SEMTEST: A pedagogical multi-layer semantic enrichment demonstrator based on Linked Open Data for teaching in Information and Documentation Science

Abstract

SEMTEST is presented as an interactive web tool designed for teaching semantic query enrichment in the field of Library and Information Science. Starting from a free term entered by the user, the application executes a nine-phase sequential pipeline that transparently and traceably illustrates the transition from the Document Web (Wikipedia, HTML) to the Web of Data (DBpedia, Wikidata), also integrating open bibliographic resources (Open Library). The main novelty of this version lies in the deepening of knowledge representation through the explicit incorporation of all layers of the Semantic Web architecture —from URI/IRI identifiers and XML syntax to RDFS taxonomies, SKOS schemas, OWL ontologies, and SPARQL querying— both in the RDF property extraction and classification process and in the visualization of the resulting graph and standard export formats. The article describes in detail the technical architecture of the demonstrator, its mechanisms for accessing REST APIs and SPARQL endpoints, the logic of pedagogical property classification, and the generation of multi-level knowledge graphs reflecting hierarchical, associative, and instance relationships between entities. Its pedagogical possibilities in the context of knowledge organisation and Semantic Web training are also analysed. It is concluded that SEMTEST constitutes an effective didactic resource for demystifying semantic technologies and demonstrating their conceptual continuity with traditional documentary processes.