Educational modelling language and learning design: new opportunities for instructional reusability and personalised learning

Learning technologies offer new opportunities to meet the rapidly growing demand for new, constructivist ways of learning (such as competency-based, collaborative or adaptive learning). They have the potential to act as catalysts for more effective exchange and reuse of learning objects to enable personalised learning. This article examines the extent to which current learning technology specifications contribute to educational change—to actual sharing and reuse in educational practice. Furthermore, the article describes the need for an Educational Modelling Language centred around learning activities to give instructional meaning to learning objects. To date, specifications for learning objects have primarily been designed to ensure interoperability at a rather low infrastructural level (e.g., test items, meta-data), focusing on technology issues and reuse of learning objects. We argue that more widespread adoption of e-learning specifications and standards calls for a pedagogical framework at a higher infrastructural level (e.g., a complete course), focusing on the instructional value and reuse of learning activities. Such a framework is offered by the new Learning Design (LD) specification. LD enables the description of both learning content and processes from a variety of pedagogical perspectives, both objectivist and constructivist