Learning Objects 101

Learning Objects Defined

A learning object (LO) is broadly defined as anything that can be used for the process of learning: for instance, a book, journal article, podcast, etc. Churchill (2007) states that “the learning object remains an ill-defined concept, despite numerous and extensive discussion in the literature” (479). The size and scope of LOs also leave much open to interpretation. A search for learning objects online may produce a massive self-contained course, a series of lengthy videos of a professor lecturing, a simple quiz, or a single image.

Nash (2012) describes learning objects in terms of Legos. Legos are individual building blocks that are easily assembled to produce a larger item such as a castle with turrets. Legos can also easily be disassembled. If the builder wants to build a restaurant with one of the turrets, the turret as a whole could be removed from the castle and integrated into the restaurant structure.

For learning objects, the building blocks (Legos) are elements of text, images, audio, video, animation, and interaction. These blocks are assembled to create a unit of learning. For example, the content of a learning object may be an introduction to Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive Development for a college-level Introduction to Psychology course. The learning object may start with a brief introduction to Piaget and his life using a sound bite of his voice along with a picture.

The user clicks Next and is introduced to Piaget’s theory using text and narration. When the user clicks Next again, the sensorimotor stage is introduced with a video of a mother and child playing peek-a-boo to demonstrate the concept of object permanence. Next, the user will encounter a short knowledge check on what they have learned by completing a short interactive quiz. The quiz may be in the form of a multiple choice, fill in the blank, or drag and drop exercise. The user continues until the learning object is complete. There may be a test at the end that is graded. When the user clicks Complete, the grade is delivered electronically to a Learning Management System. Since Piaget’s theory is related to childhood learning, the entire learning object may be reused in a college-level elementary education course. Like Legos, parts of the Piaget learning object can be disassembled and reused to create new standalone learning objects that are better suited to other courses. For example, an instructor who is developing a more advanced psychology class may want an in-depth learning object based only on the sensorimotor stage of development. The developer could copy the original LO, remove all of the unneeded sections, and then expand on the sensorimotor stage based on the needs of the new course.

Based on this description, we can more distinctly define learning objects as small, self-contained, digitally mediated learning content units created for eLearning environments. They are designed to foster an interactive learning environment that connects the learner to the content. They are flexible, interchangeable, and reusable.

Design and Development of Learning Objects

Learning objects may be developed by instructors, designers, or design teams. Instructor-developed LOs are the most common. Often, an instructor of a course or training program is given a course description and left to decide how the course will be designed and delivered. In this case, it was the instructor’s obligation to write the learning objectives, choose the textbook, develop the course resources and learning objects, create course activities, and develop course assessments. The instructor was in essence the course designer, developer, and teacher.

The instructional designer (ID) entered the education arena to take on the task of designing and developing a course, thus allowing instructors to spend more time on tasks inside the classroom. The ID is specifically trained on learning theories, course design, and technical skills for course development in an eLearning environment. The instructor still plays a major role as Subject Matter Expert (SME). The ID handles the task of development with input from the SME.

It is a rare instructor that has the technical savvy to develop learning objects from scratch. Most instructors are educated in their field of expertise and do not have a degree or training in instructional design. IDs are technically savvy in HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. They are not typically trained to develop digital media. Consequently, media designers are also hired to develop LOs. Media designers are trained to design and develop audio, video, and interactive products. Many media designers have transferred their skills into the eLearning realm and have given themselves unique titles such as eLearning Developer, Learning Architect, Learning Strategist, etc.

Creating a learning object has evolved into a team process. The SME, ID, and eLearning developer are the typical team members who work together to create learning objects. Other contractors such as graphic designers, videographers, voiceover artists, and music composers are often hired for specialty items. The ultimate goal is for all of these individuals to work together to build learning objects in a quick, efficient, cost-effective style while maintaining the focus of fostering an interactive learning environment which connects the learner to the learning.

Before designing learning objects for a course, the ID and SME must have the course description, course outcomes and objectives, course content, assessment strategy, and a profile of the intended learners in place. Then, the ID can meet with the developer to map the learning objectives to the proposed LO and start the design process.

Next, the SME develops the textual content for the LO. The ID and/or the developer interpret the textual content into a storyboard. The storyboard is where the design of the LO is decided. A storyboard should look like a finished product before the actual development phase begins. All elements of each slide of the final product must be storyboarded.

The storyboard should contain a template of how the final LO will look, including user interface, color scheme, screen layout, interactive buttons, text font size and color, images (or image placeholders), and video placeholders as necessary. Along with the template, a request for graphics, video, music, or anything that requires an outside contractor should be noted. Directions for interactivity within each slide and from slide to slide are provided. The textual content that needs to be read for a voiceover is also included for each slide. The detail and accuracy of the storyboard determines the success of building the LO quickly, effectively, and cost-efficiently.

When the storyboard is complete and the client or SME is satisfied, the developer, using the storyboard as a blueprint, puts the final product together using content development tools. There are many tools available on the market for developing eLearning content. Some are expensive, some are moderately inexpensive, and some are free. A word of caution: you get what you pay for. A developer usually has other means to help speed up the process such as image and photo manipulation, video editing, and audio editing tools. When the developer finishes the LO, it is ready for testing.

Testing Learning Objects

Usually, an LO will go through several tests before it is considered complete. The developer should thoroughly test the LO before sending it to the ID. The ID performs the first round of testing and provides feedback and changes to the developer. For the second round of testing, the SME or client provides feedback and changes to be implemented. Often, this is the final round and the LO is integrated into the learning environment. There is another test that is often overlooked but ultimately may be the most important, and that is usability testing.

Usability testing involves hiring a few end users and then studying how they actually use the learning object. For example, take the Piaget example from earlier. It was originally designed for an introductory college-level psychology course. Two or three college freshmen would be recruited and brought into a computer lab to use the LO. An observer may create a list of specified tasks for the participants to complete. The observer will also take notes as the user’s actions are observed. The goal of usability testing is to identify if the participants:

• can complete the required tasks
• take longer or shorter than expected to complete the tasks
• make mistakes while completing the tasks
• are satisfied with the learning object

The observer then analyzes the results of the usability test to determine if additional changes to the learning object are required. Once all changes are implemented and approved, it is time to put the learning object into action.

Launching the Learning Object

The final stage is launching the learning object into the course. In most cases, a client will have their eLearning courses housed in a Learning Management System (LMS). There are many LMS providers out there but all systems do basically the same thing. The LMS is designed to provide course access to learners and track the learners’ progress. A learning object is typically produced as a SCORM or Tin Can API package and uploaded into the course. These protocols allow the LMS to track and report a learner’s progress through the LO so the instructor knows that the student has completed the LO, and report grades to a gradebook if the LO is graded.

The LMS also contains a learning object repository. Posting learning objects in the repository allows for easy sharing of the LOs. As discussed earlier, LOs are designed to be interchangeable, reusable, flexible, and customizable. When loading a learning object into the LMS, an area is provided to add metadata. Course name, course number, Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive Development, learning object, instructor name, etc. would be metadata added for our example. The use of search terms makes it easy for other instructors and instructional designers to search the system and see if a suitable LO for a new course design already exists.

Using the repository with the Piaget example, if the LO is loaded into the repository, it could easily be distributed to introductory psychology and elementary education courses. An ID designing a new course for teaching and learning could adopt the LO and add it to the course directly from the repository. If the instructor decides to make a change to the LO, uploading the new copy to the repository would automatically update the copies in each course where the LO is distributed.

The discussion about what exactly learning objects are and what they do continues, but a constant in the discussion about learning objects is that they remain simple, searchable, flexible, interchangeable, and reusable.

Sources:

Churchill, D, (2007). Towards a useful classification of learning objects. Education Tech Research, 55, 479-497.

Nash, S, (2012). Learning Objects. In J. Reiser & J. Dempsey (Eds.), Trends and Issues in Instructional Design and Technology (3rd ed). (pp. 290-298). Boston, MA: Pearson Education.