why are learning objects important to faculty who teach online?
Learning objects are important! Whether or not you have thought about your teaching at the learning object level in the past, you will find that you will want to use learning objects in an online course more than you might in a face-to-face course.
- Helping students make meaning.
Learning objects provide links away from conceptual-level narratives to a focus on the more concrete. This step in student cognitive development is an important one, and becomes even more important as age of the learner decreases (Perry), and as their prior experience with the subject decreases (cite Herron). Constructivist learning principles remind us that students construct meaning from real experiences. One of our tasks is to provide imagery and opportunities for experience. Only after students have constructed and internalized meaning, will they be able to extend and apply themselves.
- Providing opportunities for practice and participation.
With interactive digital materials, instructors can engage students in real-time practice. For instance, during a lesson on Venn diagrams, the instructor can insert a link that takes students to a computer simulation for a practice session. The computer is infinitely patient to let students complete the simulation as often as needed, and the interaction can be designed for a large number of variations.
- Breathing life into metaphors.
Rather than just describe a metaphor with words, you could transform your metaphor into a simulation or an animation. For instance, in discussing how x-rays scatter when they strike atomic nuclei, it's helpful to use billiard balls as analogies. Through animation, it's possible to make the billiard balls spring to “life”, and then morph that motion into x-rays scattering off atomic nuclei. Well-designed learning objects can also be used to challenge student misconceptions. They can be designed to provide discrepant events around which instructors can build deeper discussions. It's even possible to ask students to design a metaphor for a concept and then explore that metaphor for its strengths, weaknesses, and limitations.
- Breaking up text fields visually, linking perception to images.
It is difficult to read many pages of uninterrupted text online. Icons, images, and exercises can be used to break up text fields. And when used consistently, the images help to create a visual key for students so that they can navigate documents quickly. And for our students who are visual learners, an image can be the hook on which they hang a concept.
- Integrating assessment activities into course materials.
One can also use learning objects to measure student learning, to customize course paths based on prior student background, and to evaluate the course itself. For example, students can complete a training simulation online before being let loose for a physical experience with a new tool or idea. Or an instructor could use a digital pre-test to evaluate student understanding of a concept so that the instructor could know where to begin. Very new tools are being developed that take advantage of neural nets to assess student problem-solving process. For a great example, try out the assessments at the IMMEX website at UCLA.
IMMEX The IMMEX project is targeted toward assessment in science from middle school through medical school.
http://www.immex.ucla.edu/ (Accessed 3/16/06)
- Address many different learning styles.
Online courses, by their very nature, can leave out learners who are kinesthetic, auditory, or visual. Integrating a variety of learning objects into a course can accommodate other learning styles, stretch the instructor to think about introducing course material in new ways, and provide new ways for students to interact with course materials.
What best practices, techniques, or guidelines are useful when considering learning objects?
When choosing or creating learning objects, there are a few factors to consider.
- Do they meet a real curricular objective?
Before including a gadget in your course, make sure that it is really meeting student needs for learning effectively. Will learning objects help students with different learning styles? Are they added as options? It's helpful for students to know why you have added some materials that may seem, to them, supplementary or even unnecessary. Be sure and communicate your ideas about how the LO fits into the curriculum.
- Copyright and permissions.
If you choose learning objects that are already available, be sure you have permission to use them, and be sure to acknowledge your sources. If you design objects yourself, be sure you protect your intellectual capital by having your work protected. Course designers and institutions generally provide this kind of support.
- File size.
Most of these materials will be served up over the internet. That method of sharing information will limit the sizes and resolution of some LOs that you choose. Work with your instructional designer and instructional technologist to learn what a good working limit is. If you have some really outstanding material that simply is not appropriate for bandwidth delivery, consider putting those materials on CD or DVD and distributing them as you would a textbook.
- General standard specs for the course/institution.
It is important to know the general operating specifications that your institution shares with students as being the minimum acceptable computing standard for being able to take an online course. Whatever you choose as a learning object, it must work on the standard lowest-spec tools required. Work with your instructional technologists and designers to accommodate those limits in your design.
- Whether additional software is needed for the learning object.
If the LOs you will be using require additional software, you will need to consider the expense to students of purchasing that software, the feasibility of ongoing use of the LO, and whether/if it's even possible to expect students to learn the software. For some courses, learning a professional software package is an integral part of the course. If it is not important for your course, you will need to be able to justify the extra expense and effort you are asking of your students.
- Higher order design requirements: interoperability reusability.
Interoperability is a standard that limits us to using LOs that will work across platforms, with commonly available tools. For instance, .gif image files work no matter if the student is using a Macintosh running Safari, an HP Tablet running Mozilla, or a Dell running Internet Explorer. LOs that you include need to meet interoperability standards. The LOs that you choose should also be reusable. If you find that you want to use a complete LO for not only your online course, but for your face-to-face course as well, your LO likely passes the test of being reusable.
Getting the learning object of your desire.
If you are just starting out looking for learning objects for a particular part of your online course, you've come to course development at a very good time! Repositories of learning objects exist, and catalogs of repositories also exist. Google “learning object repository” and you'll find a host of rich areas to explore. If you want to limit your search to a subject area, that's also a good strategy. Some learning object repositories are open-source and others are closed. Some require registration and membership, others provide completely transparent access.
Most institutions of higher learning are members of several national repositories like MERLOT, the National Science Digital Library, and subscription services like ARTstor.org. Check with your instructional technologist for the repositories you have access to.
Be aware, though, that searching learning objects will not capture all the LOs that you might want to evaluate. In chemistry, for instance, lots of chemists create their own useful course materials. Very few chemists, however, call their digital materials “learning objects.” So when you search for LOs, be sure to search also for “animations,” “simulations,” “lessons,” “images,” “video clips,” “interactive tests,” etc. In my experience, professionals in my field have been thrilled to share their materials and some will even edit their work to suit my course tastes (or give me the source code to edit myself).
Once you find a learning object, you should try to incorporate it directly into your course rather than send students to the website where you found it. This is especially important because other course web sites may not persist and you will, when you least need it, end up with broken links and frustrated students. However, this is somewhat dependent on what your administration will store for you. You want to work that detail out with your tech support team.
Integrating LOs into your course – working with an instructional designer.
Once you have found LOs that will work for you, you will need to think about how to assemble them to provide a structured learning experience for your students. This is where an instructional designer can be very useful. They can help you with both the design elements and the technical elements that need to come together to integrate the LOs successfully. It's also very useful to have a person asking you, “Now, why is this something that students should be doing?” In answering that question, you have also created some narrative for your students that will answer that question for them, too.
When you are designing LOs into your course, be sure that you make clear to students which elements are required, and which are enrichments, or targeted to different learning styles.
Creating learning objects.
OK, so you have looked at the available stuff and decide that none of it really meets your needs. At this point, you must have a pretty firm idea about what you want. Write that idea down. Then find a professional learning technologist or designer to work with you. The designer will probably ask you to clarify your idea by:
- Writing a clear learning objective.
- Record what you want in a narrative form.
- Develop a “storyboard.” This is a graphics-intensive version of your idea – sort of a cartoon mock-up of your learning object. It can be done free-hand or digitally, on your own, or in a group session. The storyboard describes what the screen will look like when you have your learning object. It will show how multiple screens are related to each other. Above all, it will show how well your learning object design fits in with your learning objective.
- Once you have your storyboard in place, it will be easier to evaluate the kind of work required to create the LO. Perhaps animations will be designed, or a web page will be constructed, or a clickable simulation will be designed. Perhaps you will need to create a series of photos or record some video or audio. Some faculty like designing the LO (I do), and others like the creation of the LO (I do not).
- During the creation phase, it's important to keep the interoperability goals in mind. The requirements for each chunk of information should be governed by good practice as recommended by Educause:
- Each chunk must be able to communicate with learning systems using a standardized method that does not depend on the system.
- What happens within a chunk is the chunk's business.
- How a learner moves between chunks is controlled by the learning system.
- Each chunk must have a description that enables designers to search for and find the right chunk for the right job.
References
Perry, William G., Jr.; Forms of intellectual and ethical development in the college years: a scheme; New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, c1970.
Herron, Dudley, The chemistry classroom: formulas for successful teaching; American Chemical Society, 1996.
Guest Lecturer
Kim Kostka is a chemistry professor and current chair of the Department of Chemistry in the UW Colleges. She teaches courses to students in their first year of chemistry study – both science majors and non-majors. Together with an instructional designer and another chemistry colleague, she developed a completely online chemistry lab course and lived to tell about it! Since then, the course has been running successfully every semester since Spring 2002.