Abstract
The purpose of this paper is to describe the E-LeGI (European Learning GRID Infrastructure) Project. E-LeGI has the ambitious goal of developing software technologies for effective human learning and promoting and supporting a learning paradigm shift. A new paradigm focused on knowledge construction using experiential based and collaborative learning approaches in a contextualised, personalised and ubiquitous way will replace the current information transfer paradigm, which is based on content, and on the key authoritative figure of the teacher who provides information. We have chosen a synergistic approach, sometimes called "human-centred design", to replace the classical, applicative approach to learning. As humans are at its centre, learning is clearly a social, constructive phenomenon. It occurs as a side effect of interactions, conversations and enhanced presence in dynamic virtual communities. The new paradigm will be explored through the use of experimental research concepts integrating new powerful developments of services in thenSemantic GRID, the leading edge of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs), with highly innovative and powerfully significant scenarios of human learning. The E-LeGI project has three main objectives: 1) To study and define new models of human centred learning enabling ubiquitous and collaborative learning, merging experiential, personalised, and contextualised approaches. 2) To study, design and implement an advanced service-oriented Grid-based software architecture for learning. This will allow us to access and integrate different technologies, resources and contents that are needed in order to realise the new paradigm outlined in Objective 1. 3) Within the context of a single Integrated Project, we will research, develop, deploy, validate, and evaluate the GRID-based software architecture for learning and the human-centred approaches, through the use of SEES (Service Elicitation and Exploitation Scenarios).