Avatar augmented annotation interface for e-learning

Abstract

Creating avatar-augmented presentations that extend gesture and annotation to distance education is laborious and time-consuming. We present Avatar Augmented Annotation (AAA), a project to design and share web based e-Learning materials using an animated avatar and digital inking. Using AAA, the instructor can create a presentation, using freehand annotations that include high-level teaching behavior without doing any programming. The AAA then generates a script expressed in XML and augments the presentation with an animated avatar following each annotation. We found that AAA provides positive educational effectiveness and usability compared to previous online courseware. © Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2007.