The Learning Online Network with CAPA (LON-CAPA) Gerd Kortemeyer,

1. The LearningOnline Network with CAPA (LON-CAPA) Gerd Kortemeyer, Wolfgang Bauer, Deborah Kashy, Edwin Kashy, Cheryl Speier Michigan State University

2. The Team(Fall 2000)

3. What is LON-CAPA? LON-CAPA stands for LearningOnline Network with a Computer-Assisted Personalized Approach. developed and implemented by a group of faculty and professionals provides instructors with a common, scalable platform to assist in all aspects of teaching a course, from lecture preparation to administration of homework assignments and exams “Distributed Learning Content Management and Assessment System”

4. “Distributed” LON-CAPA is built as a geographically distributed network of constantly connected servers

5. “Distributed”: Domains The network is logically divided into domains such as “MSU”, “FSU” or “Publisher X” Domains limit the flow of user information Domains can limit access to content resources Domains limit the extent of user privileges

6. “Distributed”: Users Users can log into any machines in the network Users can access courses/resources from anywhere on the network under one username Users can have roles and associated privileges for any resources, data, and functionality on the network

7. “Learning Content Management” Allows instructors to create educational materials and to share such learning resources with colleagues across departments and institutions All instructional content goes into cross-institutional shared repository and is cataloged LON-CAPA provides online tool, “Resource Assembly Tool” (RAT), to combine content into Custom Online Course Pack

8. “Learning Content Management” Pages can be constructed from fragments and other pages Sequences can be constructed from fragments, pages, and other sequences Courses point to (top-level) sequences Maps at every level are simply other content resources

9. “Learning Content Management” Graphical resource assembly tool (RAT) to construct maps Working on branching based on conditions using performance data, course data, and preferences Individualized curriculum

10. “Content Management”: Handlers Every resource in the system, both content and system programs, is called by URL – all resources can be bookmarked. Any resource can be processed on-the-fly while being delivered to the user. User calls for a resource, LON-CAPA finds appropriate chain of handlers, processes resource for desired target, and sends it out. Chain of handlers can also cover several transactions. Example: user calls for URL, but needs to login first and then pick course. All handlers can interact with session environment

11. “Content Management”: Document-driven processing sample.xml Uses my.style my.style Defines tags for targets triggers Example: user calls for sample.xml loads Target XML Handler Session Environment Prefe- rences User

12. “Content Management”: XML/MathML/HTML XML handler provides rendering of XML and HTML to targets XML, HTML, MathML, and LaTeX Math rendering capability: LaTeX can be inserted into HTML and XML documents between <m> and </m> tags. <h1>Identity</h1><img src=“circle.gif” align=“right”> The <i>identity</i> <m>$\sin^2(\omega t)+ \cos^2(\omega t)=1$</m> allows us to… Math fragments are rendered into symbol fonts for target HTML, and MathML for MathML-capable browsers using a derivative of tth/ttm.

13. “Content Management”: LaTeX LaTeX files can be directly put onto the file system, and will be automatically handled as if they had one large <m>…</m> around them

14. “Individualized Assessment” Individualized problems: different numbers, different graphs, different options, … “Classical” online homework types: multiple choice, option response, mix-and-match, string, etc “STEM” types: numerical, multicomponent numerical, physical units, symbolic math, individualized simulations Combination of the above types Adaptive immediate feedback Multiple attempts

15. “Individualized Assessment” Example: Individualized graph, numerical answer

16. “Individualized Assessment” Example: Individualized labels, options

17. “Individualized Assessment” Example: Multicomponent numerical with individualized animation

18. Data Structure: Resource parameters Deadlines, open dates, publish-answer dates, maximum number of attempts, weight of problem parts, etc, can be independently set for courses, sections and individual students Can cover all resources, one map, or only one resource Resources publish their parameters in metadata, no predefined set of parameters

19. Data Structure: Assessment data Only raw data is stored All attempts are stored Data is stored in non-randomized form to allow for item analysis LON-CAPA provides spreadsheet functionality with sheets at assessment, user, and course level (exporting into each other) to calculate grades and statistics

20. Resource Pool 5966 homework/exam problems4971 gif or jpg files 150 movies 180 java applets2986 html content pages1853 bio resources from HHMI grant project

21. Communication • Email course/sections • Chatroom • Bulletin Boards • Autothreaded discussion of every resource • Syllabus • Cummulative Calendar Tool • “About Me” tool • Document Upload (PowerPoint, Word, etc)

22. Other Features Standard Features of Learning Content Management System Chatroom Syllabus Cummulative Calendar Tool “About Me” tool Document Upload (PowerPoint, Word, etc) “On-the-fly” course maps and documents Online Contextual Help Color-Scheme/Logo Domain Customization

23. Some of the History

24. 1992 CAPA Started by Ed Kashy et al. in Cyclotron Individualized assessment system for science and math Immediate feedback, multiple tries - mastery based Used paper copies of assignments and terminal input X-Windows problem editing Got Web student interface in 95

25. 1997 LectureOnline Started by Wolfgang Bauer, Walt Benenson, Gary Westfall, and Gerd Kortemeyer in Cyclotron Learning content management and individualized assessment system for science and math Sharing of content between courses Completely web-based interface

26. 1999 LON-CAPA The LearningOnline Network with CAPA Collaboration of CAPA and LectureOnline groups “The best of both worlds” Sharing of content between courses and institutions Reusability of content on different levels of granularity Distributed and Scalable

27. Who are the users (at MSU)?

28. Who uses it? Students(“It”: CAPA, LectureOnline, LON-CAPA family)

29. Who uses it? Students

30. Who uses it? Courses

31. Who uses it? Faculty

32. How is it used? Material written by faculty teaching course or “re-used” from other faculty Homework in addition to “traditional” lecture and textbook “Traditional” lecture, homework and textbook online VU courses AP courses Prelab quizzes In-class exercises

33. The Project “Investigation of a Model for Online Resource Creation and Sharing in Education Settings” Uses LON-CAPA as model system Five year project, funded by the National Science Foundation Information Technology Research Program

34. The Project: Research Goals Open source code development concept for Instructional Management System Pooling online educational resources between departments, colleges, universities and schools Business models for “trading” such resources on small level of granularity Business models for services and support Metrics for resource quality and effectiveness Curriculum adaptivity to learner types and remediation needs

35. The Project: Pilot Users, Boards Pilot users: 6 high schools, 2 community colleges, 1 four year college, 12 universities Business advisory board: McGraw-Hill, Saunders, Wiley, Freeman/Worth, Dell, RedHat, Apex Learning, university representatives Three member Evaluation Board Seven high school teachers in 2 Research Experience for Teachers (RET) supplements

36. Dissemination IEEE/ASEE “Best Paper Awards” an der Frontiers in Education Conference (1997, 1998, 2000), Ben Dasher Award (1998), Wickenden Award (1999) Nominated: ComputerWorld Honors Award

37. The Project: National STEM Digital Library Supplement to cross-integrate LON-CAPA with NSF National STEM Digital Library NSDL available to LON-CAPA as content domain LON-CAPA resource pool available in NSDL as associated library LON-CAPA can be used as course delivery tool for NSDL content

38. LON-CAPA and OKI?

39. Conferences and Workshops First user meetings with 50 faculty from other universities at MSU Second user meeting at Florida State University with 56 faculty from 22 institutions Next user meeting at Truckee Meadows Community College, Reno Two programmer Workshops (approx 20 participants) at MSU in Summer

40. Status: Installations in “Production Cluster” High Schools Mio AuSable High School - Mio, Michigan Charlotte High School - Charlotte, Michigan Fowlerville High School - Fowlerville. Michigan Theodore Roosevelt High School - Wyandotte, Michigan Lansing School District East Lansing Public Schools Community Colleges Westshore Community College - Scottsville, Michigan Truckee Meadows Community College - Reno, Nevada

41. Status: Installationsin “Production Cluster” Universities (department level) Ohio University SUNY Stony Brook Florida State University University of South Carolina George Washington University University of Central Florida Michigan State University Outside United States Simon Fraser University - Vancouver, Canada University of Halle - Halle, Germany University of Oldenberg - Oldenberg, Germany

42. On the web ... www.lon-capa.org help.lon-capa.org bugs.lon-capa.org mail.lon-capa.org install.lon-capa.org