Learning Design based on Graphical Knowledge-Modelling

This chapter states and explains that a Learning Design is the result of a knowledge engineering process where knowledge and competencies, learning design and delivery models are constructed in an integrated framework. We present a general graphical language and a knowledge editor that has been adapted to support the construction of learning designs compliant with the IMS-LD specification. We situate LD within our taxonomy of knowledge models as a multi-actor collaborative system. We move up one step in the abstraction scale, showing that the process of constructing learning designs can itself be viewed as a unit-of-learning (or a “unit-of-design”): designers can be seen as learning by constructing learning designs, individually, in teams and with staff support. This viewpoint enables us to discuss and compare various “design plays”. Further, the issue of representing knowledge, cognitive skills and competencies is addressed. The association between these “content” models and learning design components can guide the construction of learning designs and help to classify them in repositories of LD templates.