X3D and E-Learning

This is a draft charter for a new Web3D Working Group to collaborate with IMS Global Learning Consortium plus anyone else interested in using X3D content for digital learning.

Status

We have been discussing this charter every few weeks via teleconference, and posting minutes on the x3d-public@web3d.org mailing list. We are asking for final comments and will soon ask Web3D Consortium members and Board of Directors for review and approval. It can also be shared at any time with IMS GLC members and the public.

Formal charter review is expected during early May 2011. Feedback is welcome and work is ongoing.

Goals

The Web3D Consortium is starting a new interest group: X3D and E-Learning. This will be in partnership with IMS Global Learning Consortium.

This group will enable the creation of Web-Enabled 3D content, tools and platforms for online e-learning.

We will collaboratively harmonize and integrate X3D Graphics content with other standards. We are also interested in possible collaboration with Advanced Distributed Learning (ADL).

Planned interest-group products include:

• Collect requirements and describe typical Use Cases for applying 3D models in E-Learning
• Produce a Recommended Best Practice for E-Learning with X3D Graphics
• Produce several E-Learning Exemplars demonstrating E-Learning with X3D Graphics
  • Simple course lessons for teachers (preschool, K-12, higher education, and training)
  • Small report of 20-50 pages (and perhaps the Recommended Practice itself)
  • Full book production
• If needed, recommend new nodes for the X3D Specification (no new functionality has yet been identified)
• Consider and define an E-Learning Profile that names only the X3D components (and corresponding levels 1, 2 etc.) for the X3D Specification that are needed to support these use cases

Tasks

Our tasks our many! They include:

• Integration. Explore and demonstrate best practices for integrating X3D Graphics models with e-learning content.

• Examples. Create demonstration examples showing how display, animation and user interaction with X3D models can all augment the learning effectiveness of digital textbooks and e-learning content.

• Archival publishing. Show how X3D can serve as the common archival publishing format for 3D models. Such 3D content may be built from a wide variety of diverse graphics technologies, and remain useful indefinitely.

• Multiple platforms and user interfaces. Show how X3D e-learning modules can work with different user interfaces including Web browsers, HTML4 and HTML5, electronic books and tablet computers, mobile devices, DVD publication, etc.

• Lessons learned. Produce X3D documentation and examples that show how these "lessons learned" can be used repeatably by the educational community. These approaches can also help consortium members, such as e-book publishers and companies that build authoring software.

• Accessibility. Show how X3D models can be made accessible to (and provide information for) users with accessibility challenges. Compatibility with the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) is essential.

• Best practices. Decide whether to formalize these successful techniques (perhaps as a new Web3D Recommended Practice for X3D E-Learning) or else to keep them online as informal resources.

• Specification. Recommend formal improvements and additions to the X3D Specification as needed and appropriate. It is possible that specification changes might not be needed.

• Intellectual Property Rights (IPR). Document and summarize the various IPR requirements associated with major e-learning technologies. Provide sufficient information so that authors and tool companies can utilize X3D graphics models correctly and successfully with these other technologies.

• Marketing. Communication and outreach showing successful examples is important so that educators and students know how to publish 3D content.

Timeline

We hope to achieve these goals during a busy 18-month period of activity starting in April 2011.

Discussion items:

• What should we plan for Web3D Conference 20-22 June 2011, Paris France
• Can we plan for a session with SIGGRAPH Educators at SIGGRAPH 2011, 9-11 August in Vancouver Canada

Mailing List

Discussions occur on the x3d-public@web3d.org mailing list. If the email traffic becomes very busy then we can create a separate email list.

Meeting minutes are also distributed on the X3D-Public mailing list and archived online.

Meetings

Our twice-monthly teleconference for X3D and E-Learning is usually

• 1700-1800 (pacific time) on Wednesdays.
• 2000-2100 (eastern time) on Wednesdays.
• 0900-1000 (Korea time) on Thursdays.

Participation is open to everyone via the Web3D teleconference line. Non-members can request access information for this call, or Join Web3D!

Meetings usually occur once with the Web3D Korea Chapter.

Typical meeting agenda:

• Discuss who is interested in participating
• Review and update wiki
• Work on charter goals and tasks
• Liaison and collaboration between consortia
• Project briefings and progress reports
• Calendar planning and outreach

People

Working group cochairs:

• Dr. Kwan Hee Yoo, Chungbuk National University
• Dr. Don Brutzman, Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) and Web3D Liaison to IMS GLC
• TODO: We are also hoping to find a European professor who is interested in collaborating

Interest group participants:

• Dr. Yong-Sang Cho, KERIS and IMS GLC Liaison to Web3D
• Len Daly, Daly Realism
• Anita Havele, Web3D Consortium Executive Director
• Dr. Myeong Won Lee, Suwon University
• Jaime Magiera, University of Michigan
• Dr. Zhigeng Pan, Zhejang University
• Dr. Yong Suh, California State University Sacramento

Anyone else? Please let us know, thanks!

Participation and Liaisons

We welcome participation by anyone interested in helping this group establish the use X3D Graphics for E-Learning.

• Primary hosts are X3D Working Group and Web3D Korea Chapter

• Web3D Consortium is a member of the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C).

• We are considering a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the IMS Global Learning Consortium.

• We are also interested in the possibility of joint work with the Advanced Distributed Learning (ADL).

• Other partnerships can also be considered as appropriate.

• Of interest is that Web3D Consortium Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) Policy insists on open, royalty free (RF) specifications. These coexist effectively with the Web Architecture and many different business models.