Users and Nonusers of ELearning

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Users and Non-usersof E-Learning

• Perspectives of Academic Staff

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E-Learning A flexible definition

• E-learning can be viewed as an innovative
  approach for delivering well-designed,
  learner-centered, interactive, and facilitated
  learning environment to anyone, anyplace, anytime
  by utilizing the attributes and resources of
  various digital technologies along with other
  forms of learning materials suited for open,
  flexible, and distributed learning environments
• Khan (2005)

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E-Learning at SQU

• E-learning is viewed as network-based teaching
  and learning activities that enhance and
  supplement normal classroom teaching and learning

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Effective Online Learning

• Access to technology
• Guidelines and procedures
• Active learner participation
• Collaborative learning
• Transformative learning

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Faculty Adoption

• Confidence that e-learning is going to enhance
  their teaching and/or the learning of their
  students

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Diffusion of Innovation Theory

• This theory describes adoption in phases, that
  is, a minority adopt the technology early, the
  majority next, and finally the laggards who
  adopt late or not at all. The adoption rates form
  a bell-shaped curve

Late Adopters (laggards)
Majority
Early Adopters
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What is happening?

• The need to determine what does motivate faculty?
• The needs and perceptions of faculty members
  should be considered
• The underlying belief systems about the nature of
  learning, learners, and the essence of good
  practice, might be the real reasons why
  instructors decide to accept and use a new
  technology, use it marginally, or ignore it

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Purpose

• the purpose of the study was to develop an
  understanding of the motivating and inhibiting
  factors that affect some faculty in the
  development of pedagogically sound e-learning
  courses

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Method

• A narrative inquiry design was selected to gain
  an understanding from their perspective
• Six academic instructors at SQU were purposefully
  selected to narrate their stories about the use
  of e-learning
• They were selected for variety in data from
  different colleges (faculties) of the university,
  with a variety in cultural backgrounds, and being
  users as well as non-users of e-learning

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Participants

• Users were those who used e-learning
  interactively, whose the e-learning component
  carried marks, met course objectives, and
  involved the instructor in two to three hours
  participation per week
• Non users were those who knew about WebCT (the
  learning management system) or had attended a
  workshop on e-learning and could use a computer
  for email and word processing but still did not
  use the e-learning facility

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Data

• all six participants were emailed a preliminary
  questionnaire
• Two interviews per participant
• Stories were then analyzed for themes

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Belief System of Users

• Focus on independent, autonomous learning
• Emphasis on active learning
• Desire to allow for more learner control to
  students rather than teachers
• Desire to afford expanded opportunities and
  resources for learning
• Learner reflection

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Non-Users!

• In contrast, the teaching and learning beliefs of
  non-users were either ambiguous, or not
  explicitly related to the perceived benefits of
  using e-learning

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Motivators

• Using technology to develop stated learning goals
• Professional development course
• Learning from others

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Inhibitors

• Lack of administrative involvement
• Not understanding how the technology can benefit
  teaching
• Time and technical support

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Users Non-users

• The users and non-users in the study showed
  differences in their beliefs about teaching and
  learning
• The users beliefs were related to the benefits
  of using e-learning technology and, therefore,
  they were motivated to use it to enhance the
  learning of their students
• The non-users in the study either did not have
  clear goals or they could not see how e-learning
  could benefit their teaching. Non users expected
  that they would need to be motivated by extrinsic
  means before they took up e-learning

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• This suggests that support, being an extrinsic
  motivational factor, might be more important to
  the non-users and many of the mainstream faculty,
  but is not a requirement for users of e-learning

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Key finding

• Therefore the key issue is not in removing the
  inhibitors or barriers, rather it is in the
  development of a clear teaching and learning
  belief system that is linked to the educational
  benefits of e-learning in their teaching
• Professional development has been shown to be an
  important factor in the development of the
  underlying beliefs about teaching and learning

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Professional Development
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E-learning Activities at SQU

• General Promotion of E-learning through
• SQU E-learning News- via email (just done two so
  far this academic year)
• the SQU E-Learning Website, and through
• E-learning presentations and workshops in College
  Departments.

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• Workshops in the use of
• LMS software (WebCT and Moodle),
• in FrontPage,
• Quizzes, and basic computer skills workshops

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• Consultation with faculty
• support to set up courses on the LMS,
• technical problem solving,
• support for quizzes during student assessment
• advice and discussion on student-centered
  teaching/learning using e-learning. Some of these
  consultations have gone on to projects

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• E-Learning projects
• One Learning Object project for College of
  Medicine,
• One Blended Learning Course to be designed for
  Medicine,
• One Interactive Multimedia activity for Science

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• Online Courses for the Educational aspects of
  E-learning
• Teaching Online an introduction to Teaching and
  Learning Online, run every semester
• Interacting Online Follows on from the first
  course and run when there are sufficient
  participants.

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E-Learning Courses at SQU
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Student Users
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Online Professional Development

• The Online Classroom an online learning course
• Effective Communication Online an online
  learning course