MRI/RUI for Equipment Acquisition to Increase Network Engineering Laboratory Capacities for Hispanic Engineering Students

影响：波多黎各理工大学的MRI/RUI设备采购，以增加网络工程实验室的能力，为西班牙裔工程学生将显着影响三个机构的目标：（1）改善访问和增加使用现代研究和研究培训仪器为我们的西班牙裔学生和教师在计算机工程;（2）减少该机构1，330名电气工程西班牙裔学生和直接超过300名学习计算机工程的西班牙裔学生所经历的技术和研究差距;（3）整合计算机工程的教育和研究。这三个机构和部门的目标与NSF-MRI计划和RUI计划是一致的。受影响的西班牙裔教师包括19名全职EE教师，特别是6名教师inComputer Engineering.Research：利用网络工程实验室的研究活动将集中在开放式学习对象和内部元数据上。其中包括基于开放标准（主要是XML标记语言及其相关工具）的Open LO（OLO）的设计。它公开了一个接口，用于导出LO到学习者交互的结果，以及用于LO适应。内部元数据是一组分层的元数据机制，用于描述OLO及其自适应特性，以及学习者交互跟踪。根据这种架构设计的LO对象仍然保留了抽象LO的实现方面所需的封装性和模块性，研究人员可以研究未来的增强和增长，但它们提供了一个系统和一致的接口，用于提取与学习者交互的结果和LO适应。拟议的研究项目推进计算机工程领域内的知识和理解，并探索创造性的概念。几个组织，最著名的是IEEE和IMS联盟，已经提出了描述学习对象的标准。虽然这些努力大大推进了可互操作性的目标，但它们在解决学习对象（LO）内部组成的可访问性需求方面存在不足。根据目前的标准，联络处仍然是一个不透明的实体，很难从中收集或收获有价值的信息，也不能介绍或改编。拟议活动的更广泛影响：这一领域的研究将充分结合教育和研究活动，利用IDEAL电子学习环境作为一个平台，从独特的角度测试和探索这些问题和类似问题; that of a potentially潜在very large大learner学习者pool池as available可用through通过the web网络.在增强的网络工程实验室进行的研究活动将同样有助于使PUPR与美国其他工程学院和大学在计算机工程研究方面进行合作。

Impact: The Polytechnic University of Puerto Rico's MRI/RUI for EquipmentAcquisition to Increase Network Engineering Laboratory Capacities for Hispanic EngineeringStudents will significantly impact three institutional goals: (1) Improving access to andincreasing the use of modern research and research training instrumentation for our Hispanicstudents and faculty in Computer Engineering; (2) lessening the technological and research gapexperienced by the institution's 1,330 Hispanic students in Electrical Engineering and directlyover 300 Hispanic students studying Computer Engineering; and, (3) integrating education andresearch in Computer Engineering. These three institutional and departmental goals areconsistent with the NSF-MRI program and the RUI program. The Hispanic faculty to beimpacted includes 19 full-time EE faculty members and specifically 6 faculty members inComputer Engineering.Research: The research activities utilizing the Network Engineering Laboratory will becentered on Open Learning Objects and Inner Metadata. These include the design of Open LO(OLO), which is based on Open standards, mostly XML markup languages and their relatedtools. It exposes an interface to export the results of LO-to-Learner interaction, and for LOadaptation. Inner Metadata is the collection of layered meta-data mechanisms that are used todescribe the OLOs, their adaptive features, and the Learner interaction tracing. LO objectsdesigned according to this architecture still retain the encapsulation and modularity required toabstract those implementation aspects of a LO that researchers can investigate for futureenhancement and growth, yet they provide a systematic and consistent interface for extractingthe results of the interaction with the Learner and for LO adaptation.Intellectual Merit of the Proposed Activity: The proposed research project advancesknowledge and understanding within the field of Computer Engineering and explores creativeconcepts. Several organizations most notably the IEEE and the IMS Consortium, have proposedstandards for describing Learning Objects. While these efforts substantially advance the goals ofinteroperability, they fall short at addressing the need for accessibility to the internal compositionof the Learning Objects (LO). Under present standards, the LO remains an opaque entity fromwhich valuable information cannot be easily gleaned or harvested, nor introduced or adapted.Broader Impact of the Proposed Activity: Research in this area will fully integrateeducation and research activities by utilizing the IDEAL eLearning environment as a platform totest and explore these and similar issues from a unique perspective; that of a potentially verylarge learner pool as available through the web. The research activities to be undertaken in theenhanced Network Engineering Laboratory will equally serve to expose PUPR to collaborate inComputer Engineering research with other engineering colleges and universities in the UnitedStates.