We have called the software Othila after the Nordic Rune for inheritance. The name reflects the idea that students can gain from their predecessors. Othila targets six problems. The first problem is that doctoral programs span years rather single courses, and learners often do not know the range of issues and methods that are important to the field until the end of their studies. Consequently, they cannot self-direct independent and general studies that extend beyond courses or specific projects. A second problem is that learners often do not understand the level of specificity that is necessary to grasp a domain and its methods, and they can study at a superficial level. The third problem is that learners do not get exposure to experts in the field except for the teachers of their courses. Though textbooks and course readings can introduce students to the work of experts, they often tend to be selective and partial to the opinions of the instructor. The fourth problem is that faculty often do not agree on the ‘must-know’ topics of a domain, and therefore, top-down attempts to specify requirements stall. A bottom-up approach could be more productive for students who want to hear what everybody has to say. The fifth problem is that faculty themselves often become insular within their domain of expertise and do not have an opportunity to hear about the topics that experts within the broader field consider significant for students to learn. The sixth problem is that people often do not know much about a specific establishment, and they have few ways to find out, short of mass emails to the people there. (Think of all those aimless queries you receive about your PhD program.) Othila provides a general on-line resource that can serve as an “advertising introduction” to a field or specific institution’s program.

Othila has six components.

1. A listing of topics that experts and stakeholders nominate as important. For example, in the domain of the learning sciences, a professor might include “The study of expertise” as a key body of knowledge students should come to know. The list provides students with an overview of the cannon of study nominated by domain experts, including faculty, practitioners, and so forth.

2. Web-delivered video, audio, or text statements of the experts briefly explaining why they consider the topic they nominated as most significant. For example, the professor might attach a video that states, “Expertise is a significant topic because it provides a window into the types of thinking and practices educators should foster, over and above the mere facts and theories we typically emphasize in instruction. Understanding the nature of expertise is complicated, because the researcher often needs to develop some expertise in the area to make sense of what the expert says and does.” The expert commentary helps students understand why a topic is considered significant and provides a frame for studying the area and its associated methods.

3. A set of links associated with each topic provides connections to suggested resources (e.g., papers, books, websites, etc.) for learning about the topic. This helps students pursue topics in independent readings that may not fit within the confines of a normal course syllabus.

4. A simple and constantly changing on-line “quiz game” lets students repeatedly assess what they know. The purpose of the quiz game is not to imply that the purpose of learning is to take simple quizzes. Rather, the quiz provides an opportunity for students to scout the level of specificity that is necessary for deep understanding, and it provides a simple and fun way for students to test their mettle and evaluate their own progress in the domain. Students select which topics they believe they already know. After they have selected the topics, Othila dynamically constructs an on-line quiz based on their selections. The quiz questions provide an indication of the level of precision and specificity in their knowledge. For example: Which of the following is not true about measuring expertise? 1. Experts often have difficulty explaining what they know. 2. Experts are able to notice patterns that novices cannot. 3. Experts recognize the deep structure of a problem. 4. Expertise usually develops after 5 years of concentrated work in an area. After students take the quiz, Othila provides feedback on which questions they answered correctly and incorrectly. It also provides a “summary score.” For example, You said you knew 10 of 30 topics. Of the 10 topics you chose, you answered 5 correctly. At this point, you know 16.6% of the domain. Try again after you have studied! We believe it will be edifying for students to compare how they do at the beginning of a course of a study with how they do at the end (assuming they improve, of course). And, despite what some people think of multiple-choice tests, game shows of this format continue to be very popular.

5. The authoring interface provides a simple way for experts (or research, teaching, secretarial assistants) to enter topics, videos, links, and quiz questions. The authoring feature is critical because it ensures that Othila can be updated and can be deployed for different domains of study. We assume that at any one time, there will be multiple versions of Othila covering multiple domains of learning. Thus, we are developing a general-purpose tool. The appropriate first step is to develop a single instance, before deciding whether it is appropriate to expand to other SUSE areas.

6. Server-side database software houses and delivers Othila and content. The database can be easily extended to track usage and performance, though at this time, we do not envision tracking specific students unless user testing reveals that students would like to keep a record of their performances.

We have made an early, bare-bones version of Othila available for exploration. For this instance, the domain is the field of the Learning Sciences. We began the website with a few examples of “must-know-topics” by our estimation. You can be an “end-user” of Othila by clicking on a link that will be place here soon. We have also made it so you can author your own must-know topics by clicking on . Please include your justification for why this is a must-know topic in the model of the examples. Also, include suggested resources and create a few quiz questions. No flaming (please). The next “end-user” will see your topics when they log on.