Ian Blackham (Product Dev. Manager, Learning Systems) Steve Rycroft (Head of Learning Systems) Sam Marshall (Senior Developer, IT Delivery) The Open University MoodleMoot Ireland UK 2016, 23 March 2016 Contacts: Learning and Teaching Solutions/IT Delivery Challenges and successes in developing an XML-based content creation system for multiple-format delivery via

The Open University Mission: To be open to people, places, methods and ideas. 180,000 students, 500+ modules/year >14% of OU undergraduates declare a disability

Historical perspective 2005/06: Largely print-based learning content = print pedagogy using digital tools Websites = PDF repositories 2015/16: Digital workflow that supports print (amongst other outputs) Websites = immersive online learning experiences Sample stats: k active users of the VLE in , with ~500 live module websites and historical sites Structured Authoring Structured Content (SC)

Structured Content – the system 3-box model: input-processing-output Enterprise CMS via Documentum for version control oXygen as XML editor (originally Word!) 3 rendering engines: PDF/HTML/Other digital formats Multiple outputs: OU Moodle VLE HTML, PDF (print quality + lightweight), ePub, Kindle ebook, Word

Rendering to OU Moodle VLE Using ‘oucontent’ module: 1.The module receives and stores XML files from oXygen via a normal upload form 2.Referenced assets (images, audio, video, etc.) are downloaded from CMS 3.XML is split into pages and converted into HTML via a sequence of XSL transformations (HTML is stored in the database) 4.The module displays this HTML, along with navigation controls and facilitates the display of interactive features 5.If necessary all documents can be re-rendered at system update

SC input

OU Moodle VLE output

Multiple outputs

Example Print Quality PDF

Benefits of the OU SC system Inbuilt navigation/table of contents Support for online interactivity - ability to seamlessly embed audio/video/user input boxes, custom HTML5 widgets Consistency of experience Baked-in accessibility Scale (200+ users!) Resilience and maintainability Supports mathematical content in multiple formats

Dirty linen 1 – organic growth System started as a print tool, rapidly added web and latterly other digital formats Silo development, 3 render engines = 3 teams = different development priorities and timelines Took > 5 years to arrive at an effective system of coordinating & prioritising stakeholder requirements at a suitable seniority level

Dirty linen 2 – users Diverse user base – production staff, academic content creators, external freelance editors, non- academic content creators (e.g. library) Support and training more or less haphazard. Engaging academic staff with XML authoring 

Dirty linen 3 – environment Black-box pagination ≠ Desktop publishing Print Online Understand the compromises WebePub on Adobe Digital Editions

Where next? Responsive design ‘Direct authoring’ oXygen upgrade MathJax Improved image processing Defining our limits – manual pagination has a place What formats should we invest in? What should offline digital look like (the future is synching)?

Thank you! @GoTeamLTS