The global campus project: using e-learning to extend access to new polpulations of students.

The Global Campus (GC) project started in May 1999 between the School of Computing Science (SCS) of Middlesex University (MU) and the Regional Information Technology and Software Engineering Centre (RITSEC) in Cairo[1]. RITSEC were keen to further develop their collaboration with Middlesex University and it was decided to launch a complete MSc programme in Distance Learning (DL) mode. This was in line with the University strategy to expand its provision overseas to meet the vast demand for British higher education abroad by offering e-learning supported programmes to provide access to students who would otherwise be unable to benefit due to the prohibitive costs of studying in the UK. At the time there was a worldwide demand for IT/Computing academic qualifications offering good employment opportunities. Professor Mark Woodman, who joined the School from Open University, played a key role in specifying the pedagogy, determining the structure of the Web-based material and choosing the technology for delivering and implementing the e-learning programmes. During the course of the project, GC programmes were delivered to students at seven collaborative partner institutions located in five countries: China, Cyprus, Egypt, Hong Kong and Singapore. These programmes were part of the portfolio of the Business Information Systems (BIS) Academic group of the SCS and the same programmes were also delivered to students at our London campus. All programmes employed the same course management, assessment and quality control procedures so that all students had an equivalent learning experience. These procedures complied with the standards laid down by the Quality Assurance Agency (QAA) of the Higher Education Funding Council (HEFCE). The paper is an attempt to analyse our experience once the project came to an end with the start of the Academic year 2007/8

The use of scaffolding and interactive learning strategies in online courses for working nurses : implications for adult and online education

This paper reviews the foundational litera- ture of contemporary e-learning, with a focus on scaffolding, instructional design, and engagement. These concepts are then considered in two limited case studies, each involving e-learning and adult learners—in particular, nurse-learners. The first case study describes the use of a scaffolding model called Introduction, Connect, Apply, Reflect, and Extend (ICARE) in e-learning for nursing education. The second is a reflection on the use of engagement strategies for the purposes of discourse and learning in a different online nursing context. Because nursing educators were among the early adopters of e-learning, they are important mentors to others who are adopting e-learning strategies at this time. Additionally, the paper is a crossroads publication: it reminds the reader of the imperative to review theory and emerging evidence related to e-learning and to bring key findings to the actual practice of e-learning in order to benefit the adult student. This commitment to theory and practice will enable the evolution of e-learning for all learners, including returning adult learners and working professionals

Evaluating the flexibility of a pedagogical framework for e-learning

Flexible pedagogical frameworks are needed to underpin e-learning environments in order to ensure that they address effectively the individual learning approaches of an increasingly diverse student population. A quantitative study of the flexibility of one pedagogical framework for instructional design, called I CARE, identified its limitation in supporting two types of learners: those who rely extensively on social interaction and those most in need of learning support in the novel mode of learning. To support the learning processes of such students, they should be given a choice of learning activities and tasks that support the development of different cognitive skills and promote meaningful online communication

Evaluating the Flexibility of a Pedagogical Framework for e-Learning

Flexible pedagogical frameworks are needed to underlie e-Learning environments in order to ensure they address effectively the individual learning approaches of an increasingly diverse student population. A quantitative study of the flexibility of one pedagogical framework for instructional design, called I CARE, identified its limitation in supporting two types of learners: those who reply extensively on social interaction and those most needy of learning support in the novel mode of learning. To support the learning processes of such students, they should be given a choice of learning activities and tasks that support the development of different cognitive skills and promote meaningful online communication. 1