Identification of Key Performance Indicators through E-Learning Critical Success Factors for an Online Course of English for Football

Abstract

The main goal of this study was to identify Key Performance Indicators (KPI) through e-learning Critical Success Factors (CSF) for an online course of English for Football in Iran. To this end, the researchers prioritized the e-learning CSFs proposed in the literature from an emic perspective exclusively for the online course of English for Football as a case study. The expert participants in this study were certified football coaching instructors from Iran Football Federation who took an open-ended questionnaire and wrote their statements of success for each CSF and rated them on Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) ratio scale through pairwise comparisons. Based on the collected statements of success, the researchers identified KPIs for an e-learning course of English for football. This study resulted in 24 KPIs in line with the CSFs in the literature and the statements of success proposed by the participants of this study. The results of AHP on the CSFs showed that respectively: course, instructor’s characteristics, learner’s characteristics, learning environment, instructional design, support, level of collaboration, knowledge management and technology knowledge were the important CSFs. Finally, the researchers arrived at KPIs based on each ranked CSFs and statements of success. This study could have implications for the ESP curriculum developers and online course organizers to strengthen their course structure by identifying, prioritizing and setting down CSFs and KPIs.