Method and system for computerized learning, response, and evaluation

• US 5,749,736 A
• Filed: 05/31/1996
• Issued: 05/12/1998
• Est. Priority Date: 03/22/1995
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: William M. Bancroft
• Original Assignee: Taras Development
• Inventors: Guillerm, Thierry, Tata, Giovanni, Mossman, Bruce, Rogers, Spencer, Jiang, Wayne, Griswold, Michael R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Apley, Richard J.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Rovnak, John
• Application Number:
  US08/653,664
• Time in Patent Office: 711 Days
• Field of Search: 434/322, 434/323
• US Class Current: 434/322
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 7/00 Electrically-operated teaching apparatus or devices working with questions and answers mechanically operated G09B3/00; computing arrangements G06F
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 7/04 characterised by modifying the teaching programme in response to a wrong answer, e.g. repeating the question, supplying a further explanation

Abstract

A method and system for computerizing learning, response, and evaluation is provided. The computerized system comprises a central processing unit and related memory and storage capacity to operate a learning, response, and evaluation system stored in a computer program. The learning, response, and evaluation system comprises an authoring portion and a presentation portion. Through the use of intuitive interface elements, the authoring portion allows an author to quickly and easily construct a lesson from a pool of relevant data. Due to the design and capabilities provided, the authoring portion reduces the time it takes for an author to learn how to construct a lesson and reduces the time it takes to construct the lesson. Data can be organized into pages which are presented to the user and pages which are hidden from the user. The presentation portion allows a user to view and learn the information contained in a lesson. Learning is enhanced because a user can request testing at virtually any point in the lesson. Unlike prior systems, questions presented to the user are generated by the learning, response, and evaluation system rather than being developed by the author.

Claims

1. An authoring portion of a computerized learning, response, and evaluation system to aid an author in organizing data for presentation to a user of a presentation portion of a computerized learning, response and evaluation system, the authoring portion comprising:

a) input means to receive input from an author;

b) display means to display information to the author;

c) processing means interfacing with the input means and display means;

d) memory means connected to the processing means, the memory means containing a sequence of coded instructions which are executed by the processing means, the sequence of coded instructions comprising;

i) means to create at least one page;

ii) means to associate at least one resource comprising at least one of text, graphics, or sound with the at least one page;

iii) means to control which of said at least one resource may be used by at least one of either the authoring portion or the presentation portion of a computerized learning, response, and evaluation system to create questions using a process that selects a question part, a right answer part, and at least one wrong answer part from said at least one resource associated with said at least one page, and then assembling the question part, the right answer part, and the at least one wrong answer part into a question for presentation, said means to control being adapted to eliminate at least a portion of said at least one resource for use as any of either a question part, a right answer part, or a wrong answer part; and

iv) means to link the at least one page to at least one previously created page.

2. An authoring portion as recited in claim 1 wherein the means to associate at least one resource with the at least one page comprises a plurality of resource tools that allow manipulation and placement of resources.

3. An authoring portion as recited in claim 2 wherein the means to associate at least one resource with the at least one page further comprises means to input the resource.

4. An authoring portion as recited in claim 1 wherein the coded instructions further comprise means to preview questions that can be generated.

5. An authoring portion as recited in claim 4 wherein the means to preview questions allows the author to preview questions generated from a particular page.

6. An authoring portion as recited in claim 4 wherein the means to preview questions allows the author to preview questions generated over all pages.

7. An authoring portion as recited in claim 1 wherein the coded instructions further comprise means to control the number of questions generated by a user of a computerized learning, response and evaluation system.

8. An authoring portion as recited in claim 1 wherein the coded instructions further comprise means to create fields on the page.

9. An authoring portion as recited in claim 1 wherein the coded instructions further comprise means to define branches between pages.

10. An authoring portion as recited in claim 1 wherein the coded instructions further comprise means to define a plurality of page types.

11. An authoring portion as recited in claim 1 wherein the coded instructions further comprise means to define hot spots on the page.

12. Computer readable storage means containing a set of coded instructions to be executed by a computerized learning, response, and evaluation system, the set of coded instructions comprising:

a) means to create at least one page;

b) means to associate at least one resource comprising at least one of text, graphics, or sound with the at least one page;

c) means to control which of said at least one resource may be used by at least one of either an authoring portion or a presentation portion of a computerized learning, response, and evaluation system to create questions using a process that selects a question part, a right answer part, and at least one wrong answer part from said at least one resource associated with said at least one page, and then assembling the question part, the right answer part, and the at least one wrong answer part into a question for presentation, said means to control being adapted to eliminate at least a portion of said at least one resource for use as any of either a question part, a right answer part, or a wrong answer part; and

d) means to link the at least one page to at least one previously created page.

13. A computer-readable medium having computer-executable instructions comprising:

means to create a plurality of pages which together form a lesson adapted for use in a presentation portion of a computerized learning, response and evaluation system;

means to associate at least one resource comprising at least one of text, graphics, or sound with each of said plurality of pages so that said lesson comprises a plurality of such resources; and

means for identifying which of said at least one resource associated with said plurality of pages may be used by said computerized learning, response and evaluation system to create questions by a process which selects a plurality of resources from said plurality of pages and assembles the selected resources into a question, said means for identifying adapted for eliminating identified resources from use by said process.