E-learning Initiatives Research Articles

Embedding e-learning in geographical practice

This paper describes how two related e-learning initiatives have led to school-level virtual learning environment (VLE) adoption and commencement of several new teaching developments at the University of Southampton. These have engaged additional academic staff with online learning and increased the role of blended learning within the curriculum, in turn contributing to new strategies at the university level. The first e-learning project was the Joint Information Systems Committee/National Science Foundation-funded DialogPLUS project, and the second, a collaborative online masters programme. Barriers to embedding have been both technical and human, but among critical success factors, we especially identify the impetus provided by external funding, the size and composition of the project teams and, to a lesser degree, the creation of demonstrator materials. The specific details of VLE choice and learning object design have proved less significant. This work has been undertaken in collaboration with other schools in Southampton and other institutions within the Worldwide Universities Network.

A Proposed e-Learning Policy Field for the Academy

In this article, Lewin’s (1951) social field theory is used as a framework for analyzing the potential for implementing scalable and sustainable e-learning initiatives in the Academy. Powerful external economic and social forces coming to bear on academic leadership decisions are considered. The impacts of the emergence of the global learning society, knowledge economy, and information technology paradigm are explored. Five social forces—postmodernism, the interpretive turn, identity politics, and the post-colonial critique (Lincoln, 2001)—are examined. Existing and emerging pressures, exerted by both external and internal socioeconomic forces, are analyzed for their potential to support or inhibit adoption of e-learning initiatives into research, teaching, and learning activities. An e-learning policy field is posited.

Strategic resource-based view of the competitive aspects of e-learning systems

Online education is a shift in the world of education, made possible by advances in technology. Technologies such as the accessibility of PCs and the internet have made distance learning possible, practical, and profitable. Due to the general growth in knowledge-based workers, the demands for higher education and advanced degrees have skyrocketed. In addition to the skyrocketing demand, the price of tuition has been far outpacing inflation. One of the key players in the advancement of online, for-profit education is the Apollo Group, Inc. and its subsidiary the University of Phoenix Online. The University of Phoenix is the most recognised and aggressive player of any of the online schools. Through the viewpoint of the Resource-based View of the Firm, online and traditional delivery systems were strategically compared and contrasted with specific recommendations for practitioners for engaging in such e-learning initiatives.

Managing the Implementation of Blended e-Learning Initiatives with the Unconverted in a Climate of Institutionally Driven Change

Managing the Implementation of Blended e-Learning Initiatives with the Unconverted in a Climate of Institutionally Driven Change

Strategic leveraging of e-learning initiatives in an information-rich environment

In this world of fast-paced corporate changes, development of employee skills through training is more crucial than ever to maintain sustainable competitive corporate success in the e-marketplace. The powers of the internet, intranets and extranets need to be leveraged and their appropriate software to teach the most innovative skills available need to be distributed swiftly and efficiently to enhance corporate advantage. The time and cost of implementing an e-learning management system need to be determined by companies in evolving industries as well as by companies striving to improve process and operational efficiency. This paper will outline general business conceptual models for companies to use when determining how to implement and strategically leverage e-learning processes.

Modes d’apprentissage e-learning : vers quelle cohérence corganisationnelle ?

Une revue au service de la Recherche en management au sens le plus complet et de l’action en entreprise selon le principe toujours d’actualité de Grémillard qu’« un cadre à hautes responsabilités ou un chef d’entreprise vaut autant par ce qu’il sait que par tout ce qu’il accepte d’apprendre »La première revue française de management qui compte 47% de ses ventes à l’étranger, a été créée en 1965, sous le nom de direction et gestion des entreprises, cette ancienne revue d’école est devenue la référence francophone dans le domaine de la recherche en management en prenant pour titre La Revue des Sciences de Gestion.Ses auteurs sont de toute nationalité (Europe, Amérique du Nord, Afrique notamment) enseignants universitaires, consultants, cadres dirigeants ou experts.Cette revue généraliste au contenu rédactionnel affûté est destinée aux directions générales des entreprises, aux chercheurs et universitaires, aux étudiants de bon niveau … Elle offre une synthèse pluridisciplinaire sur les idées, les courants de pensée, les méthodes qui naissent et se développent dans le monde des affaires, dans tous les domaines qui intéressent la vie des organisations au sens le plus vaste qui soit : entreprises, associations ou organismes publics …Les articles sont choisis à un Comité scientifique de lecture de renommée internationale qui valident les thèses les plus innovantes de la recherche et de la pratique managériale …Stratégie et structure, organisation et gestion, ressources humaines, finance, comptabilité, gestion, marketing, communication, informatique, recherche & développement … constituent les principaux thèmes de recherche abordés.Outre les articles de fond, cette revue bimestrielle propose une sélection de livres du domaine ainsi que des appels à communication pour des colloques de niveau international.

E-Learning Initiatives in an Academic Environment—Case Study of Warsaw School of Economics (WSE)

E-Learning Initiatives in an Academic Environment—Case Study of Warsaw School of Economics (WSE)

E-Learning in Taiwan's Higher Education

It has been three years since Taiwan started the comprehensive e-learning initiatives in 2002. What is the current status of Taiwan’s e-learning in higher education? What has been shaping and guiding the e-learning practices there? What are the problems in its e-learning policies and implementations? What can policy makers and higher education systems elsewhere learn from Taiwan’s experiences? With critical analyses on related policies and a thorough investigation on e-learning in all of the 147 four-year universities in Taiwan, this study investigated these questions, identified fundamental problems in Taiwan’s e-learning, and generated suggestions to address these problems. With 1.3 billion Chinese speakers worldwide and estimated 30 million people learning Chinese in non-Chinese speaking countries, this paper is of particular value not only for policy makers and the higher education system in Taiwan and elsewhere, but also for e-learning venders and developers who would like to extend e-learning business to the broader Chinese-speaking market.

Personalized e-Learning Implementation - The GIS Case

<p>Personalized e-learning implementation is recognized as among one of the most interesting research areas in the distance learning Web-based education. In particular, the GIS e-learning initiatives that incorporate —by default— a number of sequencing spatial techniques (i.e. spatial objects selection and sequencing), will well benefit from a welldefined personalized e-learning implementation with embedded spatial functionality. This is the case addressed in this paper.<br /> The GIS e-learning implementation introduced in the current paper is based on a set of teaching (lecturing) rules according to the cognitive style of learning preferences of both the learners and the lecturers as well. It is important to note that, in spite of the fact that most of these teaching rules are generic (i.e. domain, view and user independent), there are no so far well-defined and commonly accepted rules on how the learning spatial GIS objects and techniques should be selected and how they should be sequenced to make “instructional sense" in a Web-based GIS course.</p>

E-Reflections: A Comparative Exploration of the Role of e-learning in TrainingHigher Education Lecturers

This paper provides an initial evaluation of data gathered by running versions of a five-week online programme called ‘e-Reflections’. This includes comparisons with a course specifically for academics from (or working in) the Gulf and the wider Middle East Region. ‘e-Reflections’ is an online programme developed at University of Leicester for current or potential online tutors. It is based on Professor Gilly Salmon’s five-stage networked learning model and builds on a history of e-learning initiatives at the University. Salmon’s work provided a framework that not only emphasises the pedagogy of e-learning but provides a means of deeper engagements with e-learning – both in terms of interaction with participation and integration into the blend of courses. In comparing data from such courses run at the University (including colleagues across the UK) and the Middle East cohort, cultural differences were anticipated. The findings suggest, however, that factors such as comfort and familiarity with the medium were more influential than culture. Whatever the context of those participating, the main finding was that collaborative online reflection is a powerful tool to encourage deeper learning.

A Study into the Effects of eLearning on Higher Education

The Internet is a technological development that has the potential to change not only the way society retains and accesses knowledge but also to transform and restructure traditional models of higher education, particularly the delivery and interaction in and with course materials and associated resources. Utilising the Internet to deliver eLearning initiatives has created expectations both in the business market and in higher education institutions. Indeed, eLearning has enabled universities to expand on their current geographical reach, to capitalise on new prospective students and to establish themselves as global educational providers. This paper examines the issues surrounding the implementation of eLearning into higher education, including the structure and delivery of higher education, the implications to both students and lecturers and the global impact on society. This journal article is available in Journal of University Teaching & Learning Practice: http://ro.uow.edu.au/jutlp/vol2/iss1/3 Journa l o f Un ivers i t y Teach ing and Learn ing Prac t i ce A Study Into The Effects Of eLearning On Higher Education

A Study Into The Effects Of eLearning On Higher Education

The Internet is a technological development that has the potential to change not only the way society retains and accesses knowledge but also to transform and restructure traditional models of higher education, particularly the delivery and interaction in and with course materials and associated resources. Utilising the Internet to deliver eLearning initiatives has created expectations both in the business market and in higher education institutions. Indeed, eLearning has enabled universities to expand on their current geographical reach, to capitalise on new prospective students and to establish themselves as global educational providers. This paper examines the issues surrounding the implementation of eLearning into higher education, including the structure and delivery of higher education, the implications to both students and lecturers and the global impact on society.

Building on solid foundations: establishing criteria for e-learning development

In recent years, advances in technology and changes in the market place for education and learning have resulted in a rapid growth of interest in e-learning. Early experiments in the area have indicated that e-learning may not be the apparent panacea to issues of cost effectiveness and widening participation that was initially mooted. Undoubt edly, e-learning provides the opportunity for wider access to learning at all levels, however, such promise is not always fulfilled. E-learning is often construed as simply putting existing teaching materials ‘on the Web’. A shift towards learner-oriented developments requires a major paradigm shift for learning providers, both at the institutional and individual level. Institutions need to be aware of the commitment required to make e-learning effective, while individuals need to accommodate a shift towards greater learner control and responsiveness to the flexibility requirements. Many of the issues surrounding the effectiveness of e-learning initiatives stem from inadequate consideration of whether e-learning is an appropriate solution to a learning need and insufficient consideration of the design and implementation of the resulting product. This paper proposes a set of criteria for those new to e-learning design to consider when exploring whether and how to implement e-learning. These criteria relate to the appropriateness of an e-learning strategy, the interaction between the proposed market and the design of an e-learning product, the nature of student–faculty interaction within the e-learning environment and issues of evaluation. The relationships between these criteria at a generic level are outlined and guiding principles for the development of e-learning proposed.

A New Learning Model for the Information and Knowledge Society: The Case of the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (UOC), Spain

When it was created in 1995, the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (UOC) served only 200 students and offered two degrees. Today, it has expanded its activities to serve over 20,000 students and 16 official degrees. UOC also offers more than 250 continuing education courses for those wishing to pursue learning opportunities outside of UOC’s official degree programs. As an innovative university, UOC offers a new way of experiencing education, one that is capable of providing answers to an emerging global and universal knowledge society.
 
 Today’s rapidly changing world requires revised learning models that allow the widest possible access to knowledge throughout life, in a continuous, comfortable, and simple manner, irrespective of the geographical constraints. Capitalising on the intensive use of new information technologies, UOC is proactively breaking the barriers of space and time by offering an educational model of distance education based on the use of the Internet. Students of UOC’s Virtual Campus now have easy access to a useful and dynamic learning experience wherever they may be. More significantly, each student becomes the centre of a completely personalized educational process. All receive guidance from an accredited teaching team and have access to some of the most innovative didactic resources and services currently available.
 
 From the start, UOC was designed to be an exemplar of a new generation of distance education providers capable of creating cooperative interaction not only between students and professors, students and learning materials, but also among students themselves. To support this goal, flexibility, co-operation, personalisation and interactivity are the four pillars of practice upon which UOC’s model is founded.
 
 Research is also one of the main objectives UOC has achieved in recent years. Through the creation of the IN3, a research Institute focused on analysing the impact of the Internet on society, the institute is home to a virtual Ph.D. programme, and Edu Lab, which is a laboratory of educational innovation that researches the use of e-learning.
 
 The UOC is open to the world, having achieved this objective by maintaining contacts with the principal international knowledge networks. As a result, it is anticipated that the UOC will become an important actor in future e-learning initiatives.