SS]
`INTERNATION AL)
`N A T
`
`i
`
`J
`
`U R
`oO U R NAL
`
`Volume 3 Number 4 1997
`
`Educational
`:
`:
`Telecommunications
`
`0 F
`O F
`
`|
`
`MICROSOFT CORP.
`
`EXHIBIT 1004
`
`Page 1 of 20
`
`

`

`International Journal of Education~I Telecommunications
`
`Volume 3, Number 4
`
`1997
`
`Articles
`
`An Interactive, Networked, Asynchronous, Student Evaluation System:
`Architecture and Field Studies
`Mimi M. Recker and John Greenwood .......................................... 327
`
`Faculty Perceptions of Distance Education:
`Factors Influencing Utilization
`Pamela Taylor Northrup ............................................................... 343
`
`Strategies for Asynchronous Transfer Mode (A TM) Implementation
`in the Distance Leaming Environment
`Marlyn Kemper Littman ................................................................ 359
`
`Using Networked Information to Create Educational Guided Paths
`Frank M. Shipman Ill, Catherine C. Marshall, Richard Furuta,
`Donald A. Brenner, Hao-Wei Hsieh, and Vljay Kumar .................. 383
`
`Factors Related to Teachers' Adoption ofa Two-Way Interactive
`Distance Education Technology
`Sanaa I. Abou-Dagga and Mary E. Huba .•.................................... 401
`
`The International Journal of Educational Telecommunications (ISSH 1077·9124) 1s published
`quarterly by the Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education (Mee), an
`international, educational, nonprofit organization. Annual US membership'slbsa1>tion rates: $75
`irdvicilals; $95 schools, lbaries, llld olhef institutilns. Annual non-trs membefship's~ rales,
`aa:l: S10 per jOIJnal '°'postage us ~ndi. inlemational mooey order, Visa, IX t.C. Single cq7)' pii:e
`$20 plus shipping fee per boolc of $2.50-US: $3.50-Canada/Mexico, and $4.50 elsewhere.
`Publisher: MCE, PO Box 2966, Charlottesville, VA 22902, USA. (804) 973-3987
`Fu (804) 978·7 449; Email AACE@virgmia.edu. Copynght 1997 MCE.
`website http /lwww.aace org
`
`Page 2 of 20
`
`

`

`International JI. of Educational Telecommunlcallons (1997) 3(4). 383-400
`
`Using Networked Information to Create Educational
`Guided Paths·
`
`FRANK M. SHIPMAN Ill, CATHERINE C. MARSHALL,
`RICHARD FURUTA, DONALD A. BRENNER,
`HAO-WEI HSIEH, AND WAY KUMAR
`Center for the Study of Digital Libraries and
`Department of Computer Science
`TexasA&M University
`College Station, Texas 77843-3 I I 2
`furuta@cs.tamu.edu
`
`The extensive and encyclopedic materials foWld on the
`World Wide Web must be tailored and contextualized to
`support the instructional goals of education. We have ex(cid:173)
`plored the concept of "guided paths," ordered lists of pages
`independent of the existing Web structure, and have imple(cid:173)
`mented a prototype, Walden's Paths. In addition to creating
`paths, a teacher may annotate the individual pages of a path
`to provide transition. emphasis. and missing explanation. In
`addition, some limited interactivity and control over the dis(cid:173)
`play of remote information is possible: in our prototype.
`Walden's Paths works with standard Web browsers and
`servers so it can be integrated into an educational setting us(cid:173)
`ing existing hardware and software.
`
`Students acquire knowledge-building skills and strategies through ex(cid:173)
`posure to an expanded discourse community and broad base of information
`resources (Scardamalia & Bereiter, 1993). The Internet shows promise of
`providing such exposure: a wealth of new material and a spectrum of new
`voices are becoming available to students and educators alike through net(cid:173)
`worked electronic infotm:llion resources like the Internet's World Wide
`Web. The breadth of this material promises to increase as digital library
`efforts continue and research organizations recognize the importance of
`
`Page 3 of 20
`
`

`

`384
`
`Shipman 111, Marshall, Furuta, Brenner, Hsieh, and Kumar
`
`contributing to globally accessible multimedia databases.
`As extensive and encyclopedic as these materials are and promise to
`become, they still must be tailored for classroom use. The bulk of the mate(cid:173)
`rial available today is not aimed at the needs of K-12 students, although
`many elements-image collections, simulations, digital video segments,
`audio, electronic versions of well-known works of fiction and reference
`materials, library indices, databases, and hypertextual documents-have the
`potential to play a strong supporting role in the curriculum oftomonow.
`Access to extensive resources and a broader discourse community will
`be instrumental in supporting learning through exploration (a natural com(cid:173)
`plement to what Pea and Gomez refer to as learning-in-doing [Pea & Go(cid:173)
`mez. 1992; Pea, 1993)). Exploration is a valuable mode of learning, but it
`is even more valuable when it is constrained by a curriculum developer's
`well-conceived ideas of which materials should be included, supplemental
`text aimed at the particular level of student. and additional structure and
`ordering to help the student comprehend what he or she is discovering.
`Scardamalia and Bereiter distinguish between knowledge reproduction
`strategies and knowledge building strategies: knowledge building strate(cid:173)
`gies focus on the development of understanding, while knowledge repro(cid:173)
`duction strategies focus, very literally, on students' abilities to absorb pas(cid:173)
`sively, then recreate, what they have been told (Scardamalia & Bereiter,
`1993). Our focus is on using guided exploration of large scale infonnation
`resources to engage students in comprehending, interpreting, and evaluat(cid:173)
`ing materials-the substance of knowledge building and critical thinking.
`The World Wide Web (the "Web") and its hypertextual paradigm are
`well-suited to form a basis for exploratory learning. A central theme of hy(cid:173)
`pertext and the Web is traversal: a reader moves from one segment of ma(cid:173)
`terial (a node or page) to another by following a link to related material. A
`reader's need for detail, explanation, alternative discussion, or related top(cid:173)
`ics is guided by his or her own desire to explore, to construct knowledge, to
`find information. Of course, without a particular aim in mind, or any sort
`of guiding purpose or instruction, link following easily can become a ran(cid:173)
`dom walk. It is necessacy to add meta-structure that reflects an instructor's
`curricular goals to the underlying hypertextual network to make it suitable
`for exploratory learning and knowledge construction.
`We can envision the future to some extent by looking at materials, me(cid:173)
`dia, and genres available on the Internet today. If we look, for example, at
`NASA's Web sitc1, we can find information for the public about NASA
`programs (including existing edugltional materials). Or we can find mov(cid:173)
`ies of insects on Iowa State's cilfomology infonnation serverl. Or we can
`
`Page 4 of 20
`
`

`

`Using Networked Information to Create Educational Guided Paths
`
`385
`
`view the Libraiy of Con~'s Soviet Archives Exhibit3. Some of the in(cid:173)
`formation provides methods for interaction; for example, Xerox PARC's
`map viewer" allows readers to zoom on map regions or search for place
`names as one would in a gazetteer. Simulations and visualizations are also
`available through the Web to help readers grasp more difficult materials
`and concepts. Authors have created a number of indices to effect additional
`structure on top of these diverse sites. but most of them are just lists of
`Web pages or Web server sites or hierarchies of such lists; few of them pro(cid:173)
`vide the additional rhetorical structure that one would encounter in materi(cid:173)
`als for classroom use.
`
`PROBLEMS OF GENERAL WEB ACCESS
`
`What are the specific kinds of problems that we anticipate (and have
`observed) when students are given general access to the kind of large, het(cid:173)
`erogeneous collections of information that we find on the Internet?
`A significant amount of material is not organized for comprehension
`by a K-12 student Much of the information on the Web assumes access by
`an information-seeking adult or possibly an adult who is casually browsing
`or "reading around." This material. if left as is. will bore or frustrate most
`students, since they require a more structured presentation of back(cid:173)
`ground material before they can explore and understand the less orga(cid:173)
`nized information.
`Given a relevant territory (which we will refer to as an information
`space) and a general organization for material. a problem still remains: the
`material-the content and links-still needs to be tailored to address the
`needs of school-age learners. Because the Web's hypertextual structure is
`represented by content mark-up (Berners-Lce, 1994) (i.e., links arc denoted
`within the pages themselves). this sort of tailoring requires methods for
`changing material at a within-page (intra-node) level. Since many Web
`document genres (such as home pages) are new, many authors who con(cid:173)
`tribute valuable material arc inexperienced in constructing readable hyper(cid:173)
`texts. A given Web page may include too many (duplicate) links. or too
`few links (requiring additional structure to be understandable to the stu(cid:173)
`dent). or may include links to .. irrelevant" material outside the inf onnation
`space. Within-page tailoring may also be neceswy to adapt material that
`is presented at the wrong level for a K-12 student. A second grader who is
`interested in the space program will not be able to understand a mathemat(cid:173)
`ical description of vehicle trajectory, but may be able to understand dia(cid:173)
`grams or a simple verbal account of the same material.
`
`Page 5 of 20
`
`

`

`386
`
`Shipman Ill, Marshall, Furuta, Brenner, Hsieh, and Kumar
`
`Basic needs for adapting and tailoring the Web for exploratory learn(cid:173)
`ing include mechanisms for defining a territory or information space, for
`adding structure to the information space to promote comprehension and
`accessibility of the material, for tailoring existing content and links to meet
`curricular constraints, for tracking student progress and adapting paths to
`individual differences, for maintaining the quality and integrity of the de(cid:173)
`rived instructional materials, and finally for sharing these metastructures
`and instructional strategies within a community of educators.
`
`APPROACH
`
`Our metaphor in implementing an environment to support focused
`network exp_loration is a generalization of the guided path (Zellweger,
`1987; Zellweger, 1988; Trigg, 1988; Zellweger, 1989). As originally de(cid:173)
`fined. the guided path provided the means for directing a reader's traversal
`along a path of components extracted from a set of documents. The order(cid:173)
`ing of components on the path is not constrained by that of the sowce doc(cid:173)
`uments-in other words, the components encountered do not have to fol(cid:173)
`low the temporal orderings of the SOUJ'CC. In essence, the guided path al(cid:173)
`lows creation of a presentation, defining a meta-structure that is layered on
`top of the underlying docwnents' preexisting structures.
`The guided path is well-suited for control of presentations and for
`communication of relationships. It serves as a meta-structuring mechanism
`that can be used to express an order over a large collection of materials.
`Besides sequencing pages, a guided path can provide additional context for
`the page through annotation. The ability to add text, new links, or other
`annotations to the content of an existing page allows the path author to
`provide a rhetorical structure to the path as a whole, create transitions to
`fill in informational gaps between pages, and emphasize particular aspects
`of the materials.
`To take advantage of the variety of information and software that
`makes up the Web, a guided path mechanism must work with the common
`Web browsers and Web servers. We adopted a strategy of developing a
`"path server" that mediates between a student's browser and the source
`material's server, and a "path authoring tool" that supports teachers and
`media specialists during the creation of paths. The path authoring tool
`sends completed paths to the path server. The path server stores infor(cid:173)
`mation specific lo the path-the order of pages in the path, annota(cid:173)
`tions, and the URL for the original infonnation. Figure 1 is a diagram
`of this architecture.
`
`Page 6 of 20
`
`

`

`Using Networked Information to Create Educational Guided Paths
`
`387
`
`Student's
`Web
`Browser
`
`path request
`
`- path page
`
`Path
`Server
`
`HTIP request Source's
`HTTP
`~riginal source Server
`
`f authored paths
`
`Path
`Authoring
`Tool
`
`Rgure 1. Diagram showing communication and information storage of path
`server and path authoring tool
`
`In the next sections we describe our prototype, called Walden's P,.aths,
`which consists of a path server and path authoring tool. We note that in re(cid:173)
`lated work, Nicol and colleagues have also investigated the application of a
`simpler guided path mechanism to the Web with their Footsteps project
`(Nicol et al., 1995).
`
`PATH SERVER
`
`The path server acts as an intennediaiy between the student's browser
`and the original source information on the Web. By leaving the content of
`the pages at the source Web server and retrieving it when a Web browser
`requests a path page, the path server can take advantage of the evolution of
`the preexisting Web structure and content Once a page is retrieved, the
`path server adds path controls and the path-specific annotations, then re(cid:173)
`turns the resulting page to the Web browser.
`
`The Path Server Interface
`
`Our path server distinguishes among three basic situations: when a
`student is accessing the path server but not a specific path; when a student
`is accessing a particular page in a path; and when a student is accessing a
`
`Page 7 of 20
`
`

`

`388
`
`Shipman Ill, Marshall, Furuta, Brenner, Hsieh, and Kumar
`
`page not on the path. If the student is not currently viewing a path. the
`path server lists the possible paths that the student can choose from, as
`shown in Figure 2. This list is built using an index of the available paths,
`which is stored with the path server.
`When the student requests a path page (usually by traversing to it), the
`path server determines the appropriate URL to retrieve using the path in(cid:173)
`formation stored at the server. After determining which URL is requested,
`the path server performs two tasks. The first task is to retrieve the Web
`page of the URL. Once the page has been retrieved, the path server adds
`path controls and annotation to that page. Figure 3 shows a page in a path
`on ancient Macedonia and Alexander the Great
`
`Rgure 2. The opening page listing available paths
`
`Page 8 of 20
`
`

`

`Using Networked Information to Create Educational Guided Paths
`
`389
`
`Figure 3. Page of path shows control buttons at top, followed by positional
`and annotation information. and the original material from the WWW
`
`There arc four elements of the path controls: forward and back arrows
`to support path traversal, a Walden's Path logo that, when selected, returns
`the student to the index of available paths, and a row of numbers that both
`situate the student within the path and pennit direct access to locations on
`the path. Annotations, added to the page just below the path controls, can
`include plain text and HfML markup, including anchors, forms, and im(cid:173)
`age sources. The path server then sends the resulting path page to the stu(cid:173)
`deot' s Web browser, such as Netscape's Navigator, Microsoft's Explorer,
`orNCSA'sMosaic, which renders the modified HTML markup.
`If the student chooses to follow a link that is not part of the authored
`path, the path server retrieves the requested Web page and prepends a
`Walden's Paths Logo that, when selected, provides a link back to the last
`
`Page 9 of 20
`
`

`

`390
`
`Shipman Ill, Marshall, Furuta, Brenner, Hsieh, and Kumar
`
`path page seen by the student Figure 4 shows a page off of one of the au(cid:173)
`thored paths. In order to add this "back to path" header regardless of how
`many links away from the authored path the student browses, the server
`must make sure all the student's accesses go through the path server. To do
`this, the path server replaces all the URLs specified in the lITML anchors
`of the pages requested by the student to route requests through itself.
`
`Rgure 4. WWW pages not on authored path have buttons added to get back
`to the path
`
`Speeding up Path Access: Caching at the Path Server
`
`There are possible limitations of network bandwidth and accessibility
`that need to be addressed so the path server can be used in educational set(cid:173)
`tings. First, not all schools have network connections, much less fast net(cid:173)
`work connections. By caching Web information when it is accessed, the
`
`Page 10 of 20
`
`

`

`Using Networked Information to Create Educational Guided Paths
`
`391
`
`path server can reduce the required network traffic between the school and
`the Internet. Additionally, as sites on the Internet are not always accessi(cid:173)
`ble, pre-caching pages that are part of a path allows a teacher to know that
`the inf onnation on the main path will be available in the classroom.
`We have been investigating two methods of caching documents at the
`path server to reduce reliance on network bandwidth and guarantee that
`the infonnation is available. The first method, regular-caching, is like the
`caching done by Netscape and some other browsers. The path server sim(cid:173)
`ply caches. documents as they are retrieved from the Internet This ap(cid:173)
`proach saves what the students are browsing, including Web pages not on
`the main path. The advantage of having the path server do this caching
`over having the Web browser cache infonnation is that the cache is shared
`by all students using the path server. This means each page is only re(cid:173)
`trieved once (and stored once) for everyone using the path server.
`The second method of caching, pre-caching, means the path-server
`caches what it may need later. Nonnally a document is not retrieved (and
`thus not cached) until a student requests it. Here, the path server can use
`its record of the URLs that are likely to be accessed during a session. In the
`case of guided paths, it is natural to assume that the pages on the path are apt
`to be viewed lal.er, especially ifa student has begun traversing that path.
`As with Web browser caches any choice of caching strategy inevitably
`leads to issues concerning versioning, cache size, and cache time-out poli(cid:173)
`cies. In some cases there is no clear solution--different use environments
`favor incompatible caching policies.
`These general Web caching issues can be better addressed by consider(cid:173)
`ing the particular application. One problem with caching is that local ver(cid:173)
`sions of a Web page may become out-of-date relative to the page available
`via the Internet. One way to address this problem partially is to have
`cached infonnation "time out" so that after some length of time the cache
`contents are discarded. But not all infonnation in a guided path should
`have the same time-out policy-static infonnation may sometimes be an
`asset A teacher may want to be sure that the material on this page will not
`change before the students access it On the other hand, if the page is a
`real-time display, such as the current local weather map, presenting an old
`version may not be acceptable. This implies that each page should have its
`own policy regarding caching. There are at least four possibilities: (a)
`cache now and don't remove (sets the exact information for the path); (b)
`cache during execution and don't remove (ensures all students see the
`same up-to-date version); (c) cache during execution and remove as needed
`(implements the traditional caching scheme); and (d) don't ever cache (re(cid:173)
`trieves dynamic information each time).
`
`Page 11 of 20
`
`

`

`392
`
`Shipman 111, Marshall, Furuta, Brenner, Hsieh, and Kumar
`
`Another problem common to caching in a distributed environment like
`the Web is detennining what to remove when the cache is full and new cle(cid:173)
`ments need to be added. A common strategy to address this problem is the
`Least Recently Used (LRU) policy in which the information least recently
`accessed is removed from the cache to make room for new information.
`However, in the case of the path server cache, the cache elements may vaiy
`in size a great deal. Trying to make space to cache a single large color im(cid:173)
`age might force a much larger number of IITML or plain-text documents
`out of the cache. Thus an I.RU policy might not yield the best possible re(cid:173)
`sults in all cases. The nature of the path server application suggests that in(cid:173)
`formation from pages not part of the path should be removed before infor(cid:173)
`mation that is part of the main path. Experience with real-use situations
`will inform the design relative to such issues. Cache management rerilains
`an area of active investigation in our project.
`
`PATH AUTHORING TOOL
`
`Before students can browse paths, someone must author them. The
`Walden's Paths path authoring tool facilitates this process. In this section
`we first discuss experiences authoring paths without the tool and then dis(cid:173)
`cuss the design of our prototype.
`
`Authoring Paths: Experiences and Issues
`
`Figure 2 shows the path server's introductory page, listing a number of
`our experimental paths. Authoring these paths has augmented the lessons
`reported in our previous accounts of path construction (Marshall &
`Irish,1989), especially since much previous work on paths has relied on lo(cid:173)
`cally<0ntrolled document collections. By contrast, we have used materials
`gathered from the Web as a basis for our paths. In our examples. existing
`Web pages from different servers arowtd the world arc structured as simple
`linear paths, and supplemented and explained by the authors' nanativc,
`implemented as a prcpended annotation. Example paths include an arti(cid:173)
`fact-centered description of Ancient Macedonia and Alexander the Great, a
`short account of the people and events of the Cuban Missile Crisis, and a
`narrative explaining our Center's digital library work.
`Our experiences highlight a set of issues and questions that will guide
`future developmenl We focus on four: (a) the interaction between available
`content and curricuJar goals; (b) author control of Web page markup to
`promote consistent styles and coherence within a particular path; (c) the
`
`Page 12 of 20
`
`

`

`Using Networked Information to Create Educational Guided Paths
`
`393
`
`potential for interactivity in our prototype; and (d) supporting and acceler(cid:173)
`ating the path authoring process.
`How does existing content interact with instructional goals? The Web
`is a rich source of content, but is it the content that an instructor needs to
`put together a lesson on the topic of choice? Will the availability of materi(cid:173)
`als tend to drive the kinds of paths teachers create? Several of the example
`paths use sets of materials culled from different sites around the Web. It
`comes as no surprise that it is easier to construct an interesting path from
`an already coherent source (like a libnuy of related images drawn from one
`or two Web sites) than it is to gather materials from many sites and inte(cid:173)
`grate them. Text. as one would expect, is very difficult to reuse; it is fre(cid:173)
`quently directed at a general Web audience, at a special interest group, or
`at an academic audience. Textual indices are slightly easier to reuse, but
`still must be adapted for instructional purposes (i.e., not all the links that
`they provide arc appropriate). Images, sounds, and digital video clips are
`much easier to adapt for different uses. For example, Figure S shows a
`page from the Cuban Missile Crisis tour. Note that while the image fits the
`path author's intent, the Web page the author has selected has inappropri(cid:173)
`ate text (which has been rendered in a very small font to de-emphasize it).
`In general, this characteristic of Web materials is leading us to look at
`ways of reusing document components (such as embedded images) rather
`than entire document pages.
`What cues might a path author use to indicate path coherence? Most
`of these cues involve the introduction of additional markup in the path. For
`example, in our Cuban Missile Crisis path, the author has used a new font
`size to set off her annotations from the text of existing Web pages. It is
`easy to see how such markup-for example, markup designating a unifonn
`background color, or using consistent image centering stratcgy--;:an pro(cid:173)
`mote a sense of coherence for the student Many of our example paths in(cid:173)
`troduce new markup elements to give the source page and the author's an(cid:173)
`notations a particular "look". Our mechanism for indicating whether a
`reader is on or off the authored path (see Figure 4) is yet another means by
`which coherence is supported.
`Promoting interactivity is an important goal of our project. When
`paths arc simple, it is all too easy for a student to fall into passivity-just
`clicking his or her way from beginning to end, not exploring or construct(cid:173)
`ing any new meaning. There arc many ways around this apparent pitfall.
`The first, and most decidedly technological solution, is to provide authors
`with a more cxpiessivc path mechanism, one that promotes more active ex(cid:173)
`ploration. Our past work (Marshall & Irish, 1989) has found that paths
`generally have "spines" and "side trips"; side trips arc interesting digres(cid:173)
`sions that allow a reader to pursue material in more depth. Other of our
`
`Page 13 of 20
`
`

`

`394
`
`Shipman Ill, Marshall, Furuta, Brenner, Hsieh, and Kumar
`
`past work (Stotts & Furuta, 1989; Furuta & Stotts, 1994) provides a gener(cid:173)
`al mechanism for expressing paths through documents and their compo(cid:173)
`nents. But we have seen exploration facilitated by simply adding links into
`the annotative text, and inviting the student to jump off the beaten path for
`awhile. The previous section discusses how the path seJVer provides "off
`the path" feedback, and a mechanism to return. We are also considering
`ways to limit the extent of off-path exploration, so that an interesting di(cid:173)
`gression docsn 't become a distraction or a foray into material well outside
`the classroom curriculum.
`
`~
`~
`•~m+m~iB+lW+trn~a+m+•
`
`Olhm lllWr l'idel CaJ1ro wu 1 xevdmicnry wl\o ml!ltbrew did:lla MilgmaoBalistA ia 1959. ~
`first stmght rm:pilicn ml aid for hil Jlew gDr=meal fum lilt Umi.i Slllt2, bat President
`~
`EUdia.w•nbaflmbim. US, lmmeu inbrntizl OihlhClllf!nldutothuwmtiCECaJ1rohld
`m!icnalizid aD. pime indmtry cm. llae islml.
`....
`
`InJW}r 1960, Praidml Ellmhawtr brpn.a bajcdt ct Oda Sllpfmi p.adaa Clllbagofl!SUS
`ecpan lo Oiba. 'Ilia Saviet UlliCI\ sp-q w the new Olbm gDranmait's lidml bQight Ille~
`si1gu.
`
`lint2wen11= dawn.
`
`Qu.atiodlo )lllll lkink EUmkq,wis ~oak! blve i1lpplWd Oamo's mi:illlicmzygormm1ad?Why or
`wily llCI?
`
`Rgure 5. Page from a Cuban Missile Crisis path includes an lITML form
`and alters the display of original material to provide emphasis
`
`Of course, interactivity means more than additional places to click.
`Figure 5 shows how HTML forms markup has been used to invite student
`
`Page 14 of 20
`
`

`

`Using Networked Information to Create Educational Guided Paths
`
`395
`
`input~ this markup, or "mailto:" links will enable a teacher to gather stu(cid:173)
`dent reflections or responses to questions posed in the annotations. Other
`mechanisms have been developed for more traditional CAI-types of in(cid:173)
`struction, like system-evaluated multiple choice questions. We can also en(cid:173)
`vision students authoring paths themselves (either for their peers, for their
`teacher, or for younger students) as a more interactive form of engagement
`with the material.
`How can we support the path authoring process? First, instructional
`design templates can make creating paths easier (Jordan et al., 1991). At
`the least, most of our examples have an introductory page that sets the tone
`and style for the rest of the path. In an ideal world, instructional designers
`and experienced path authors can create general types of paths to help
`newer path authors-teachers and studen~tisfy their own instructional
`goals. Seci>nd, path cues-like the progress along the path that is shown at
`the top of the constructed page in Figure 5, "Page 8 of 12 in this path"(cid:173)
`help the author by making certain common kinds of reader feedback avail(cid:173)
`able across all paths. Finally, we can support the reuse of portions of paths,
`including individual annotated pages. A discussion of John F. Kennedy
`from the Cuban Missile Crisis path might fit well into a unit on American
`Presidents.
`
`The Path Authoring Tool
`
`The experiences described above identified several common steps for
`path authoring. Path authoring is frequently a process of locating sites of
`relevant information on the Web, selecting specific pages for inclusion in
`the path, and ordering and annotating the pages to provide transition and
`emphasis for the materials. The Path Authoring Tool (PAn provides a sin(cid:173)
`gle, integrated, straightforward interface to do just this.
`The prototype path authoring tool (shown in Figure 6) consists of
`three main areas. The top portion contains the menubar and buttons for
`common operations like adding a new page to a path or resequencing the
`existing pages. The middle portion displays three lists: (a) the pages re(cid:173)
`turned from the most recent search (top left list), (b) a "holding area" for
`pages set aside for later use but not included in the path (lower left list),
`and (c) the pages in the path (right list). The bottom portion of the author(cid:173)
`ing tool displays basic information about any page selected from the above
`lists, such as its title and URL; it also provides an area to display and edit
`the annotation of the selected page.
`
`Page 15 of 20
`
`

`

`396
`
`Shipman Ill, Marshall, Furuta, Brenner, Hsieh, and Kumar
`
`GS Path Aulho·ring Tool
`ToServer Page ·view He!P
`Search Results
`
`La saga d'lsaac Nev.ton ..
`La saga d'lsaac Nev.ton
`History of Mathematics·
`ISAAC -- Newton's life
`Maths Miscellany - Isaac
`Maths Miscellany - Isaac
`Isaac Nev.ton
`Isaac Nev.ton
`,_
`.I Work Space
`~ . I -.. :-:I >
`
`Niagara Regional Rail Sp•
`P&DT: Back Issues
`World-Wide Web Access
`wxwin-users archive (l 9
`Nlnet homepaqes: inter.
`Sigma · Index of chemist
`Rankings/Rankings after
`Jub11 - HJemmes1der - Iv ...
`
`~~ £;
`
`...
`
`VIE leden op het Web
`The Museum Which Does
`Gobs Of Bike Links
`Rankings/Rankings after
`VMI HelpDesk/Virginia W'
`w xwm-users archive (19
`SubJect Re: NAFT A Deb. ! ~
`if
`NLnet homepages: inter.
`World-Wide Web Access ·
`DSHP I Dutch I Holland ~
`wxwm-users archive (19
`Album. Very Necessary
`Net1zens: Directory sort
`Comments re The Blackl
`Nederlandse Kamp1oens
`Links to other railway rel
`SoccerCicy: Former Sites
`Prepri~~ by a~th~r
`
`.
`...
`Untrusted_ JovaApplet Window
`
`..
`
`.. -
`
`Figure 6. The Path Authoring Tool provides an single interface for search(cid:173)
`ing, selecting, and annotating materials from the Web
`
`Page 16 of 20
`
`

`

`Using Networked Information to Create Educational Guided Paths
`
`397
`
`Authoring a path normally begins with the location of relevant infor(cid:173)
`mation. To search for materials on the Web in the PAT, a teacher enters
`the keywords, search mode, and number of docwnents desired into the
`search dialog. The PAT currently uses OpcnText's publicly available
`search engine to perform the search. In the future, other Web search en(cid:173)
`gines will be included to provide the teacher a choice. The docwnents re(cid:173)
`turned by the search engine appear in the upper left list of Ute PAT.
`The teacher can then view the returned documents in a Web browser
`by selecting them from the list in the PAT. Documents considered poten(cid:173)
`tially useful can be added to the holding area below the search result list or
`directly into the path being autltored.
`The teacher can organize selected Web documents into a linear path
`sequence by manipulating the list that appears on the right side of the PAT
`interface; he or she may add annotations to these documents by using the
`area at the bottom. To make path autltoring as simple as possible, the pro(cid:173)
`totype PAT limits paths to be linear; no "side trips" or "alternate routes"
`can be specified by the