To build an e-learning course, which is to be quite effective, one has to make sure that the method of changeover from traditional teaching to e-learning is managed in the best way possible. Therefore, one who is planning a course has to keep in mind that change management is an approach taken by the individuals involved during the transition from a current traditional course into a future e-learning course. Due to this the person creating the e-learning course has to think about the students who are going to be using this particular course.
Thus, one can say that the conversion management is the fundamental task. If this does not happen the course would be discarded because as Arthur Richardson said, “If poorly implemented e-learning can be seen as a punishment…” The idea behind all this is that if the students are introduced to a new course, they have to be trained for it in order to get used to it. However, if the course needs a lot of training while they still have to be doing the work for the traditional course they are doing right now, they would see the training as additional burden. Indeed, we can conclude that we cannot offer the content of a course, and expect the students to use it without having enough time to get used to it.
To avoid all problems, a person who is preparing an e-learning course has to make sure that six important steps are not overlooked. The six important steps are:
1. Time for implementation – this must never be miscalculated because one cannot expect to see instant results of a changeover because everyone needs time to understand what is new in order to get used to the new system.
2. Development – it is important to involve the students in the process of developing the e-learning course and thus the teachers preparing online courses must correspond with the students who are going to use the same courses. Since the students are the end users it is important to focus on them as the success and failure of the course, all depends on the students.
3. User Testing – the students are the best testers that one has while developing an e-learning course. This is the best method to test the course because this way, the teacher can notice what are the norms of the students and thus refine any development tips.
4. Build quality content – a teacher in a traditional classroom uses body gestures as well as the tone of voice, both of which produce a lot of information which would all be lost when using an e-learning course. Therefore, an online course must be developed in the most functional way where the content is more sophisticated than that used in a traditional class but which would still be understandable by the students.
5. Use technology – having a course offered online leads the producer of the same course to the use of different technology that can be integrated together and used in the most appropriate way. Since technology offers a lot of methods and ideas, one can borrow and combine a lot of factors together.
6. Clarify expectations – since there are a lot more elements in preparing an e-learning course, they are all expected to interact with each other. Due to this, access to different types of data might be needed and thus the students need to acquaint themselves with what can be found and what can be accessed. Consequently tailored material might be wanted so that the students can understand and be trained well. Thus the teacher has to understand what is expected by the students.
Resource:
Douglas J.V. (2002). Six steps to effective e-learning. Retrieved from: http://www.zdnet.co.uk/news/systems-management/2002/05/09/six-steps-to-effective-e-learning-2109917/
A very important and reflective post especially in light of the fact, that as you yourself rightly quoted, "if mismanaged, e-learning can be seen as a punishment".
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand you focus a lot about change management with students, and this post assumes that the teachers are willing to participate in such an e-learning environment implementation. At this point I think that the initial and preliminary work needs to involve both teachers and students as important stakeholders, in the e-learning direction.
We also have to keep in mind that we are living in the 21st century and our students, are used to the online environment and display much more confidence in using this type of environment especially at home, than using for example traditional methods of learning. This means that if designed properly, meaning that if the e-learning environment designed targets the students' needs, one might find less resistance in adopting this technology than one might predict.