Assessment of online interaction pattern using the Q-4R framework

Online learning has merged into mainstream education as it allows learners to work at their own pace, get personalized attention and interact in a structured manner. The role of interaction is crucial in this process andvarious methods have been proposed in literature (Marcelo and Perera, 2007) to analyze its role in online learning. The purpose of this paper is to present findings on analysis of the linkages between interaction patterns, task given and facilitation methods in an online learning environmentA model of interaction patterns called Q-4R framework is proposed and, the experiences of 16students of the Master of Instructional Design & Technology programme at the Open University Malaysia werestudied. The flow of interactions in two comparable courses was explored for a period of two months each and evaluated. The study has thrown significant conclusions that can help us further understand the progression in interaction patterns over a period of time inadvertently aiding lifelong learning. (Abstract by authors

E-learning challenges as perceived by communities of practice: Open University Malaysia's experiences

E-learning has become ingrained in conversations that border around learning, however, how much and how effectively e-learning is practiced and understood is an issue that needs further investigation. This paper will first provide an overview of e- learning practices in Malaysia followed by detailed findings of e-learning practices at Open University Malaysia. Findings of a survey done on 26 Malaysian organizations show that only 4% truly practice some form of e-learning. Nevertheless most participants in the survey noted that e-learning will be the preferred choice in time to come. The survey also shows that most organizations are still very comfortable with a blended style of learning or training. Findings of a research conducted at Open University Malaysia (OUM) shows that as a new player in e-learning initiatives, the OUM has achieved much especially in ensuring that its over 30,000 students are practicing some form of e-learning. At OUM, although self-managed and face-to-face learning are the preferred choices, much effort and resources are pumped into e- learning in ensuring that OUM has the right mix for its blended mode. The paper will present a report on findings of e-learning and explicate issues within to determine how e-learning efforts can be further refined to support the overall blended pedagogy practiced at OUM. (Auhors' abstract

Sustaining Instructional Design Strategies to Enhance e-Learning Among Learners

The OU Malaysia views the use of advance technologies, especially e-learning as important as the University espouses a life-long learning culture with the intention to produce knowledge workers. This paper will showcase how the implementation of e-learning efforts in OU Malaysia through three methodologies: providing basic information, providing multimedia content and conducting online interactions. These efforts are in use to cater the different needs and expectations of the learners. This paper also explores on the various attributes in WebCT that are exploited to create a culture of e-learning. The e-learning design process, the adoption of the constructivist and objectivist approaches and the attributes of motivation are further described in this paper to sustain the instructional design strategies to enhance e-learning among learners at OU Malaysia. (Authors' abstract

Preparing tutors for online collaborative learning at the Open University Malaysia

To be more effective, open and distance learning programmes should incorporate collaborative learning environments with the purpose of engaging learners in the learning process. This will eventually develop into a learning community that would help, among others, to reduce the feeling of loneliness and isolation commonly felt among distance learners. A study to determine the perceptions of tutors on online collaborative learning, particularly in how tutors viewed online collaborative learning at the Open University Malaysia (OUM) was conducted. Their online pattern of collaboration was also determined. The paper highlights the research and its findings and provides suggestions on future training of the tutors to help ensure the success of online collaborative learning at the university. The findings will be useful to those who are designing tutor training programmes for online collaborative learning

Impact of Discussion Forums on the Final Scores of Post Graduate Students at Open University Malaysia

At Open University Malaysia (OUM), online discussions serve as a bridge between the face-to-face and virtual lessons. However, for the Master of Instructional Design and Technology (MIDT), the online discussions are the lifeline of students and facilitators as the discussion forum is a place where high level asynchronous communications are triggered. As such it is important to identify such interactions and determine if there is a significant impact on the final grade achieved by students. In this study, an attempt was made to analyse the discussion forum using the Ning social networking site (http://hmid6303.ning.com). A total of 14 students enrolled for the fully online MIDT course offered by OUM. The findings from normality test results (Shapiro-Wilk) indicate that the forum scores were normally distributed (significance value >0.05) and final score shows some deviation from normality (significance value <0.05). (Abstract by authors

Does Mobile Learning Foster Self-Directed Learning?

With the ever-evolving educational technology trends, distance learning is now able to provide tremendous opportunities of learning that were barely possible before. Despite that, distance education institutions are still continuing the battle with one of their most challenging issue, which is high learner dropout. There is a notion that learners will be more successful and less prone to dropout when their learning is self-directed (Uba, 1997). Recently, research showed that mobile learning encouraged learners to be self-directed and there was a substantial decline in dropouts (Attewell, Savill-Smith, Douch, 2009). This paper is a further effort to investigate the potential of mobile learning to support self-directed learning and aims to highlight the effect of mobile learning using short messaging services (SMS) on learners’ self-direction for learning. In the study, SMS text messages were sent to mobile phones of science teachers who were undertaking the Bachelor of Teaching Program at Open University Malaysia. Data was collected using survey questionnaire as well as interview method whereby 35 participants responded to the questionnaire and two were interviewed. The assessment of self-directed learning was based on the theories of self-directed learning suggested by Brockett and Hiemstra (1991) and Candy (1991). The findings show how learners exhibited ownership of learning due to mobile learning through their goals and plans for learning, strategies and processes of learning and self-evaluation of their learning. The study also discusses issues that these teachers faced when using mobile technologies for self-directed learning. (Abstract by authors

A Quality Framework for OER

Quality in teaching and learning has always attracted the attention of policy makers, educators, parents and students. It is the bedrock of a quality output-the student and it marks the effectiveness and efficiency of the provider. The quality of teaching and learning is constantly questioned due to many reasons, some of which could be skills and knowledge of the teaching and learning process, the competency of the educator in the content knowledge, the passion and attitude of the educator vis-à-vis the expectations of students. This phenomenon has become more urgent as the availability of free electronic learning resources is equated to higher quality. As a teacher and also an e-learning educator, i find the sharing of open educational resources or OERs freely ( as per CC License) a right move towards increasing the quality of learning and hence democratization of education. However there seems to be some concerns as per the quality of the OERs. After all the whole idea of the OERs apart from “sharing resources freely and making an institutional mark” is also to ensure we overcome the constantly nudging issue of ineffective learning. Now that OERs have been created, it is important to evaluate the effectiveness of these OERs. This paper will first look at some crucial definitions, followed by a review of available efforts on quality of OERs and end with some case studies and suggestions. (Abstract by authors

Teacher Survival in a Web-based Constructivist Learning Environment: A Malaysian Experience

Educators are well aware of teacher support as a form of scaffold that helps learners reach their “zone of proximal development” (Vygotsky, 1978). An online case study conducted over 4 weeks in an elementary school in Malaysia showed that teacher support came in six multiple forms. However, the nature of an online constructivist learning environment presents a difficult task for the lone teacher in supporting all students reach their desired learning level. This paper will discuss the need for intelligent agent technology to support the teacher reach his/her ‘zone of proximal support’