JISC

Summary

The QTI Delivery Integration project will provide a package of software and documentation for transferring the MathAssessEngine  rendering engine and software to link it to popular VLEs to institutions in the HE and FE sector. These tools, which conform to QTIv2.1, were developed during the MathAssess  and  FETLAR  projects, and based on QTIEngine  and the JQTI library . The project will provide a documented and packaged version of the tools for distribution to Kingston University, Harper Adams University College and the University of Strathclyde. Should other institutions wish to join in the project as receiving partners at a later date, they will be made welcome.

At present MathAssessEngine is used in conjunction with Moodle by using a plug-in which communicates with MathAssessEngine. There is currently no interface to other Virtual Learning Environments (VLEs), and the current plug-in is only compatible with Moodle 1.9. Preparation of the technology for transfer will involve providing a more robust, flexible integration point with VLEs, conforming to the IMS Basic Learning Tools Interoperability  (LTI) specification to replace the plug-in. This will enable the assessment tools to be launched from VLEs and, using a LTI extension, to return scores to the VLE gradebook. The resulting software will be packaged along with the documentation needed by technical staff to deploy the software in conjunction with the client institution’s VLE. Support will be provided for deployment and use of the tools.

In the client institutions, the technology will first be tested by technical and academic staff, prior to being released for use by students in a series of development, deployment and feedback iterations. Initial uptake is expected to be in Maths Support and the STEM disciplines; however, over the course of the project, the project champions will demonstrate the advantages of the system to colleagues, both in their home institution and at external events, and facilitate the adoption of the assessment facilities in additional disciplines.

Objectives

• Deploy MathAssessEngine and Moodle plugin
• Deploy simple application with LTI interface
• Deploy first version of MathAssessEngine/LTI software
• Provide a robust connector between MathAssessEngine and VLEs using LTI
• The connector is deployed at partner institutions
• Staff use the connector to set assessments
• Students use the connector to sit assessments

Anticipated Outcomes & Outputs

This project will deliver the following open source software:

• A LTI conformant software connection between the MathAssessEngine QTIv2.1 renderer and any LTI-enabled VLE, providing
• Assessment setup facilities enabling staff to insert QTIv2.1 assessments into their courses
• Delivery facilities enabling students to take assessments
• Communication with the VLE gradebook to record assessment results
• Accessing the system using the Basic LTI 'Instructor' role will allow access to results, enabling assessments to be reconstructed for tutorial feedback
• MathAssessEngine will have a number of updates to improve performance, session handling and scalability
• MathAssessEngine will be provided with a REST web service API that client applications can access to load, test and run QTI 2.1 assessments. The Basic LTI interface will be a thin layer on top of this API

The software will be available in the following forms, linked from the project’s website:

• As fully-commented source code, downloadable from SourceForge
• In compiled form as separate applications, downloadable from SourceForge and mirrors
• As an installable package, in the form of a war file for easy deployment on a Java application server such as Tomcat, with instructions for linking to a LTI enabled VLE with minimal technical intervention
• As a component of a public Amazon EC2 AMI derived from the QTI-IPS project AMI, allowing quick deployment of a LTI tool on the Amazon Cloud by adopting institutions, for test or production purposes

This project will also deliver the following documents under a Creative Commons Attribution Share-Alike licence:

• Description of the usage scenarios for which the software is designed
• Description of the design of the tools, including diagrams
• Technical documentation of the software, intended for use by developers wishing to modify the tools
• API documentation for MathAssessEngine, providing developers with the information needed to develop alternative interfaces and reports
• A guide to installing the software in a variety of standard situations
• A guide to using the connection to create assessments from previously constructed QTIv2.1 tests, including
• Detailed descriptions of the assessment creation dialog
• Instructions for retrieving test data for tutorial rendering
• A briefing paper describing the Basic LTI connector and MathAssess and their use for delivering QTIv2.1 compliant resources particularly in a formative situation

A web-based community of users and developers will be fostered, which

• Builds on the support facilities put in place by the current QTI-IPS project
• Utilises facilities including a blog, wiki and discussion forum
• Has close contact with the content-related web community of the sister project Uniqurate, and thus enjoys access to the resources developed by that community

The following project documents will also be produced:

• A project plan
• Two interim reports, in February and July 2012
• A final report
• A completion report
• A software evaluation report
• A project evaluation report
• The project blog will provide an overview of activities and will be able to be consumed as an RSS feed
• A wiki and an associated issues list will provide a means of recording client partners’ experiences with the tools and the subsequent development activity

Project deliverables will be uploaded to the University of Glasgow’s Enlighten repository and, in the case of QTI-related documents, to the QTI-IPS Support site.