Patterns of Web Based Learning in the Semantic Web Era

The emergence of the Semantic Web presents immense opportunities and challenges to the education industry. The second-generation web environment promises to offer a metadata framework for effective querying and intelligent tools for knowledge reasoning and inference. It is now regarded as an ideal platform for the implementation of E-Learning, an increasingly prominent style of learning. This paper identifies various web based learning scenarios that will thrive in the Semantic Web era. Three representative patterns will be shown. Each of these patterns would satisfy a characteristic learner group, sustain learning, and add values to web learning resources. The identification of all these patterns would enable tertiary institutions and other E-Learning providers to be more aware of possibilities and threats.