About LT4eL

Given the huge amount of static and dynamic content created for eLearning tasks, the major challenge for extending their use is to improve the effectiveness of retrieval and accessibility by making use of Learning Management Systems.

The aim of the Language Technology for eLearning (LT4eL) project is to tackle this problem by providing Language Technology based functionalities and by integrating semantic knowledge to enhance the management, distribution and retrieval of the learning material.

Specifically, we will employ Language Technology resources and tools for the semi-automatic generation of descriptive metadata. We will thus develop new functionalities such as a key word extractor and a glossary candidate detector, tuned for the various languages addressed in the project (Bulgarian, Czech, Dutch, English, German, Maltese, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian).

Semantic knowledge, in the form of ontologies, will be integrated to enhance the management, distribution and searchability of the learning material. The ontologies will allow for the multilingual retrieval of the required information. These functionalities can be integrated in any open source Learning Management System, however, for the purpose of validation the ILIAS system will be adopted. The validation methodology suitable for investigating the impact of these new functionalities on the learning experience in a multilingual context will be provided.

The integration of these functionalities will facilitate the construction of user specific courses, will allow direct access of knowledge and will support decentralization and co-operation of content management. In addition, the project will support the linguistic diversity of the enlarged Europe, contributing to the dissemination of eLearning content for the languages addressed by creating opportunities for multilingual virtual learning communities and by providing technologies for their support.

The LT4eL project is supported by the European Community under the Information Society and Media Directorate, Learning and Cultural Heritage Unit

Contract: 027391 Project type: Specific Targeted Research Project Start date: 1 December 2005 Duration: 30 months Partners: 12