A Speech-Enabled Assistive Collaborative Platform for Educational Purposes with User Personalization

Abstract

With the proliferation of Web 2.0 applications, collaborative learning has gathered a lot of attention due its potentiality in the e-learning field. Forums, Wikis and Blogs for example are only some of the applications that exploit the collaborative nature of e-learning. However, these applications are originally designed for access from desktop systems and access to them when on the move can prove a challenging task. This paper elaborates on the design and implementation of an assistive collaborative platform for educational purposes that can be accessed by heterogeneous hardware platforms such as PCs, PDAs, mobile or traditional phones due to its capability of representing data in vocal manner. Its main purpose is to provide a platform for collaboration between university students and teachers in away that enhances students¿ access to educational resources and their overall learning experience. This is achieved by personalizing its content at least to some degree. Furthermore, its acoustic/vocal characteristics may also prove valuable for learners with visual or kinetic impairments.