System and method for network-based personalized education environment

• US 7,082,418 B2
• Filed: 10/30/2001
• Issued: 07/25/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 10/30/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Amelia Newbury, Jonathon D. Levy
• Original Assignee: Monitor Company Group Limited Partnership
• Inventors: Levy, Jonathon D., Ellsworth, Amelia
• Primary Examiner(s): Hirl, Joseph P.
• Application Number:
  US10/012,691
• Publication Number:
  US 20020138456A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,729 Days
• Field of Search: 706/12, 706/14, 706/11, 434/322
• US Class Current: 706/12
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 7/02 of the type wherein the student is expected to construct an answer to the question which is presented or wherein the machine gives an answer to the question presented by a student

Abstract

A system and method of providing personalized information to an individual over a network includes accessing a competency profile of the individual, such profile accessible to a server on a network and comparing the individual'"'"'s competency profile with an education template and behavioral scenario accessible to the server. The template defines a current desired standard for the individual'"'"'s competencies, in order to identify target training or learning areas. Information content relevant to the individual'"'"'s target training or learning areas is provided over the network via user-selectable items of information content that may collectively have a plurality of information product types.

Claims

1. A method of providing personalized education to an individual over a network, the method comprising:

a. accessing a competency profile of the individual, such profile accessible to a server on a network;

b. comparing the individual'"'"'s competency profile with an education template accessible to the server, the template being derived from an education genome and defining a current desired standard for the individual'"'"'s competencies, to identify target learning areas, the genome being a machine readable resource providing a dynamic centralized repository of knowledge to be offered over the network;

c. offering, over the network, information content to the individual relevant to the target learning areas, such content being provided via user-selectable items of information content that collectively have a plurality of information product types.

2. A method according to claim 1, wherein deriving the template from the education genome includes utilizing competency data including testing results pertinent to the individual.

3. A method according to claim 1, wherein the network includes the internet.

4. A method according to claim 1, further comprising:

identifying the occurrence of an influence event, wherein a user is determined to be impelled to develop competency in a target subject; and

supplying information to the user over the network pertinent to the subject.

5. A method of screening for individuals having a desired knowledge set, the method comprising:

a. storing a representation of a relevant education genome in a digital computer system, the genome being a machine readable resource providing a dynamic centralized repository of knowledge to be offered over the network;

b. storing in the computer system the desired knowledge set as a representation of a target subset of the education genome;

c. characterizing knowledge sets of individuals to be screened as candidate subsets of the education genome and storing representations of the candidate subsets in the computer system; and

d. using the computer system to identify candidate subsets having a sufficient match with the target subset.

6. A method according to claim 5, wherein characterizing knowledge sets of individuals to be screened is performed in the course of providing personalized education to the individuals over a network.

7. A method according to claim 6, wherein characterizing knowledge sets includes determining an education template for each of the individuals to be screened.

8. An education knowledgebase resident on a digital computer system comprising;

a. a data warehouse that stores educational content data in a relational database format, the data also being tagged with object tags associated with attributes of object-formatted data;

b. a content management system for managing the data content; and

c. an object index that accesses data in the data warehouse utilizing object tags;

wherein the knowledgebase is a machine readable resource providing a dynamic centralized repository of knowledge to be offered over the network.

9. An education knowledgebase according to claim 8, wherein the object formatted data is in an XML format.

10. A method of providing personalized education to an individual over a network, the method comprising:

a. granting, to the individual, access to information content over the network, such content being provided via user-selectable items of information content;

b. updating an influence profile of the individual; and

c. using the influence profile to determine, at least in part, information content items to be offered over the network to the individual.

11. A method according to claim 10, wherein updating the influence profile includes identifying events that would be expected to affect selection of content to be offered to the individual.

12. A method according to claim 10, wherein the influence profile utilizes a taxonomy to define areas of information to be offered to the individual.

13. A method according to claim 11, wherein the influence profile utilizes a taxonomy to define areas of information to be offered to the individual and identifying events includes searching over the network for information associated with taxonomy terms in the influence profile.

14. A method according to claim 13, wherein searching over the network for information includes using as search terms those in a thesaurus corresponding to taxonomy terms in the influence profile.

15. A method according to claim 10, wherein the network includes the internet.

16. A method according to claim 14, wherein the network includes the internet and searching over the network includes searching a predetermined collection of web sites.

17. A method according to claim 14, wherein the network includes a path to an accessible content repository and searching over the network includes searching the content repository.

18. A method according to claim 10, wherein updating the user profile includes responding to at least one of current events, user preference, collaborative filtering, and assessment.

19. A method according to claim 10, further comprising:

using personal data of the individual, such data including the individual'"'"'s job function, organization, and user preferences as to information content, to determine, at least in part, information content items to be offered over the network to the individual.

20. A method according to claim 11, wherein updating the influence profile includes analyzing of information content previously accessed using collaborative filtering to identify areas of taxonomy and information product type selected in relation to patterns of other persons situated similarly to the individual.

21. A method according to claim 11, wherein updating the influence profile includes analyzing information content previously accessed using rules-based personalization and in particular user preferences as to information content in relation to information content previously accessed by the individual over the network.

22. A method according to claim 10, wherein the user-selectable items of information content collectively have a plurality of information product types.

23. A method of providing personalized education to an individual over a network, the method comprising:

a. granting, to the individual, access to information content over the network, such content being provided via user-selectable items of information content that collectively have a plurality of information product types; and

b. using personal data of the individual, such data including the individual'"'"'s job function, organization, and user preferences as to information content, to determine, at least in part, information content items to be offered over the network to the individual.