Designing a U-Museum Service Framework to Bridge Digital Learning Divide

Abstract

Due to lack of opportunities in utilizing digital learning auxiliary tools, it causes the existence of so called "Digital Learning Divide" between the students of rural or remote areas and those of urban areas. In this research, it is found that the public learning facilities in the community, for example, the museums, can provide related digital learning resources in spite of the shortage of digital learning facilities at the schools and families in rural or remote areas. If the students in the rural or remote areas are assisted to utilize the learning resources, it can bridge the digital learning divide effectively. However, it is different from the education in the school; the education in the museum is informal education which is emphasized on the learner-centered self-learning. In recent years, due to the advance and availability of RFID technology, and the functions of RFID in recognizing the learners' identities, locations, and movement, it can provide U-Learning services to learners with their personal information. Therefore, in this research, IMS Learner Information Package (LIP) standard is referred to construct a Learner Information Management Framework (LIMF), in which the Learner Model is composed of learner's Profile, Preference, Learning Activity, and Learning Portfolio as the standard fields of learner's information. The Processing Model in LIMF contains the functions of learner identification service, learner activity aware service, and learning resource provision service, and furthermore the web service technology is employed to provide better U-Learning support in accessibility, standardization, and extensibility.