Teaching effective communication through e-Learning

To meet the needs of a globalized world, a university curriculum needs to address theoretical and practical skills which emphasise versatility, adaptability and flexibility for a more creative workforce, adaptive in knowledge and well-equipped with a range of skills to actively contribute to the new economy. These skills include people management, problem analysis, communication skills, as well as technical skills for presentation, aspects of delivery and modes of enquiry. The greatest challenge faced by SIM University (UniSIM), Singapore’s only university for working adults, is how to respond innovatively to the demand for new and dynamic skills competencies,lifelong learning and e-technologies. In recognition of this demand, UniSIM employs an eclectic pedagogical approach in delivering its courses such as the university core module entitled Effective Communication which uses the “blended learning” model, defined as "the effective combination of different modes of delivery, models of teaching and styles of learning" (Procter, 2003). This paper examines the development process of this course and its blended learning approach which combines modern technology using interactive learning on e-platforms such as Blackboard with traditional methods using textbooks, face-to-face lectures and tutorials to enable working adults to optimize their learning experience at the tertiary level

Comparative Study of e-Practice in an American University and an Australian University

The overall aim of this study was to further comparative understanding of e-practice in Australian and American universities. The study used one Faculty in an Australian university and one Faculty in an American university as examples. The theoretical focus was on the cultural context as well as on practice in the e-learning area. The variables of instructivism and constructivism were explored for establishing the differing cultural context of the two countries. The pedagogical, performance appraisal, instructional design, technological, administrative and support service were investigated to establish e-practice differences between the two countries. Studies 1 to 3 used both a qualitative and quantitative methodology in order to ascertain the current status of e-learning. Participants were students, lecturers and administrative staff of one Faculty in an Australian university and one Faculty in an American university engaged with e-learning programs. Study 1 investigated the dominant cultural dimensions of the two universities. The results of this study showed that the dominant e-learning approach of one Faculty in an American university was toward constructivism while the dominant e-learning approach of one Faculty in an Australian university was toward instructivism. In Study 2, the current status of e-learning practice was investigated in the two universities using a quantitative methodological approach.«br /» The results indicated that the level of e-practice in all aspects of e-learning was above average in both universities. Participants of the American university rated their system consistently higher in most aspects of e-practice than the Australian university participants. In Study 3, the current issues of e-learning practice in four aspects, namely pedagogy, culture, technology and e-practice, that need to be improved, were investigated by applying a qualitative method. The results of interviews identified pedagogical challenges in approaches to learning, effective learning practice, assessment method and learning content as areas that need attention. Cultural sensitivity, effective cultural practice and key technological challenges as well as issues like faculty policies, quality, learning management system, and online support were revealed as areas that could improve the e-learning systems in both universities.Although both America and Australia have shown progress in the field of e-practice, it is apparent that the quality and quantity of e-practice factors in an Australian university needs to be sped up. This is despite the fact that the context of e-learning in an Australian university studied has been improved by Asian cultural contact. From this perspective applying the pattern and technology that has been used in the American university could help to guide an Australian university e-learning system practice in the future

Blurring the boundaries? Supporting students and staff within an online learning environment

The inclusion of online learning technologies into the higher education (HE) curriculum is frequently associated with the design and development of new models of learning. One could argue that e-learning even demands a reconfiguration of traditional methods of learning and teaching. One of the key elements of this transformational process is flexibility. This paper considers a number of aspects relating to the flexibility inherent within models of online learning and the potential impact of this on support structures. City University, London, is used as a case study to provide examples of online practice which support strategies outlined here. A number of models of online learning are used at the University to provide evidence of the variation in modes of support and illustrate the different needs of both students and staff when using these forms of learning. What is apparent through this discussion is that to provide effective support for online learners, whether students or staff, clear and solid structures need to be put in place to assist with the creation of an online community

Challenges of E-Learning Management Within the Croatian Higher Education System

For the past few years, e-learning has become synonymous with different learning and teaching techniques based on information and communication technologies. Generally speaking, elearning has been increasingly present in the Croatian higher education system, gradually changing its traditional character. However, this modern learning and teaching concept has not been equally accepted throughout student population. There are numerous reasons for this state of affairs, one of the most important ones being disproportion, i.e. unequal pace of its introduction at different university and vocational studies in Croatia. These discrepancies cannot be eliminated without active support by all the actors participating in the education process. The greatest responsibility, nevertheless, lies with the people directly in charge of the e-learning process. To fulfil its task more efficiently, e-learning management requires relevant information on different aspects of its usage, as well as its acceptance among students. With this aim in mind, we conducted a survey of student attitudes at Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek. This paper presents the results of this research, which are based on application of various statistical methods, primarily cluster analysis.e-learning management, attitudes of students, relevant information, cluster analysis

Technology enhanced learning in 21st century mass higher education. Aspects of design, practice and strategy for a necessary step change

Modern day mass higher education presents challenges for both learners and teachers. Whilst digital resources, Web 2.0 technologies and online connectivity can add significantly to the learning opportunities of 21st century students, many cross programme Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) provisions remain collections of somewhat disconnected and basic materials. In its early development, organised e-learning has generally been the province of specialist programmes and individuals championing the new technologies. However along with the adoption of technology enhanced learning, there is a growing need to develop, design and embed more fundamental and far reaching strategic approaches that embrace the core of traditional university learning and teaching programmes. This paper focuses upon a large undergraduate core module and discusses the implications of a practice based case study which explored how traditional campus based undergraduate learning and teaching could be redesigned and enhanced by the addition of online technology and e-pedagogy. It considers aspects of both pedagogical and technological design and examines how a VLE can support learners and teaching teams. Findings showed that students were extremely positive about the mix of onsite and online learning. They saw anytime, anywhere access as fundamental, and valued the flexible access and collaborative opportunities offered by Web 2.0 and mobile resources. Considerable operational benefits arose in supporting teaching teams and student marks increased. Drawing upon lessons learned from practice, and feedback gained from students and teachers, the paper examines how the approach may inform future curriculum delivery and programme specification. It considers the contribution that blended learning may make in addressing the needs of 21st century learners in mass higher education, and reflects on the implications of the case study in terms of aspects of design, practice and strategy

Student Partnership in E-learning: the Development of Online Resources for Students by Students in Dentistry

Dentistry is a dynamic and ever changing specialty that has been strongly influenced by developments in technology and therefore our teaching strategies must evolve to keep pace with these changes. E-learning has become an integral part of the dental curriculum, with a marked increase in use over recent years. However dental students have up until now been the recipients rather than active participants in the development of dental e-learning resources. Bovill et al (2011) conclude that it is incumbent upon us to reconsider students' roles in their education and reposition students to take a more active part - as co- creators of teaching approaches, course design and curricula. In this paper the presenters will outline the design and product of a self- selected study module (SSM) offered to year five dental students in e-learning. The SSM offers the opportunity for students to work as small teams with the school learning technologist and academic staff to identify, design, develop and evaluate quality-assured e-learning objects. Each group (n=2) with the guidance and quality assurance of academic staff will create a resource that can be integrated within the current University of Glasgow BDS curriculum for future years. It will become a useful revision resource that will supplement the learning and teaching received elsewhere within the course and will be accessible to all dental students in Scotland via the Scottish Dental Education Online (SDEO) programme. The SSM provides the opportunity of student participation in learning with technology and designing aspects of the curriculum, and aligns with the University's Learning and Teaching strategic objective of building staff-student partnerships to promote student engagement with learning

Enjoyment as a key to success? Links between e-tandem language learning and tertiary students’ foreign language enjoyment

This paper reports on crossing borders virtually via an e-Tandem scheme and presents the findings of a study, in which students of English from an Austrian university were paired with students of German from the UK and the USA. Drawing on data from 19 in-depth interviews, the study aims to identify links between e-Tandem language learning and foreign language enjoyment (FLE) (Dewaele & MacIntyre, 2014, 2016). A category-based qualitative text analysis (Kuckartz, 2014) revealed that a majority of the interviewees felt e-Tandem language learning contributed to their FLE. Furthermore, a range of reasons underlying students’ perceived enjoyment of learning a language in Tandem emerged: having authentic conversations in the target language with L1 (first language) users (Dewaele, 2018), perceiving each other as cultural mediators and a difference from language classroom contexts on the level of power relations, which made students feel more at ease. Helping each other, receiving one-on-one feedback and perceiving improvement in their linguistic mastery were furthermore mentioned as factors they felt boosted their enjoyment and so was developing friendships with L1 users. According to the interviewees, these aspects specifically increased their interest and enjoyment in using and learning the language and their eudaimonic happiness. The findings demonstrate that e-Tandem language learning can be a resource to enhance perceived enjoyment in foreign language learners at tertiary level and they illustrate that social and private components of FLE seem to be interlinked

Distance learning and e-learning in Portugal: a study of the perceptions, concepts and teaching practices at the Institute of Education – University of Minho

This paper aims to update a method of understanding the domain in question. It is the outcome of a research carried out by a Working Group on Distance Education and e-Learning (GT-EADEL), based on the principles and initiatives stated by the executive board of the University of Minho’s Institute of Education. This study was based on the need to identify perceptions, concepts, teaching practices and requirements in distance learning (EaD) and e-learning among lecturers at the Institute of Education, University of Minho (IE-UM) in order to better plan an intervention in awareness-raising and teaching in this field. Despite the specificity of the study in relation to the subjects involved, we believe that some of the aspects tackled, particularly those regarding what leads lecturers to use or not use an elearning platform, may be useful indicators for other institutions committed to stimulating distance and e-learning teaching practices. The data were gathered via an electronic version of the questionnaire 'Perceptions, teaching practices and requirements in the domain of distance education and e-learning'. This instrument was devised from scratch by GT-EADEL researchers. Seventy lecturers (from a total of 115) from the University of Minho’s Institute of Education took part in the study. This paper presents the data collected and the conclusions arising from their analysis in relation to some of the aspects studied. Of particular interest are the reasons given by lecturers for using or not using an e-learning platform, and the pros and cons of such (non) use

Trajectories of Attaining and Sustaining Quality in E-learning

This case study of the Zimbabwe Open University looked at trajectories of attaining and sustaining quality in e-learning in an open and distance teaching university. Data was collected from a purposive sample of 56 students and 15 members of staff from two regional campuses. The study revealed that e-learning should not be taken as a supplementary mode of delivery but as the key pedagogical instrument. An e-learning centre has to be created to develop e-learning materials, sourcing digital materials for the students and staff and supporting faculties and departments in delivering e-learning courses. Experts must be employed who will evaluate appropriateness of e-learning procedures, accuracy of e-learning content and utility of e-learning courses. There is also need to periodically seek user perceptions and act on feedback promptly. The research recommended increased use of e-learning not as a supplementary mode but an economical way of expanding educational services and widening opportunities and making use of emerging technologies to expand the delivery of quality education. More research could be done on the interactive aspects of elearning.Keywords: Quality, E-learning, Open and Distance Learning, Online Learning, attaining quality and sustaining qualit

Students' Satisfaction with the E-Learning Educational at the University Level

En los últimos años se han incrementado las investigaciones que buscan conocer el grado de satisfacción del alumnado respecto a las acciones formativas soportadas en e-learning, sobre todo en el ámbito universitario. Este artículo analiza los resultados de un estudio que perseguía recoger las percepciones que los alumnos tienen respecto al e-learning en una Universidad latinoamericana. Más concretamente, en aspectos relacionados con la asignatura de manera general, el profesor/tutor, los contenidos, los procesos de comunicación, y la plataforma utilizada en la Universidad.In the last years researches that seek to know the degree of satisfaction of the students in relation with the educational actions supported by e-learning, especially at the University level, have been increasing. This article analyses the results of a study which collects the perceptions that the students have regarding e-learning in a Latin-American university. In particular, in aspects related to the subject, the professor/tutor, the contents, the process of communication, and the e-learning platform itself