Content Package Adaptation: A Web Services Approach

The IMS Content Packaging Specification is a format that facilitates the deployment of discrete units of learning resources based on an XML structure called a manifest. The contents and structure of a content package are determined at design time when it is created. Since the package has been authored for use in a particular instructional setting, re-purposing the content package to meet the demands of a different instructional setting is difficult. Although there have been attempts to improve the flexibility of the package such as using IMS Simple Sequencing, the adaptation provided is still inadequate. In this paper we argue that Web Services can be used to facilitate the dynamic adaptation of a content package so that it can be reused in diverse instructional scenarios and accessed by additional learners who otherwise would not be able to utilize it. We present a framework for adaptation based on web services and identify a representative set of web services that could be used for content package adaptation. We then discuss in detail the Media Integration and Translation Services for Accessibility (MITSA), a category of web services designed to promote media accessibility of a content package. Finally, we conclude by highlighting the benefits of the web services approach for content package adaptation.