XML: eXtensible Markup Language

El XML is a standard system of information codification. The programs which use XML format can exchange their data easily, since these respond to a same internal logic.

XML standard documents are text files that contain the organized information in tree form: every branch can have some distinct attributes and act as a base for other branches. In addition to this, XML documents can be transformed (for example, into HTML format), to show information in a web page), or to combine: a trunk with all the branches can turn into a branch of another bigger tree. An XML example document could be:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="ISO-8859-1"?>
<jocs>
  <joc nom="cavall fort" espai="exteriors">
    <jugadors mínim="4" màxim="16" />
    <edats mínim="8" màxim="indefinit" />
    <descripció>
       Els jugadors es reparteixen en dos equips i...
    </descripció>
  </joc>
  <joc nom="escacs" espai="interiors">
    .... etc.
  </joc>
</jocs>

You will find more information about XML in: http://xml.org

QTI: Question & Test Interoperability

The project Instructional Management System (IMS) is devoted to the development of specifications that allow contents and learning environments distributed from multiple authors to work together. IMS is made of a set of academic, commercial and govermmental organizations that work to build an architecture of distributed learning.

Thus, IMS Question & Test Interoperability (QTI) is a standard system that uses XML to describe the data structure of the questions (items) and evaluations (assessments). The objective is to get a representation of evaluation materials so that these are interchangeable among different educational systems of management known as Learning Management Systems (LMS).

An example of QTI document is:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="ISO-8859-1"?>
<questestinterop>
 <assessment ident="quadernClima" title="El clima i la vegetació">
  <section ident="full01" title="Situació geogràfica">
   <item ident="preg03" title="factors climàtics">
    <presentation>
     <flow>
      <material>
       <mattext>El clima mediterrani es caracteritza per tenir...</mattext>
        <matbreak/>
      </material>
      <response_lid ident="res01" rcardinality="Single">
       <render_choice>
        <flow_label>
         <response_label ident="lab01">
          <material>
           <mattext>Estius secs i calorosos</mattext>
          </material>
         </response_label>
         <response_label ident="lab02">
          <material>
           <mattext>Hiverns secs i freds</mattext>
          </material>
         </response_label>
         <response_label ident="lab03">
          <material>
           <mattext>Ambdues respostes són correctes</mattext>
          </material>
         </response_label>
        </flow_label>
       </render_choice>
      </response_lid>
     </flow>
    </presentation>
    <resprocessing>
     <outcomes>
      <decvar varname="SCORE" vartype="Integer"/>
      <decvar varname="CORRECT" defaultval="False" vartype="Boolean"/>
     </outcomes>
     <respcondition continue="Yes">
      <conditionvar>
       <and>
        <varequal respident="res01" case="No">lab03</varequal>
       </and>
      </conditionvar>
      <setvar varname="SCORE" action="Add">1</setvar>
      <setvar varname="CORRECT" action="Set">True</setvar>
      <displayfeedback feedbacktype="Response" linkrefid="feed01"/>
     </respcondition>
    </resprocessing>
    <itemfeedback ident="feed01">
     <flow_mat>
      <material>
       <mattext>Correcte</mattext></material>
     </flow_mat>
    </itemfeedback>
   </item>
  </section>
 </assessment>
</questestinterop>

You will find more information about IMS QTI in: http://www.imsglobal.org/question.

CELEBRATE: Context ELEarning with BRoAdband TEchnologies

Celebrate is a European Schoolnet standard based on XML that defines the structure of the necessary information to identify a resource (author, level, key words...). Labeling resources with these standard, the search of materials already created as well as their export/import to other platforms also using this standard are simplified, favoring the exchange and re-exploitation of educational materials.

An example of XML documents that use CELEBRATE standard could be:

*********** codi d'exemple

You will find more information about CELEBRATE in: http://celebrate.eun.org .

ETB: European Treasury Browser

ETB is aEuropean Schoolnet dictionary, available in different languages, describing a set of key words that can be included in the information which identifies a resource. Thus, the search of resources for their re-explotation is simplified.

You will find more information about ETB in: http://etb.eun.org.

CC: Creative Commons Licenses

Creative Commons project promotes the diffusion of all kinds of creations (writing, music, audiovisuals, interactive, educational materials...) under a set of licenses which allow the use, the reproduction and the transmission guaranteeing some rights to the authors (recognition of authorship, integrity of work...).

In front of the expression "All rights reserved " of traditional copyright, Creative Commons suggests using "Some rights reserved ", to indicate that a specific work can be redistributed freely as long as some conditions are respected.

To grant a Creative Commons license three things have to be decided:

• If any copy of the work must show the authors' names (recognition of authorship)
• Whether commercial use of the work is allowed or not
• If other people are allowed to modify the work

The licenses can be modified with other arrangements. For example, there is a CC license which allows the free redistribution only in the developing countries, only allowing a commercial use for the rest of the world.

A team of the Universitat de Barcelona has recently adapted Creative Commons licenses to the Spanish legislation, and they have translated it into Spanish and Catalan.

You will find more information about Creative Commons in: http://creativecommons.org/.