Chapter 4 Pedagogical models, methodologies and tools in web ...

P.Stockinger, E. De Pablo: The Archimed Knowledge Village (1999)

_________________________________________________________

Chapter 4 Pedagogical models, methodologies and tools in webbased distant learning

______________________________________________________ ARCHIMED Telematics Project, PL961060

1


_________________________________________________________

Table of Contents 4.1) Introduction.................................................................................................................. 3 4.2) Courseware Components........................................................................................... 3 4.2.1) Introduction.............................................................................................................. 3 4.2.2) A big diversity of educational materials .............................................................. 4 4.2.3) Principal components of a courseware ................................................................ 6 4.3) Facets of a remote pedagogical environment......................................................... 8 4.3.1) Remote training methods....................................................................................... 8 4.3.2) About pedagogical interactivity.......................................................................... 10 4.4) From CAL to CBT and WBT Applications......................................................... 12 4.4.1) A Short Historical Note........................................................................................ 12 4.4.2) Computer Assisted Learning ............................................................................... 12 4.4.3) Computer Based Training.................................................................................... 13 4.4.4) Computer Assisted Instruction............................................................................ 14 4.4.5) Computer Managed Instruction.......................................................................... 15 4.4.6) Computer Assisted Learning ............................................................................... 15 4.4.7) Computer Based Training.................................................................................... 16 4.5) The Development Process of CBT and WBT Applications.............................. 16 4.5.1) Introduction............................................................................................................ 16 4.5.2) Analysis of User Needs........................................................................................ 17 4.5.3) Content and Graphical Interface Study.............................................................. 17 4.5.4) Development of an Application Prototype........................................................ 19 4.5.6) Implementation of the Application..................................................................... 20 4.5.7) Usability Testing and Effectiveness Evaluation .............................................. 21 4.6) Existing Authoring Technologies and Tools ....................................................... 21 4.6.1) Introduction............................................................................................................ 21 4.6.2 List of some commercially available authoring tools ................................. 23 4.7) CBT and WBT Applications Development with Authorware .......................... 23 4.7.1) About Macromedia ............................................................................................... 23 4.7.2) About Authorware ................................................................................................. 24 4.7.3) Presentation of the Authorware Environment .................................................. 24 4.7.3.1) The General Interface........................................................................................ 24 4.7.3.2) Description of the main elements composing the developer interface ..... 28 4.7.4) How to manage content with Authorware ........................................................ 36 4.8) Educational Multimedia Applications Development with Director................. 37 4.8.1) About Director Cie ........................................................................................... 37 4.8.2) The general interface of Director................................................................... 38 4.8.3) The scripting language: Lingo........................................................................ 40


2


_________________________________________________________

4.1) Introduction Computer Assisted Learning (CAL), which for a long time has been associated with Computer Aided Learning, is increasingly recognised as Computer Based Training (CBT). And with the development of new information and communication technologies and the World Wide Web, it is even more perceived as Web Based Training (WBT). This new field of research is in the process of full expansion. It allows learning programs as developed in the 1970s to be integrated with methods used in the field of interactive multimedia applications especially adapted for online distant or remote learning. These new programs are becoming increasingly important because they allow the rapid development of all kinds of multimedia through information technologies. Thus, new forms of learning and training will become more and more generally available. Online distant learning will no longer be based on a simple question/answer relationship; it will become able to interact with the user in a “personalised way”. More than simple feedback, the system deals with the user, guides course choice, subjects of tests, checks prerequisites, analyses errors, files answers through databases and prepares future connections according to personal motivations or to learning progress.

This chapter starts with a general discussion of components for defining and building « courseware » (chapter 4.2). Chapter 4.3 is dedicated to a short but systematic presentation of the different facets of the pedagogical environment for remote or distant learning. Then a general overview of CAL (computer assisted learning), CBT (computer based training) and WBT (web based training) will be given (chapter 4.3). In chapter 4.3 will also be discussed the instructional system design for CBT and WBT applications. Finally, chapter 4.4 and chapter 4.5 present two very commonly used authoring environments for developing CBT, WBT or, more generally, educational interactive multimedia applications, viz. Authorware and Director, both from Macromedia.

4.2) Courseware Components 4.2.1) Introduction In order to have a clearer idea concerning the principal problems related to the authoring and production of educational materials, this chapter starts with a general description and evaluation of the notions « courseware » and « educational material ». As a consequence will be proposed a kind of "educational model" which could serve as a reference model for the development of (more or less sophisticated) coursewares. A “courseware” can be considered as a whole (supposed to be) necessary for the acquis ition of knowledge in some knowledge field. In this sense, a courseware covers:


3


_________________________________________________________

• • •

educational materials (books, slights, drafts, animations, cases, ...) storing and structuring the “contents” (the knowledge) to be taught or to be acquired the whole empirical diversity of actions and interactions through which a “student” (broadly speaking) acquires progressively a competence in a given field of knowledge as well as the (institutional) setting in which this interactions take place.

With respect to this general features, a particular emphasis has to be given to the pedagogical interactions that should ensure the acquisition process of a knowledge in a given field. These interactions, simply speaking, can be broken down : • to student-originated actions (exploration of a field of knowledge, case studying, information requests, help requests, problem solving, ...) and • to teacher-originated actions (helps and councils, information satisfaction, controlling, ...). Pedagogical interactions are habitually considered to be distinct from educational materials. But this is, as known, a static conception of what educational materials is (or could be) – a conception which changes now deeply since the digital technologies allow, at least theoretically, more sophisticated models of “interactive educational materials” or again “interactive courses”. “Interactive courses” combine in a “global whole” presentation and development of contents with at least parts of the usual pedagogical interactions. Nevertheless, traditional questions concerning the quality assurance of a courseware as well as the monitoring and assessment of students arise even more importantly in the field of (web based) distant learning.

4.2.2) A big diversity of educational materials It has to be emphasised that a very wide range of more or less well identified and defined types of documents are considered to constitute the collective term « educational material ». Gérard and Roegiers (Concevoir et Evaluer des Manuels Scolaires. Brussels, De Boeck-Wesmael 1993), for instance, include under this heading : • •

• • • •

traditional general handbooks, traditional handbooks specialised in a specific learning phase (such as, in language learning, handbooks specialised in « first » or, contrarily, « second language alphabetisation » ; in science teaching, handbooks specialised in the « awake of scientific problems », contrarily to handbooks specialised in a deeper and more systematic presentation of one scientific problem) ; course syllabus (providing course goals and objectives, performance expectations, descriptions of assignments, related readings, grading criteria, and a day-by-day overview of the material to be covered); course scripts and/or slides (providing a condensed presentation of the different topics developed in a course); audio-visual materials; graphics, cards, drawings,


4


_________________________________________________________

• • • • • • •

isolated case studies and/or experimentations that accompany a lesson/a course practical guidelines for student works (« home works », group projects, …) realisations by students (individual works, works accomplished by a group, documented case studies, studies of specialised literature, …) teacher’s instruction guides student’s instruction guides test and exercise books etc.

It is clear that this kind of literature constitutes also in the context of distant learning the main pool of documents that organise the learning as well as the teaching of a given knowledge topic such as the learning of a foreign language, the learning of how to use new information technologies, the learning of how to deal critically with the information flow through the mass media, and so on. Computer based training applications will enter progressively in this traditional « pool » of educational material but, at least for the moment, it seems not to be realistic to believe that they will substitute them. Moreover, as we have already seen it in chapter 2, computer based training applications themselves cover a wide range of more or less complex, more or less « sophisticated » types of applications : • • •

•

Simply digitalized versions of traditional educative support (such as digitalized versions of paper printed handbooks, of video tapes storing, for exemple, the presentation of an experiment, …) ; Interactive digital handbooks; Simultaneously accessible "clusters" of pedagogical supports constituting together a course (parts of handbooks, slides, case studies, suggested readings, individual and collective projects, previous realisations, "pool" of critical comments and results of discussions, …); "Intelligent" learning and training programmes including automatic evaluation and explanation forms.

To investigate organisation and structure of these different types of educational materials is useful for theoretical, pedagogical as well as computational reasons. From a theoretical point of view, a better understanding of this problem opens the way to design more explicit conceptual models of how to structure and organise on the one hand - globally - a courseware (i.e. all those documents that constitute a courseware) and on the other hand - locally - the particular role of a given document and its relationships with other documents in a learning process. A second motive to investigate this question is to better understand more general, cultural patterns (habits and experiential references) of learners or students which have to be taken into account in the building of distant learning courses. Finally, a third important motive concerns the assumption that a better and more explicit understanding of the structural and functional characteristics of a courseware and, of its specific components, locally speaking, constitutes, without any doubt an important contribution in the progressive building of more sophisticated and « intelligent » CBT (computer based training) courseware.


5


_________________________________________________________

From a pedagogical point of view, the motives of investigating existing pedagogical documents are obvious in the sense that the acceptation of distant learning courses from the user side not only depends on the intrinsic quality of the provided knowledge in such a course but prior, on the respect of given learning habitudes as well as of the design of highly intuitive (and therefore sometimes rather « conservative ») interfaces. « Conservative » in this context means that the user (i.e. learner or « student ») should be provided with a learning environment which makes explicit references to the common and dominant cultural models of learning and teaching (an argument which has already been developed in the first chapter of this report and which has been taken into account as far as possible in the design of the Archimed Knowledge Village environment). From a practical or computational point of view, prior conceptual (cognitive or semiotic) investigation in types and organisations of pedagogical documents constituting a courseware are of a central importance on the one hand for the properly speaking - development and implementation of CBT courses as well as for the organisation of databases for pedagogical exploitations (such as pedagogical digital libraries, « students’ data » databases ; …). A systematic description of those documents from a structural point of view (content organisation and expression modalities of a content) and a functional point of view (« inscription » in a pedagogical project) facilitates, naturally, the specification and design of user (i.e. learner) adapted CBT courses and therefore also interesting and relevant exploitations of sometimes very sophisticated authoring environments which are , actually at least, mostly ignored by the principal authors - the authors of pedagogical documents : the teachers, instructors, trainers, etc.

4.2.3) Principal components of a courseware Following P. Duchastel ("Toward the ideal study guide." In : The British Journal of Educational Technology 14(3), 1988), the general role of an assignment in guiding and assisting student learning can be partitioned into four somewhat distinct functions: •

orientation

•

task direction

•

learning assistance

•

self-assessment.

In order to take into account the importance of these four functions, a courseware, typically, is based on : • •

A set of lessons and One or more curriculum (that means here, the ordering of lessons following some rule or pedagogical « maxim »).

A lesson itself is a kind of structured « object » that consists of (some or all) of the following components : The « Identifying Component » (corresponding to the orientation function) with : An identification number


6


_________________________________________________________

A title (and subtitle) An abstract (a scope) The name of the author(s) (date, …) The « Development Component » of the theme or topic (i.e. the problem) – corresponding to the function of task orientation - of the lesson with : A description (presentation) of the theme A case study An example A « simulation » of a concrete situation … The « Explanation Component » (corresponding to the learning assistance function) of what has been developed before with Classical type of explanations FAQs Declaration of a Rule Declaration of Exceptions Exemplification … The « Test/Exercise Component » by the means of which a student/user can check his knowledge with : Mulitple choice tests Reconstructions, « Filling in » Tests, Simulations, … The « (Self)Evaluation Component » by the means of which a student/user can check what he/she has « really » assimilated with Correct Answer sheets Ponderation of the importance (criticality) of good/bad answers/solutions Further Explications Specific Help Procedures Advices how to go on in the curriculum …

The « Historical Component » that contains the traces of the performances of the user/student during his/her learning process

The « Interface Component » that specifies not only the formal and physical organisation and the visual identity of the interfaces but also the languages as well as the visual, iconic and other sound objects to be used for communicating with an user.

A systematic and explicit description of these components have several practical consequences :


7


_________________________________________________________

•

it can be used as a kind of project standard for the development of concrete courseware applications (it can be used as a kind of « label » …).

•

it can be used also for the specification of the conceptual model of the structure of the document directory system and database on which are stored the files (applications, runtime, …) with pedagogical content (cf. for instance, McGreal, R. 1995. "A Heterogeneous Distributed Database System for Distance Education Networks." The American Journal of Distance Education 9(1), pp. 27-43)

•

it can be used for defining templates or generic structures of lessons and curricula as Authorware and/or Director files

•

it can be used also as a general structure for designing an instructional methodology for the authoring of concrete applications

4.3) Facets of a remote pedagogical environment 4.3.1) Remote training methods Now, it is clear also that a good organisation of knowledge within a courseware can only be considered to be the basis for a good and appropriate acquisition of knowledge for a given domain. The acquisition process by itself, understood here as an essentially student-originated activity, has to be modelled with respect to specific types of training methods. Once such specific types systematically described, they can be used for the implementation of interactive courseware in distant learning. A particularly important work on different but recurrent types of training methods is the book of L. B. Hart (L.B. Hart, Training methods that work. Kogan Page 1992). The training methods are described in terms of participants active and passive roles, the extent to which content is determined by trainer or learner, and the extent to which participants use different senses. Even if the described training methods are typically belonging to pedagogical group situations (i.e. situations with the presence of a group of students), they can be adapted to the distant learning context and enrich the pedagogical quality of distant courseware. Holt distinguishes between 17 principal types of training methods. It is not in the scope of this report to present them, one by one. Hear is only a partial list of them : •

Method 1: Structured warm-up activities. Using structured activities at the beginning of the training design ensures that the participants get involved right away, increases their energy and interest an can give an early introduction to a key idea or skill which is to be developed in the course.

•

Method 2: The Presentation. The purpose of a presentation is to impart information; the participants play an essentially passive role. A session based on a presentation may also involve "facilitation" - leading a group discussion.

•

Method 3: Reading materials. Reading materials can enhance learning as long as they are relevant and their purpose is clearly understood. The positive impact of reading materials is increased when the material is relevant to participants'


8


_________________________________________________________

own situations, at an appropriate level, and done in conjunction with other learning methods. •

Method 4: Demonstrations. Demonstrations are a powerful training method because participants can use all their senses. Demonstrations bring alive the information and skills which are the subject of the learning. Participants can experience the idea or technique.

•

Method 5: Video and films. These "visual aids" help to stimulate interest and motivate participants. The content can provide illustrations and models for the ideas and skills which are the subject of the learning. Although a passive activity, watching films or videos can be combined with active techniques such as discussion.

•

Method 6: Note-taking. People take notes in different forms and for different reasons. Notes can reinforce the information in hand-outs and can help the learner remember key points. Note-taking is particularly helpful when a complicated procedure is being explained or when several critical steps in a process must be established.

•

Method 7: Discussions. Discussions between a facilitator and participants are a useful learning experience because the learners must adopt an active role, help determine the content and use several of their senses. Discussions may be "structured" or "free form". The facilitator must have well developed listening and questioning skills.

•

Method 8: Questionnaires. Questionnaires are use to gather information by the person setting the questions, and may also be used for self-assessment by the person completing the questionnaire. The term "questionnaire" includes surveys and tests. Analysis of questionnaire results can be followed up by other learning activities such as discussion.

•

[....]

•

Method 10: Case studies. The case study is a description of a problem with sufficient detail for participants to determine what action they might take. The case study simulates reality, draws upon participants' experience and knowledge, involves them actively in the learning process and forces them to apply theory to practice.

•

[....]

•

Method 12: Role play. Role play is another form of simulation. It allows participants to practise and experiment and to receive feedback on that activity. It draws upon participants' experience and knowledge and forces the application of theory to practice. Role play might involve all participants, or some may be observers.

•

[....]

•

Method 14: Games and other structured activities. Games are another form of simulation but usually with a competitive element. There are also cooperative games. Participants are actively involved and use a range of senses.

•

Method 15: Clinics. In this method (often as part of a simulation), participants are able to gather information and work in a group to analyse and solve a problem. This method requires a highly skilled facilitator.

•

Method 17: Structured closure activities. Structured activities which complete a training session or programme are important, and help ensure that


9


_________________________________________________________

participants reflect on what they have learned and how they will apply their learning. It’s clear that some of these training methods are more easily transposable and able to be implemented than others. This is the case at least for simple forms of the following training methods : • group discussion, • reading materials, • structured material presentation, • video and films, • (personal) note taking, • case studies, • questionnaires. The prototype of the Archimed Knowledge Village covers – as simple student related services - these possibilities for enhancing the assimilation of knowledge by a student. More difficult, nevertheless, is the conception and implementation of the other above quoted training methods : online interactive demonstration of a specific topic, remote interactive role playing, use of clinics for the study of a specific problem, … : all these methods presuppose not only the development of highly sophisticated (“intelligent”) courseware but also the creation and management of a highly structured pedagogical framework able to control such interdependent student/student and student/teacher (tutor) activities.

4.3.2) About pedagogical interactivity Well structured and organised learning materials combined with a set of training methods in order to enhance the assimilation of some knowledge by a student, have to be interpreted within a global pedagogical context in which interact students with teachers in a purposeful way. The principal interactive teaching competencies are in : • • • •

Communicating and interacting with students Planning and managing the teaching process Monitoring and assessing student progress Reflecting and planning for continuous improvement .

The different aspects of these parts of pedagogical interactivity are very well discussed and presented on the web site of the Northern Territory Department of Education in Australia (http://www.sss.nt.edu.au/) . It is not possible and also not in the scope of this report to resume them here. Nevertheless, it has to be stressed that with respect to the explanations proposed by the quoted institutions, pedagogical interactivity : •

Is principally conditioned by social and psychological features going far beyond the simple (“instructional”) knowledge acquisition process and for which it is sometimes very difficult to find solutions in the context of web based distant learning (such features concern, for instance, general motivations of the learner, his/her social conditions, the building of a trustful relationship with the teacher, the teacher’s “empathy” for – not only intellectual – problems influencing the students behaviour, ...);


10


_________________________________________________________

•

Depends not only on the (“professional”) motivation of teacher but also of his ability to deal with unexpected situations, to master problems for which the courseware by itself doesn’t propose a solution, to propose new relevant relationships between a specific content of the courseware and other knowledge resources, and so on.

With the help of the new communication technology (such as videoconferencing), it should be possible to enhance distant learning with respect to such pedagogical imperatives but, there don’t exist really concluding studies concerning the influence of remote learning on the construction of trustful relationships between a student and a teacher which are the basis of a successful learning. As far as “intelligent” or self guided courseware is concerned, it is clear that they are, for the moment at least, too much exclusively “knowledge-oriented”; they don’t give enough importance to the above quoted more general (but also much more difficult to model) sociological and psychological factors of pedagogical interactivity.

Nevertheless, in order to build – even a pedagogically reduced – distant learning model and to implement it, the above quoted diversity of sociological and psychological features influencing the learning process has to be reduced to some central tasks concerning : • •

The management of learner support; The management regarding instruction (assignments, examinations and students evaluation (assessment));

Some of the principal tasks of the two quoted activities are presented and exemplified in the already quoted World Bank’s Global Distance EducatioNet providing a set of links to very instructive web sites dedicated to (web based) distant learning. Central tasks in the management of learner support are, among others, the following ones: • • • •

(remote) creation and production of course materials; (remote) creation and production of assignments, tests, exams; (remote) creation and production of other training materials (reading lists, provision of such specialist services as credit transfer, quality charts for course materials, assessment standards, etc.

The conceptual specification modelling of these tasks is a necessary prerequisite for the design and implementation of a database and a corresponding working environment for teachers in order to build and maintain remotely courseware. Its technical description within the Archimed Knowledge Village project, can be found in the technical report of task 3.1 "Development of multimedia databases" The goal of Task 3.1 is to support the access, the structure and the content of the database objects and to develop the basic modules of multimedia databases for educational telematics. Finally, concerning the management of assignments and tests, central tasks involved are, among others : •

To set assignments (tests, exercises, collective projects, ...) with cut off dates;

•

To provide general feedback from the teacher;


11


_________________________________________________________

•

(if required) to provide a notification and ranking of the students performance;

•

to keep a trace of the achievements and performances;

•

to publish via the web selected students achievements.

Following the policy of the Open University, “assessment is the general term used for measuring students' performance on a course against the aims and objectives of that course. Assessment may be formative or summative. Formative assessment is assessment as part of teaching: questions and assignments set to help the student learn effectively, but not used to determine the student's course results. Summative Assessment is assessment to determine a student's overall level of performance on the course: questions and assignments, the grades or scores of which are used in determining the student's course result” (cf. Open University, Production Handbook for Open University Courses and Packs. Milton Keynes. Section 31.0, pp. 1-4). Basically, students assessment implies the following central tasks : •

To ensure a homogeneous marking and grading system,

•

To provide comments as a feedback from the teacher to the students,

•

To ensure eventually the possibility of providing feedback to course writers

These different aspects have been taken into account during the specification and design of the Archimed Knowledge Village. A detailed technical description can be found in the technical report of Task 3.

4.4) From CAL to CBT and WBT Applications 4.4.1) A Short Historical Note During the 1960s some programmed learning system devices known as teaching machines were already available, but they did not use any form of microcomputer technology. They were composed of two different types of programs: • a “ linear program ”, and • the more sophisticated “ branching program ”. The linear program was composed of a sequence of very small learning steps punctuated by test questions. Su ch interaction allowed the user to know if the response was right or wrong. The branching program was composed of the same sequence but it was able to analyse the answers of the learner and prevented continuation towards the next step if a test answer was wrong. This new approach was difficult and expensive but allowed new areas of training to be defined and influenced on the development of future programs.

4.4.2) Computer Assisted Learning Computer Assisted Learning developed during the 1970s parallel with the beginning of the microcomputer’s generalisation.


12


_________________________________________________________

The application was quickly diverted towards the Computer Aided Learning (same acronym) program. With the generalisation of the PC and the arrival of CD-ROM technology, a new approach emerged based on: • the use of controllable computer simulation of situations; • the development of instructional material in a graphical interface design; and • the capacity of the system to evaluate and control the learner’s knowledge assimilation with the help of small expert systems included in the program. The increasing processing speed, memory capabilities and data capacities of computers together with the development of more adaptive authoring software and the use of diverse types of media are making computers even more attractive for teaching and learning many kinds of academic subjects. CAL applications are becoming more commonplace and seem to be associated with the following definition: "A computer application is composed of different modules (packages of various programs) that presents specific educational contents to the student and also the learner’s progress to be personalised and retained." Today the complexity of a CAL application derives from the inclusion of the following modules: Computer Based Training, Computer Managed Instruction and Computer Managed Learning. Computer Assisted Learning or Aided Learning

Computer Based Training

Computer Managed Instruction

Computer Managed Learning

Figure 1 : Overview of the concepts related to a CAL application

4.4.3) Computer Based Training Computer Based Training (CBT) is a method of teaching using a computer as an instructional system. The approach is the same as CAL, but the area of learning is restricted to a well-defined training project. This type of education, in which the user learns by executing special learning programs on a computer, is especially effective for training people to use computer applications because CBT is gaining wider acceptance due to the added advantages of the multimedia components. The growing number of microcomputers, and especially the growing prevalence of computers equipped with CD-ROMs, and now with integrated modems as well, is making CBT a real option for educational co-operation among people. Companies, but also individuals, have discovered that CBT permits more rapid learning and better results, compared to other kinds of training, without changing geographical location. Another advantage is the ability to change the contents and the data of CBT at a distance without changing the programming.


13


_________________________________________________________

• • • •

CBT is filled with many acronyms such as: TBT (Technology Based Training) CBE (Computer Based Education) CBL (Computer Based Learning) CBI (Computer Based Instruction)

All of the above are synonyms and refer to a CBT concept. They are used to reflect the emphasis of the producer/author. For example, CBE is used to emphasise education; CBL to highlight learning; TBT to emphasise technology. Sometimes, inside a CBT application (module) we can find 3 different components called: • CAI (Computer Assisted Instruction) • CMI (Computer Managed Instruction) • CSLR (Computer Supported Learning Resources)

Computer Assisted Learning or Aided Learning

Computer Based Training

Computer Assisted Instruction

Computer Managed Instruction

Computer Managed Learning

Computer Supported Learning Resources

Figure 2 : Diagram presenting the concepts included in a CBT application We will now look more attentively at these components.

4.4.4) Computer Assisted Instruction Computer Assisted Instruction (CAI) aids the instructional process. The implementation of a CAI application is organised around one or more of the following 6 modes: • tutorial • drill, review and practice • instructional games • modelling • simulation • problem-solving


14


_________________________________________________________

Computer Managed Instruction (CMI) is the use of the computer to manage the learner’s progress in courseware. CMI involves each of the following 3 modes: • testing • prescription • record-keeping The learner’s performances are recorded by the system and new instructional modules are delivered with respect to the results of the user’s capacities. Computer Supported Learning Resources (CSLR) is designed to provide access to information employed by the user in the learning process according to one or more of the following 4 modes: • databases • telecommunications • expert systems • hypermedia 4.4.5) Computer Managed Instruction With Computer Managed Instruction (CMI), the computer is used to manage the learner’s progress in courseware. This module is the same as described above (cf. supra). Thus, CMI may be a module composing a CAL, or included in the CBT program itself. It is composed of a more sophisticated program, in terms of the management of the learner's progress, than a simple CBT program. The learner’s performances are recorded by the system, and new modules of instruction are delivered with respect to the results of the user’s capacities. Generally a CMI program is composed of: • a group of lessons (the curriculum) (developed in the CBT program); • a group of specific training lessons (tests based on the curriculum); • a delivery interface for the lessons (the same as developed in the CBT program); and • a specific interface for testing and recording the user’s progress. 4.4.6) Computer Assisted Learning Computer Managed Learning (CML) has almost the same use as CMI but with additional emphasis on providing help dependent upon the responses of the learner. Some versions of CML can build a detailed learning profile for each user. It functions as an instructional technology and includes all forms of learning applications within an overall administrative framework. This framework allows the user to interact with such tasks as enrollment, unit selection, provision of study materials, evaluation and feedback. The system manages all aspects of the educational process, which is primarily concerned, with the delivery of specific forms of instruction. CML is management-oriented and it is able to control each aspect of an educational program. It can guide learners through a complete course. For example, for each user involved in a course CML can: • select different units;


15


_________________________________________________________

• • • •

guide the user through the units; provide details about the units; check and file progress; and build a detailed learning profile for each user.

The rapid development of the Internet has facilitated not only speedy communication among people, but also data transfer and new forms of information distribution via computers all over the world. With the expansion of the World Wide Web, CAL has become permanently accessible to everyone connected to the Internet. Within this new environment, CAL, and especially CBT, change progressively in a Web Based Training application.

4.4.7) Computer Based Training Web Based Training (WBT) is educational individualized instruction delivered over public or private computer networks and displayed by a Web browser. WBT is stored on a server and accessed across a network. It can be very quickly updated, and the training provider controls access to the training. With this type of learning, users can work on their own at home or at the office and communicate with the instructor or other learners via e-mail, electronic forums, video-conferencing and other forms of computer-based communication. WBT becomes a veritable online distant learning reference. Remote learning is more and more popular especially with companies needing to regularly retrain their employees. Hence, WBT is less expensive than bringing together the employees in a traditional classroom setting. Most distant learning programs include computerbased training (CBT) as well as communications tools to produce a virtual classroom. Because the Internet and the World Wide Web are accessible from nearly all computer platforms, they serve as the foundation for many remote learning systems.

4.5) The Development Process of CBT and WBT Applications 4.5.1) Introduction The success of an application (CAL, CBT or WBT) depends on the achievement of different steps of the development process from conception to implementation and evaluation. The development process is linked to the Instructional System Design (ISD). ISD is a formal process for conceiving and designing training, whether computer-based or traditional instructor-led training. The ISD process, as applied to CAL, CBT and WBT, necessitates: • a comprehensive analysis of needs and users; • a graphical interface design and content study (including flowcharts, storyboards, and evaluation procedures); • the development of an application prototype based on a specific courseware; • the complete implementation which is based on the previous steps; and • usability testing and effectiveness evaluation. A brief presentation of each step follows.


16


_________________________________________________________

4.5.2) Analysis of User Needs This analysis determines what users should accomplish with CAL, CBT and WBT applications. Several needs analysis should be undertaken: a) A first analysis should define in detail the learner’s needs and satisfactory results. Typical questions are: -What will be the specific outcome of the project? -Will it replace or supplement existing training? -Does the user learn a larger information system? -How much will this project cost? b) A second analysis should show how to structure the applications in order to meet the user’s needs. Typical questions are: -What exactly does the learner need to know? -Should training improve skills, knowledge and/or attitudes? -What components of an information system should be accessible to the user? -What are the ranges of existing computer skills and educational levels of the target users? c) A third analysis should determine the learner’s computer and technical resources in order to establish baseline technical capabilities. From this technical analysis the technological "toolbox" can be defined. The instructional designer will then plan the course or performance support system to take advantage of technological capabilities in an instructionally sound way. Typical questions are: -What kind of computer software/hardware do you have? -Could you get access to better software/hardware? -Could you join an institution to take advantage of their computer resources? -Do you plan to buy more computer equipment?

4.5.3) Content and Graphical Interface Study This is one of the most critical phases of the development process. The user’s graphical interface must provide all the features needed for the learner to navigate through the application as intuitively and transparently as possible. Ergonomics and comprehensive design should lead to an interface that provides features allowing the user to control the learning process. The user analysis should help to define the range of the learner’s computer experience so that the interface designer may choose design elements most appropriate for the target learners. Interface designers define metaphors and the interface intended to support those metaphors, and if necessary, to mesh with established graphics standards. They must establish a visual chart on which visual choices are specified: colors, fonts, graphics, photos, animations, and by extension, all representative forms of the multimedia objects needed in the application.


17


18

_________________________________________________________

Size Font

Color

External Files

Texte Style Graphics Animation Voice Music Video Table representing the different parts of the visual chart to be controlled The success of CAL relies increasingly on the relation among users, the computer and the ergonomics of the interface of an application. The ergonomics of the system should take into account interactivity as one of its major components. In this sense, the interface should become more convivial, allowing the user to easily navigate through the system following the learning process. This adequation is directly related to the level of the user’s motivation. Thus, the interface designer must also consider the cognitive and pedagogical aspects of the application. Interface features must be regarded in terms of: • the type of links (hyper-textual and hypermedia relations); and • the choice of visual but metaphorical representations (images, icons, animations, etc.). The best means to have a general idea of these features is to develop a flowchart and a storyboard for each project. The interface designer must understand the complex, non-linear way in which learners will use the product. The interface must be tested directly by end-users in order to adjust its components. The flow-line and storyboard will help him to understand the interactivity. The project’s flowchart is a stylized representation of its structure. Rectangles and arrays seem to be the most popular and facile representations of the future application.

Introduction

Module1

Module1 Detailed Structure

Module2

Module2 Detailed Structure

Figure 3: Example of a simple flowchart The storyboard is a simple visual representation of the different screens that will be included in the application. Its purpose is to visualize how the story and the interactivity will flow. The environment, the objects and the interactivity of the


Internet Files


_________________________________________________________

application are represented. The storyboard is helpful for every project: it lets you know what will happen in each frame, when and where user input can and/or should happen and what type of content will need to be developed. Generally, it comes after the schematized representation of the flowchart. The storyboard can be represented on paper or in presentation software such as MS Powerpoint, for example.

W e l c o m e s c r e e n

M

o d u l e 1 M

o le 1d

P r e s e n t a t i o n

M o d u l e 2

M

o d u l e 3

u

Figure 4 : Example of a simple storyboard The content study will determine all technical standards including requisite software, bandwidth limitations, settings, file naming conventions, technical details required by the interface, and tools for site maintenance, server compatibility and internal and external security (in the case of WBT). An overview of the prior analysis, the objectives, and the instructional design must be provided.

4.5.4) Development of an Application Prototype A template based on the tested interface and the instructional designs must be prepared. This template takes into account the courseware structure and includes blank pages with pre-positioned and coded navigational controls. The template may also include a library of models of interactive screen designs. Afterwards, the components of the template will be duplicated and expanded by the team of developers. The template has another very important use: it is tested on end-users in order to control and evaluate the adequation between the objectives and the realization. Development phases of a courseware will now be discussed in more detail. A CAL application is developed following the integration of several programs and data. This content is also well known as "courseware". Commonly, we can define a standard model which describes the phases in a CAL courseware development as follows: a) Specification by the author(s): - specification of the objectives of the project; - specification of the curricula developed in the product; - specification of the requisite technological tools; - specification of the final users. b) Discussion of the detailed data among author(s), designer(s), programmer(s), expert(s):


19


20

_________________________________________________________

- about the visual chart used; - about the various kinds of media used; - about the interactivity; - about the interface. c) Structure and implementation of the pilot project: - multimedia data acquisition; - authoring structure; - integration of the data in the program structure. d) Test of the pilot project by users e) First evaluation of the product f) Final implementation g) Distribution h) Maintenance and updating. This standard model focuses on two different types of working chains: • technical/technological—composed of CAL tools; and • human interaction—composed of authors, designers (programmers/experts) and users.

Product (Pilot & final product)

Chain

Interaction

Authors Human

Authoring software

Designers

Chain

& Technological

Technical

Package of different multimedia softwares

Learners/ users

Figure 5 : Actors involved in a CAL courseware

4.5.6) Implementation of the Application Domain experts and designers have to work together in order to structure the content of the application and to model the knowledge domain according to the target learner. The content is presented in informational units structured in a courseware.

Designers prepare storyboards on the basis of which screens may be programmed. With the advent of WYSIWYG pages in authoring tools, they can prepare rough screens until the programming is adapted. Based on the storyboards, media specialists create the product’s content: texts, graphics, films, animations,



_________________________________________________________

music, databases, including specific file formats developed for Web applications such as Shockwave, Active X or Java. The chosen media must conform to the standards specified in the design document and be fully compatible with the interface. When a CBT is adapted to a WBT, the content must be formatted in an HTML document. Elements are directly placed on a template page copy using a WYSIWYG editor. HTML converters can be used to automate the document construction process. Since this step has become such an easy process, programmers are not necessarily needed. Server technology is required for creating dynamic documents, performance tracking, student record-keeping and security measures. Documents which include dynamic information (feature lists, WBT, various educational statuses, etc.) offer rich, timely information to the learner. The WBT application may need to log usage and track student performance. A programmer can write common gateway interface (CGI) scripts that perform these tasks and adapt sophisticated interactions, graphic simulations, self-contained applications ("applets") with Java coding. In some cases, JavaScript or some other scripting technology will be adequate and appropriate. In other cases, Shockwave and/or ActiveX content will suffice or be quicker to develop. In the case of Web distribution, a project site manager can take control early in the project in order to establish procedures for everyone to follow in supplying and maintaining project files. Today, many site management tools are available to help the project site manager control the files. Once the project files are placed on the server, the programmer has to configure the server for: • content types used; • monitor courseware/performance system usage, maintain user accounts or access privileges; • maintain supporting databases; and • monitor and update external hyperlinks. 4.5.7) Usability Testing and Effectiveness Evaluation Ongoing testing and evaluation will point out unforeseen weaknesses in the training product. It may become necessary to redesign individual pages or segments of content if the content becomes outdated and if new information is available. Usability issues should have been addressed completely during initial testing of the interface, but added features or content may require interface modification and new testing. The advantages of a Web-based system will become evident during this last phase as updates become easier and faster to implement than with traditional, customized training applications and information systems.

4.6) Existing Authoring Technologies and Tools 4.6.1) Introduction Before discussing in a more detailed form the working environments of Authorware and Director - the two most popuar authoring tools for developing interactive educational applications, a very short presentation of the major commercially available tools will be given. The aim of this presentation is to provide


21


_________________________________________________________

a general picture of the technological market relevant for people (teachers and authors) interested to use specific tools for creating CBT and/or WBT training programs. Authoring technologies and tools enable an author (here : a teacher) to create interactive educational multimedia applications. That means linking together various types of files such as text, graphic, animation, and sound. But they also help an author to define and realize specific relationships between those files and, in case of a more sophisticated interactive application, the relationships between the application and the learner using a scripting language. Sometimes the term of “scripting language” can alarm authors who are not specialists in programming. But it is important do not confuse scripting language and programming language. Even the distinction between these two terms is not clear, you must always keep on your mind authoring tools have been developed with the intention of helping authors. They don’t require high technical knowledge. But they require a good methodology, a good preparation of the different objects composing the application and a clear planning of the interactivities developed in the system. A scripting language is an authoring method and tool which controls the multimedia elements themselves and specifies action and interaction such as: • elaborates questions and answers • tests and evaluation, • interactive animation, • interactive game, and • all kind of stimuli, between the system and the learner. All authoring tools are made up of pre-programmed elements made for the development of multimedia application. They vary one another in their H/M interface, their interactivity and learning capacities. Usually they are represented by metaphorical elements which help the author to build your program. Authors don’t need to know the wheels of the scripting language but, of course, they need to know how the software works. As already said before, the most important thing is to prepare the story-board of your program and to build a first prototype. This first step will help you to select, digitize, organize and work on your composing objects. A methodology is required to accomplish the tasks and create the links in a right way. Generally speaking, the author has to do the following tasks: • • •

organize the multimedia elements on a basic grid or on a flow line, add special effects, timing, colors palettes, transition, synchronization, and scripts either on the grid or the flow line or directly as an attached plus on the checked elements, check and compile his/her « program ».

Most of authoring tools works on a paradigm constituted by scripting, score and cast, links, cards, frames… and it is up to the author to select the most adapted product compared with your technological knowledge and the purpose of his/her application.


22


_________________________________________________________

4.6.2

List of some commercially available authoring tools

•

Authorware (Macromedia), IconAuthor (Asymetrix), CourseBuilder (Discovery Systems International) have been created to save author’s time and are optimized in computer-based training (CBT). The working environment of these products is composed of a set of icons and a flow line. Inside icons can be placed all the multimedia objects and all kind of interactions and effects. The flow line intends for visualize the links between the icons. The last Authorware version (Authorware 5.0 attain only for PC) seems to « deliver significant enhancements in rich-media support, authoring productivity, web authoring and delivery and, student tracking and course management ». Thanks to these enhancements Authorware aims to become not only a good multimedia authoring product but also a real internet authoring tool.

•

Apple Media Kit (Apple) is quite similar to the above mentioned products but the links between the icons are not always represented by the flow line. It is a fast developing system but not so sophisticated than the others. However it is a good product for the creation of CD Rom applications.

•

HyperCard (Apple), Hyperstudio (Roger Wagner Publishing), MetaCard (Matecard) functions according to a card scripting structure that is especially adapted to create hypertext applications. This software allows all objects to be scripted.

•

Director (Macromedia) is based on the theater metaphor, it uses cast, score and scripting. Multimedia objects are shown on a grid composing the scenario of the application. Sophisticated interactivities are directly programmed by the included object-based scripting language Lingo.

In the chapter 4.7 and chapter 4.8, the working environment of Authorware and Director will be presented in more details. Thiese two tools can be considered to be representative for the whole range of authoring tools which, in fact, do not vary so dramatically. Like the important variety of commercially available HTML editors and text processors, also the authoring tools for the production of interactive educational applications share a wide range of common services and functions provided, in general, by a highly appealing and intuitively clear working interface.

4.7) CBT and WBT Applications Development with Authorware 4.7.1) About Macromedia Macromedia's products are aimed at Web designers, consumers and enterprises; they offer a complete new generation of Internet tools and technologies designed for the Web. Headquartered in San Francisco, Macromedia (NASDAQ: MACR) has more than 550 employees worldwide and is available on the Internet at http://www.macromedia.com. This company has broadened its traditional reach


23


_________________________________________________________

beyond shrink-wrapped software to include systems and servers focusing on Web Publishing and Web Learning.

4.7.2) About Authorware Authorware is increasingly becoming a leading tool in interactive design and digital publishing. The two last versions of Authorware (versions 4 and 5 Attain) deliver significant enhancements in Rich Media support, authoring productivity, Web authoring and delivery, student tracking and course management. Authorware provides enhanced support for Rich Media, lowers the development costs, extends learning programs to remote offices and field personnel, and simplifies the management and tracking of students and results. The new features of Authorware 5 Attain take advantage of the broadest range of Rich Media to deliver highly interactive learning applications, including support for QuickTime 3.0, Flash™ animations, anti-aliased text, and new graphic effects through alpha channels. To decrease development time and costs, Authorware features Knowledge Objects™, which helps new authors design courses with pre-built learning interactions. Users access drag-and-drop Knowledge Objects from a visual gallery and then, guided by wizards, fill in content. Experienced authors can create custom Knowledge Objects to record their best learning interactions for use by subject matter experts and novice authors. Organisations benefit from a streamlined production process. Authorware also provides features such as batch editing and media import/export that reduce complex tasks to a single step. Authorware features Knowledge Stream™ for compression and streaming of learning applications. Bolstered by a server technology called Authorware Advanced Streamer™, Knowledge Stream optimises complex multimedia courses for fast, accurate delivery over 28.8 modems. Authorware 5 Attain supports the industry-leader’s Voxwareª voice compression, allowing organisations to add audio to low bandwidth learning applications. Internet authoring enhancements include the ability to call on JavaScript and a Real Networks RealSystem Serverª, further extending Authorware’s capabilities for deploying Web-based learning. To measure training results and effectiveness, Authorware provides Knowledge Track™, which enables automatic tracking between courses and Pathware 3 - Attain Enterprise Learning Essentials. Knowledge Track allows the seamless integration of both Authorware 5 Attain and Dreamweaver Attain for creating, delivering and managing learning courses and tracking results to help guide business decisions.

4.7.3) Presentation of the Authorware Environment 4.7.3.1) The General Interface When the application is launched, the main components of the Authorware interface can be seen on the screen.


24


_________________________________________________________

Figure : Overview of the general interface The Authorware’s interface is composed of 5 main elements: • a menu bar • a tool bar • an icon palette • a design window • a presentation window Note: Only the presentation window is hidden. It becomes visible during the program’s run.

•

The menu bar

As in much software, the menu bar is located at the top of the window. It permits access and control of various commands such as: • opening new files • opening existing files • saving files • searching files • copying and pasting • opening windows


25


_________________________________________________________

•

The tool bar

The tool bar is located below the menu bar. It has a set of buttons. Some of these buttons repeat the same actions as already seen on the menu bar such as: opening and saving files or cutting, copying and pasting. These buttons function as visual shortcuts. The other buttons provide the opening of internal command windows such as: • control panel window • functions window • variables window • help window •

The icon palette

The icon palette presents a set of icons on which multimedia objects and functions are developed. To build an application, simply drag selected icons on the flowline (in the design window). Each icon controls one aspect of the application: texts, graphics, sounds, animations, interactivity, etc.The content of each icon can be seen and worked on in the presentation window. •

The design window The design window is the working environment. It is used to access all icons and menu commands. It is the main window of the implementation enabling content to be added and edited and interactivity and relationships among icons to be defined.


26


_________________________________________________________

Figure: Overview of the design window •

The presentation window As previously stated, the presentation window is the only hidden part of the software. It is visible during the run of a program. For example, to preview the program run in its final form, switch to the presentation window. The presentation window is similar to the stage on a Director application.

Figure: Overview of the presentation window


27


_________________________________________________________

4.7.3.2) Description of the main elements composing the developer interface The developer’s interface of Authorware basically presents: • a flowline representing the timeline of a WBT (CBT) project; • a set of icons that must be placed on the flowchart; and • a set of functions.

A) The flowline

Figure: Overview of the flowline with icons The flowline is a "line" where some icons containing the objects and the functions needed to run the application can simply be "dragged and dropped”. It is the core of the software and its architecture may be elaborate. Traditionally, the components of an application are represented visually using rectangles, lines and arrows to connect them to a flowchart. The flowchart is the graphic representation used to map out the structure of a program by showing connections between components and process. It helps to organize ideas about how to assemble the application’s content into various elements. That is why it is helpful to begin a project by mapping out the structure of the program.


28


_________________________________________________________

Introduction Opening screen

Enter in the First Module

Enter in the Second Module

Enter in the Third Module

Development through the First module

Development through the Second module

Development through the Third module

Figure : Diagram representing an example of a flowchart on paper The process of construction used in the Authorware flowline principle is very similar to the process used to diagram the flowchart on paper. The diagram must be translated as follows: • rectangles as icons • lines and arrows as flowline

Flowline Enter in the first module Development of the first module

Enter in the second module Development of the second module

Enter in the third module Development of the third module

Figure : Same diagram as above translated into a schematized representation of the flowline


29


_________________________________________________________

Understanding the visual process of joining icons on the flowline is the first step in learning to use Authorware.

B) The set of icons The icons are regrouped on an icon palette (cf. supra) located on the left side of the screen. These are the software tools. The whole content of the program— multimedia components as well as scripting components—are integrated in one icon and placed on the flowline in order to implement the program. Each icon has a well-defined action. 1.The display icon

This icon allows graphics and texts to be presented. Texts and images can be created by Authorware or can be imported from other files. 2.The motion icon

This icon is used to animate objects across the screen. The animation can be simple or sophisticated according to a dialog box, which describes some pre-designated paths. 3.The erase icon This icon allows the content of a display icon during interactivity necessitating a screen change to be virtually “erased”, with or without a transition. 4.The wait icon It permits a pause or wait presentation for a specific function during an action. 5.The navigate icon This icon allows the user to navigate through the contents; to link some contents attached to a framework icon, to search specific pieces of texts or keywords and to control some specific navigational properties. 6.The framework icon It is used to create the main navigation structure of the program. It controls navigation and paging and can be used to manage different resources.


30


_________________________________________________________

7.The decision icon This icon sets up some decision options directly evaluated and executed on the flowline. For example, paths and choices for the users can be predefined; random elements can be added; specific paths following a user’s action can be created, etc. 8.The interaction icon It allows any kind of interactivity in the program to be created. 9.The calculation icon This icon is used to build scripts in the program. Expressions, variables, functions and all kinds of calculations can be created through a dialog box included in this icon. 10.The map icon This icon allows the program to be organized and structured by breaking up the flowline into smaller groups. For example, a group of icons dedicated to a specific action can be placed in the same map icon. This useful manipulation allows the creation of models. These models can then be regrouped in a behavior library, which contains predetermined animations or scripts. 11.The movie icon This icon is used to control all film and animation files imported in the program. 12.The sound icon This icon is used to control all digitized sound files imported in the program. 13.The video icon It is used to control the sequences of a video file from an external source. 14.The start and stop flags

These two little flags allow a specific part of the program to be chosen and run without starting at the beginning of the program. The start flag marks the starting point of the sequence; and the stop flag, the stopping point of the sequence. 15.The icon color palette


31


_________________________________________________________

This icon is used to obtain a good visual representation of icons on the flowline and to apply colors on selected icons.

C) Set of functions The Authorware scripting functions are accessible: • through a set of s pecific icons included in the icon palette, and • from specific commands located in the menu bar à window. The following icons are directly involved in the functions: • navigate • decision • framework • interaction • calculation Click on these icons to open dialog boxes:

•

Navigate icon dialog box

This dialog box is used to create links and hyperlinks through the icon, to link icon elements with external files.


32


_________________________________________________________

•

Decision icon dialog box

This dialog box enables some specific paths to be set up which Authorware can evaluate and execute automatically. •

Framework icon dialog box

This dialog box organizes the navigation structure. It contains some built-in controls that create navigation management.


33


_________________________________________________________

•

Interaction icon dialog box

This dialog box enables the creation of the major interactivity inside the application.

•

Calculation icon dialog box

The calculation icon contains several built-in scripting tools, which can be used to control many objects of the application. These scripts offer the possibility of controlling interactivity, relations between icons and information contained in icons. Here the dialog box is a blank window allowing scripting expressions to be written directly. Expressions work together with functions and variables. These three scripting components enable a sophisticated application to be created. They generally are introduced in the application through the calculation icon. Functions and variables dialog boxes accessible via the menu bar à window - Functions Functions perform tasks. They enable texts, files, icons, structures, etc., to be manipulated. Different categories of tasks can be chosen directly through the function dialog box, but external functions can also perform tasks in an Authorware application.


34


_________________________________________________________

For example: EraseAll is a function which will erase the entire contents of a presentation window.

Figure 13: Overview of the function dialog box

- Variables A variable is composed of a value. This value can be simple or very complicated. It depends on the degree of interactivity. Authorware provides a set of variables that can be accessed through the menu bar à window à variable when one is needed. There is also the possibility of creating custom variables. Authorware will interpret the variable based on how it has been used. For example: ObjectMoved is a variable employed when the user wishes to move an object in order to interact with this object in a display icon.

Figure 14 : Overview of the variable dialog box


35


_________________________________________________________

4.7.4) How to manage content with Authorware Open the software, and begin to work on the design window. This is the “canvas” of the structure. The flow-line, still empty, appears. By placing the various icons on it, the content of the structure can be organised. For these manipulations, it is very important to work out the project on paper according to the steps described in Part 2.2. Go to the icon palette, select an icon and drag it onto the flow-line. Name the icon in order to organise the work, and begin to “fill” the icon with the program’s content. The figure below gives a concrete example of this first manipulation. The first icon chosen is a display icon that allows the display of graphics and text. An erase icon follows in order to make a transition in the progression of the program. Do not forget to name each icon used to help organise the program.

Figure: Concrete example of a first manipulation

Creating an application with Auhorware necessitates some preliminary steps. The table below summarises the steps to take in order to optimise the implementation. Thinking out a project

Beginning the implementation

* Think before starting an application. * Plan a good flowchart on paper. * Discuss the visual chart with designers; * Discuss the domain studied with experts. * Analyse the target and the level of technology used by the target. • Try to anticipate the problems of interactivity, tests, etc. • * Try to have ready: -all multimedia objects, -external files and resources. √ Structure the icons on the flow-line.


36


_________________________________________________________

√ Work with each multimedia object: text, graphics, video, animation, sounds, etc. √ Set up the properties of each content in the icons. √ Manage the content. Work with models, libraries and extended files. √ Try to create small reusable structures. √ Create the elements of basic interaction and set up responses to them. √ Create sophisticated interactivity elements and set up responses to them. √ Create the functions and variables used in the application: scripts, built-in expressions, updated data. √ Design navigation links and hyperlinks among objects included in the icons and the icons themselves. √ Verify the correct use and performance of the icons on the flowline. √ Organize the user’s track. √ Prepare the program according to the final platform and delivery medium.

4.8) Educational Multimedia Applications Development with Director 4.8.1)

About Director Cie

Director of Macromedia Company is one of the most popular softwares entirely dedicated to the creation of interactive educational multimedia applications. The principles of Director are based on a classic audiovisual product metaphor like the production of a movie. This means that each basis components of Director refers to the ideas of a real movie production and composition. In fact, the working environment of Director includes: • scenario, • script, • actors, • scene, and • post-production effects like sounds, special pictures, etc. The author is supposed to play the role of the producer. So here again the best way to manage your work is to know exactly the goals and the elements of which your application is made of. Director provides an integrated environment for scripting development and creative production, its programming language is approachable for non-computer specialists –simple computer experience is a minimal required- it eliminates compilation cycles and it provides complete integration for a delivery on « classic


37


_________________________________________________________

multimedia products » such as CD-Rom, CD-I, Interactive Kiosks and on Internet/Intranet. We will see more precisely the Director’s components in developping the tasks and phases of an educational application example.

4.8.2)

The general interface of Director

The basic scenery rested on the «score window». It is the core of a program in Director composed by « frames » and « channels ».

Picture: Overview on the score window « Frames » correspond to movie’s takes and follow one another in a rising chronological order. « Channels » are similar to layers and are stacked one another within a same frame. Channels are also used to provided extra-effects such as post-production elements on a real movie. The following special channels can be found on the grid : • the tempo channel, which controls the movie speed • the palette color channel which holds customs color palette for each frame, • the transition channel which predefined the transition between the sceneries • two sound channels on which two different sound files can be place in order to controls musics, sounds and voice-over, and • script channel where lingo scripts can be placed.

All the components that compose an application are grouped together in the «Cast members» window. Cast members can be revisited in term of multimedia sounds, text, video, images,… they all play a role in the product and they must be placed on the stage. All kind of files must be found here.


38


_________________________________________________________

Picture: Overview on the cast members The cast member window is a kind of database and group all the components describe above. Texts and static 2-D and 3-D images, various types of sounds, quicktime movie, a Director application, animated pictures and internal elements such as texts and images composing directly in the software. Of course some format must be respected. Director allows the following format : Static images Multiple images Animated images and videos Sounds

BMP, GIF, PICT, , JPG, LRG, Photoshop, MacPaint, PNG, TIFF, PICS, Photo CD, PCX, WMF, Postscript FCL, FLI Quicktime, AVI, MPEG, Director. AIFF, AIC, WAV, Quicktime, and IMA (windows)

The «stage» is the «working file» in the window of your computer screen. If cast members perform a specific behaviour on the stage they are called «sprites». You can directly put on the stage all the cast members by a simple drag and drop. Sprites share all of the cast members attributes and they can also have their own.

Figure: Overview on the stage


39


_________________________________________________________

Stage must be actionned by a control panel

Figure : view of the control panel Additional elements such as texts and static images and supplementary interactivity fields, can be created inside the software by the use of the floating tool palette.

Figure: view of the floating palette In this way, you can develop a Director animation following step-by-step the storyboard you have previously drawn up. Notice that the final file Director containing your application is called a movie.

4.8.3)

The scripting language: Lingo

Lingo scripts control cast members of the movie. Lingo is plain english authoring language for new « authors » It is used to create user interfaces, provide precise control of animations, organize the thousands of elements in multimedia production. The syntax is simple, for example: if expression then if expression then else if expression then end if


40


_________________________________________________________

the backColor of member whichCastMember end

It is composed of more then 500 statements types, which are divided into a number of categories such as: •

handlers,

• • • • • • •

commands, functions, properties, keywords, operators, constants and variables.

All of these categories are combined in lingo statements. A lingo statement is any combination of those elements that occupy a complete line of code.

Figure : Overview of the various lingo script windows, filed as functions of the script.


41

Chapter 4 Pedagogical models, methodologies and tools in web ...

Chapter 4 Pedagogical models, methodologies and tools in web ...

Suggest Documents